Chances are, you've been on a family road trip once or twice in your life. Maybe it was for college visits when you convinced your parents to pile your siblings into the car to drive cross-country because you just had to see this one school. We've all seen Raven Symone's masterpiece of a film, "College Road Trip."You know the type.

Maybe it was for a family vacation; you channeled your inner Griswold family Christmas Vacation and rolled your eyes in the backseat while your parents sang carols behind the wheel. Or maybe you're Kenny from "We're The Millers" and you're actually the annoying one.

Whatever the occasion, the picture-perfect road trip is pretty clear in everyone's mind.

My own family just took a road trip down part of the California coast. Flight into SFO, drive down to a campsite in Big Sur, keep driving down to see family in Santa Barbara, and all the way back up again. Further, our itinerary included stopping for sightseeing along the way, taking lots of photos, having a good time... and that was pretty much it.

The problem was, this itinerary was too vague. Everyone wanted to do different things in San Francisco, everyone wanted to get to the campsite at a different time of day, everyone wanted to stop in different small towns along the coastline. Some people wanted to stop and take pictures every five miles, other people wanted to keep it moving.

When you try and let everyone have everything, you end up getting practically nothing.

The truth about family road trips is that they can be tough. People argue and disagree, there's nowhere to go if someone gets angry, except maybe scooting yourself 2 inches closer to the window and turning your back. If you're in the middle seat, you're out of luck.

But the good thing about it (because there is good to it, too) is that it forces everyone to come together, literally. There's no getting out, so you might as well stick it out. And you might as well turn up some good music, as well.