Anyone else have a toddler who's a bit of a maniac?

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

Bless the splash area at Pete’s Silly Side Show in Magic Kingdom, you know the circus themed one. My 20 month old was MELTing down big time from having to get off Dumbo (her fav ride) and as we were passing the circus splash area, her Dad just let her down and she had the best time! Calmed her down, barely anyone was there, and she left a happy camper.

Yes, I am definitely making a map of all the open play areas - the circus splash area looks great!

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

Toddlers are unpredictable under the best of circumstances. My DD is 3.5 and apparently an angel at school (albeit sometimes too curious) and a nutjob at home. She is language delayed which makes it a smidge more difficult but we are all learning.

If your family was anything like ours social interaction has been very limited over the last couple years. It occured to me the other day when we took our kids to AtHome and DD was incredibly fidgety in the shopping cart....OMG she hasn't been in one since she was a year old! Had no idea what was happening, the lights and sounds were a lot. Her older brothers at the same age were errand/restaurant pros...her...nope.

Toddlers/kids right now have had a very different experience than their older counterparts. We as adults need to remember that. Their prime time for learning out of the house social skills was largely interrupted.

Yet I think back to our WDW trip last August and DD was a champ. Our home airport is small so the wait and flight down was pretty good...snacks and the Disney+ app and older siblings helped her stay occupied. The wait to get our bags at MCO not so great but half the kids in the airport were the same...I think most people assumed she was impatient to get our trip going. As far as the actual vacation there were only two issues and those were when the theaters at Festival of the Lion King and Philharmagic when the lights went down. We had positioned ourselves near door so DH scooped her up and off they went while I stayed with our older kids. The dark was too much...lesson learned and ride/shows where it got real dark real fast became a divide and conquer situation with our older kids. One meltdown in AK...wrapped a cooling towel around her and within minutes happy, quiet kid. And which one of us hasn't had an AK heat related hissy? Come on you know even as an adult you've been there.

Our trip was multigenerational as well. Nine people ranging in age from 3 (she had her 3rd birthday on the trip) to 69. Four kids, five adults. We didnt try to stick together, the whole trip and that was probably a really smart move. It was more of "we are headed to this park on this day" and when we were able to hit rides together we did. Met up for one large group table service meal and a couple QS along the way. The families were split into 2 hotels both along the skyliner so we often started/finished/took breaks at the same time. Used the time getting to the gondolas to catch up on what we had thus far experienced and to plan the second half of the day.

One tip I read on the boards was having your travel party/the kids in your travel party wear either the same color or themed shirts. So if one got separated which didnt happen to us (thankfully) you can look at someone else and be able to say oh so and so is in blue or a toy story shirt since everyone else is in something similar. Etsy and amazon also sell temporary tattoos you can put a phone number or any medical info on. Embrace the stroller or baby leash if possible. Trying to walk while carrying a pretzel could slow down a runner too. After a day or so DD would grab the stroller and park her little butt in it as soon as we put her magic band on her in the morning...legit magic!

Just roll with the punches, the smiles and giggles on the little faces more than outweigh any tantrum. And honestly I felt like in WDW all the other families you encounter will have already dealt with a meltdown that day/week. As long as you are prepared and can handle the situation with some grace and humor your child will follow your lead.

I do think Covid hasn't helped things. I don't think he would have been a mellow toddler either way, but he missed that phase where I could keep him in his carseat and he could start to experience shops and restaurants that way. (I kept him in for flu season when he was born and then right after that, in March of 2020, Covid really hit here so he didn't go out much at all those first couple of years.) By the time I started taking him out he could run and was in the thick of the tantrum phase!

Festival of the Lion King freaked out my nephew as a preschooler as well, and he is like the world's best traveler - it's not a show that would stand out as scary to me, but for kids I can see how the darkness and the big animals everywhere (he thought the lions were real) and all the stimulation could be a lot.

I think the biggest adjustment for me will definitely be not doing everything as one big group with my family - we've always travelled that way in the past - but I'll just have to let them know that it's not happening until he's older. After this thread I'm feeling like I could handle a trip where I let him do the park play areas and maybe a few rides if they don't scare him - putting him on a tight schedule would just be a no go though!

