First-timer

[twistpeach.livejournal.com]

Hello Arisia,

I will be bringing my three-year-old son to Arisia for the first time. I excitedly signed him up for Turtle Track and can't wait to see him engage in all the neat programs. I was wondering if folks had any advice for how to handle the day, pitfalls to watch out for, and what is good practice for little children while at this particular con beyond the FAQs.

I've been to Arisia for a few years and feel a little clueless about how to balance my traditional Arisia activities with my excitement to include my son and facilitate him having an awesome experience. Any tricks of the trade to skating this transition like a champ? I hope my son and I will attend Arisia together for many years because we both have a great time.

p.s. I just opened up a thread about parenting. Please be forgiving and thoughtful in the comments. Non-parents, please be deferential. Parenting is hard.

Comments

[quietann.livejournal.com]

He's eligible for Turtle Track (aka babysitting), I think. Get him a TT membership early, though, because it usually fills really fast. See http://2013.arisia.org/turtle_track_info

[dee-cee.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad you posted this! Having been a congoer for many years and suddenly adding my two kids to the mix prompted me to look more into finding the Family Friendly side of Arisia.

My personal advice: Be prepared not to do as much as you used to at a con, or the same things. YMMV, but be prepared for:
-Nap times during that panel you REALLY wanted to see
-Freakouts over hall costumes
-Finding food. I pack more fruit cups, juice boxes, and PB (okay soynut)&J supplies to feed the kiddoes instead of paying an arm & a leg at the restaurants for a picky 3-yo to say "I don't like it."
-Getting up WAAAAY earlier than you usually do after a night of hitting parties and dances. Kids don't get con-time. :)
-Turtle Track will be great for your 3 year old. My 3 year old will be going for the second time this year, and she had a blast.

Now, my con staff voice. Here are some things that we're doing this year::

-There will be a Family Friendly Guide available for highlighting things everyone can enjoy together that isn't just targeted at kids. For example, the Geeky Belly Dance always leaves the front floor open for their younger audience.

-Also some parties have been making kid-friendly options earlier in the evening (Pajama Storytime, the Hawaiian Luau)

Finally, We have some Arisia Forums set up for Families to communicate, located here http://forums.arisia.org/viewforum.php?f=26 (http://forums.arisia.org/viewforum.php?f=26). I'm going to try and post articles I've found from GeekMom and the like about con-going advice with little ones.


Dale
Children's Services DivHead

[tigira.livejournal.com]

My kid LOVED Turtle Track. It's a great idea. A few lessons I've learned (we've been staying the whole weekend at Arisia with our kid since he was 3).

1. Make sure you have your cell phone on vibrate and somewhere you can feel it. It may seem like a no-brainer, but it's really easy to miss a call from TT. (Not that they usually call, but you just don't want to miss it if they do).

2. As Dale said, have lots of snacks and easy foods that you know your kid will eat no matter what. Make sure to have water and juice on you at all times, as well.

3. If your kid (like mine) LOVES costumes, make sure that the costume allows easy potty access to avoid accidents.

4. Don't freak out if your kid wants to wear the same costume all weekend. The other parents will understand, and nobody will blame you. It will also make Arisia a much more fun for our little.

5. If you want to go to parties at night, remember that your kid won't know you were up until 2AM, and still get up at the same time they usually do. We found that a few DVDs and a laptop computer helped greatly to get an hour or two more of at least half-sleep.

6. Book babysitters for at night. Post to the list to see if there are any teens that want to earn $40 or so for spending. Do it early, since the available teens get busy quickly. Last year we tried something new - we paid for two students' memberships. In return, they just needed to babysit our kiddo while we went to the night parties. We booked them again for this year.

As Dale said, be prepared to do less, but also be prepared to see the wonder of the con through a pre-schooler's eyes. My son's first con, he had just seen Star Wars for the first time. Seeing people in costume/garb was amazing, to him. He even hugged Darth Vader!

Last year he met several incarnations of the Doctor (another character he loves). He's 7, now, but still looks forward to Arisia. I think starting it by being laid back (I made it to maybe two panels and very few parties our first year with him) made it more enjoyable for him in future years. He doesn't equate stress with Arisia, he sees Arisia as a vacation. He now tells his friends about his hall costumes and plans for this event, and some friends are asking about it, too. Alas, their parents are fen, or even "friends of fen," so they don't go.

[tisiphone.livejournal.com]

- Bring appropriate food. Arisia does as much as possible for adult attendees, but adults can make the choice to live on hot dogs and snickers bars all weekend. It's not as cool for kids.
- Transitional objects and familiar blankets to make staying in a hotel less stressful.
- I also suggest taking a picture of him every morning with your phone so if he gets lost you can show security and others exactly what he looks like that day, which is way better than a vague description.
- For Arisia-specific things, I found that my daughter enjoyed the child-oriented programs for a while, but she didn't want to stay all day, so when she was younger we often spent the afternoon doing other things. For example, the science museum was a big hit. She also enjoyed the dealer's room even at a young age, and there are sellers of stuffed animals and children's anime that can be relied upon for a bit of a treat.
- If you take him to panels or events, I'd suggest making sure you get an aisle seat, so you can sneak out if possible.
- Also, to be honest, make sure the weekend doesn't become all about him. Hire a babysitter for Saturday night if you want to go to the parties, for instance. (There are many older teens that are trustworthy and willing to trade a few hours wandering the halls for filthy lucre.)

