Day of Discovery

We left almost 24 hours ago now, on a road trip adventure only the Allgood's could have conceived of. Sixteen days, 3900 miles, camper, kids, bikes...margaritas.

The plan was fluid, flexible and fun. The reality has been, well, so far it has been one discovery after another.

They say you learn something new every day. Some days, you might learn more than others. Here are some things I've learned in the last 24:

If you don't finish packing the night before you leave? You might not get on the road until 2pm your first day out.

Starbucks has an app which will locate any Starbucks in a 50 square mile area based on your current location. It can also tell you that you have $0.00 on your Starbucks gold card.

Port Orange has a lovely Super Target with a marginal Starbucks.

The only campground you are staying in with a pool, will have the pool closed during office hours, which don't occur until three hours after checkout. Your children may be disappointed.

There is a 6 foot tall chicken at the campground in Walterboro, SC. But their pool is not open much on July 4th weekend.

A 386 mile, 5.5 hour drive will take 10 hours.

There will be more potty stops than you expect.

The cap will jiggle loose from your bumper and your sewer hose will fall out somewhere on the highway. Duct tape will remedy that and look very fashionable.

The front axle weighs 3080 lbs, the rear axle weighs 4080. For a gross vehicle weight (GVW) of 7160. The truck maximum GVW is 7350. Good thing I lost 60 lbs...

Four bikes on a bike rack hanging from your trailer bumper will break the welds and begin to tear your bumper right off. Fortunately, you will discover this at the first nights stop before losing bumper, bikes, spare tire and killing anyone who might've run into it.

In car video screens and DVD players are a good, good thing.

If your toddler tells you he's not done going to the bathroom, and you wipe him anyway, you'll have to do it again.

There's a town named Coosawhatchie. I extend my sincere condolences to all individuals who must list that on their resumes, marriage certificates, and Facebook pages.

The camper weighs 8360 fully loaded. The truck is rated to pull up to 13,500. Well, at least we did THAT right.

This Pro Pride 3P hitch was worth every single penny. Thank you Sean.

Just because there is a Krispy Kreme sign on the gas station doesn't mean they have Krispy Kreme doughnuts. Go figure.

Loves travel center has an app which tells you where every Loves in America is, as well as indicating the current gas price. They sell aspirin for the headache that gives you too.

A Ford F150 Eco-boost with heavy duty tow package towing an 8300lb travel trailer gets about 13mpg.

No matter what snacks you pack, the ones behind the glass of the vending machine will always be more appealing to your children.

Fireworks viewed from the side lot at a Hardees in SC, doesn't have the ambience of Disney, but they are still beautiful, and the kids love it.

Sleeping in our own bed after a day on the road is awesome.