ID's for your children

[EmmMOM2]

Anyone take safety precautions incase their kids get lost in the world? My DH is making cards with pictures and their info on them...but i'm not sure where we will put them.

Do any of you use anything similar when vacationing in WDW?

[Rekenna]

This will be our first trip with our DS 2.5, he likes to roam....we put a leash on him, but I am still worried.

I saw a tip on another post where someone said they use a sharpie and write their cell # on their child's arm. I think that is what I am going to go with. I don't think DS would keep an ID tag on.

On another post someone was making a type of bracelet with the ID info.

Have fun!:mickey:

[LittleRoosMommy]

I just purchased bracelets for my 2 DDs. They are the silicone style bracelet. I had their name and my cell phone number placed on it. Just in case something would happen. Also, I am going to talk to DD 4 about who she should go to if she would get separated from us, i.e., show her what a CM looks like (ID tag, clothing, etc.)

Hope you have a great trip!!

[Gregandmel]

We did the same thing with the silicone bracelets - has his name and my cell phone # on them. I ordered 2 for him. He's 8 and although he SHOULD stay with us - I just know him well enough that when he sees something that catches his eye - he will RUN towards it like there is a fire! ha ha. I'm just worried that my dh and I will be looking in the opposite direction when he takes off and suddenly - BOOM - no idea which way he went. We've had multiple discussions about what to do but hopefully we won't have to try and find him. Precautions in a place as large as WDW is a really great idea.

[Briansmom]

Our DS9 has special needs and for his first trip this past May, that was my major concern. I made id/contact cards and put in a sleeve on a lanyard along with his GAC card. I also laminated more of these cards, punched a hole in them and put on his shoe laces. I also made labels with the same info and put on the back of his shirt every morning.

Luckily we didn't need any of these precautions, but it made us feel better knowing we had covered these bases.

I hope you have fun!

[tinklover]

for our trip in June we ordered temp tattoos and wrote the info into teh slots with a sharpee. the girls knew that if they got lost to go to a CM and raise their sleeve to show the CM their tattoo with the info.

[the other micki]

We are within driving distance to WDW, so we don't use the luggage tags they send us on luggage...instead, I take out the little sheet of paper in them and make my own sheet of paper that says, "I've lost my parents!" Then, I put all of our cell #'s. There is a hole at the top of the luggage tag, so put a safety pin through there and pin it to their shorts. The castle pic on one side, our #'s on the other! I make sure to tell the kids who to go to if they become lost (i.e. a cast member, or if they can't find one of those, a mother with young children).

[Breochaid]

We also have an upcoming trip and this was a concern of ours too. The silicone bracelets sound like a good idea. Our DD will have just turned 5 and our DS will be 2.5. Our DD loves wearing bracelets, necklaces etc. and DS will do whatever big sis does. Where did you purchase the bracelets from? I would like to get them.

[DisneyBabies]

These are all great ideas and we are using several of them for our trip in Feb with our son. One word of caution though. Make sure the information is easy to read (ie large writing) because CM's are not allowed to touch the children; not even on the arm to read the info on a bracelet. One CM posted in another thread a while back that the best idea is an ID tag in a clear sleeve (like on a lanyard) and write the info as large a possible on both sides of the paper so that no matter which way the clear sleeve is facing, the info can be seen easily. If you write the info on your child's arm, make sure it is clearly visible at all times. The CM said sometimes children get so frightened that they forget that their info is under their sleeve and it makes the info useless.

[thumperbug]

Go to website safteytat.com. You can order temp tatoos with your cell # or any other # on it. Put a fresh one on your child each day and heaven forbid they get separated from you there is a number on the childs arm where to reach you right away.

[disneygeek84]

I make sure to tell the kids who to go to if they become lost (i.e. a cast member, or if they can't find one of those, a mother with young children).

I was going to say this, too. We were always taught that if we couldn't find a CM, to find someone with children and ask them to help you find a CM. We were also taught to not go out of the park with them, but to ask them to help you find a CM. Luckily, I never got lost, but it made my parents feel better to know that we knew what to do in case we did lose them.

[nyobabe2]

This website has velcro ID's that go onto your child's shoes, I think they are about $7. Worked great. Just need a thin sharpie pen to write the info inside of them.


whosshoesid.com/_lost+child.html

[irish1967]

We got both our DS (one is 8, one is 11) dogtags this summer - we told them that if they got separated from the adult they were with, they should take the tags off and give them to a CM.

