Taking 4yr old & maybe 9 1/2mo old to WDW

[happy76]

I'm looking for some advice. My husband & I are planning to take my daughter to WDW in Sept 2012 as a late 4th bday present (5 nights, 6 days). We're thinking about leaving our youngest with the grandparents. She'll be 9 1/2 months when we go. I'm having 2nd thoughts about leaving the baby at home. She's only 3 1/2 mo old now & I can't imagine not having her with us. Has anyone else gone to WDW with a 9/10 month old? Or has anyone left their youngest with family/friends while they took the older kid(s) to WDW? Thanks for any advice or suggestions!

 

[Mrs.Skellington]

I'm looking for some advice. My husband & I are planning to take my daughter to WDW in Sept 2012 as a late 4th bday present (5 nights, 6 days). We're thinking about leaving our youngest with the grandparents. She'll be 9 1/2 months when we go. I'm having 2nd thoughts about leaving the baby at home. She's only 3 1/2 mo old now & I can't imagine not having her with us. Has anyone else gone to WDW with a 9/10 month old? Or has anyone left their youngest with family/friends while they took the older kid(s) to WDW? Thanks for any advice or suggestions!

We have been with a two month old once and her older siblings were 1 year 8 months and 5 and 15. It was very easy. We go with a large group and utilize rider swap.

A year before, our son was 10 months old, siblings 4 and 13. Again, relied on everyone in our group to help.

My best suggestion is separate stroller for the baby. If the older child wants to go play and the baby needs a nap, you can take them to the "baby center" and nurse or feed them, rock them. anything you need to do.

We look at it like a family vacation, and I could not leave my family home. Just my out look and no one would judge you if you decided to leave the baby home. Most people on this board would be like "less strollers = better for me"

Just a question, are you driving in or flying?

 

[SugarMagnolia]

My husband and I took our 10 month old grandson last year. He had tons of fun. He enjoyed the rides and meeting the characters. Everyone said we would regret it but it was definately one of the best trips ever.

 

[Sumrdog]

We took our son at 10 months and we had a great time. He loved riding in his stroller looking at everything. We took him on the rides that he could enjoy and then baby swapped him through the fast pass line on rides he was too little for. Our older daughter loved this because she got to ride twice in a row. We even took him to Cirque Du Soleil and he sat quietly in my lap through the whole thing.

We took a relaxed pace, returned to the hotel for afternoon nap everyday, which I think my husband needs just as much as the kids. We were usually up pretty early and able to see a lot in the mornings when it was cooler out.

Our only problem was that the very first character meal we attended was Play and Dine with the Little Einsteins and he did not like them. Something about there giant smiling faces was not right to him. After that he was afraid of all the characters and would try to flee his high chair when they came near. On his last trip at age 3 he was no longer afraid.

I have heard people say, "why are you taking your baby to Disney he is never going to remember it?" and I say to them, "but I am going to remember it!" We go to Disney World because we love it and sharing it with our children just takes a little adjusting for their age but it can be just as much fun. I don't think you will regret it if you take your baby.

 

[happy76]

Thank you for your advice & suggestions! My husband & I decided to put our Disney family vacation on hold for a while. I just couldn't bring myself to leave my youngest daughter at home, and I don't think we're ready to take such a big trip with the baby.
Mrs. Skellington, we were planning to fly out of Philly. We thought about driving from Pa to Disney, but decided against it.
Again, I thank all of you for your posts! I will definitely be checking these forums when we start planning our vacation.