Booked it and have questions (high functioning autism)

[teachallday]

>>I can't get maps beforehand b/c we booked so late. Hard to plan without park maps! <<

In planning the trip for my DD7 - I knew she was functioning more at a preschool (3 year old level) than her actual age. I found on the Disney site a place called: Traveling With Little Ones ( http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/planning-guides/in-depth-advice/traveling-with-little-ones/ )

There is a link on that page - on the right - that will bring you to the Magical Beginnings Parks Maps. They look really good, pointing out the rides and attractions at each park that would be of interest to Preschoolers. My little one may not be a preschooler anymore, but her interests are at that level. Like your daughter, mine would much prefer Little Einstiens than some of your more typical Disney Characters.

For our trip this summer, I know my little one and I can not tell her ahead of time. She has no real concept of time so if I tell her she thinks it will happen now. I have done calendar count downs (putting a sticker on each day marking off the days till a particular event), but over the years we have just found it easier to tell her at the last minute. Anything more than 24 hours ahead of time is hard for her to understand and manage. We are much better telling her on the car ride to something, than tell her the day or week before. Now with this said, that does not mean we don't do prep ahead of time.

At Christmas we definately had a Disney Theme to all the gifts. Even the DVD's she got, were all purchased to introduce her to various characters she would meet at the parks. (believe it or not her favorite of the MANY characters on the various DVD's were Chip and Dale - Although the first DVD's she went to were the Playhouse Disney ones, the first one she wanted to watch over and over was a Chip and Dale DVD). Her clothes all had Disney Characters on them. She even got a Princess Luggage set. Doing this theme, especially with the clothes, has brought her attention to some of the Disney Princesses and interest in some of them. Humorously, she fought us for 2 weeks after Christmas resisting wearing the Areil clothes, but then went to wanting the Ariel ones almost exclusively . Unfortunately the Playhouse Disney outfits only went up to size 5T and she is now in a size 6.

So, I understand the waiting to tell your daughter. I am planning on doing the same. I haven't decided when I will tell her, but it will be less than 24 hours from when we get within viewing distance of Cinderella's Castle. I figure I can't hide the destination once she see that (and since I am hoping to stay at the Contemporary Resort she will see it at soon as we arrive). I am not looking forward to keeping her calm between the time I tell her and when we actually get into the park.

 

[fausz4]

Good luck to you! We took our DS when he was 9 to WDW for the first time. We used alot of the suggestions given here (earplugs, mp3, fidgets) to get us through the lines and waits.

About telling or not telling before had - whenever we can-we tell our DS what to expect. You need to do what is best in your situation.

For that trip we purchased the Guide Book from Birnbaum's Walt Disney World for Kids by kids! It was truly a God send. It is written very well! We gave it to him a few months in advance and he read it over and over again! (There are great photos and maps also!) I actually let him take it into the parks with us. It was neat to hear him talk about an attraction that he read about in the book. It also has a place for autographs (although we had seperate books).

For our current trip I have given him our old Unofficial Guide to WDW for him to read (he is now 12 and the ...WDW for kids book... is too young for him - although he disagrees) he still reads his old book.

Without this book - I cant imagine what kind of trip we would have had...it was that helpful.

Have a great time...take a deep breath and watch the magic come alive in her eyes!

fausz4

 

[disneydeb]

we did a december trip with my 5 yr old dgs and had the time of our lives, first thing i did was to get a GAC card, that was really a life saver, i did not promise certain rides for the pure reason there were some rides we could not get on and had reached their quota for the day, what we did is go at a slow pace, i brought the stroller my daughter was complaining that my grandson would not sit in it but as grandma knows best he sat in it and wouldnt let me move it til he buckled up he would have been too tired by the end of the day if we didnt have it, when we went ot magic kingdom i parked it in fantasy land next to cinderellas castle inthe back and we walked that section then we went to adventure land and parked in one space and walked around and so on , we did not rush in the am we went to parks around 1030 every am and then had lunch first as we are not breakfast people then we did rides and at 230-3pm i made everyone have a snack popcycles and ice cream one day , french fries and a drink another day, this kept everyone from melting down too much and gave us a chance to rest and regroup, then more rides, supper whatever rides we wanted to do then back to resort for swim or spash pool, then snack before bed, showers, and off to sleep repeated the sequence next day different park, worked out beautifully. get the gac card that was tthe biggest lifesaver of all, also when waiting for the busses back to the resort if it was too crowded and we were going to stand id wait for the next one and then we all had a seat, hope this helps , as for telling her , i told my grandson the day we were going to the airport, but i told him i was going to disneyworld he said can i go with you (he always wants to go with me wether its the grocery store or for a walk or on vacation) and i said sure c'mon lets go,and he did. heres dsending you pixie dust have a great trip

 

[berries]

I told her, I should have known, I can't keep such a huge secret! I checked out tons of Disney guidebooks from the library and that is what she has been doing ever since--going through them all! The kids guide book I was a bit worried to give her, as the scary/dark markers on each ride looked like it would terrify her. But she is more interested in seeing if she is tall enough for the rides or not! I am SO glad! I hope she doesn't resist riding anything because of the darkness or scariness markers in that book!

