So I know I'm a little late getting this done, but reading all the trip reports I've read lately has inspired me to go back and re-live my last trip "home"! I posted lots of pics, so here it goes! I hope you enjoy! 
We booked this trip about a year in advance. My MIL wanted a big family trip with her, us (me, my DH and my 5 yr old DD) and then my BIL, SIL and niece and nephew. So, I booked a 2 bedroom villa at AKL for us all through DVC. Over the course of that year, my BIL and SIL split up and are currently going through a divorce. We all weren't even sure if we were still going to do the trip. Going through a divorce is difficult in many ways, financially being one of them, so when my SIL said she wasn't sure they could go, my MIL and us stepped up and helped cover the cost for the 3 of them. Plus that, the kids and my SIL had never been there and the kids had a really rotten year with the divorce stuff, and we really wanted them to enjoy this trip. We had ADR's and the were going to do the dining plan, but with the situation as it was, we decided not to do it, cancelled our ADR's and kept the dining on the cheap. Hey, if it's the difference between going and not going, I'll gladly eat a burger for dinner every night and give up the giant buffet! We always do the dining plan, and I did miss it. A lot. But, I was glad they were still able to come and the trip was a go, minus one BIL.
The plan was to drive. Saturday, April 6, 2013 we loaded up the family (minus my SIL who currently lives in GA while we are all in MI, we were picking her up on the way) and planned to leave town about 1pm. As soon as we got on the road, like not even expressway but still side streets, my van started smoking! It was coming from the brake on the front passenger side. REALLY was all I could think! Being a Saturday, most tire and brake shops closed pretty much right as this happened. All we could find open was Sears Auto. We showed up there about 4 (after my DH spent about an hour trying to figure out what was the problem in our driveway to no avail). They put us in line to get looked at and said they'd have us back on the road as soon as possible. I'm sure the luggage and 3 kids whining to go to Disney World told them we were in a hurry! About 2.5 hours and $300 later, we were back on the road! I don't remember what the brake issue was exactly, but whatever it was, it had seized up and we were all very glad it didn't happen while we were cruising down I-75 at 80 mph!
We picked up my SIL in GA around 5:30am. Were making great time! We trucked on through stopping briefly for lunch at McDonalds. Having a 2 bedroom villa, we wanted some groceries, so we stopped at Super Target for some supplies. It was about 1pm. I was so glad we made such good timing. I wanted to be at AKL around noon. Not bad for leaving so late the day before! After our shopping trip, we finally arrived at our DVC home resort!!! SO HAPPY!!!!
We booked this trip about a year in advance. My MIL wanted a big family trip with her, us (me, my DH and my 5 yr old DD) and then my BIL, SIL and niece and nephew. So, I booked a 2 bedroom villa at AKL for us all through DVC. Over the course of that year, my BIL and SIL split up and are currently going through a divorce. We all weren't even sure if we were still going to do the trip. Going through a divorce is difficult in many ways, financially being one of them, so when my SIL said she wasn't sure they could go, my MIL and us stepped up and helped cover the cost for the 3 of them. Plus that, the kids and my SIL had never been there and the kids had a really rotten year with the divorce stuff, and we really wanted them to enjoy this trip. We had ADR's and the were going to do the dining plan, but with the situation as it was, we decided not to do it, cancelled our ADR's and kept the dining on the cheap. Hey, if it's the difference between going and not going, I'll gladly eat a burger for dinner every night and give up the giant buffet! We always do the dining plan, and I did miss it. A lot. But, I was glad they were still able to come and the trip was a go, minus one BIL.
The plan was to drive. Saturday, April 6, 2013 we loaded up the family (minus my SIL who currently lives in GA while we are all in MI, we were picking her up on the way) and planned to leave town about 1pm. As soon as we got on the road, like not even expressway but still side streets, my van started smoking! It was coming from the brake on the front passenger side. REALLY was all I could think! Being a Saturday, most tire and brake shops closed pretty much right as this happened. All we could find open was Sears Auto. We showed up there about 4 (after my DH spent about an hour trying to figure out what was the problem in our driveway to no avail). They put us in line to get looked at and said they'd have us back on the road as soon as possible. I'm sure the luggage and 3 kids whining to go to Disney World told them we were in a hurry! About 2.5 hours and $300 later, we were back on the road! I don't remember what the brake issue was exactly, but whatever it was, it had seized up and we were all very glad it didn't happen while we were cruising down I-75 at 80 mph!
We picked up my SIL in GA around 5:30am. Were making great time! We trucked on through stopping briefly for lunch at McDonalds. Having a 2 bedroom villa, we wanted some groceries, so we stopped at Super Target for some supplies. It was about 1pm. I was so glad we made such good timing. I wanted to be at AKL around noon. Not bad for leaving so late the day before! After our shopping trip, we finally arrived at our DVC home resort!!! SO HAPPY!!!!
