I'm taking my niece to Disneyland and wanted to know what others have done when your child has to go to the bathroom part way through a line for a ride. Do you ask the people to hold your spot? Or do you just line up again when you get back from the bathroom.

I also heard that you can keep the stroller for the line at Nemo until the last little bit. What happens then, as I won't have another adult or child to hold the spot.

Thanks

I'm taking my niece to Disneyland and wanted to know what others have done when your child has to go to the bathroom part way through a line for a ride. Do you ask the people to hold your spot? Or do you just line up again when you get back from the bathroom.

Honestly? I don't think we've ever had to leave a line for a potty stop - and here's why - we regularly stop.

Proactive bathrom trips are the bomb. Before you go eat, stop. After you eat, stop at the bathroom again. Go regularly.

If the queue is inside a building, leaving and getting back in can be an issue - what if the people holding your spot get on the ride before you get back? Unless you're in a super long outdoor line, such as Nemo or maybe Splash on a hot day, it's not necessarily going to be practical to find someone in line again. Many lines will be short enough (especially on the outside) that saving a place in line wouldn't be all that practical.

Be proactive and this probably won't be a problem.

Adrienne

Oh, I plan on doing lots of bathroom breaks. She is completely potty trained-even at night.

I just read a trip report where it seemed like eveytime they got in line the child had to go to the bathroom.

I just read a trip report where it seemed like eveytime they got in line the child had to go to the bathroom.

Ok - I have no idea whose trip report this is so I'm not making any personal comments about the writer - you don't know how often they were stopping or if the child was using that as a power play.

I have one child who always "has" to go potty. Sometimes he does, sometimes it's a power play. Just this weekend I asked if he had to go and he said no. As soon as I got back from the potty, he suddenly HAD to go. :rolleyes: We go proactively because he will say he has to go at inconvenient times. If we go proactively then when he has to go we can say "You can hold it because you've gone twice in the last hour and you haven't had anything to drink since then." ;) (And if we were at Disneyland, what happened yesterday would not have happened because we would've said "Mom's going to the bathroom- go with her and go, we know you have to.")

Just a couple of thoughts,
Adrienne

I always tell my kids that they'll lose their spot in line if we have to leave for the potty and that will usually tell me if they really have to go or not. We even have a rule that says if one boy has to go potty, the other three have to try while we are there...and we still seem to end up in the bathroom more than we are on rides :p

I agree that "potty" can be a power play. Our son "has" to go potty the minute we have to wait for something...as soon as we are seated in a restaurant, in the movie theater, stuff like that. I have made the pro-active decision, too, and we have fewer problems. When we were in WDW, we went potty just about every time we passed one, and it cut down on the power plays! If she is looking at the ride, and suddenly "has" to go potty, maybe the ride is scaring her...just a thought.

Oh, I plan on doing lots of bathroom breaks. She is completely potty trained-even at night.

I just read a trip report where it seemed like eveytime they got in line the child had to go to the bathroom.

LOL Was this my trip report? Cos I wrote one pretty recently where my almost 4 year old was going ALLLLLL the time. In fact, my favorite ride came to be the Pinocchio bathrooms, hahaha!

Here is what I did:

Every time we walked near a bathroom, we stopped. Everytime Jyl had had more than 1/2 a bottle of water, we stopped. Before getting in the line for Soarin' and for Dumbo, we stopped. And every time we stopped, she went. But for some reason, during the line for Soarin', she had to go. After we had already been inside for awhile. She ended up having to make <ahem> a #2 that was stubborn (trying to put this delicately...LOL). Then later that same day, we pottied and less than 5 minutes later we got in line for Dumbo. About 10 minutes into the line, she had to go again. We discussed our options and she decided to hold it. Immediately after ride, we visited the restroom and she went. So, I think maybe it started becoming a power play? LOL I have no idea. She has never done that before, and hasn't done it since so who knows what was going on with her that day. During that trip, she ate a TON (she is already a little muncher, so this was above and beyond that) and since it was a little warm, we were constantly drinking water. The kid never walked anywhere, was always a full speed run. So, I am thinking she had potty issues because we were so off of our normal schedule AND because she was eating and drinking so much more than normal.

What I would do again:
Go before and after every meal. Go before every large line. We basically went and sat on the pot every 60-95 minutes. Most times she went, even if just a little bit.

