One of the biggest surprises was just how much time it took to load up the RV the day we left. All in, I spent at least four hours getting everything situated, finding nooks and crannies for all our clothes, food and cooking items, games and activities, and toiletries. I consulted this comperehensive packing guide from RV Adventures With Kids, which pretty much covers everything you'd possibly need. I could have cut back on the clothing options (we ended up changing clothes once and waiting to shower until we got home), but we used almost everything else we brought. And as desperate as I was for a shower and some space once we got home, we had a deadline to return the RV, so I spent another few hours upon our return unloading and starting the six-plus loads of laundry we'd created, mostly bedding, pillows, and towels.