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

I do think Covid hasn't helped things. I don't think he would have been a mellow toddler either way, but he missed that phase where I could keep him in his carseat and he could start to experience shops and restaurants that way. (I kept him in for flu season when he was born and then right after that, in March of 2020, Covid really hit here so he didn't go out much at all those first couple of years.) By the time I started taking him out he could run and was in the thick of the tantrum phase!

I second this. Having a toddler right now who was a baby during Covid is a challenge. They've been so sheltered and now that they have some freedom, all they want to do is GO. Coupled with tantrums, an still not really having the verbal skills.... it's been a challenge. We're trying to "train" our little one for our trip in a couple of weeks in hopes that it won't be a complete nightmare, but I'm pretty nervous about how this is going to go down.

 

[ktlm]

I am writing partially to hear advice / stories from those who have been there, and partially in the hopes that I'm not alone in this!

Any other parents have or have experience with a high strung toddler? Did they mellow out as they hit preschool or kindergarten? Or did you wait until they were a solid 9 or 10 years old before attempting travel?

Ah yes-- the "spirited" toddler. I recall the days of other parents talking about their child's 2-3 hour naps. From the time she was born, ours did 15 or 20 minute cat naps--from her third birthday, if you let her fall asleep for even 15 to 20 minutes in the afternoon, you could expect her to be wide awake up playing until 2:00 a.m. or later. We couldn't leave her with our in-laws because there was no way they could keep up with her. We had to put squeaker shoes on her when we took her to the mall or other places, because she was independent and could care less if she could see us and she was fast and an explorer. Woe to the person that gave her the pink cup, if she wanted the blue cup. She insisted she hated butter and would throw a fit if she saw you put it on a waffle or toast or if she saw even the tiniest remnant of butter on her food--- but she actually would not eat a waffle or toast that wasn't buttered-- you just had to hide in the kitchen and sneak the butter on and be sure it was entirely melted and any trace was invisible. I remember the Moms whose kids would put on whatever outfit they told them to wear. DD was one year old when she started having definite opinions and throwing a fit if you tried to get her to wear something of which she did not approve. Parents day at toddler dance class, she ran around the room and in circles around the other kids trying to get laughs from the audience while the other 2 year olds tried to do what they were supposed to- to the point where we wanted to crawl under our seats and pretend she belonged to someone else. The vocal pipes on the kid when she was displeased were astounding.

All that said- you never know how a kid is going to behave at WDW until you are there. We took her a couple of months before her 3rd birthday as they are free before three and as she did love the Disney characters and I love Disney, and she was better behaved there than she ever was at home. She was happy and she loved it it there. I didn't want to go back home. We went again when she was three, and it was the same--- except for when she realized we were getting on the boat from MK to WL to go to the airport and go home, and her Dad had the audacity to pick her up and put her on the boat when she resisted instead of letting her walk by herself. She screamed that entire boat ride from MK to WL. Some sweet lady looked at me and said "It's okay- I never want to leave Disneyworld either". I don't know about the rides terrifying him-- but kids change so quickly at that age, what terrifies him today might be fine tomorrow. Mine was terrified of grass-- like refused to set foot on grass terrified. I will say-- some of it is about control. We learned giving her choices could help. For example-- every day I would pull 3 outfits out of the closet and ask her which she wanted to wear. That ended the clothing battles. She would pick one-- because it was her choice. Only on a very rare occasion when she already knew what she wanted to wear and could articulate that would none of the 3 be acceptable. For a restaurant "choice"-- maybe you can try-- "Okay you can either sit in the booster, or get out and we will let you sit in the chair (or walk with you for a second), but if you make the choice to run around or are loud you are going back in the booster". Ours was usually pretty good in restaurants, although we did sometimes have to walk with her some. "Choices" really seemed to help-- didn't eliminate strong willed tantrums-- but definitely helped.

If you are planning multiple trips and you personally want to enjoy the parks- I would just try it and see what happens. Honestly, at least at WDW a ton of people with kids are there and they understand when a melt down happens. Unless you were one of the first groups in a WDW restaurant for the day, if he has a melt down, you can about guarantee it wasn't the first one they have seen that day. The trip might make you want to pull your hair out, or it might turn out okay. If your family wants a multi-generational trip- I would tell them fine as long as someone gives you a break and watches him for a while if he is making you crazy. You never know what is going to happen in the future, and if everyone is healthy and wanting a multigenerational trip, I would go for it.

