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This is a really fun and informative chat with Elizabeth Adventures - an outdoor enthusiast who is an absolute pro at figuring motherhood in the mountains out. Adventuring with kiddos adds a whole new layer of planning and prep, but it truly is so worth it and women like Elizabeth blaze the trails with knowledge and resources for others looking to do the same. Even if you aren't in the midst of motherhood, this is still a great episode for mindsets or even some insight on how to help others in your life with little ones get outside!
For full guides and checklists to all things outdoors, check out Elizabeth's website HERE, along with her Instagram - @elizabeth.adventures
To try a free week of my signature Fit for Hiking program to get you fit from the trails (gym AND at-home options) start HERE.
For full guides and checklists to all things outdoors, check out Elizabeth's website HERE, along with her Instagram - @elizabeth.adventures
To try a free week of my signature Fit for Hiking program to get you fit from the trails (gym AND at-home options) start HERE.
For next level fat loss strategies, hormone/gut health help, serious performance goals and unparalleled support, apply for Mountain Metabolic coaching. Learn more HERE.
For more free wellness resources, hiking/travel guides, and other blog posts, check out my website HERE.
What is Fit for Hiking?
Where fitness and outdoors meet. In this space we chat all things hiking, exercise, wellness, adventure, motherhood, and metabolic health from a female perspective! Get ready to learn + be inspired to live your fullest, most adventurous life!
Hi, my name is Brady and I'm a long time fitness professional and Midwest girl turned mountain living hiking addict. In combining my knowledge of fitness and passion for hiking, I've helped hundreds of women get lean and strong for the trails. Think of this as your one stop shop for both education and inspiration on all things female wellness, trail talk and adventure. Hiking, female metabolism, motherhood, nutrition, travel and fitness are all topics you'll hear discuss here. If you are outdoorsy and active, looking to level up your health, unlock your potential, and become inspired to live your most vibrant life, you're in the right place. You're listening to the fit for hiking podcast. 1s Hello and welcome back to another episode of the fit for hiking podcast. Today we are joined by a guest. We have Elizabeth here, who you may know from Instagram as Elizabeth Adventures, and she is a badass hiker and adventure mom based in the Pacific Northwest, and she shares extremely helpful tips for mamas on how to still get out on the trails, still get out an adventure, and travel once having a baby. So thanks so much for being here, Elizabeth. Thanks for having me. Yeah. So tell listeners a little bit about your backstory with how you got into hiking. What did that look like for you? Sure. I grew up not really hiking, but in the outdoors in terms of like camping and just traveling a good amount. I did travel with my family, um, but I definitely didn't grow up in the hiking scene or doing any of the stuff I do now. I definitely didn't grow up backpacking. Yeah, I learned in adulthood. Um, and like one of the things I remember growing up, my mom and I took a trip to Utah recently, and we did literally the same loop that I did as a high schooler, and I hated it. My sister and I were so miserable. We're like, oh, they're rocks. They're so boring. It's hot. I don't want to be here. Can we just like, go shopping in Vegas? Like that's all we wanted to do. And my poor parents left us a day in Vegas so we could go shop on our own. And they went back out to the national parks and, like, looked at all the things we didn't want to do with them. And now on that same trip, I'm like, mom, this is so cool. Like, I was so lame as a high schooler. Yeah, it's so true. I look back and I'm like, all I wanted to do on vacations when I was younger was go shopping or go like lay on a beach, like so boring. And now I look back, I'm like, man, I should have been more excited on the trips where my parents actually put in the effort to try to do. Yeah, and I hated it. And I complained the whole time. Ditto. Which is funny because, like, we didn't I think part of it was like we didn't do a lot of those hiking trips. So when it was a trip that had that, it was like, I don't want to do this. Like I wasn't exposed to it enough to enjoy it. I feel like, yeah, totally. So what was the turning point for you that made you decide, wait, okay, I think I actually like this for myself as an adult. Sure. Um, I think it was maybe a combo of a couple of things. I have an autoimmune disease, and I was extremely sick from it. Um, and just getting out of bed was a challenge. So I think being able to get out of the house alone just really meant a lot. And that helped. And then taking some trips that I did during that time period just really ignited my love for hiking, but also for backpacking. I did a lot of Utah road trips, trips through California where I did like the national parks. I think the national park trips really just got it for me because they're so