Halloween Spooktacular Fun For Little Ones

I don’t know about you, but I love Halloween! It is such a fun time of year with all the parties going on everywhere!

Last year was little man’s first Halloween, but at 6 months, he was more cute than anything else. We didn’t do too much more than a “costume” and some pictures. This year he’s big enough to go and have fun!

I jumped on the opportunity to take him to SeaWorld’s Halloween Spooktacular this year! Costumes, candy, dance parties and characters, what fun!!

 

Halloween Spooktacular at SeaWorld Orlando

 

We really had a great time at SeaWorld’s Halloween Spooktacular! Overall it seemed to REALLY be geared towards the little ones, and that was perfect for us. My favorite things are that this special event is included in your regular park admission, it is during regular park hours (i.e. no late nights!) and there are lots of activities going on during Spooktacular!

Little man’s favorite things are the bubbles everywhere, the trick or treat trail (where he could hold his bag closed and try to give his candy/snacks back to people), the dance party and the characters!

 

One of the things available at a small addition fee was cookie decorating. He had so much fun playing with his cookie and eating it!

 

It wasn’t very crowded at all while we were there, it was quite nice! Unfortunately this event is only available a few days in the season – just weekends in October, so we were only able to go once. Next year it is definitely on our must do list! Have you been to SeaWorld’s Halloween Spooktacular?  What was your favorite part?

Follow us for more updates: Facebooktwitteryoutubetumblrinstagram

Baby Care Center – Epcot

This post is the second in a mini series about the Baby Care Centers at Walt Disney World, there will be four total; one for each theme park.

For the first post we went to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and for this installment we will be traveling to Epcot.

 

Signs to the Baby Care Center.

 

Epcot’s Baby Care Center is located in the Odyssey building next to First Aid. It’s about as centrally located as you can get in a park with a lagoon in the middle. Strollers can’t come into this Baby Care, but there is parking right outside the doors.  

 

Stroller parking area, right outside.

 

When you first walk in, there is a little lobby area with a couch, usually occupied by dads or grandparents. There is a short hallway & then you are usually greeted by the Cast Member stationed there. 

Little lobby.

 

To the right is the little play room. There is a TV in there playing Disney Channel or a Disney movie, several chairs for sitting, & some toys for the kids to play with. A minor thing to consider, there is no food allowed in this room. 

Play room.

 

A little further down the hall on the right are full sized adult restrooms. A nice thing to have right there. The hallway ends with the changing room. There are four large, nicely padded changing tables in this room, along with a hand washing sink. 

Roomy changing tables.

 

Continuing back down the hall (as if you were headed to the exit), you have the feeding room/mini gift shop. This room has a few small merchandise displays of Baby Mickey & Minnie plush, rattles, bibs, & onsies. This area has a child sized table and chairs along with high chairs and regular sized chairs for adults. 

The feeding room, with merchandise.

 

The next room is the kitchen & supplies room, very important!! They have filtered water, a microwave, sterilizer, bottle warmer, & a sink. They also carry all those forgot to grab before you left the house/hotel items or things you just run out of. They have bottles, pacifiers, diaper kits, food, sippy cups, formula, juice, sunscreen, sundries & some childrens medicines!

Kitchen/merchandise shop.

 

Items available for sale.

 

Last but not least, is the nursing room. Not my favorite of the four parks, but at least it’s there! This nursing room, unlike the ones at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, which I’ll cover later) is a public one. Only nursing mothers are allowed in the room, but it still holds 4 at a time. The room is quite large, it has 4 non-padded wooden rocking chairs, each side of the room has a small table between the 2 chairs, outlets all over the room for pumping or charging a cell phone, and there are dimmer lights over each chair. If the room is set up properly by the Cast, the four chairs all face the center of the room. A lot of mothers will turn their chair around to face the wall instead. Most of the time when we’ve gone in there, we’re either the only ones or there is only one other person in there. Only once have I ever gone in (and we go at least once a month) and there been a wait, all 4 chairs occupied and one lady nursing sitting on the floor. That is far from a normal day though!

Door to the nursing room.

 

Chairs in the nursing room.

 

Of all four Baby Care Centers, this is our second most visited and our third favorite! Stay tuned for our next installment!

Follow us for more updates: Facebooktwitteryoutubetumblrinstagram

Baby Care Center – Disney’s Hollywood Studios

This post is the first in a mini series visiting the Baby Care Centers at the Walt Disney World Resort. There will be four total; one for each theme park. This time we will be exploring Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

For those who don’t travel to Walt Disney World with young children the Baby Care Centers are completely ignored, or, in some cases, are unknown entirely. Being a Cast Member at the parks I have known exactly where each one is and what they offer. Did I know before I started in 2001 and got my park tour? Probably, but being in the 20 and under group, I would have to say I am sure it was ignored. Now being a mom to a newborn, the Baby Care Centers are my (and Cole’s) new favorite stop!

Disney’s Hollywood Studios would have to be my favorite park for getting in and out of with a little one by myself. I have to walk from the car because the stroller, diaper bag and baby in the car seat are just all too much for me to deal with if I don’t have an extra set of hands. Add that to an almost hour drive to the park, and it’s about time for Cole to want a diaper change and some food! Here Baby Care is located just inside the park on the left within Guest Relation, which, in my opinion, is the only downside. It’s the smallest of the Baby Care Centers, but even during Star Wars Weekends over Memorial Day weekend it wasn’t very crowded in the center. It was, however difficult to get in the doors to Guest Relations because *they* were busy.

 

When you first walk in, you are greeted with a lobby/seating area complete with a TV playing children’s programs (in my experience here it’s usually Little Einsteins), a padded bench, ottoman, two chairs and three high chairs for feeding the bigger little ones.

The lobby/seating area when you walk in.

 

There is also a mini kitchen, with a sink and microwave in here.

Kitchen

 

Then off to the left are two private rooms for nursing. It’s a cozy little room with a curtain door, dimmer light, outlets, a rocker with a padded seat, and small bench. They are small, but I can bring either of my strollers (I have a regular Chicco stroller and then a Baby Trend jogging stroller) in there with me and there is plenty of room for me and Cole. I doubt a double, inline or side by side, would fit and the Disney ones are too wide I think to fit in there though. While he was still small, (and not too wiggly) and I’m usually by myself, I would use the small bench to go ahead and change Cole’s diaper using my travel changing pad. I didn’t want to get him all settled back in the stroller just to take him out in the changing area and do it all over again.

One of the nursing rooms

 

Finally on the right side of the lobby is the changing area. It’s spacious and has two changing tables, a hand washing sink and even a restroom with a child sized toilet.

 

Changing area.

 

Of all of the Baby Care Centers, this is our most frequently used one.  It’s our second favorite!
Stay tuned for the second part of the series- Epcot!
Follow us for more updates: Facebooktwitteryoutubetumblrinstagram

Finding Teachable Moments In the Park: Epcot

When I was younger and we went on family vacations, it was important to my parents that we learned something while we were having fun.

And as we started our family, we made the decision to integrate these teachable moments into our family trips.

I remember my first trip to Epcot in 1986, and all the fun we had talking about what we saw on the rides and the countries we visited in World Showcase. Without a doubt, Epcot was (and still is) my favorite park!

Now that our family lives so close to Walt Disney World, we still keep this tradition alive when we visit Epcot.

I hope that you enjoy this short trip around Epcot’s Future World for some of our family’s favorite Teachable Moments!

httpv://youtu.be/IMKPlD_EIdI

I’d love to hear some of your family’s traditions and teachable moments!

Follow us for more updates: Facebooktwitteryoutubetumblrinstagram