Hang on and enjoy every crazy moment. It may not feel like it now, but you will laugh about some of this later. I keep hearing the days are long, but the years are short. Mine is a teen now, and it is true. I would love to have that high strung, wild, never slows down, into everything, makes you want to tear your hair out toddler back to cuddle. They do mellow out somewhat by kindergarten, but they may never be the docile easy going children that some are. Mine has always been a do her own thing kind of kid. She is going to be the kid that asks "why". She is going to think outside of the box. She isn't one to do something because everyone else is doing it. In the teen years, with a high spirited one it can be Jekyll and Hyde-- you never know what you are going to get, and it can change in an instant. Some days I have an incredibly sweet joy to be around- and some days I can get yelled at for looking at her the wrong way- or I can get both in the scope of a 10 minute time period. That said-- the high energy strong willed kids can be amazing. Everyone always told me that I would be glad that she had a strong will in the future because it will serve her well. Mine is super intelligent, super creative, super involved in activities she likes, high achieving, hard working, and I don't have to worry about her following the crowd and getting into things as a teen that she should not be doing. So--- it will be okay. Just keep telling yourself that this strong-will is going to be great for him in the future in helping him to be a success!

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

I second this. Having a toddler right now who was a baby during Covid is a challenge. They've been so sheltered and now that they have some freedom, all they want to do is GO. Coupled with tantrums, an still not really having the verbal skills.... it's been a challenge. We're trying to "train" our little one for our trip in a couple of weeks in hopes that it won't be a complete nightmare, but I'm pretty nervous about how this is going to go down.

Good luck! I'll be curious to hear how it goes if you comment about it!

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

Ah yes-- the "spirited" toddler. I recall the days of other parents talking about their child's 2-3 hour naps. From the time she was born, ours did 15 or 20 minute cat naps--from her third birthday, if you let her fall asleep for even 15 to 20 minutes in the afternoon, you could expect her to be wide awake up playing until 2:00 a.m. or later. We couldn't leave her with our in-laws because there was no way they could keep up with her. We had to put squeaker shoes on her when we took her to the mall or other places, because she was independent and could care less if she could see us and she was fast and an explorer. Woe to the person that gave her the pink cup, if she wanted the blue cup. She insisted she hated butter and would throw a fit if she saw you put it on a waffle or toast or if she saw even the tiniest remnant of butter on her food--- but she actually would not eat a waffle or toast that wasn't buttered-- you just had to hide in the kitchen and sneak the butter on and be sure it was entirely melted and any trace was invisible. I remember the Moms whose kids would put on whatever outfit they told them to wear. DD was one year old when she started having definite opinions and throwing a fit if you tried to get her to wear something of which she did not approve. Parents day at toddler dance class, she ran around the room and in circles around the other kids trying to get laughs from the audience while the other 2 year olds tried to do what they were supposed to- to the point where we wanted to crawl under our seats and pretend she belonged to someone else. The vocal pipes on the kid when she was displeased were astounding.

All that said- you never know how a kid is going to behave at WDW until you are there. We took her a couple of months before her 3rd birthday as they are free before three and as she did love the Disney characters and I love Disney, and she was better behaved there than she ever was at home. She was happy and she loved it it there. I didn't want to go back home. We went again when she was three, and it was the same--- except for when she realized we were getting on the boat from MK to WL to go to the airport and go home, and her Dad had the audacity to pick her up and put her on the boat when she resisted instead of letting her walk by herself. She screamed that entire boat ride from MK to WL. Some sweet lady looked at me and said "It's okay- I never want to leave Disneyworld either". I don't know about the rides terrifying him-- but kids change so quickly at that age, what terrifies him today might be fine tomorrow. Mine was terrified of grass-- like refused to set foot on grass terrified. I will say-- some of it is about control. We learned giving her choices could help. For example-- every day I would pull 3 outfits out of the closet and ask her which she wanted to wear. That ended the clothing battles. She would pick one-- because it was her choice. Only on a very rare occasion when she already knew what she wanted to wear and could articulate that would none of the 3 be acceptable. For a restaurant "choice"-- maybe you can try-- "Okay you can either sit in the booster, or get out and we will let you sit in the chair (or walk with you for a second), but if you make the choice to run around or are loud you are going back in the booster". Ours was usually pretty good in restaurants, although we did sometimes have to walk with her some. "Choices" really seemed to help-- didn't eliminate strong willed tantrums-- but definitely helped.