beautiful, so epic. Um, how can you not fall in love with the outdoors when you go to National Park? And so during that time period, we did a couple of trips when I was in my healthy phases. Um, and that really ignited it for me. Yeah. I'm sure you probably had a newfound appreciation if you had, like, not really been able to get out and do much. And then finally getting to kind of changes the perspective of it, I'm sure. I remember just laying in the backyard in the sun, like middle of winter, but feeling the sun on my face and being able to lay in the fresh air was just refreshing. And it meant a lot to just get in my own backyard because it was outside. Yeah, absolutely. And I think you're right about the national parks, like there's such a good gateway to people who haven't really done trips like that in the past. That's definitely what kind of helped me get into it, because it's kind of a safe, contained space to dabble in the outdoorsy scene without feeling super overwhelmed, not knowing what the heck to do. A lot of them have like shuttles and maps and like, yeah, to tell you where you should hike and things like that. And they're obviously beautiful and become national parks for a reason. So you go and it's kind of like this whole new world. If you're someone who's only ever done like beach vacations and things like that, for sure. And it's nice because, like, there's so much front country that you can do without having to like, go into the backcountry. So if you're not comfortable with that, you can feel comfortable on there. More populated. To which now I'm like, oh, I don't love the trails. But when you're just getting started, it's nice to be like, oh, there's people like, I feel safe here. Yeah, it's a little eerie to be like alone on a trail when you have no idea what you're doing, especially. So kind of speaking to the mother's side of things. When did you become a mom? When did that happen for you? Cooper was born last January, so he's almost a year old. I'm in the process of planning his first birthday, so in the middle of winter, which was kind of a fun, we could stay bundled up inside but then do a little bit in the snow. And yeah, that's honestly really nice. I gave birth end of May, and I kind of liked that time frame a little bit because you like, went into summer and you could get out for walks and things like that. But also I feel like we just immediately were thrust into like summer weddings and all these things that we like kind of needed to go to. And it was fun, but we didn't have that bubble of time where it was like just us sitting on the couch figuring out how to breastfeed, resting and things like that. So I feel like a little bit further back into the like, winter season would have been kind of nice. Yeah. So okay, so he's one almost one now. What did your pregnancy look like in regards to, you know, getting outdoors, hiking, adventures, things like that? I feel really fortunate that I had such an easy pregnancy, because I did not expect that with my history having an autoimmune disease, I was automatically categorized as a high risk pregnancy. So I was monitored every month with ultrasounds and I had to see a specialist. Um, and so just going into it, I was like, I could get sick really easy. Like, I don't know if I'm going to flare. I don't know if I'm going to have really bad nausea because nausea labeled as Gerd, I have Gerd, which is basically like really severe acid reflux. Um, it's something that I haven't obviously with morning sickness and all that. Like I'm like, I'm just gonna be like, bedridden, probably. Yeah. I feel really lucky that that actually didn't happen. Like my first trimester, I felt an increase in some of that nausea, but, like, I never threw up. I was never just really sick where I felt like I couldn't do stuff. Um, so other than, like some increased fatigue, I feel like my pregnancy was pretty smooth. Um, so I was able to be pretty active almost my entire pregnancy. I mean, the last few months I was like, oh, I don't want to move. So I definitely took it down a couple notches. But I was backpacking and hiking. I did a bunch of trips when I was pregnant, which made it really nice to still be active and not feel like I couldn't do stuff. That's so cool. So what did backpacking look like for you while pregnant? I did a ton of day hikes, but I didn't ever backpack because I was pregnant over like winter and fall and the following spring. And so I was it just like didn't line up seasonally, but I was always curious when I would see pregnant ladies out backpacking. And I was like, that is the most impressive thing because you already have so much added weight on. Yeah, I mean, the worst part is you have so much extra blood pumping through your body that you're just like, this is so hard, and I'm exhausted. Like, it's just so much more effort to do it. But the same with hiking. Like, you just. You feel that exhaustion a lot more. Um, but in terms of the backpacking, I feel like the only, like, struggle outside of that realm was like, where do you tighten your backpack because you have a belly now? So I basically just, like, stuffed it under my stomach and tried to, like, make it work that