2 year old in park...mask issue

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Nope not advocating for it. Pp made it sound like it’s as simple as threatening the child that they won’t go if they don’t comply, but that’s not as easy with a younger child.

Many things are harder with a young one, as I'm sure you understand.
 
If your child is 2 or older, it is your responsibility to make sure the rules are being followed. If your child won’t/can’t wear it all day, then going somewhere where they are required is not a good idea.
OR like most things with having a 2 yr old, you do your best.
 
My kids are older, so it is a non issue, but how about telling him that Mickey won't let anyone in his house unless they wear a mask. And you don't want to make Mickey sick or cry, right? Mickey WANTS us to come and play with him, but ONLY with a mask! Mickey can't wait to see your mask and you can SHOW it to him from a distance! If you take the mask off, Mickey will make you go home so he doesn't get sick and that will make him so sad. Lets practice. :)
Unfortunately, that strategy might not work with all kids. I could see it also leading to a meltdown with a strong-willed kid who is struggling with mask-wearing and is now being told they just made their hero cry because of it.

Fortunately my strong-willed 4 year old willingly wears his mask but is constantly touching the outside of it. He is learning to sanitize after he does so, and his dad made him a mask that is one color on the inside and another on the outside, so we can just say "don't touch the green part."

I am stressing about the possibility of masks still being a thing in April. Hoping life will be more normal then. A group of us signed up for Star Wars run weekend. My oldest will be 5 by then and hopefully better with mask hygiene. My youngest will have turned 2 by then, and I don't know how she will handle a mask. Maybe I will luck out and she will idolize her brother enough to wear one.

FWIW, I saw on FB in the comments section of one of those "magic is here"/"make today incredible" ads, someone posted pictures of their family at the parks with a 2.5 year old not wearing a mask. Not sure if that was just for photos. I was curious how they did on rides though, since someone said kids would be turned away from rides if they didn't have a mask on properly.
 
Unfortunately, that strategy might not work with all kids. I could see it also leading to a meltdown with a strong-willed kid who is struggling with mask-wearing and is now being told they just made their hero cry because of it.

Fortunately my strong-willed 4 year old willingly wears his mask but is constantly touching the outside of it. He is learning to sanitize after he does so, and his dad made him a mask that is one color on the inside and another on the outside, so we can just say "don't touch the green part."

I am stressing about the possibility of masks still being a thing in April. Hoping life will be more normal then. A group of us signed up for Star Wars run weekend. My oldest will be 5 by then and hopefully better with mask hygiene. My youngest will have turned 2 by then, and I don't know how she will handle a mask. Maybe I will luck out and she will idolize her brother enough to wear one.

FWIW, I saw on FB in the comments section of one of those "magic is here"/"make today incredible" ads, someone posted pictures of their family at the parks with a 2.5 year old not wearing a mask. Not sure if that was just for photos. I was curious how they did on rides though, since someone said kids would be turned away from rides if they didn't have a mask on properly.
I guess it depends on how obvious the age of the kid is. DS was 26 mos when we went & no one said a word to us.
 
OR like most things with having a 2 yr old, you do your best.

Uhhhhhh...no. In this particular situation, the rules most definitely need to be followed. It’s a public health issue. If a child is not able to comply for whatever reason, then the parents need to make the choice to wait until the child is able to wear the mask. If everyone had this attitude, there would be tons of maskless kids running around. They can spread the virus just as well as anyone else.
 
Uhhhhhh...no. In this particular situation, the rules most definitely need to be followed. It’s a public health issue. If a child is not able to comply for whatever reason, then the parents need to make the choice to wait until the child is able to wear the mask. If everyone had this attitude, there would be tons of maskless kids running around. They can spread the virus just as well as anyone else.
Actually the research seems to indicate that very young kids do not spread the virus for some reason. The other issue is most ppl don’t know how well they will do with a child that young until they’re there. We did what we could to keep the mask on & maintained our distance if/when we couldn’t. So a child who is 23 mos & 29 days cannot spread it, but the moment they turn 2, they can? Nonsense.
 


