Originally Posted By mousemaid I am taking my 8 month old to Disneyland for Christmas. It is the first time my entire family ( parents and siblings have been able to take a family vacation in over 20 years together. I know my son won''t get much out of Disneyland at this age. The trip is more for us adults. We will have plenty of people to hold the baby and spell each other off with but I was wondering are there any rides he can go on if he is in a Snugli or held in our arms.For example IASM, Pirates, Carousel etc. Any information would be appreciated. Thanks in advance. Oh if there is anything else we should know about taking a baby please let us know. My husband I have gone to DL many times but having a baby will be a new experience!!
Originally Posted By imadisneygal The baby can go on any attraction without a height requirement. Both of my kids were at the Parks at a very young age and it went great! This includes Pirates, it's a small world, carousel, etc. The Disneyland.com website will tell you each attraction that has a height requirement, but most of them are common sense - the roller coaster type attractions, etc. There are lots of attractions in Paradise Pier area that look like they're for everyone but they have a height requirement. Just check the website or your guidebook on arrival and you'll be all set. There are Baby Care centers in both Parks if you need to get any extra essentials. They're a great place for feeding but I usually used my stroller and fed them while they were sitting either in the stroller or in my husband's lap. They have a breastfeeding room, high chairs, a microwave, etc. Also, remember that there is a child switch pass available at all attractions, so if a member of your party has to stay off with the baby then that person and one other can go back on the attraction without waiting in the line. Just ask at the attractions for the child switch pass. It works great for the roller coasters. Sometimes, though, there's a member of your party who doesn't want to go on anyway and they stay with the baby. You'll have a great time!!
Originally Posted By imadisneygal Yes, post number 2 sound perfectly reasonable. (rolling eyes) If you can't say something nice....
Originally Posted By nemopoppins Is your baby 8 months now or will be 8 months in December? That makes a big difference because even though he will get a little at 8 months, he'll get a lot at 13 months. My daughter at 10-1/2 months loved IASW. She even remembered it when she got home, pointing to it in a book and shrieking. Generally, your baby can go with you on any ride that doesn't have a height limit. Maybe some others can think of exceptions but I'm in a rush now. Autopia does have a 1yr old limit. I admit I've cheated on that. Depending on your baby's temperment, he may not like rides or shows that are too loud or too dark or you might be afraid to take him to a show that's too quiet if he's a screamer. But I've had 7 children and all of them always went on everything, height limits excepted, even the ones that were infants during a particular trip. When they get a little older, one or two were a little afraid of a couple of rides, but with infants you don't have to deal with that. Poor me, my seven year old has this silly idea that she will be scared of Nemo. If she won't go, I'll find someone to stay with her--that's the benefit of going with a large group like yours.
Originally Posted By familyguy Why does my comment have to be mean? I have four kids and we have gone every year and I have left the babies behind when they were that young. In my personal experience it doesn't end up being much fun for anyone involved. I didn't tell her to leave her kid behind, I said I would. What's so bad about that? I don't think it's mean to leave a little baby behind that won't remember the experience anyway. She's got a large group going to help...SWEET...I didn't have that. Maybe one should follow their own advice..."if you can't say anything nice..." Is rolling your eyes at someone who posts their opinion or experience nice? My intention wasn't to be mean but your was. If I had anoth baby, (which will never happen...4 is a BIG handful) I would leave the baby with grandma when we went to DL until probably 2. That's me. You can do what you want, and I do what I want. Thanks.
Originally Posted By GPMike We took 8 month old twins. For a week. Gramma came with us, and she and the kids had a nap break at the hotel for a couple of hours every afternoon. We live in Alberta, Canada, and "leaving them at home" was not an option. It would not be fair to our older kids to not go at all, and everything worked well (there is nothing in either park you cannot do with parent switch passes etc.) the twins are now 5 and we have been to the Parks every November since they were born. Each year the magic changes for them, and we can't bear to miss a year because they enjoy things in a different way each trip. Having said all that, if I'm familyguy and live close to the park and have someone to watch the baby for the day, maybe I would get a sitter and take the older kids.
Originally Posted By EighthDwarf I second familyguy's comments, I'd leave 'em behind if possible. I have two little guys and they made the happiest place on earth the most miserable place in the universe when they were really young. That being said, that was the last time I got them on Pirates without a fight (they are now old enough to be afraid of the "waterfalls"!)
