To Stroller or Not to Stroller - the Burning Question of the Theme Park Visitor

So you’ve decided to take your family to Disney or Universal - YAY!! You’ve got some important decisions to make. One of the most difficult to decide is if you are going to take a stroller or not. Sounds simple but there are a lot of factors that go into the decision. Today, I’ll help you decide.

Your kids’ ages will play a lot into your decision. If you have an infant that you’re fine carrying in a sling, then you might get away with not pushing a stroller. If you have a toddler that has a hard time following the rules of holding hands then you may need the stroller just to make sure they stay with you at all times. An older child may be great at walking on their own and staying with you, but may lack the stamina to walk many miles in a day. If you think you’ll skip the stroller, be sure to do long walks ahead of time to get those little legs ready!

Here are my pros and cons for using a stroller:

Pros for Using Stroller:

• Gives your child a ride and you can move quickly through the parks rather than dragging them along

• You have a place to store your bag/food/drinks/souvenirs in the stroller storage

• If you rent one outside the parks or bring your own, you can use it to get to the bus and to your hotel (you do have to fold it up on the bus)

• Gives your child a place to nap while you shop/dine/wander the parks

• If you have a kid that tends to dart off into crowds, the stroller can keep them right where you want them

• When it’s hot, it’s nice to not have to carry a hot little body up against you

Pros for Going Without Stroller:

• You don’t have to navigate the stroller through crowds

• You can’t take strollers into most attractions so you have to take it to the parking area and find it when done with attraction - without it you can just jump in line for the attraction

• You have to fold the stroller up when boarding Disney bus transportation - if your child is sound asleep, you may have to do this with one hand while holding your child so make sure it’s easy to fold!

• Florida is notorious for thunderstorms that sneak up on you - you will probably need a rain cover if you have a stroller

• Just one more thing to keep up with

• You may not have a place to store your packages but remember if you stay on site, you can always have them sent straight to your resort

• You’ll need to bring a bag (I’d suggest a backpack) to carry anything you might need. If it’s a hot day, you’ll want to bring lots of water!

• Stroller rentals aren’t free - you’ll save a few bucks that you could use for a Dole Whip!

Drool - a hazard of no stroller!

Backbreaker!

No stroller gives some of my fav pics!

Easy Naptime

Pics aren't so great when everyone is smushed in a stroller!

Don’t be afraid to call an audible and change your game plan when you’re there. If you get a few hours into your day and know that your child just won’t make it, go to the stroller rental!! It may cost you a few dollars more than if you reserved it ahead of time, but may save your sanity if you’ve got a toddler in meltdown mode.

I LOVED the last few trips we went on with no stroller. My kids are obviously older now and we didn’t need one but there’s something thrilling about graduating from the stroller days. Ask me tomorrow though and I may cry at the thought of not needing a stroller while I watch my oldest drive an actual car…

All families are different and have different circumstances. Call me and we can chat about your specifics and I can help you with your choice!

Disney World... The SCARIEST Place on Earth??

Although in my mind, Disney World is most certainly NOT a scary place, there are some scary elements to be aware of if you're heading there with small children.  

There are some obvious scary things that parents are prepared for like thrill rides intended for adults.  A few off the top of my head are the Tower of Terror, Mission: SPACE, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster...  

But there are a few rides that you think of as family friendly that just might make smaller ones a bit nervous.  I love the Haunted Mansion, but as a kid that one can be a little spooky.  Check out one of my favorite videos of Luke's reaction when he was 3.

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And it's not just my goofy little kids that have been known to be nervous on this ride.  I love this picture while on Haunted Mansion - Ryan looks a little nervous.  But check out the kid in the Doom Buggy next to us.  His Dad just decided it was too much and covered the kid's face.  Hilarious! (Maybe not to the kid).  I would still recommend this ride to families, but just know it's dark and spooky and think about if your child could handle that.

Another potentially scary part of the parks is the noise of the fireworks shows and parades.  Andrew hid from us once (causing ME to be terrified) during a parade because he didn't like the noise.  And he likes looking at fireworks but the noise bothers him.  Wish I'd have thought back then to take ear plugs along to help him enjoy these parts more.  If you have one that is nervous with loud noises, plan ahead and take those ear plugs.

Dark areas, even those that have no scary elements, can bother a lot of kids.  We let the boys take tiny flashlights with them the first time they went and if they got nervous in a dark part of the park, they could turn them on for a minute to calm their nerves.  I would also recommend taking a nightlight for your hotel room as those are either pitch dark at night or you have to leave the bathroom light on which seems super bright!

