I realized I had hit my all-time worst Disney moment when I sat openly bawling by the playground at the exit of Splash Mountain. Why might you ask was this grown woman crying her eyes out at the Most Magical Place on Earth? Well, first of all, I was a very pregnant which automatically makes you more susceptible to tears. Second, I had not properly planned my pregnant Disney vacation.

To set the scene a little bit better, let me rewind a little. We were more than halfway into our week long trip. I was visiting with our normal crew of my parents, my husband, my brother and his wife and their two children both under the age of five. I am the adrenaline junkie of the group. I am the one who says a resounding “yes!” to any ride and often convince others to come with me. I knew this trip would be different, so I was “along for the ride”.

At this point, though, I was no longer having fun. I was responsible for everyone’s things at all my favorite rides while they enjoyed themselves. I was also the team babysitter when the girls could not ride. This was getting very old at this point and Splash Mountain is one of my all-time favorite rides. I decided I wanted to take my trip into my own hands, so this time I would find something we could do other than waiting. I struck out twice (the train and Country Bear Jamboree had both not yet opened) and ended up at the play place under Splash Mountain in my grievous state. I learned a lot of tips that trip, so hopefully you can learn from some of my mistakes.

Here are six things I learned on my pregnant trip to Disney World:

1. Don’t be a Sherpa

I wanted to help everyone out since I knew I could not ride. Helping everyone out and being their personal Sherpa are two different things, however. As the week progressed, I was increasingly agitated by the amount of stuff my family brought. They never seemed to use any of it, but it sure accumulated fast! Bogged down with everyone’s things (and the strollers) while they rode rides is counterproductive. Rather than having the freedom to find something else to do, I was stuck with a mountain of bags to guard like a hoarding dragon. Resist the temptation to “help out” by holding everyone’s things. Instead, follow the normal rules when you cannot bring strollers and things which allows you, pregnant mama, to be free to roam and explore.

2. Don’t be the babysitter

You will soon have your very own baby to watch and take care of. Don’t rush it! This is your last chance for a long time to focus on yourself. Instead of watching the kids while everyone else rides, agree to go to other attractions (make sure they are open first!). Part of this agreement is taking advantage of the already existing child swap Disney offers. The other adult can help you with the kids as you ride something you can do collectively returning for the rider swap.

3. Set your expectations

If your favorite rides include things like Expedition Everest, Thunder Mountain, and Tower of Terror, understand that this will not be your “best trip ever!”. You can still have an amazing vacation with your family, but this will be very different than your normal preferences. I thought I understood this, but I did not do a good job of internalizing it. It is important to set your expectations. You will miss out on many of your “favorite” things at Disney. This automatically becomes harder in the moment when you are steps away from enjoying things you love. Rationally, you get it. Emotionally? That is another story. Set your expectations ahead of time that this will be a nice vacation but not a great one. If it ends up being the “best trip ever!” that is a great bonus.

4. Plan things you normally miss

Part of setting the expectations is proactively planning for the things you normally bypass. Do a little research to find the things you may not have even known Disney offered. If you normally run from ride to ride like I do, you may not even be aware that there are some great things to do outside of the E-ticket attractions. For example, mid-morning and mid-afternoon are great times to see the street performers like the Dapper Dans or ride in the carriages and cars down Main Street. Having some ideas of things you can do that are different than the normal trip help keep it fresh and exciting. Having these things in your back pocket are even better in those moments you start to get down about missing your favorite things.

5. Research the risks

It seems like there are so many rules to pregnancy. Do drink extra water, do rest and relax, do sleep more. Don’t eat sushi, don’t massage your ankles, don’t lie on your back. Sometimes the rules can get so overwhelming that it is hard to remember them all! When it comes to rides there are two lines of advice you will find: the posted Disney recommendations and the online/friend recommendations.

What it really comes down to is the degree of risk you are willing to accept. In most cases with most rules about pregnancy, the likelihood of something happening is relatively low while the severity of outcome should something happen is very high. You will find many blogs online that will tell you certain rides are “ok” despite the Disney warnings to not ride (Kilimanjaro Safaris for example). Ultimately, you have to decide how much risk you are willing to take, and it is better to do it ahead of time rather than trying to decide in a moment where you may be emotional or overwhelmed. Think really long and hard about what is most important to you.

In general, you will find that rides that (a) have no height restrictions and (b) have no constricting lap bar are the rides you will be able to ride. If a young baby can ride not strapped in, you probably can too. It is good to have an idea ahead of time of what things you will and will not be able to do in each park.

6. Know your limitations

My husband jokes that I become the Energizer Bunny on Disney vacations. I seem to have endless energy with no need for breaks or sleep. It is true that I get very excited and I do not care that my feet hurt or that I have only had 5 hours of sleep for a week straight. I am the rope-drop, open to close, park hopper vacationer who wants to experience everything possible. Unfortunately, when you are 7 months pregnant like I was, that is not so doable. You need to drink significantly more water which already confounds the need to go to the bathroom every five minutes from the baby sitting on your bladder. Your ankles and feet and maybe entire legs will swell from the amount of walking. You will need to sit and relax. You will need to take breaks. This goes back to setting your expectations. Plan for the breaks in the day you normally don’t plan for. These breaks can be as simple as planning for a show or a meal in one of the parks to more relaxing breaks back at the resorts (even if it is not your own resort!).

My pregnant trip to Disney was not the fun I thought it would be because I did not know how to properly plan and set my expectations. Hopefully you can learn from my mistakes and avoid an all-out meltdown under one of your favorite rides. Welcome to motherhood!