Last night we did look at youtube too. She wanted to see pictures of the rides. So we watched a few. She seemed afraid of ALL of them except the teacups and Dumbo which I told her we aren't riding. I heard they always have such long lines and she has ridden similar rides in the past not at WDW. I would rather her ride other rides and spend our time doing things we can only do at WDW. By the end of watching some videos, she complained of a tummy ache. She is SO nervous now about going.

Hopefully she will feel better by the time we actually go and she has more time to learn about the rides and how fun they are.

 

[mechurchlady]

I know you want to try new things but what if we never did old things again. I would never ride a pony or horse again, never ride a swing ride, and never ride a carroussel again. Let her have fun on the familiar things and be happy. Happy kid means less meltdowns and maybe she will try some other rides.

With the dark rides tell her you will take a penlight so she will have her own safe light with her. Fear of darkness is common is all kids. Now she can be a part of the planning. See so far so good. It takes time with kids to get some to ride rides. It may be annoying to do Dumbo 10 times but if she is happy then is that not why you are going?
hugs and chocolates
Laurie

 

[berries]

I am all about what makes her happy and if the only thing she will willingly ride is Dumbo, you will see me in line for 3 hours if that is what it takes. I just know she will love some of the other rides too if she will give them a chance!

I tried to explain that the videos really can't let her know how it FEELS to actually be on the rides. The realistic features is what makes WDW so cool! That is why she loves the Omnimax movies so much! I think she will enjoy herself once she is actually on the rides. Leading up to them and worrying will be the issue.

Oh and I pulled up character meets on youtube and she watched some of those. I wasn't sure how she would react to them as she hasn't done well in the past. (It has been a while) She seemed so excited about meeting the characters and getting their autographs. I was right about Little Einsteins though---she was more excited about them than any of the others.

 

[berries]

Oh the others that she wants to ride, I hadn't planned on, are the water rides. I thought March would be too cool to do those! Of course those are on her must-see list! Because she HAS done those in the past. See once she does something and knows what to expect, she is fine with doing them again. But first time on a ride is difficult and nerve wracking.

 

[mechurchlady]

Same for me, was scared of Space Mountain but now ride it when I can. You will need an autograph book and a fat pen. The sell them for a lot of money at the parks. You can buy them or make a nice book for her. The pens are the out of this world priced. Just keep your eyes open for a cute and fat pen because the costumed characters and gloved princesses cannot hold the skinny pens so well.

Get a fast pass for later in the day for water rides or bring a change of clothes for the kid. You can leave them in a locker. It is a trip back up front but a MK you can take the train around to Main Street.

I remember one mom posting on the board that her kid did not want to go to WDW. You will have a wonderful time. Sounds like you have a great kid.

 

[berries]

I had this all mapped out in my head. I already ordered the Disney autograph book with pen IN a case so easy to carry. As I figured it might be difficult to get her to take a pic with any characters UNLESS she has a job to do--get their autograph. I am one smart mommy--if it works out. LOL So far it looks as if I was right! She is excited about the autographs.

Maybe we can save the wet rides for right before lunch and then go to the resort to change out of our wet clothes. Probably when the longest lines are as everyone has thought of that.

I know the space ride made me think I would be claustrophobic inside of it but I was fine once on the ride! So I totally understand that!

 

[mechurchlady]

It is a long way to the resort. It would be easier to change in a companion bathroom and then walk around in the sun. I read recently about a mom with a wet kid and the meltdown that ensued. Imagine walking from Splash Mountain all the way to the front entrance then to the transportation then getting back to the resort.

There are not that many water rides at the parks. Pirates is a lap dampener at most. The Kali Rapids and Splash Mountain can drench people. Make a list of water rides and you will see there are few that drench you.

If you do do lunch you could do counter service and find a warm spot to warm up if the weather is on vacation.

 

[ireland_nicole]

It's ok; you can absolutely do Dumbo; go first thing in the morning. If you're staying on site go the morning of am EMH. Then you can get in a few before it gets crowded. If she's fixated on Dumbo, then do that first! From there she might do the carosel, and you might get in on a lot more rides that way. Keep up the You Tube viewing, she might hit on rides she likes!