way. But yeah, I mean, honestly, the hardest part was just feeling that fatigue more than normal and like, just breathing, like the baby's pushing up on your diaphragm. So like, just breathing when you're exerting yourself, which I feel like anybody gets is just one of the bigger challenges. You just have to kind of slow it down, take breaks when you need it. Did you do anything in particular to stay comfortable at night while you were pregnant? I was never overly uncomfortable when I was pregnant. I feel like I'm already. I think the biggest issue is I'm a stomach sleeper, so stomach and side sleeper. So being a side sleeper kind of helped. Like I wasn't someone that laid on my back. And then backpacking, I feel like I was early enough along because I was in that like 5 to 6 month range. So I never got overly uncomfortable or big when I was backpacking. I've seen people out and they look like they're like eight months backpacking. I'm like, oh, I don't know if I could do that. Like, good for you. Yeah, it's so true, though. I feel like you actually really can do so much more than you think, especially in like two thirds of your pregnancy. Like it depends, obviously, on how you're feeling and what's going on in your level of sickness. But working out, hiking, all of the activities that you typically do, you don't just have to like, stop the second that you're pregnant. And I think that's a big misconception. And some doctors even kind of actuate that and put a lot of fear around like, oh, you can't lift weights. You shouldn't be like skiing or doing all of these things that women typically love to do when they're so, like tiny in the beginning and they're so protected. Yeah. Not going to be something that's like hazardous for them for really you can still get out and do those things. It's not like your life has to stop the second you find out you're pregnant. Nine months is a long time to just, like, sit around and do a whole lot of nothing. But I think a lot of that's also generational. Like previous generations. I remember my grandma telling me that she was told she shouldn't even vacuum while pregnant because she could. It's the cord around the baby's neck. Oh, goodness. Yeah. So she's like, it's crazy seeing you do all these workouts and stuff, because I never knew that that was an option. Yeah, I know, I've been told that people think it's crazy. I even, like, traveled pregnant, like, away from my doctor. I'm like, that's such an interesting mindset that, like, you can't leave the vicinity of your doctor's office or right, forget in the end. But like, I definitely was like different states. I never stayed close. Yeah, but I think that it's a special time because it is the last few months essentially, before you have to think about traveling with a baby and childcare and like all of these different things. So if you can get away with it from a health standpoint of still being able to travel and do some of those things, like got to take advantage of it. Uh, and luckily my doctors were all super supportive of me being active and doing stuff, even being high risk there. I mean, they monitored that and they never had concerns. They were fully supportive. They're like, if you're doing it already, keep doing it. That's great. Yeah. So how has hiking and travel changed for you since becoming a mom? I bring a lot of stuff. 2s I went from like the carry on only mom to like, let's check bags up to and like the car. We need a new car. Like, I can't fit stuff in my car. I mean, going camping before we have two small sedans, so it was always packed, and now it's like we have a roof rack we have to put on, and it's still packed. Yeah, so there's just a lot of stuff. And I mean, packing me is pretty quick because like, I have a system for hiking and backpacking and travel that I've just used. I have stuff in bins. I know where to grab it. Um, but now figuring out how to bring all of his stuff is just a learning curve. Um, I mean, I feel pretty lucky in terms of my background. I was a birth to three teacher, um, for eight years, and so I spent eight years literally taking little babies to three year olds out on walks. And like, I, I knew how to get them out the door. Um, so that definitely helped me a lot. Just kind of going into motherhood, going like, I don't have to stay inside with my baby. Like, they're so capable. They're resilient. Um, and having an idea of, like, what? I would maybe want to be successful on an outing. That definitely helped me in terms of, like, planning. Yeah, for sure. I do think you're so right about, like, the nerves around even just getting out the door, like as a first time mom personally, like I knew nothing about babies. Like I had only ever babysat for like four years old and up. So like baby babies, even like toddlers, I really didn't know what to do with. And so trying to get out the door with my daughter was so daunting. I remember the first time I did an outing with her by myself to a coffee shop. Like nothing crazy. I didn't even go outdoors really, but it felt like such a wind to me. I was like, I did it like I drove, not having a panic attack. I like got her out of the car seat, got her like, you know, safely