Brian:
On our trip last month we "lost" our 9-year-old son off Main Street in Magic Kingdom. It was the longest hour of my life and I kept soothing myself with the fact that it would be a good learning experience to share here with readers.... We had taken all the precautions with our
4-year-old, but never imagined we'd need to talk to our
older children.
My recommendation for you:
- Identify your child (I like your bracelet idea for a young princess). We tie a luggage tag onto the belt loops of our youngster with his name and our cell phone numbers.
- If you have a digital camera or cell phone with the capability, take a picture of your family before you leave your resort each day. You'll be able to share that photo with a cast member if needed.
- Even at the age of 3, talk to her about the "what if" scenario and how to locate a cast member. Each of them wear an easily identifyable name tag. Discuss this at the beginning of every day.
- Consider dressing your daughter in bright, colorful clothes rather than the ubiquitous white t-shirt that's easily lost in a crowd.
A few things to avoid: 1) Don't be tempted to write your child's name and phone number with a Sharpie on her arm. I can't imagine what family photos are going to look like, not to mention the amount of scrubbing to get it off! 2) Stay away from "leashes" or balloons. The crowds at the parks do not lend themselves to cords that can entangle other guests. (Our best asset to help our little guy keep up with us is a simple stroller!)
Lastly, when your daughter gets a little older, talk to her about having a special meeting place in case you get separated--a location that is easily found at each park. In our case, we would have had a lot less stress and could have gotten back to enjoying the parks a lot sooner!
Wishing y'all a magical vacation!
Whitney