They are old enough to handle things - both know my cell phone and the older one knows my DH's cell phone as well. Also, they are both certainly able to say to a CM, "my name is ____ and I am staying at the Contemporary with my parents, _______ and ______."

We really got the dog tags for a later trip in the summer when they went away with my DB and his family and I didn't expect them to memorize my DB or my DSIL's cell phone. We had them wear the tags at WDW for "practice."

They are fairly inexpensive and I liked them because you could put different information on each tag. If you google "dog tags" you can find lots of sites to order them from.

[DisneyDog]

First of all, please don't write your child's name on him/her where it could easily be seen. That is a sure-fire way to attract a preditor.

Second, a really great and important thing to do (and I learned it here on Intercot years ago) is to take a digital photo of your child each morning before leaving the resort. That way you have a photo of what your child was wearing that day. It would be very easy to forget little details like what your child was wearing if your child was missing.

[mshomeschoolmom]

I have a 12 and 8 year DD. Several years ago we went to Dollywood and my oldest got so amused at what was going on around her that she got away from us very quickly. I was panicking although she wasn't to far away that she heard me screaming for her and then she started crying. Our youngest was still in a stroller at the time. Ever since my DH takes 1 of them by the hand at all times and I have the other DD by the hand at all times. Then if my DH and I get seperated from each other we have our cell phones to contact each other.

[jonahbear2006]

Disney has machines there that sell Dog Tags with their favorite character on them and you can put their name and your cell phone on the back, its just like the pressed penny machine. We laced them onto the shoes and they still have them on their shoes. They are good quality and the kids had a great time making them. They are $8- $10, not sure which. I just remember they sold chains for them as well that were $2 extra. We did this. The first time we went we used the luggage tags. But once, at the fountains in Epcot, my 17mth old disappeared. I took a pic and when I took my eye out of the camera he was gone. I yelled to the kids to help find him and one child spotted him walking into a crowd in the distance. HOW he got that far in 2 sec. I don't know, and he DIDNT get a tag bc we thought, Hey that one is in the stroller 90% of the time. 1 second later and he would've been missing and I sat my $1500 camera down on the pavement and ran. Nothing more important than your kids, tag them, talk to them, keep them close.
Another incident, we had 5 adults and 4 kids. everyone thought someone else had my 3 yr old, we got on spaceship earth only to turn around and see him running towards us screaming. If they ride had taken off, I am not sure what we wouldve done. Assign kids to parents, and don't switch unless it is completely understood. Too many cooks in the kitchen can be dangerous in Disney! I will never ever go without tags on my kids again.

[azdisneymom]

Who's Shoes ID is a good idea. I would also suggest taking a picture of your child every morning before you head out to the parks. It is too difficult to remember what they are wearing, let alone describe it, should you get separated.

[eas423]

I just ordered ID bands from Mabel's Labels. They are like the strong paper Tyvek wristbands but they will custom print them with whatever you tell them. I was going to order the silicone wristbands, but I liked that these are a little harder to get off.

I may still order silicone bands as a backup. Can a cast member tell us if they can look at wrist or ankle bands? The print is small.

[tinksmom02]

We got the silicone bracelets...has my name and cell, and the name and cell of the other mom traveling with us. DD6 will wear one as an ankle bracelet (less chance of it falling off). I plan on pointing out what CMs look like, and what she should do in case she gets separated from us.

[Mousemates]

just to add a little something extra to the thread...take a picture of your kids with your cell phone camera each morning...that way if you get separated and need to describe your kids to someone you can not only get their clothes exactly right (not an issue for most moms but some of us dads don't always remember the details of our kids wardrobes) but a put a face with the name which is always helpful.

[jonahbear2006]

We typically dress our family alike. We take red shirts and jean shorts one day, then khakis and white shirts the next and so on and so forth. This way it is easy to stay together and when you look up you see your kids pretty quickly. Some of the places I think you should be extra careful are; any of the fountains in the parks or dtd, the swiss treehouse in MK, the boneyard in AK, pooh playground at MK, and Honey I Shrunk T.K. movie set at HS. These playgrounds can get pretty thick with people and I find it really hard to keep up with everyone in these areas. But, for the most part, I think it was pretty easy to keep everyone together. We try to keep it down to 3 rules, the most important ones, before we enter the park and remind the kids that if you are excited, sit down, cause it's easy to wander off when you get excited. This helped my girls out a lot when their eyes got busy!