into an establishment ordered by myself while carrying her. Like all these things that you just don't really think about until you're going through it yourself for the first time. And you have all those, like, new mom nerves. It's definitely tough. And then you throw the outdoors into it or travel overnight. Things like it can really be daunting. And even if you plan to do some of that stuff, once you're in the situation, it definitely becomes a different type of thing where you're like, oh, how do I actually execute this in a way where it's not just exhausting and stressful, and it actually is fun, for sure. And what's funny is, like, even with my background, the first time we went camping, I don't think I slept on it. He slept amazing. And I was just like, it's you breathing, it's you warm. Like, am I doing it okay? Like, is he comfortable? The first time we went backpacking? Same thing. Like every outing. I still worry, like, is he okay? Like, is he breathing in the carrier when we're hiking? Yes, absolutely. Your experience you're still going to have that mom worry. And that's normal. You just have to figure out what you're comfortable with and a system that works for you. Yeah. So what would you say has been the most challenging? Like part or a specific memory that you have where you're like, oh, this is really a lot harder than I thought it would be. Yeah, I feel like the most challenging thing we've had to deal with is when we're camping and backpacking. He was so little. Still, like under six months come summer. Um, well, I guess he hit six months of beginning of summer, but he still wasn't sleeping through the night, and so he would wake up a lot in the tent just because he was waking up at home anyways. And when you have neighbors, if your car camping and you're like, well, I don't want everyone to wake up to my baby crying all the time, so you like, quickly try and get them and feed them without everybody hearing your baby crying in the campground. And if we're backpacking, I mean, most of the time there are still people somewhat in the vicinity. So it was just challenging trying to like, make sure he was comfortable at night and well-fed. But like, I definitely wasn't letting him cry more than two seconds because I didn't want him to wake people up. And that was exhausting. It was really tiring going through that. But he sleeps now. It's hard because you are so worried about like normally when you go on one of these trips, you're just thinking about how do you get through it and kind of have fun and get the most out of the experience. Then you bring it into it and you're so worried, number one, about their health and safety and making sure they're okay and they're having a good time. And then you have to think about kind of the other people around you too, because, yeah, like if you have a screaming baby at a campsite, that's hard. And I've been there where I'm just like, oh my gosh, I'm just so worried that she's everybody else around us awake that I like, don't sleep. I'm not having a fun time. And it just another layer of worry in a way. Yeah. My husband at one point is like, we're not camping until he sleeps at night. I'm like, oh, well, I think we should still do it. Maybe just go places where there aren't people. Yeah, exactly. Just like go far away into the backcountry where. Yeah, disrupting people and keep the animals away. Probably. That's hopefully. Although someone told me that like, babies crying attract cougars and so. And then I was like, well, don't tell me that. I don't know if it's true, but I don't want to hear that. That's horrifying. That's a new fear unlocked. I know I was like, uh, I'm hoping you're joking. Oh my gosh. So what would you say? Then on the opposite side, it has been like the most rewarding experience that you've had bringing Cooper along on your adventures. Just watching, seeing him like he truly loves being outside. I feel like most kids just have that natural love for the outdoors, and it's up to us to foster that or to kind of kill that flame in watching him. He loves watching water. So if we're crossing like a creek or walking along a river, he just like his head is at that water. He is on his face. He's so engaged in it. Um, just taking like the little moments now that we used to not do. And we'll stop and look at a tree, like, here's some little needles, and he'll grab the needles on a tree and play with the needles and just you basically just relearn everything through watching them, like all the things you don't appreciate as you're just quickly hiking to your destination. He loves. And we now take the time for that. And it's really beautiful. That's so true. It does kind of refresh some of the small joys of getting outdoors and hiking that as an adult. Like sometimes we are kind of in a hurry or we're like worried about taking the right photos or like, you know, we're just so like in the zone. And I think as adults were just in like productivity, like check it off, check it off. And so it gets harder to just truly be present and enjoy and like notice the little things. And I do think that kids in every way like not even just in the outdoors, but they really do help you kind of like