Surviving Disney Summers When Pregnant
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During Star Wars Weekends in May I was really worried about how my body would react since I was five months pregnant at the time. Would I swell? Be uncomfortable? Suffer from the heat? Being a first-time pregnant woman and heading down to Florida during the summer could’ve spelled disaster. And surviving Disney summers when pregnant was a must since I didn’t want to ruin the trip with silly little mistakes I could have easily avoided.
The week before our trip I was obsessively checking the weather to see how hot it would be while we were visiting. My heart sank when the weather app on my phone said it was going to be in the mid-90’s, and there was no rain or cloudy days in sight. Combine that with the Florida humidity and it could’ve been a recipe for disaster.
I was prepared with snacks, water, and having to stop and rest often but other than that I wasn’t really sure what to expect. The Summer weather in Florida can be unpredictable and depending on what it does meant our plans could change. Luckily (or unluckily) it was hot and humid every single day so our plans for the trip pretty much stayed in tact. And I had a few ideas on what to do to make the trip an enjoyable experience for me and the little man I was carrying.
Water
It’s no secret that water is the spice of life when it comes to hot days! But when you’re pregnant, you can either make or break your day with your water intake. I bring my own water bottle (we love this one
) to the parks and fill it up at a nearby water fountain most of the time, but I’m also known to take advantage of the ice water at all the quick-service food locations around the parks. I typically tend to drink about 100 fluid ounces more on park days than I normally do because of all the walking (and the heat) that comes with a visit to the parks. I’ve found that even though I’m constantly having to use the restroom, I feel so much better when I’m hydrated! And when you’re paying a good amount of money to visit Disney, you don’t want to ruin a day being dehydrated!
Eating, a lot
I have to say that I definitely took advantage of this little perk. Any time I felt remotely hungry I’d rub my stomach, stare up at Chris with those big “help me!” eyes, and tell him that baby was hungry and wanted a churro. Worked every time. I hadn’t been diagnosed with gestational diabetes at that point so I took full advantage of the dole whips, ice cream, and churros that Disney had around the parks. Oh, and the S’mores Frapp from Starbucks. Keeping myself full on food and water helped keep my energy levels up and made it easier for me to stay at the parks until the fireworks shows ended.
Lots of resting
There are many things that we did at the parks, but one of my favorites was finding a nice shaded spot to rest and recharge. Chris and I really took it easy this last trip and I am so thankful for those moments of peace on busy hot days. Because Star Wars Weekends are insanely busy, finding a spot to rest got us away from all the people and also helped keep us sane and given us a chance to recharge for a few minutes.
Staying Indoors
Another saving grace was the number of indoor activities that Chris and I could do at the parks. Some of our favorite times of day were spent escaping the heat and watching shows or doing attractions that were indoors. We got a good laugh out of Cast Members standing outside these attractions luring people in with promises of cranked up AC units and then watching those people run in to find relief from the hot Florida sun.
If you’ve gone to Disney during the warm summer months when pregnant, what were your secrets to surviving the trip?