Outdoor Families Magazine: Helping families across the globe fall in love with the Great Outdoors

It is no secret that I have been pretty absent from you all, my beloved Mommy and Daddy Hikers! I certainly didn't expect it to happen, but about 11 months ago life took off on a completely different trajectory and I, being the heart-follower that I am, went for it! 

Not only have I been busy developing and executive producing a pretty awesome new television series, but more importantly to you guys, I have been busting my butt working on a project that probably would have never entered into my life had I not started this blog. So it is with the greatest pride and excitement that I  announce to you, my loyal readers, the launch of my newest baby! 

Outdoor Families Magazine! OFM launches in t-minus four days (January 15, 2015) and it will be a free digital magazine that encourages families toward lifelong appreciation of outside spaces. The magazine, available at http://www.outdoorfamiliesonline.com will strive to enrich the lives of multi-generational families worldwide by providing unparalleled outdoor and adventure related content meant to inspire a connection to, participation in, and stewardship of the natural world.

January Issue's Cover

To commemorate our inaugural issue January 15, 2015, Outdoor Families Magazine will also launch the “Great Family Adventure” Photo Contest, inviting families from around the world to show off their awesome family adventures pictures! At the end of the two week contest, we'll be presenting one lucky family with a two-night stay and three adventure-packed days on southern California’s Central Coast in the city of Oxnard, gateway to the Channel Islands National Park and Marine Sanctuary. In addition, our finalists will receive cool prizes from ten other awesome outdoor retailers including Hi-Tec footwear and Sierra Trading Post.

The magazine’s advisory board is comprised of more than 30 business and thought leaders in the outdoor family and adventure market, including my partners, our managing editor, Erin Kirkland, author of Alaska on the Go: Exploring the 49th state with children and our operations manager, Traci Lehman who will also be leading the magazine's team of research and development experts who are passionate about supporting our magazine's mission by documenting the benefits of outdoor time and identifying the barriers families face with regards to getting outside, so we can face these issues head on and find real world solutions.

Outdoor Families Magazine will be the go-to resource hub, supporting our already robust, engaged #OutdoorFamilies community and connecting with others who are interested in obtaining information related to family outdoor sports, activities and play, environmental stewardship, volunteering, adventure travel, mind and body nourishment and green living resources, ideas and tips. 

When I got into this crazy blogging world I never, in a million years, would have expected it to lead me where I am today; a member of The North American Travel Journalists Association, founder of a magazine, part of an absolutely incredible community of people. Throughout my wee three years, the one thing I noticed blatantly missing was a lack of relatable content available to families who simply want motivation and inspiration to get outdoors with their kids. I was dumbfounded by it actually and it is our hope that this magazine will fill that void. There are a lot of us out there, families who choose to go off-the-beaten-path, with our kids right beside us, along for the adventure. In the rapidly-growing market of outdoor family adventure we intend to thoughtfully lead the movement. I hope you'll join us for the ride!

Join the Outdoor Families community on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, and YouTube!

4 Reasons Why I Have to Go Back to Costa Rica

Four years ago my husband and I reluctantly stepped back on US soil, with the echo of howler monkeys still ringing in our ears, the heavy dew of the rain forest still kissing our sun-soaked skin and our hearts full of every single happy, soulful person we met on our 2 week road trip across Costa Rica. The initial concept of a Costa Rican trip sprung from my brother, as a picture perfect locale to propose to his then girlfriend. When we were invited to go along and be a part of his surprise, life-changing moment, we simply asked, "When do we leave?!" 

Every second of our whirlwind 15 day trip was planned with an adventurous spirit. Having rented a four-wheel drive vehicle, we made a conscious decision to tackle the rugged interior jungle roads and washed out coastal passages head on with the confidence that the villages and the people and the eco-systems we would discover off the beaten track would be a thousand times better than any walled-off, all-inclusive resort. We were right.