bring it back to the the simple pleasures, which is really cool. Yeah. And I am totally one of those hikers that's like, I'm going to get there as fast as I can. Like, I don't want this pack on my back for long enough to, like, get me there. And now I'm like, I'll be miserable if you enjoy it. Yeah. Um, so tell me about the first backpacking trip that you did with Cooper. Like, did you have anxiety around that, or were you just feeling like, okay, we got this? I felt really confident, but also worried. It was like a mix of, like, I know how to backpack. Well. I picked a trail that I felt super comfortable with. It was two miles to camp, really close to the highway. Like I knew we could bail super easy. And I wanted something that would be comfortable to start with. Like, I wasn't going to have to go eight miles into the back country out of service. Like, I think I even had cell service on this hike. So it was like super easy to start. Um, but then I was also like, what if we do have to bail at like three in the morning, which we almost did because he was crying and we had like, I think there's three campsites at this lake, so there's obviously two other people camping there. Um, and he was doing that wake up a bunch of crying. And I think one of the times he like, wasn't going back. My husband got out at like six in the morning, and it was like walking around with him, trying to get him to go to sleep. He's like, start packing the tent, like, we're gonna have to bail. I mean, I was six in the morning, not three in the morning, but it was just like, oh, like, darn. Luckily, he calmed down, fell back asleep, and we were able to make it to, like 9 a.m., but it was just a little stressful experience. Um, I mean, it was so fun overall, but like, just making sure he slept like I was worried he wasn't sleeping. He wasn't warm because we were now up in the mountains and not down lower elevation camping. Um, so I definitely had that. Like, did we pack enough diapers? Yeah, exactly. You're out there at that point. Like, if you forget something or they run out, like there's really no turning back. But I think it's smart that you guys did a trail that was short and close to civilization and, like, still had cell service because I think got ease into those situations to minimize some of the like, nerves around it. Sure. Well, and I had to do it as a test run because a couple weeks later I was backpacking with one of my best friends, and we were going way out in the middle of nowhere. It was 12 miles. Like, not an easy trail. Yeah. I was like, I don't know if I can carry him and his gear, like, that's a really heavy pack. Um, I don't know what I need to bring to make him comfortable. And of course, on that trip everything went well overall. But he, like at that age, was like pooping like once every few days. And he pooped like three times on one day. And I'm like, I didn't pack you enough diapers for this. Like, I have to pack them out, which is pack them out in their heavy poop. So we like he literally on the way out poop like two times just hiking out. I'm like, you better not poop. Before we get to the car. You're just gonna, like, sit in your poop for a couple hours. I don't have any more diaper. 1s That's so real. Oh my gosh. Okay, so for someone who's listening and maybe they're, like, not super familiar with what it's like to actually hike with a baby, maybe they're pregnant or like, want to start a family in the future? What does a day hike look like carrying a baby along? Verses backpacking? Yeah. I mean, the biggest challenge is just now the baby's weight. Um, obviously you're now carrying anywhere from £6 is a newborn to 20 some pounds as they get bigger. And it's I mean, I I'll be honest, it's uncomfortable, but it's worth it to me. You have to decide if that's something that's worth it. Um, to carry that weight on trail in terms of, like, the extra gear. I mean, none of their stuff weighs a lot. Like, you just have to pack diapers. You have to figure out food options. So there's definitely like a side of it. I just actually posted a checklist of, like, things to hike or to bring hiking with your baby. So I think you just have to come up with, like, use that printable that I made, or come up with your own list that you can just quickly check off. So it's not like a hassle, like, oh, do we have all these things? Um, and once you get a system down, it's really, really enjoyable to just like quickly grab your stuff and get out. And for me, it's worth it. Like, I will take all the extra weight if it means I get to spend time outside with him because we both need it for our mental health, for like our physical health, like we just love being outside. Yeah. Um, traveling, I feel like is the same. Like, you just have to figure out what you need to be successful with your baby traveling like. We've been traveling with his car seat on flights, and this last run, like I'm renting one, you know, you just have to figure out, like, is it worth bringing certain things? What's not worth bringing? Do you bring a pack and play? Do you only stay at places that provide pack and plays? Um, yeah. Which there's so many little things and it's just a personal preference, like