If you are planning multiple trips and you personally want to enjoy the parks- I would just try it and see what happens. Honestly, at least at WDW a ton of people with kids are there and they understand when a melt down happens. Unless you were one of the first groups in a WDW restaurant for the day, if he has a melt down, you can about guarantee it wasn't the first one they have seen that day. The trip might make you want to pull your hair out, or it might turn out okay. If your family wants a multi-generational trip- I would tell them fine as long as someone gives you a break and watches him for a while if he is making you crazy. You never know what is going to happen in the future, and if everyone is healthy and wanting a multigenerational trip, I would go for it.

Hang on and enjoy every crazy moment. It may not feel like it now, but you will laugh about some of this later. I keep hearing the days are long, but the years are short. Mine is a teen now, and it is true. I would love to have that high strung, wild, never slows down, into everything, makes you want to tear your hair out toddler back to cuddle. They do mellow out somewhat by kindergarten, but they may never be the docile easy going children that some are. Mine has always been a do her own thing kind of kid. She is going to be the kid that asks "why". She is going to think outside of the box. She isn't one to do something because everyone else is doing it. In the teen years, with a high spirited one it can be Jekyll and Hyde-- you never know what you are going to get, and it can change in an instant. Some days I have an incredibly sweet joy to be around- and some days I can get yelled at for looking at her the wrong way- or I can get both in the scope of a 10 minute time period. That said-- the high energy strong willed kids can be amazing. Everyone always told me that I would be glad that she had a strong will in the future because it will serve her well. Mine is super intelligent, super creative, super involved in activities she likes, high achieving, hard working, and I don't have to worry about her following the crowd and getting into things as a teen that she should not be doing. So--- it will be okay. Just keep telling yourself that this strong-will is going to be great for him in the future in helping him to be a success!

Thanks for the great stories - I can definitely relate to a lot of this! I'm glad to hear that your little wild child was able to handle Disney as a toddler - that seems to be a theme in these comments (Disney goes surprisingly better than expected) so perhaps I'll be surprised!

 

[Horvatk]

Just wanted to thank you for this thread - my youngest is a legit maniac and, thanks to Covid, doesn’t have the same exposure to being outside of the home as my first daughter. I’m somewhat terrified of taking her on a plane and to Disney, but I’m bookmarking this for tips!

 

[CookieandOatmeal]

My pandemic 2 1/2 year old is usually super mellow and agreeable. Our trip last week...he went into full "twoager" mode...throwing tantrums when we were trying to get him to go into a restaurant was the worst. It was so stressful because other families kept staring at us. This is a kid that does perfectly fine at home when going out to eat, etc. When he was done with meal time but we were still eating, the usual tricks like giving him his alphabet sheet or numbers book didn't work so we resorted to letting him watch youtube videos on shapes (his current obsession). Again, tables of adults just stared at him watching his video. The worst was at Topolino's where he was totally done with the whole thing by the 3rd time the characters came by. He straight out ignored them! The characters pointed out his screen and the table next to us who didn't see his earlier interactions were shaking their heads. Definitely felt judged a bit but we were just trying to survive at this point. Keep having to remind myself with that scene from Bluey (Baby Race)..."you're doing great". I think our expectations of the trip were a bit skewed since we went in August when he was 20 months old and he just went with the flow. Totally forgot that 2 year olds have their own opinions about everything!