Originally Posted By wonderingalice <<She even remembered it when she got home, pointing to it in a book and shrieking.>> Mr. Alice does this too... In terror. (Jus' kiddin'... kinda ;-)
Originally Posted By bean DOn't forget to take lots of pictures. You could end up with some of the most memorable pictures of your young child in that trip. Many children are keen to the sounds and smells of some of those attraction. I bet you and the baby would have a blast in Flicks Fun Faire riding the hemleich caterpillar ride. I bet the baby might even find the Nemo attraction interesting. I would actually sit him at home and play a couple of the Disney movies so that he gets familiar with the sights and sound of the characters. Another thing would be to download a few tunes of different attractions. You could find them online. This will give the baby a sense of familiarity when you do go to the park and give him some comfort. Prepare him with the sites and sounds of the parks it would deffinately help so that both you and him have a memorable experience
Originally Posted By mater4 I went to DL every year since my DD was 2 and my son since he was born (he is almost 4 now). I never had any troubles taking a baby you just need to be prepared to stop and take care of your childs needs. For some people this is a pain since it requires you to slow down.However I would not rely on family members to take care of your child unless they offer or are waiting for everyone to go on a ride they don't want to go on.That being said DL is a baby friendly park where you can go on most rides without worries.
Originally Posted By nemopoppins wonderingalice, you had me rotfl! We've never slowed down much, maybe small children require a slightly little slower, but never for a baby, except maybe for diaper changes. I really think it's no big deal. Just enjoy yourself.
Originally Posted By imadisneygal Familyguy, I think your comment was rude for the fact that it didn't answer the original poster's question. She didn't ask "Would you recommend taking my 8 month old or leaving her at home?" If she asked that, then your post would be completely appropriate. However, she IS taking the baby to Disneyland at Christmas time with her family and asked for hints to enjoy her time at the Resort. My eye rolling was for what I considered to be inappropriate and unsolicited advice.
Originally Posted By KCCHIEF My 7 year old started going to DL twice a year at age 11 months....it was all good...we did the switch off on the bigger rides..but I remember taking him on Dumbo, Small World and POTC....
Originally Posted By jodiefra I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how much you can do. Also take advantage of the "switch passes" that let you swap taking care of the baby without both of you having to wait in line separately. Ask the first cast member you run into at the beginning of the attraction line. If your baby is a stroller sleeper, you'll be in luck -- you can pretty much do what you want during nap time with the use of the switch passes and the ability to take the stroller to so many places. Have a great time : )
Originally Posted By berol It can be helpful and appropriate to give an option that the poster may not have considered. I struggle to see the rudeness in that.
Originally Posted By momofbuzzfan mousemaid....we went to DL a couple of years ago during the Christmas season with my family, my parents and my sister's family. It was a wonderful family trip. My sister's daughter was 7 months old at the time, and she seemed to have a wonderful time. My youngest was 22 months at the time, and it was probably easier for my sister taking care of the 7 month old. She was contained in the stroller or being held, and my sister brought in jars of baby food and bottles....so she was easy to feed. She just ate her normal food! Plus she just napped in her stroller when tired. She loved going on the rides...so much so see. She went on everything she could...which was a lot. Also the baby stations are wonderful, and all (or at least most) of the bathrooms around the park have clean baby changing stations. One thing to remember....both of the girls were scared of the loud fireworks, so have a place to duck inside (or ride Pooh over and over) like we did - in case they don't like them. I'm sure you will have a wonderful trip. And as a previous poster said (something like, I think?), it just gets better each year. Its so much fun when they start to remember rides, and are excited to go back..
Originally Posted By familyguy imadisneygal, can you imagine what a horrible place these LP boards would be if every time a comment was made in a thread that wasn't EXACTLY on topic or didn't PERFECTLY address the original posters question or concern we all cast stones at them? Rolling eyes at them and calling them rude and making them feel stupid? I'm so happy that this isn't a place like that and, with the exception of whenever you feel like a comment didn't meet your standards, we can freely post our opinions or experiences without being roasted. I'm sorry that you were SO offended by comment. Please forgive me. I don't post anything on these boards with the intention of upsetting anyone. So that I don't upset you in the future, try to understand that not everyone thinks like you do and does things like you do them. If I say something that you don't agree with, don't get upset, just understand that I'm different. You may be surprised, but none of my kids hate me for leaving them behind when they were babies. They are all just so happy that I taken them every year since about age 2! I don't think I've caused any serious psychological damage. Anyway, it was an innocent comment. Sorry it caused problems.
Originally Posted By nemopoppins I understand that sometimes a response can just hit someone in the wrong spot. To a lot of women the thought of leaving a baby is incredibly horrible. A lot of men could do it without blinking. Coming from such different places it's easy to misunderstand the other. Okay, I'll just sit back and wait for you to get mad a my claiming a difference between men and women. Let me defend myself now. I was speaking generally. Sure there are exceptions, that's why I said "a lot" not "all."
Originally Posted By imadisneygal There are definitely differences between men and women - and between LP'ers as well. I'll take the comment as FamilyGuy says it was meant...an option that the OP may not have considered. All is well...