We never stood in a line over 40 minutes so for Nemo, well, I would suggest going potty right before you get in line and then no fluids til you get almost to entrance? LOL I have no idea how to handle a 2+ hour line with one adult and one child. Best of luck to you and please be sure to write and let us know how it went!! I won't be going back to DL until Toy Story Mania is completed so we gots a while...

:-D

Yup. It was your trip report.

Actually, my niece was having some digestive problems-we think it is fixed now. She may have had a parasite. Lots of air in her tummy. It could have been an allergy or many other things. It appears to be better-hopefully it doesn't return. My sister was giving her a charcoal solution and antibiotics. It went on for over 2 months. Don't want to get into too much detail-but when she had what ever it was (doctor's haven't figured it out yet) she would make many trips to the washroom.

I always try to make proactive trips to the bathrooms. I am a single mom, and even if I did have other family members in line with me, I wouldn't go to the bathroom and then go back to our former place in line unless it was really simple to do. I am the type of person that would just get back in line at the end again...

If I think it has been a while since our last potty break and we are about to get into a long ride I will tell (not ask) Max that we are going to the bathroom before we get in line. There has only been one time when we had to get out of line to go, no biggie, it is frustrating, but its just one of those things. Then there was his first ride on BTMRR... when we got stuck... and had to wait for a rescue - of course he had to pee then!!!

Much worse than potty issues for me is the task of getting food on your own with a youngster. You are either trying to push a stroller and carry a tray of food to a table in the midst of a complex obstacle course of tables, bodies, strollers, junk, etc. Or you are trying to keep track of a child who is not contained in the stroller and doing the same task. Both are frustrating. Usually you can ask for a CM to carry your tray to a table for you.

I'm so happy that my potty queen is 8 now. My 5 year old can hold it for hours but the 8 year old needs to go often. It's not a power play, when she needs to go she NEEDS to go. She try to hide it sometimes if we are doing something she wants to do but I know the signs and send her. Now that she is 8 and knows the park very, very well I have sent her to the bathroom alone a few times while I stayed in line with the 5 year old.

Thanks Wendi for the information about food with stroller and asking for a CM's help.

I was actually just thinking about how I was going to do meals. Leave stroller or bring it.

Any other tips/things that worked for you that I should know?

Thanks Wendi for the information about food with stroller and asking for a CM's help.

I was actually just thinking about how I was going to do meals. Leave stroller or bring it.

Any other tips/things that worked for you that I should know?

I don't know if this is a tip or not but I have found that CMs all over the place can be very helpful when I'm single parenting it. I have had to get three kids, one under 3, and the stroller on the tram - sometimes we just walk so I don't have to deal with it... I will fold my stroller up (I hate waiting for the front rows of the trams,) and sit in the back most tram car - or in a car where I see a nearby CM. They've helped my kids get on the tram while I deal with the stroller or they'll hold the stroller while I get on the tram or they'll take the stroller from me on the other side of the tram ride so I can get the kids off, etc, etc.

One time we were at Redd Rockett's for lunch - two moms, four kids, a stroller, a ECV and a wheelchair - The CMs could NOT have been nicer. They asked for our order, got our food for us, gathered it at a counter on the side, carried it to the cashier for us, helped us get napkins straws, etc, and then pushed tables together for us so we'd have a big enough space to eat.

The CMs are there to help - don't be afraid to ask for it if they don't offer it! And if you get attitude? Go ask a different CM - they're not all like that!

Adrienne

Another queston: How do you save a spot for fireworks, parades, fantasmic if child needs to go to the bathroom?

I know -go to the bathroom before waiting for entertainment but some of them you need to line up quite a bit before they start. Can I put down a blanket or leave the stroller?

PS. Her digestive problem is back now that she is finished the antibiotics, now she is on a different one. I really hope this is cleared up for the trip! If not I'm thinking I should have her wear pull ups-I don't want to do this but I also want to have a fun trip. I don't want to spend the day in the washroom.

Another queston: How do you save a spot for fireworks, parades, fantasmic if child needs to go to the bathroom?

I know -go to the bathroom before waiting for entertainment but some of them you need to line up quite a bit before they start. Can I put down a blanket or leave the stroller?