I will warn you that the title of this blog is a bit misleading. As you scroll down, you might notice that three out of the four reasons appear to be the same: Adventure. But, I will tell you that the adventure that exists on the west coast surf town of Playa Negra is completely different from the adventure that awaits in the northern rainforests of Monteverde which is a complete one hundred and eighty degrees away from the adventure that we found on the more laid-back Caribbean coastal town of Puerto Viejo and the Panamanian border-town of Manzanillo.

Every single inch of the more than one thousand kilometers we traversed, was brimming with Pura Vida. I'm here to tell you that once you visit Costa Rica, it will live in your bones, your blood, your heart forever. We are dreaming of the day we will go back with our daughter, to introduce her to its wild jungles, watch her eyes widen at the sight of its majestic coasts, revel in its beautiful family-oriented culture and most of all inject her with a little of its happiness. Pura Vida! 

1 | Adventure

This is an awesome video my, now sister-in-law took as she and my brother zip-lined through the cloud rain forests of Monteverde, Costa Rica! My husband and I were right in front of them! It was a magical and exhilarating once-in-a-lifetime experience!

2 | Adventure

The surfing in Playa Negra is world class, the beaches are stunning and the villagers are warm and inviting!

3 | Adventure

The chances of walking 5 feet without a wildlife sighting is pretty low, in Costa Rica. One of my absolute favorite things while we were exploring the west coast was being woken up in the middle of the night by the howler monkeys. It was like a deep, melodic reminder that I was in the middle of the jungle. It's also a nice added bonus to have a professional photographer for a husband to capture all of the beauty we witnessed, so we can remember it for ever!

4 | Pura Vida

This totally out of focus and not-so-flattering picture of me and my hubby biking through the Gandoca Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge on the southeastern most tip of Costa Rica pretty much sums up the pure joy and happiness we felt.

Family Adventure Travel: Finding Hiking Serenity at Point Lobos Nature Reserve

As we entered Point Lobos State Nature Reserve my 3 year old daughter and I were greeted with canopy of lichen-draped pine trees and rare and endangered Monterey Cypress, the shocking call of a red-tailed hawk soaring high above and the far-off boom of the crashing waves. We knew, right then and there, deep down in our bones, that this was going to be a day we wouldn't soon forget.

With over fourteen square miles of breathtakingly beautiful topography where the rocky central California coast meets the tremendous Pacific Ocean, Point Lobos State Nature Reserve was coined the crown jewel of the California State Park System. Its dramatic and sweeping views offer a perfect spot for sea otter and elephant seal watching and if you happen to be so lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of the mighty grey whales as they make the long journey from their feeding grounds in northernmost Alaska all the way down to their sacred breeding grounds at the tip of the Baja Peninsula.

The first part of our day took us to Sea Lion Point and Carmelo Formation, a rock formation estimated to be a whopping 60 million years old! The sea lions did not disappoint, their joyful barking deepening our connection to the land even more. The jutting rocks lay in waiting and V scrambled her way up, down, over and under every single nook and cranny accessible to her, fervently observing and discussing the differences between the various rock formations, colors and textures. So many questions, so much to discover, so much to learn.

Where's V?

As we waved adieu to the starfish and the sea lions, we headed back around Headland Cove where we stopped to watch sea otters playing in the kelp before making our way past the coastal prairie scrub of the Old Veterans Trail and finally arriving at the Cypress Grove trail head. 

Hiking amidst some of the most majestic and magnificent trees, which included California Live Oaks as well as the endangered Monterey Cypress, we were reminded just how unique and meaningful an experience this was, given that the grove we were soaking in is only one of two naturally growing Monterey Cypress stands on Earth. What an honor. I felt so blessed to have the opportunity to show my daughter this pristine and important part of our ecosystem.

The California State Parks's staff does a stellar job of maintaining the trail, in conjunction with the Point Lobos Foundation who provides its visitors with extremely educational and glowing experiences. Their corps of volunteer docents are helpful, knowledgeable and so obviously in love with what they do, fueling a passion for future generations of stewards of this beautiful land, giving them the tools they will need to protect and provide for our Mother Nature.