Security can also be an issue for some children.  Something about the officers in uniform and everyone crowding around can cause anxiety.  Mention it to your child ahead of time so that they are prepared for it.  And once in a while, there will be a security dog on duty.  If your child is afraid of dogs, letting them know that one may be nearby may help.

Of course, I've seen tons of kids that have a complete meltdown when approached by Characters.  The good news is that most characters now have Meet-and-Greets and are rarely just out wondering in the parks.  But once again, just prepare the child in advance.  The characters are awesome though about realizing that the child doesn't want to be approached and you'll probably not have any problems in this area!

Please give me a call if you're thinking about a Disney trip.  I have a list of rides and how my kids handle them that can certainly help when you're planning.  And remember my services are always FREE to plan and book your trip!!

An Honest Account of the Amazing Highs (and a few lows) From Our Disney Vacation

I tend to only talk about the positive aspects of a Disney Vacation.  I am, after all, hoping you'll book a trip through me and have an amazing time!  But I know that no trip is ever perfect from beginning to end.  You'll hit some bumps along the way - but after reading this, I hope you'll see that the highs completely outweigh the lows.  

The HIGHS!

This kid.  This kid right here made my whole week with one amazing morning.  We ran the runDisney Half Marathon together.  It could have been a disaster.  He had a broken toe and a hurt arm in the weeks leading up to the race.  With that and his school/sports schedule, he didn't get in many long runs.  

And then the worst happened and 2 days prior to the trip, we all got the nastiest stomach bug I've ever encountered.  I wasn't sure he'd be able to stand up on Saturday, much less run 13.1 miles.  On the monorail to the race, I kept looking at him thinking he looked pale and tired and it was never going to happen.  

We hadn't slept much the night before (you have to be on the monorail by 3:30am) and then we had to walk 1.5 miles to get to the start line.  As if that wasn't enough, we stood in frigid temperatures (34 degrees) with shorts on (I'm Mom of the Year and didn't think we'd need tights) for a couple of hours waiting for the race to start.

Having also not eaten much for days, it's a wonder we made it to the race.  But when we crossed the start line, Ryan ran his heart out.  We only stopped for a restroom break once and we'd walk while we took a sip of water.  Other than that, we ran the entire race.  

I'm still amazed at him.  I KNOW he was tired and hurting but he never complained.  And with a half mile to go, he actually said, "Mom, I'll let you cross the finish line first if you want to beat me."  

I felt like crying - and you know I'd already gotten teary-eyed running through the castle!  I didn't let him let me win - how embarrassing for your 46-year-old mother to beat you.  But it was so sweet that he was willing to do that!  

There may have been a bit of complaining in the next couple of days about sore feet but that was a tiny little low compared to the high of him running his first half marathon with me!!  I'd had dreams of running a race at Disney and thanks to him, I did it. 

Kid #2!!

I always feel a little guilty taking Andrew to amusement parks.  He goes and he says he has a good time, but he just doesn't like to ride most of the rides.  So he stands in line for quite some time with us and then goes out the exit when we get on the rides. 

A lot of people - scratch that - MOST people would complain about the waits or about standing in line for a ride they're not interested in, but he really doesn't.  He willingly holds all of my stuff - my heavy backpack and camera.  And he'll even try to get a pic of us on the ride - like this awesome one here:

He was such a trooper this trip.  I wanted to hit 4 parks in one day and he was up for it.  I wanted to stop a take a picture with Peter Pan.  Fine by him.  I wanted to ride Small World one last time.  No complaints.  So thankful for the good attitude and sweet spirit in this boy!

Kid #3!

When we started planning this trip, I mentioned to the boys how much I'd like to go to eat in the Castle.  With all boys, I'd never considered eating a meal where 5 different princesses come by your table.  Luke went through the "Rapunzel love" phase when he was 2, but he's 10 now.  (Do yourself a favor and look at his Rapunzel phase here!)  I suggested they go play golf and I would just be that weirdo eating by myself in the castle. 

But Luke offered to go with me.  I know he wasn't a huge fan of it.  This pic of him with Cinderella is quite different than his past pics with Rapunzel.

When the princesses came around during breakfast, I told them he was my photographer so he took all of the pics of us.  I think he enjoyed that much more than being fawned on by pretty girls!  Again, there was no complaining!  He was happy to take the pictures and I'll forever appreciate his company on our Castle date!!