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

My pandemic 2 1/2 year old is usually super mellow and agreeable. Our trip last week...he went into full "twoager" mode...throwing tantrums when we were trying to get him to go into a restaurant was the worst. It was so stressful because other families kept staring at us. This is a kid that does perfectly fine at home when going out to eat, etc. When he was done with meal time but we were still eating, the usual tricks like giving him his alphabet sheet or numbers book didn't work so we resorted to letting him watch youtube videos on shapes (his current obsession). Again, tables of adults just stared at him watching his video. The worst was at Topolino's where he was totally done with the whole thing by the 3rd time the characters came by. He straight out ignored them! The characters pointed out his screen and the table next to us who didn't see his earlier interactions were shaking their heads. Definitely felt judged a bit but we were just trying to survive at this point. Keep having to remind myself with that scene from Bluey (Baby Race)..."you're doing great". I think our expectations of the trip were a bit skewed since we went in August when he was 20 months old and he just went with the flow. Totally forgot that 2 year olds have their own opinions about everything!

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You are doing great, and don't forget it! You're darned if you do darned if you don't when a toddler is in meltdown mode. Keep the peace by pacifying them and you get judgmental looks, let them scream for everyone to enjoy and you really get annoyed looks, ha ha.

Not sure how old precisely your little one is but I noticed that during month 29 - literally almost exactly, from the week my son entered that month to the week he turned 30 months - his tantruming was next level. Things that would have merited an angry "No!" from him before sent him into Stage 5 meltdowns during that particular month. I think sometimes they go through periods of rapid development and those synapses are wiring and firing all over the place and it just throws them off. I noticed that when we came out of that month his language and impulse control seemed to have jumped forward a good bit, so I think it was a matter of a developmental "spurt" (plus two year molars, although those are coming in so slowly I feel like they'll finally cut through when he's 15 at this rate, ha ha.)

 

[Haley R]

You are doing great, and don't forget it! You're darned if you do darned if you don't when a toddler is in meltdown mode. Keep the peace by pacifying them and you get judgmental looks, let them scream for everyone to enjoy and you really get annoyed looks, ha ha.

Not sure how old precisely your little one is but I noticed that during month 29 - literally almost exactly, from the week my son entered that month to the week he turned 30 months - his tantruming was next level. Things that would have merited an angry "No!" from him before sent him into Stage 5 meltdowns during that particular month. I think sometimes they go through periods of rapid development and those synapses are wiring and firing all over the place and it just throws them off. I noticed that when we came out of that month his language and impulse control seemed to have jumped forward a good bit, so I think it was a matter of a developmental "spurt" (plus two year molars, although those are coming in so slowly I feel like they'll finally cut through when he's 15 at this rate, ha ha.)

Omg my ds turns 2 tomorrow and he’s getting his bottom two year molars. It’s been AWFUL! We’ve tried everything. He can’t eat or sleep. I feel so bad for him

 

[CookieandOatmeal]

You are doing great, and don't forget it! You're darned if you do darned if you don't when a toddler is in meltdown mode. Keep the peace by pacifying them and you get judgmental looks, let them scream for everyone to enjoy and you really get annoyed looks, ha ha.

Not sure how old precisely your little one is but I noticed that during month 29 - literally almost exactly, from the week my son entered that month to the week he turned 30 months - his tantruming was next level. Things that would have merited an angry "No!" from him before sent him into Stage 5 meltdowns during that particular month. I think sometimes they go through periods of rapid development and those synapses are wiring and firing all over the place and it just throws them off. I noticed that when we came out of that month his language and impulse control seemed to have jumped forward a good bit, so I think it was a matter of a developmental "spurt" (plus two year molars, although those are coming in so slowly I feel like they'll finally cut through when he's 15 at this rate, ha ha.)

Omg he’s exactly 29 months this month! His tantrums have been next level at Disney. I’ve never seen him like that before. I’m sure the stimulation from the parks didn’t help much. He was also freaking out if either my hubs or I left his line of sight. It was crazy! I wish I could be like my hubs and be more relaxed about people’s judgemental looks. I’ve got a couple more weeks before he hits 30 months.

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

Omg my ds turns 2 tomorrow and he’s getting his bottom two year molars. It’s been AWFUL! We’ve tried everything. He can’t eat or sleep. I feel so bad for him

My guy has been chewing on his hands for literally months - none of them seem to be erupting together, it's one, then another, then another... I do Motrin when it gets bad but I feel like he can't take Motrin every day for months so it's always a struggle to decide when to reach for medicine.