[Guest Blogger Series] The Big Picture of Roadschooling by Val Joiner

From my very first leap off the diving board of blogging a little over a year ago, Val Joiner has been on my reading list. Her blog is.... well... just as she puts it; Val In Real Life. So simple, yet so incredibly evocative and candid, she paints the world a color entirely her own and then invites us all in to come and sit down with her around a cozy fire. And that it is why, I am so thrilled to introduce her to all of you! 

When I began homeschooling my sons over five years ago at the ages of 5 and 8, I had no idea we’d turn into roadschoolers. In fact, homeschooling wasn't on my radar at all until I was out of options and desperate for a situation that would work for my quirky kids. Because our transition to homeschooling was fairly sudden, I didn't enter into it with preconceived notions or even much of a plan. 

As we muddled our way through the first year or two in terms of figuring out how to address academics, we continued with our usual nature walk day trips and weekend camping trips to our state parks, things we’d been doing since they were babies. But no longer being tied to a rigid school schedule, we had to ability to leave a littler earlier and stay a little longer. Over time, our trips slowly evolved in length and scope.

Part of what drove this evolution was meeting and learning from inspiring home- and road-schoolers as we became immersed in this new community. They helped me shift my mindset from viewing our trips as separate from our normal life and education. They opened my eyes to the possibilities that travel held for the boys’ education and helped me take the final step towards mentally separating from the modern concept of education and academics in a school setting to seeing the world as their school. 

With our new mindset, we've now camped, hiked, and geocached all over North America in national and state parks. In the last five years, with the ability to go further and do more, we've taken countless long and short trips, encompassing 45 U.S. states and 5 Canadian provinces. Among so many experiences we now cherish as memories, we've paddled with the alligators in the Okefenokee Swamp, sat in a kiva at Mesa Verde, touched the Pacific Ocean, marveled at the tides in Fundy Bay, felt the crunch of salt under our feet at Badwater Basin, stood in 40 mph winds in the sands of Great Sand Dunes, touched John Adams' tomb, stood in the shadow of Elizabeth Cady Stanton's home, battled mosquitoes in the Everglades, and felt insignificant on the edge of the Grand Canyon.

I've seen these experiences expand the boys' view of the world around them. It shows up in their artwork and stories. When they read or hear about places we've been, they have a real connection, real memories, and real experiences to draw from. It has transformed their knowledge in a way that detached learning cannot. They not only know what these swamps, mountains, beaches, and deserts look like, but they also know how they smell, feel, and sound… a more complete understanding. 

On top of the knowledge of history and landscape they now have, our travels have taught them the life skills of flexibility and problem-solving, open-mindedness and self-awareness, perseverance and limits. When you're on the road far from home, the world is very real and it requires resourcefulness to navigate. It's a very important kind of education that isn't taught alongside history, math, and language arts in schools. There's no replacement for being out in the world... doing, seeing, and living. One of my favorite sayings now as a road-schooler is that books and computers are portable, historic sites and natural wonders are not.

Now firmly in adolescence, they're developing their own distinct ideas about what they want out of life. Our roadschooling experiences have given them a broad perspective from which they can now choose the path of possibilities they want to follow, the crucial element being that they know they have choices. If I've given them nothing else in all of this, I know they at least have that empowerment. 

For me, this journey has been surprise in so many ways. Not only that we're on it at all, but that the joys and fulfillment that come with giving your children the world is so worth the energy and effort it takes to make it happen. 
___________________________________________

About the Author

Val Joiner is an outdoor and educational travel blogger based in Roswell, GA. The former geologist turned road-schooling mom chronicles her adventures at Val in Real Life. When Val isn't on the road with her two boys, she can frequently be found honing her Southern Appalachian Naturalist skills in the Great Smoky Mountains.