Taking your little ones to Disneyland is super magical, but sometimes we forget that the bigger kids enjoy the magic too! It may look a little different, but the magic is still there as long as you let it grow and cultivate it! I recently took my almost 11 year old son on a trip to the Disneyland Resort. He may not have been interested in waiting 35 minutes to see Mickey Mouse, but there was so much he did want to wait for and enjoyed. Here are the 3 things I did to cultivate the magic and help him plan the trip he wanted to take!
1. Watch YouTube Together-We watched plenty of Disneyland YouTube videos to prepare. From snacks, rides, and merch, we watched it all. It was a fun time for us to spend together and plan things we both wanted to do.
2. Make A List-We both made our own lists of snacks and attractions we were hoping to eat and see. We separated it by Disneyland Park, Disney’s California Adventure and Downtown Disney. This helped us keep our plans in order and plan the foods we were going to share.
3. Let Him Document- He took his own camera and autograph book. To be honest, I thought he was going to think he was too old for an autograph book, but he took one on his own and made sure he had a good pen for the characters. He told me which photos he wanted and even asked PhotoPass Cast Members to take his photo on his own. He loved seeing the photos and is excited to print them out for his autograph book.
Taking a bigger kiddo to the Disney Parks was definitely an experience for me! It was so special to share the planning and magic process with him before, during and after. I would recommend this trip to any parent or guardian who is thinking about it!
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