[deguspice.livejournal.com]

The Children's Museum is about a mile from the Westin. Depending upon the weather you could either walk, or take a taxi

[drwex]

You've gotten most of the advice I would've given. Let me see if the brain cells go that far back (ours are about to age out of Fast Track now).

As a parent meshing with kid stuff the most important thing for us was to keep our kid on normal schedule as much as possible. We made sure that we ate at different times if need be so that we could be ready to get the kid when needed.

Try to pick up a little early - the place is inevitably a bit of a madhouse at closing time. That's nobody's fault, mind you, just the natural overlap of a dozen parents all trying to pack bags and detach kids from activities at the same time. We found that picking up 15-20 minutes early made everything easier. That means adjusting what panels and activities you do, of course.

We also had a pretty clear demarcation for which of us was "Adult on Duty." If one of us wanted to do a panel or see the art show and not be interrupted we pre-agreed a time and any kid issues were handled by the other one.

Set and maintain appropriate boundaries. Arisia is FULL of people who love kids, including other kids and teens. If yours is sociable and loves strangers that's all good, but it can be overwhelming for some little ones.

Beware of the weather. It can be a big deal for a kid to go from (often very warm) inside Turtle Track to (omg it's January in Boston) outside. We found that it was easiest to take the kid first, then move to some other spot (often a couch in the lobby) and THEN dress the kid for outdoors. That makes hand-offs a little more complicated but see above about people who love kids. If you have a friend meet you in the lobby who doesn't mind holding the little one for 2-3 minutes while you pack your bag and put on your own coat it can smooth things considerably.

[gosling.livejournal.com]

Other folks have said most of what I would.

Write your phone number on the back of his badge. That way if he *does* get lost, it will be easy for someone to find you immediately.

Bring swimsuits for both of you. This hotel has a pool, and if this year is like others in this hotel, other kids at TT will be going swimming with their families and talk about it a lot. You may end up deciding not to ever go in the pool, but this way you have the option.

We actually really liked picking up our kid right as TT ended, because then we ran into many of our friends who also have kids.

There is a panel about this

[sweetmmeblue.livejournal.com]

Hopefully they will take our feedback and not put it on Sunday at the end of the con.

You have gotten some great advice here. Last thing I'd recommend is that when the post comes out that you can see the panels before the convention look and see what you really want to be able to get to and make sure you have arrangements to make that happen.

Hope it goes well. Arisia really is a great con to bring kids to.

[anotherjen.livejournal.com]

Are you going with a partner or are you solo-parenting? Having someone there to share childcare responsibilities, outside of Turtle Track, will make it a much easier con for you.

Ilana, in my usericon, has been attending Arisia since she was about 2 weeks old. (Yeah, that was probably a bad idea, but I was stir-crazy.)

[arib.livejournal.com]

I brought my daughter to her first Arisia when she was six weeks old. It was a convenient way to introduce her to lots of my friends at once. :-)

[archangelbeth]

My kid has been attending Arisia since a month or so before she was born! O;D (She nursed -- and slept -- her way through the Adult Patent Descriptions panel... Below 18, even below 18 months, but I smuggled her in anyway... O;D )

I spent a number of panels hiding in the closets, in the Boston Park Plaza, with the kid and some toys... >_> The fun of a high-attention-demanding extorvert kid with -- eventually -- diagnosed Asperger's... Couldn't really inflict her on folks back then -- but did have the co-parent around for handing her off. Last few years, she's been in Fast Track.

[robdamnit.livejournal.com]

In 2012 my nephew attended his third Arisia at just under 3 years old and some adjustments were needed since he was no longer "hungry-luggage" but an ambulatory person with his own evolving agenda.

Two things that have been covered: Nap time will dominate your schedule, but if you have a friend or relative attending the con who is also on your baby-sitting list that could give you the chance to sneak out for a nap-conflicted panel or reading. Back-up snacks and juice (as others have said) are key. The con suite does a great job of always having something, but they might not have what your little one needs at that moment.

And in addition: Check the party board. I know that sounds strange, but in the last few years the number of early evening family-friendly and even specifically kid-centric parties has been increasing. Some have been quite a lot of fun (who doesn't love cookies, juice and being invited to draw on the walls?)and they can provide a chance to commiserate and network with other parents and elders-on-duty while the kids cavort in a controlled space.

Good luck and have fun! :-)

[richenza.livejournal.com]

Is your kid accustomed to group care? Mine did not deal well with Turtle Track, and we ended up only using it as social time, with a parent in the room with him when he was there.

Be prepared for any particular part of your plan to fail spectacularly, but be prepared for unexpected pleasures, too. As with many trips/vacations I do involving my 3 year old, I did almost none of the things I wanted to do, but a number of things I wouldn't have thought to do that were fun anyway.