The MURPHYS are LIVE at WDW 10/31-11/4 F&W, MNSSHP, and IOA/WWoHP!!

[need_a_Disney_fix]

Erika, thank you for your VERY informative TR. We arrive at Pop (10 days...giddy) Wednesday evening. Keep the seats warm for us!!!!!!

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Erika, thank you for your VERY informative TR. We arrive at Pop (10 days...giddy) Wednesday evening. Keep the seats warm for us!!!!!!

Thanks I feel like I've been neglectful of updates but when I get home tonight I will finish uploading all my photos and videos to share.


We are at DTD right now and Christmas is in full swing! Music playing in all the stores and all the Christmas goodies are out.

Eating lunch at T-Rex

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[TigrLvsPooh]

Oh , also I meant to add last night that the fast passes on our magic bands worked perfectly even though we had technically already finished the WDW portion of our vacation two days prior. So we used the bands to enter the park (APs) and also use Fastpass. So I'm assuming we can continue to use these bands for FP anytime we want??? Until our aps expire?? I'm new to all this but I have to say I have quickly become a big fan!

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[TigrLvsPooh]

Home sweet home, NOT! Ahhhh the post-Disney blues have definitely set in. Too much laundry and make-up homework. Finally I am sitting down to upload the rest of my photos and start the video uploads. They will take a long time I'm sure.

I've had a chance to sort of gather my thoughts and I wanted to share some opinions with everyone.

Pop Century - Just as great as ever! It is hands down my favorite value resort, the room was clean and comfortable, the bus service was exceptional, the food court was great (except for my mug mistake), the kids enjoyed the arcade, Everything Pop is clean and friendly, I really can't say one negative thing about the resort. With my AP discount I think it is a great bargain! Even coming back from Epcot after Illuminations the line moved quickly for the bus. After previous stays at the Poly and YC this year transportation was just a dream! No sharing, no long waits, etc. Every time someone tells me they want to go to WDW on a tight budget I always encourage them to stay at Pop.

Quick Service Dining Plan - This was our first time doing it and I really liked it way more than I thought I would! This trip being a quickie and us trying to cram in so many things and run back and forth to so many places, the QS plan was perfect for us. We used all the snack credits the first night at Epcot F&W. PERFECT PLAN! Then the next day we used credits for breakfast at Pop, lunch at MK, and dinner at DTD. Then our last day we used the last 3 credits for breakfast at Pop again. Easy as pie! I really like these quick short WDW trips, my husband and I took one last November to Pop for a long weekend for F&W, we've done sort trips a couple other times in the past as well. They are the pefect way to wet your Disney appetite, grab a Dole Whip, stroll down Main Street, watch the Fireworks, check F&W, shop at DTD, just enough to feel the Disney magic.

Magic Bands - LOVE THEM! My 14 year old son refused to wear his, which made me incredibly nervous and I think I must have asked him about 10 million times if he still had it in his pocket, but other than that they were completely stress free! They never popped off, they were comfortable, and they always worked great. We used them for our room key of course, also our APs for entering the parks, the QS dining plan was there along with room charging privileges, and our FastPass+ options. Awesome technology, very reliable, easy to use, LOVE EM!

FastPass+ As I've already said I think 3 times I LOVED LOVED LOVED the Main St parade viewing area and Wishes viewing. Those two things seriously made our entire last night at MK AMAZING!!!! We felt like VIPs. I love the ease of carrying the FP's on the bands, not having to run across the park getting little pieces of paper, etc. I just wish we could have more than 3 per day! But for people like me who go quite often it was nice to just pick 3 favorites for the day and then just let the rest of the day plan itself. We were so lucky to have super low attendance. It was almost unbelivable how short the lines were for the rides. I always thought Halloween weekend and early November (jersey week right??) were supposed to be terribly crowded so I wasn't expecting to have things so smooth. It was truly MAGICAL

 

[need_a_Disney_fix]

Erika, THANK YOU for all of the info that you have provided. I appreciate it very much!!!

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Part 2

MineCon 2013 was a once in a lifetime amazing experience for my boys. Especially for my 12 year old because he is MineCraft obsessed! I'm not sure how many thousands of people were there but we met folks from Norway, Sweden, the UK, Australia, and practically every state in the US! It was sort of magical how all these kids, from little 6 and 7 year olds up through middle school and high school aged kids and college kids could all come together for the love of one game. I really didn't know much about it until this weekend but my mind was BLOWN with some of the panel discussions we went to. Computer animation and quantum physics! WOW! Just to sit back and watch these kids in action for 2 days renewed my faith in the wisdom and ingenuity of the next generation! I have over 200 photos, plus more videos coming, in that link I shared this weekend.

Islands of Adventure was fun! I'm a huge Harry Potter nerd so it feels like coming home when I am there. The kids were off with their friends stalking YouTubers and Mojang people so I covered Hogsmeade thoroughly on my own. The Forbidden Journey has got to be one of the best theme park rides around. I'm a little biased though because what could be better than riding a broom with Harry???

I've got about 100 pics uploading right now... I will be back soon with more to share!

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Erika, THANK YOU for all of the info that you have provided. I appreciate it very much!!!

Thanks for following along on our little trip I hope you have a fantastic vacation!!!!

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Just finished uploading another batch of photos

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Anyone with two boys can appreciate this next pic Oh how I love them but we've got this major "don't touch me" stage going on with my older one and the youngest still wants constant hugs! So it provides a whole lot of drama 24/7!

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

I won't bore everyone with a GAZILLION wishes pictures But we had a great view

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Sorry this pic is blurry but this gives you an idea of what the fastpass viewing is like for the parade, I have about 100 parade pics on my photobucket album

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Here's another one I like because you can see the parade passing in front of the castle

 

[Music City Mama]

Great photos!

Yes, I can relate to the photo of your sons. Mine are younger (10 and 6), and while the 10 year old is still pretty affectionate, I can sense that "teenage boy" phase coming on soon.

Thanks for sharing your trip with us -- I was exhausted just thinking about much you did in such a short period of time!

 

[teentoddlermom]

Again, I loved following along with this one! How much fun you all had!
When is the next trip?
Great pictures!

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Again, I loved following along with this one! How much fun you all had! When is the next trip? Great pictures!

Not sure yet Hopefully very soon!!!!

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[TigrLvsPooh]