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

Omg he’s exactly 29 months this month! His tantrums have been next level at Disney. I’ve never seen him like that before. I’m sure the stimulation from the parks didn’t help much. He was also freaking out if either my hubs or I left his line of sight. It was crazy! I wish I could be like my hubs and be more relaxed about people’s judgemental looks. I’ve got a couple more weeks before he hits 30 months.

Maybe 29 month old tantrums really are a 'thing' then! I swear we were walking on eggshells that whole month. But to give you some hope - at 30 months my son is by no means a mellow kid and still has some tantrums, but nothing like they were during that month. And now he will accept 'no' a bit more readily and is a little better about following rules when we are out. (We saw a fire truck in a parking lot the other day and I told him "You can look at it but you can't touch it. I awaited the screams and hurling himself on the ground followed by him trying to touch it anyways - but he actually listened and just walked around the truck admiring it! For us that is huge.) So whatever was going on during month 29 I think it was good for his development in the long run!

 

[Haley R]

My guy has been chewing on his hands for literally months - none of them seem to be erupting together, it's one, then another, then another... I do Motrin when it gets bad but I feel like he can't take Motrin every day for months so it's always a struggle to decide when to reach for medicine.

Mine just started this about a week ago. I can feel the bottom two under his gums and felt a sharp point on the top but no bump. He hasn’t been able to eat or sleep for 3 days He was up every 30 minutes all night and won’t nap. We’ve been alternating Motrin and Tylenol.

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

Mine just started this about a week ago. I can feel the bottom two under his gums and felt a sharp point on the top but no bump. He hasn’t been able to eat or sleep for 3 days He was up every 30 minutes all night and won’t nap. We’ve been alternating Motrin and Tylenol.

I'm sorry to hear that! Molars seem to be the hardest because they're kinda flat and take a long time to push through. Thank goodness after this they're done with teeth until they start to lose baby teeth!

 

[Haley R]

I'm sorry to hear that! Molars seem to be the hardest because they're kinda flat and take a long time to push through. Thank goodness after this they're done with teeth until they start to lose baby teeth!

Since he couldn’t sleep last night we ended up giving him melatonin and put a numbing gel on his gums. He woke up this morning with an allergic reaction! Idk which he reacted to but he has hives all over his body and has a fever. I’m taking him to the doctor tomorrow if he isn’t any better. All of this and his birthday is today

 

[UnderneathAMagicMoon]

Since he couldn’t sleep last night we ended up giving him melatonin and put a numbing gel on his gums. He woke up this morning with an allergic reaction! Idk which he reacted to but he has hives all over his body and has a fever. I’m taking him to the doctor tomorrow if he isn’t any better. All of this and his birthday is today

Oh no how miserable for him and for you! I hope he's feeling better soon!

 

[nancipants]

Tantrums are the worst. My son seems to go through developmental spurts and during those weeks he's much more prone to meltdowns. I've been following Big Little Feelings on instagram and just bought their toddler course. Haven't finished it but it's helped already, mostly by helping me keep my cool when he loses it. My son got all his teeth super early, which was awful at the time, but now I'm grateful they're all in!

And Baby Race is one of the Top 5 Bluey episodes.

 

[CookieandOatmeal]

Since he couldn’t sleep last night we ended up giving him melatonin and put a numbing gel on his gums. He woke up this morning with an allergic reaction! Idk which he reacted to but he has hives all over his body and has a fever. I’m taking him to the doctor tomorrow if he isn’t any better. All of this and his birthday is today

Oh no! I hope he feels better.

And Baby Race is one of the Top 5 Bluey episodes.

Omg Baby Race and Grannies are my top two. Whenever I feel bad about my parenting or I feel like I'm pressuring my son to meet certain milestones, etc., I always go and watch Baby Race to remind myself that I'm (and he is) doing our best. Hits me in the feels every time!

 

[nancipants]

Oh no! I hope he feels better.

Omg Baby Race and Grannies are my top two. Whenever I feel bad about my parenting or I feel like I'm pressuring my son to meet certain milestones, etc., I always go and watch Baby Race to remind myself that I'm (and he is) doing our best. Hits me in the feels every time!

And Sleepytime. When Chili says "just remember I'll always be here for you, because I love you." ahhhhh