We are heading to Disney in early September with our just over 2 year old son. He’s learning how to wear a mask and is doing ok but what if he has a tantrum or refuses to wear one the entire day in Disney. Would they ask us to leave? We’d make sure he was more than 6ft away from anyone if he takes his mask off. Thoughts?
Big issue is we have a non refundable DVC rental so we kind of have to go or be out several thousand dollars.
I just had a very different reaction to the OP's question, and it's more a funny one. It's been a long time since our kids were 2-3 years old. But thinking back, I believe it might've been a bigger challenge to make sure they were 6' away from others than it would be to have them wear a mask. At that age, their movements were so unpredictable (and quick!) at Disney! In some ways, it's another reason to try and enforce with them they need to wear it. There are too many distractions at Disney that they'll be drifting off and looking at before you realize it (when not in a stroller - our kids did more walking than strollering, but that might not be the case today)! I don't envy the challenge at this time.
 
Actually the research seems to indicate that very young kids do not spread the virus for some reason. The other issue is most ppl don’t know how well they will do with a child that young until they’re there. We did what we could to keep the mask on & maintained our distance if/when we couldn’t. So a child who is 23 mos & 29 days cannot spread it, but the moment they turn 2, they can? Nonsense.

The research seems mixed, and there is increasing evidence that young children can spread the virus. There isn’t a ton of evidence one way or the other, largely because very young children haven’t been in public/group settings as much as adults. I’ve been paying close attention as I had to decide whether or not to send my 4 year old to preschool this fall.

Anyway, there has to be a line somewhere. It IS dangerous for babies to have masks on. The CDC has concluded that 2 years of age is when it’s safe for a child to wear a mask. A 23 month old and a 24 month old aren’t substantially different, but again, there has to be a line somewhere and it can’t be arbitrary.

Everyone needs to abide by Disney’s rules. If your child can’t or won’t, you need to wait. It broke my heart to postpone our trip, but I know that my son (and I) wouldn’t last long enough in masks in the heat to make a trip worthwhile at this point. We need to wait until masks aren’t required.
 
I just had a very different reaction to the OP's question, and it's more a funny one. It's been a long time since our kids were 2-3 years old. But thinking back, I believe it might've been a bigger challenge to make sure they were 6' away from others than it would be to have them wear a mask. At that age, their movements were so unpredictable (and quick!) at Disney! In some ways, it's another reason to try and enforce with them they need to wear it. There are too many distractions at Disney that they'll be drifting off and looking at before you realize it (when not in a stroller - our kids did more walking than strollering, but that might not be the case today)! I don't envy the challenge at this time.

As the parent of a preschooler, this is soooooooo accurate. My son starts school in a week and a half, and I’m constantly reminding him that he can’t hug his friends. He used to get in trouble last year for hugging other kids without their permission. He does fine with the mask indoors in the air conditioning, but not hugging friends is going to be a tough one!!!
 
As the parent of a preschooler, this is soooooooo accurate. My son starts school in a week and a half, and I’m constantly reminding him that he can’t hug his friends. He used to get in trouble last year for hugging other kids without their permission. He does fine with the mask indoors in the air conditioning, but not hugging friends is going to be a tough one!!!
Actually, I have to say that is a tough one for us adults right now, too - hugging friends and loved ones.... Definitely keeping that to a minimum, sadly.
 
We are heading to Disney in early September with our just over 2 year old son. He’s learning how to wear a mask and is doing ok but what if he has a tantrum or refuses to wear one the entire day in Disney. Would they ask us to leave? We’d make sure he was more than 6ft away from anyone if he takes his mask off. Thoughts?
Big issue is we have a non refundable DVC rental so we kind of have to go or be out several thousand dollars.
Hi,

Hope you are well! I'm just following up. How did your trip in early September go? I have a tripped planned in mid November with a 2 year old.

Thanks!
 
As a Disney travel planning site, discussions about Disney's policies and rules are very welcome here. However, discussions of or instructions for ways to circumvent those rules or "cheat the system" are not appropriate and will be deleted.

Since the Walt Disney World policy clearly states that all guests 2 and over must wear a face mask and the mask policy for Orange County, FL (where WDW is located) is still in effect, discussion bypassing this policy is not allowed.

Whether we personally feel the policy is right, wrong or flawed is immaterial as it is the policy currently in place at Walt Disney World.
 
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