PS. Her digestive problem is back now that she is finished the antibiotics, now she is on a different one. I really hope this is cleared up for the trip! If not I'm thinking I should have her wear pull ups-I don't want to do this but I also want to have a fun trip. I don't want to spend the day in the washroom.

Unattended items may be removed from the area by security if they are not in a "stroller parking zone". A blanket may even be removed by another park guest thinking that someone just left it. I would not use this as a means to "save a spot". Is there anyone else you can take with you to help "save spots"? Unfortunately, without another person with you it might be difficult if not impossible to save your parade viewing, firework viewing or spots in line.

As a parent I have had to leave shows, fireworks, etc several times while my son has "needed the change" so I understand that it might not be what you want to do or hear but without an additional person I don't know what luck you would have in strangers just allowing you in and out of lines, etc.

Unless you're setting up extra extra early, there's likely to be someone else waiting for the fireworks/parade/whatever too. Just have a small blanket that the two of you are sitting on (even a beach towel) and ask someone nearby if they would watch/save your spot for you while you visit the restroom.

I WOULD make sure and set up somewhere where it's easy to get to the nearest facilities (i.e., on the same side of the street, etc)

Another queston: How do you save a spot for fireworks, parades, fantasmic if child needs to go to the bathroom?

I would make friends with the people sitting next to you. If I was sitting next to a mom and child, and the mom asked me to save her space while she took her child to the bathroom, I wouldn't have a problem doing that.

I would make friends with the people sitting next to you. If I was sitting next to a mom and child, and the mom asked me to save her space while she took her child to the bathroom, I wouldn't have a problem doing that.

Exactly what I was going to say. It is very natural to strike up conversations with the people around you while you're all camped out for shows, etc. I would go ahead and leave your blanket (if you have one to sit on) and ask the people around you if they would mind saving your spot. Of course, I would never "count on" this method, I will always expect that if I need to get up and go, I may forfeit my spot and have to relocate when we return, but it is certainly worth asking. It probably helps if you spread out a large blanket and then invite others to sit on it!!!

As far as using pull-ups on a potty-trained child, I don't think it will fly at all for the child. They do not want to wear "diapers" and they certainly do not want to have an "accident" no matter where they are. It would probably be really hard on her emotionally to just say that it's OK to go in her pull-up this time, KWIM?

I would make friends with the people sitting next to you. If I was sitting next to a mom and child, and the mom asked me to save her space while she took her child to the bathroom, I wouldn't have a problem doing that.

I would suggest this too. I am sure they would not have a problem with it, especially if it is a family who would totally understand!

I realize that all children and situations are unique. This is my experience with our daughter's potty issues.

A few months before her first trip to DL, she began having to go all the time. (Well, it seemed like it.) Although she wasn't having pain, our pediatrician indicated that she probably had a small urinary infection. One symptom is the recurring sensation that you have to go to the bathroom, even if your bladder isn't full.

Well, I just imagined how I would feel if I was experiencing that and people around me were doubting my sincerity. So, instead of asking her if she really had to go, we would ask her if she would rather wait in line or try to go potty right then. We were in the bathroom A LOT. Yes, we suffered from the time spent, but she was suffering more. So we just tried to be empathetic.

In addition to a physical ailment, I can understand the psychological affects of bathroom timing. Personally, I can't leave the house without hitting the bathroom during the last minute. Even if I go 5 min. prior, I fear that I will be stuck somewhere without bathroom accessibility! When I'm in a long line or at a movie, I usually have to go. (Maybe it was from all those years of my parents telling me that I'd better go now... at least try... you may not be able to go again for a long time... )

We do still tell our daughters they should go in and try on certain occasions (before seeing a show, riding a long time in the car, standing in a long line, etc.). However, if the timing doesn't always work out (we have to stop, leave, find a bathroom, whatever), we just roll with it.

Oh, and our youngest did practice the "power play" with it for awhile. She would sometimes say she had to go if she was bored or curious. And then when we'd get there, she'd admit that she just wanted to see what the bathroom looked like. Aaargh; I would just tell her that I found this extremely annoying and inconvenient, that it makes it kind of difficult to know when she's telling the truth and that it's very important for me to trust her. Thank goodness that passed quickly!

I don't think anyone answered the OP's Nemo question yet... You can take the stroller all the way to almost before you board and then a cast member will take it from you and place it by the entrance. It's a bit of a walk back to it when you get done with the ride, but better than standing in line without it for sure!