Nate Johnson (Cedric the Entertainer) and his family have been invited to their big family reunion in Missouri. He sees it as an opportunity to reconnect with his estranged wife (Williams) and growing children, as well as a chance to show up his wealthier know-it-all brother, Mack (Harvey). Nate takes delivery on an expensive new SUV, persuades his recently separated wife Dorothy to tag along, and packs up his three kids — nubile teenager Nikki (Knowles), under-age wannabe rapper D.J. (Bow Wow), and precocious seven-year-old Destiny (Soleil) — for what he imagines will be a leisurely drive from Los Angeles to Missouri. Between his wary wife, arguing kids, angry police officers, a bizarre hitchhiker (Shannon Elizabeth), bad diner food, and an unfortunate run-in with a cement mixer, getting from point A to point B proves to be just short of a nightmare.