the merry cranksters prepare

This spring (mid-May) we are taking off from our home in Willamina, Oregon with our six children, Sam (11), Lilly (10), Abby (9), Obby (7), Anny (3), and little Ruthie (18 months) to make our way down the coast to San Francisco and then head east all the way to the coast of Virginia and then down to South Carolina. Over 4500 miles from beginning to end. We are all really excited and have started liquidating our belongings, the children have zealously gone through all their possessions and totalled up the sum of them to sell at our garage sale and scheme day and night about what they are going to get with them, Sam figures with everything he has, he can buy a sweet bike tool kit for repairs. Lilly is a real practical lass, she suprised me yesterday when I caught her sealing up a deal over the phone with her friends, "So Mom", she says, "I made a deal with the Love kids, I split my 4 goldfish up between the 3 kids and I am getting 6 Playmobil animals and 2 dollars on top of that and I can sew up a pouch for them out of my scrap fabric to take with us, and use the money to get a headlamp", what can I say to that? Abby and Obby are trying to find homes for their chickens and also making big plans about what to get with their earnings, and the little girls are pretty excited with us being stoked about it all.
The excitement is also underlayed with the heaviness of the looming task ahead, 4500 plus miles of road, traffic, hard camping pads, unknowns, financial ambiguity, scorching heat, freezing cold, opposition from the fear-mongering who think we are derelicts, cranky, tired kids, etc. So why do this? I actually have a list that I've made that I keep in my journal that I read periodically to strengthen my resolve, which at the top says that this has been a dream of mine since a was a lass of about 8, maybe younger, my Dad often talked about biking across Europe with me and my sister Maya but he was a single Dad with the resposibility of two wild little girls and I am sure it just got put on the back burner and it never ended up happening. I've got a whole list besides, including it being an adventure of epic proportions for all of us but especially the children who are the most adventurous bunch I know. My motherly instincts tell me there will be extra challenges that will have to be encountered that make me a little Jello-y inside, I think of our precious cargo on the side of the road with giant semi trucks whizzing by, tweakers on wheels, even freak accidents, on and on, but overall I have alot of confidence, in my wonderful and super level-headed husband who lays his life on the line daily to provide for us beautifully, and the strength and super-human power of these children of ours, Obby, I am convinced, is made up of 80% steel, 10% Kevlar, and another 10% of titanium alloy. The rest of the bunch amazes me with their physical strength and endurance, even the tiniest one who totally creeps me out constently with her death defying climbing stunts, and might to size ratio.
Right now we are just getting our gear together and would appreciate any advice on what gear we should or should not take, any good whole, or raw food energy bar recipes, tips on just about any aspect of roadside life with a family,whatever bit might be helpful. Please, please send any advice, stories, etc. our way. We are uncertain about whether to go with a tandem or trailer bike, which sections of our route to avoid, anything you have to offer from your real experience. Thanks The Steens