Along with Donna's notes about the time required for the drives, both out and back, as you plan you should keep two other things in the forefront early on. The first is that, in order to make the most of your journey, you should plan on taking two completely different routes for the two legs. There is no single 'best' route and taking two means that you're always covering, and exploring, new ground. I'd look at I-10 one way and something like I-40/US-78/US-280/GA-620/US-82/I-75 through Memphis TN, Birmingham AL, and Columbus GA the other way. The second is that 550 mile is considered a very good day on multi-day marathons such as your two drives. That still allows for a few short R&R breaks each day, but not much else. If you plan to stop anywhere for an hour or more you'll need to adjust your mileage goal for the day downwards accordingly. Once you've got a basic outline that works for you as far as timing and major stops (Grand Canyon, Alamo, Graceland, New Orleans, whatever, we can help you fill in some details.

AZBuck