Kid #4!  Ok, so I don't have 4 kids.  But I do have to give credit to the guy who took us to Disney.  This may shock you but Don isn't the Disney fan that I am.  He really doesn't like crowds or standing in line or public transportation which doesn't help.  I know he'd rather go on a camping/fishing/skiiing/lake/anything else trip so I appreciate him going on this trip with us!  Not only did he pay for it, he had to take off work to go on his not-so-favorite trip.  And did I mention the stomach bug? Yep, he also got to fly on a very queasy stomach.  Maybe a bit of eye-rolling that he didn't think I saw, but there wasn't much outward complaining. 

I'm thankful to have a husband that gets that I'm a super Disney nerd and puts up with me!

The LOWS...

All-in-all, I don't have much to put here.  The crowds last week were much higher than historically encountered this time of year.  So lines were longer and people were just everywhere.  I think in the past, we had been lucky to be at off-peak times and were a bit spoiled.  One thing I learned this trip is that it's ok if we all aren't together all the time.  

A few times Don and one or two of the boys went back to the hotel for down-time.  Although I want to spend every second in the parks, I get that they needed to do that.  I think that made our time together ever better.  

We had sore feet for sure.  The day of the race, I got in more than 50,000 steps!  But if you go in knowing that you'll be walking and prepare for it, it's not such a big deal.  

Also with the crowds so high, it helped that I had planned ahead and made dining reservations and secured FastPasses.  You'll have plenty of Lows if you have to wait in line at each and every turn.  

The sore feet and eye-rolling will not be what I think of when I think back on this trip.  The fun memories and great pictures will be all that I remember - and I will remember it often!!

I'd love to help you plan a trip with a bunch of HIGHS and a few tiny LOWS.  Call me and let's talk about it!!

Bad Behavior 101

There are some things people do that can make for a less than magical time for those around them.  Today's post takes a look at some of those bad behaviors and what we can all do to avoid them.

Pay attention when pushing strollers so that you don't ram them into the backs of others.

Don't take flash photos on dark rides - this ruins the ride for all others.

Throw your trash in the trash cans for crying out loud!  And if you have gum, don't toss it on the ground.

Follow directions!  And for kids that are too young to understand, you have to be paying attention to keep them safe.

Don't ignore and argue about height restrictions for rides.  If your child is too short, they shouldn't ride for safety reasons.

Don't just leave your stroller parked wherever you feel like.  There is designated parking and you'll come back to find yours has been moved if you left it somewhere else.

Don't feed and chase the wildlife!

There are a few places to get alcoholic beverages.  Know your limits and don't become that person that embarrasses yourself (and your family).

Stay off of your phone while on a ride. The light is annoying and distracting if you are trying to enjoy the haunted mansion or any dark ride.

Complaining loudly and rudely to cast members will get you nowhere fast.  If there's truly a problem they can help you with, they will.

Dress appropriately for a family park - no shirt, no shoes, no service!

No smoking in non-smoking areas.

Basically, be kind and considerate of others - always!

I'm Going to Disney... Again?

I'm actually not going anytime soon (but do have trip planned for Marathon weekend in January - more to come on that in the future!).  But anytime I tell someone that I'm going to Disney, they always have the same reaction.  Again??  Yes again!  It's obviously not my home but I really do feel at home while there.  Something I really love is that the cast members at every resort I've ever stayed at on Disney property always say, "Welcome home" to me while checking in or returning after a day at the parks.  Insert warm, fuzzy feeling here!

This is the sign as you enter Magic Kingdom.  And it tells it all - I love visiting my favorite older attractions from years past. And since I'm not able to go as often as I'd like there tends to be something new each time I go.  Just this summer, Disney is opening the new Pandora land and it won't be too long until the new Star Wars and Toy Story lands open. So I'm always excited to experience new things.  The best part of the sign though is the Fantasy.  

I'll never get too old (I hope!) to believe in the Magic of Disney and the feeling that dreams and wishes do come true here.  Even if it's only for a few days, that's an amazing feeling.  Throw in the fact that I don't do dishes or laundry and it truly is a dream come true!!

Disney allows - and encourages - everyone to be a kid again.  I love traveling with my boys to a place where they can act Goofy and it's totally normal!  I wish daily for time to slow down and my kids to stop growing older and I feel like it really does happen when we're at Disney.

Here's proof:

So when people ask why Disney again, I feel like they never quite understand when I say that it feels like home.  I could go into the unbelievable customer service Disney provides, the amazing attractions and shows, the mouth-watering food, the wonderful resorts and pools...  But the main reason I return is a feeling that you won't know about until you've experienced it.  Call me and let me help you get that feeling for yourself!!