FWIW, even though dumbo is a typical hub and spokes ride, there is something magical about this one! It really is worth doing

 

[berries]

Makes sense to take a change of clothes! I see what you are saying about the time to get back to the resort. Where are the lockers at WDW? I am so afraid of getting my camera wet too but don't want to NOT bring it!

I am still not sure about the extra hours. It seems we can go to a park one hour early or stay 3 hrs late. But not both. We are only doing one park a day.

So should we go early or stay late? We aren't early risers but will for WDW. May be irritable. Will the lines not be so bad during those late hours? Dd doesn' t sleep well and yes she CAN stay up that late and does most nights!

 

[AJKMOM]

March is Spring Break for colleges, and can be somewhat crowded. Not as bad as the time around Easter and Christmas, though.

If she really wants to ride Dumbo, just get to the Magic Kingdom on an early Extra Magic day-you can find out online at the official Disney web site- and go straight there. Most will be heading to Space Mountain first.

I hope you are able to relax and have fun, the first trip is the hardest.

Also, don't worry about what some stranger in line or on the bus might think of you and your family. If you do, you might as well stay home because there will be people who are rude, stare and make comments. Ignore them, or explain about your daughter if you want, but don't feel guilty about her behavior.

WDW is a great place to visit with special needs people, they are very accomodating. That's why my 20 year old autistic DS has been 14 times, going for 15 in November on his 21st birthday.

 

[mechurchlady]

I am still not sure about the extra hours. It seems we can go to a park one hour early or stay 3 hrs late. But not both. We are only doing one park a day.

So should we go early or stay late? We aren't early risers but will for WDW. May be irritable. Will the lines not be so bad during those late hours? Dd doesn' t sleep well and yes she CAN stay up that late and does most nights!

They rotate the EMH so that some days Epcot is open late and some days it is open early.

It is good to keep your home schedule so for me WDW is 3 hours later for me. 7 am is 4 am and midnight is only 9 pm. The best time is early but not if you are half a sleep and doing the Zombie. You need to be well fed, no pain, no worries and alert in order to do the parks most efficiently. What ever gets the job done and fits the kid's schedule you should do.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/earlyentry.htm
In the morning you can get there early and walk over to rides like Snow White and be first in line even if you do not do Dumbo.

http://www.stitchkingdom.com/kidcot/
Kidcot Stations are fun places to play. Get stamps from around the world.

http://www.stitchkingdom.com/discovery/
Animal Kingdom version of Kidcot

http://pages.prodigy.net/stevesoares/
A list of street performances which is nice to keep the kid entertained.

 

[jands]

My son loves those koosh balls - they're filled with air and still really squishy. We brought one on our last flight and had no problem. You might want to try some of those - they come in many different sizes.

 

[teachallday]

Extra Clothes

- I wouldn't buy a locker, I would just keep them with the stroller that you are going to have for your daughter.

 

[berries]

Won't they be stolen? I am a little confused by the advice on WDW website on this. If water rides can wet cameras, clothes, etc...leave them with the stroller. But then advice is to leave nothing with the stroller--take everything on the rides in case of loss/robbery. So do we lug our bags of extra clothes, snacks, etc with us on every ride? Where do you put your stuff on rides so they don't fly out?

I am so confused by this! I have ordered a fanny pack but clothes won't fit in it!

Thank you!

 

[blondietink]

We leave things with our stroller/travel chair all of the time and have never had a problem. The only thing I make sure I take on a ride is our camera and video camera. I already have my money in a pocket, so don't need to worry about that either.

 

[teachallday]

Won't they be stolen? . . . So do we lug our bags of extra clothes, snacks, etc with us on every ride? . . . I have ordered a fanny pack but clothes won't fit in it!

Anything that can not be replaced like your daughter, camera with precious pictures, personal identification, that one sensory toy your DD can't be without are all things you take with you on to the rides and do not leave in the stroller.

Other things can stay in the stroller. If extra clothes, snacks, or a bottle of water is stollen, it may be inconvienent, but it will not be a disaster. They can all be replaced. Just don't have your daughters favorite outfit as the spare clothes.

I also recommend something I saw in another post, that you customize the stroller in some way so someone does not walk off with it by mistake thinking it is theirs. Like tying a bandana around the handles, tie a balloon to it, etc.

 

[mechurchlady]

Theft is parks is minimal and I have never had anything stolen. Pins were stolen by pin traders at DLR but they were an unsavory lot. People take strollers only if they do not think they will get caught and if the stroller is ordinary and usually an accident. I have even left stuff I bought in the ECV with no problem at DLR.

If you are using a "Stroller as a Wheelchair GAC" then the you would have the stroller with you in the line and would leave it on the loading platform where CMs are located. People are not going to steal clothing. Also take zip-loc bags and dump wallets and cameras into that if you do have something of value like a camcorder.