this.
we go so slowly through the parks. we mosey, we stop to look at whatever she wants to linger over and we snack. because a happy kid is worth more than “getting to everything”.
I think there are some really great suggestions here! The only thing I wanted to add was don’t feel bad about it - we had a family in front of us in the line at Winnie the Pooh with a toddler. It was hot (June), the wait was longer than anticipated and this poor kid had just had it. He had a full blow tantrum in line. The mom looked mortified and scooped the toddler up after a few attempts to calm him down, while apologizing profusely to everyone around as they exited (the dad stayed with the other kids). I told her not to apologize - we’ve all been there! We know what it’s like to have our kids reach the breaking point…it’s all about how you handle it!
DS had his meltdown in front of The Plaza restaurant (because we wouldn’t go back for a Pokémon he desperately wanted to catch). The CM saw the tears and immediately came over to help us - she asked for his autograph and got him calmed down. I was so grateful.
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We have lots of littles here! Mine are 7, 5, 4 and 2 and we have made 3 trips to Disney the last 3 years. Our go to treat for waiting in lines are dum dum suckers! They probably ate 10 per day each! Ok, so not that much since we used TP and didn’t wait in many lines.
Also we do better with lunch ADR’s. We rope drop and by lunchtime are ready to get away from the crowds. Dinner ADRs don’t work as well because after our afternoon swim/rest the kids are ready to do rides and such, they don’t want to sit for a meal. And I am the same way! I also wanted to encourage you that it will get better and you will get to eat out again one day soon!
Last, stroller fans are a must if it’s hot!
Everyone’s child is different, as are the parenting styles. What worked for us was having a folding stroller for our children. Many times they wanted to walk, but the stroller was there when they were tired or when I needed to put them in time out. (when they were walking it was a great place to stash my purse, otherwise known as the ‘bottomless bag of holding’ by the rest of the family).
We did have to put my little one in a time out at the Great Movie Ride once. DH just missed the ride while he stood in a corner and the rest of us went on, but we didn’t take afternoon breaks (staying offsite), so he would have done better with a nap/break.
If you think your little one will be jealous of a ride her older brother gets, split up. Take her one way and let your son go with dad (or you) on the ride. Essentially, head off the tantrum before she discovers the ‘injustice’ of being left behind.
People say don’t cater to your kids, but on vacation, you want things to go smoothly. It’s not catering to your kids if it’s maintaining a pleasant vacation for all. You can teach them lessons about fairness and sharing and patience when you’re at home.
Finally, a huge majority of people who are also there will have kids now or have raised kids. They will sympathize with your plight if she has a meltdown. Don’t worry about them. No one is judging you.
Know her triggers and act on them before she does!