what works for your family. And you figure that out with time. Like, there's no you have to know it in the beginning. And I think Instagram is really helpful in helping you figure that out. Like social media in general. Like what are other moms doing? What are they like doing? What products do they like using and seeing if those work for you too, or if there's something would work? Absolutely. Yeah. We'll have to link your you said it's a checklist like uh what to pack checklist. Yeah I'm in the I'm almost done with it. I've been making, like a hiking with a baby blog guide. Just like it has everything from, like, carriers. I have multiple types of carriers. Do you have clothing that you should dress your baby and by season, um, and then within it I have, like a printable packing list, which I do for car camping. Backpacking. I have printable lists for everything, and so I made one for hiking with a baby. That's so helpful. Otherwise, I feel like it is truly trial and error, which is not fun when you're like, oh wow, I didn't bring enough layers for my baby and now I feel terrible. Or even like understanding carriers like a lot of people might not know. And I didn't know this for a while, but until they weigh a certain amount, I think it's like £12 or something, maybe £18. Um, they have to be in a front carrier like it's a different support for their heads. So you're wearing them on your front. So if you're going out by yourself, then if that doesn't have storage, you're also carrying a day pack. So there's like weight in the front and weight in the back. And then they can graduate to the back carrier, which is really nice. But then you can kind of decide if you want one that has room for backpacking gear or if you just planned a day hike, because they'll have different weights and different amounts of storage. There's just so many things to consider. And if you've never hiked with a baby, you're not really thinking about all of those different things. So we'll have to link that in the show notes whenever it's done. I think that'll be really helpful. Yeah, it's definitely, I think, a good tool because I do talk about like the leaders in a pack in like the benefits of certain carriers, like the soft carriers, like, what do you want in it? Um, just to help people kind of figure it out. Yeah. That's so nice. So do you have any, like, quick tips for anyone who's maybe a soon-to-be mom or a recent mom, um, who still wants to get out and travel and hike, just like any quick tips for getting over that hump of, like, making it happen and some of those nerves. Yeah. First off, be graceful with yourself. It's not always going to go as planned. And that's okay. I mean, I've forgotten products. I've had to turn around. I've had to cut things short. And that's okay. Like you just need to remember that's not the end goal. The angle is just enjoy time outside with your baby. Um, I've forgotten a carrier, and instead we just kind of did something locally where we could just carry him for, like, no more than a mile. Like, okay, to have those moments. You're not alone. Like, everybody has those moments. So be graceful with yourself. Be patient. Um, and I think just knowing that it's not gonna, you're gonna have to do some trial and error to some extent. Like my carrier may. It might not be the carrier you like. Yeah. Um, and so just like, being okay, kind of going through the process of figuring out what works for you, which is part of just being patient with it. I know everybody in this society, we just want we want it to work the first time. And I mean, it might like that might be what happens for you, but it's okay if it takes you a little bit to figure it out. Yeah. And it's not gonna look the same as it did for you, baby. Most likely. Unless your baby, like, never cries and never had the issues. And I had a super easy baby and I still had to figure some stuff out. That's okay. Like, that's part of, like, you two bonding and figuring out what works for you. And that's part of the beauty of it is like figuring out how you two can enjoy it together. Yeah. I think letting go of those expectations of it's going to go perfectly. It's going to go exactly like it did pre-baby, like give yourself more time, give yourself grace. Know that there are going to be times where you have to turn around. I remember the first hike we did with Judy that was like long. Like we'd done a bunch of day hikes starting when she was. Three weeks old, like short day hikes. And then we ended up doing like a pretty long one. I think it was like nine, ten miles. Um, a couple months in and, you know, we're just thinking, oh, this'll be fine. Like, we've got this. She likes being in the carrier. And man, we totally underestimated how long it would take that long of a hike because she needed more feeding breaks. She had, like, multiple blowouts. Like, we had to go way slower because it was slick and we didn't want to fall with her. And she was fussy. And it was just one of those big learning experiences of, okay, we have to kind of look at this through a new lens like, yes, we can still do it, but if we expect it to look how it did before, it's probably not going to be as much fun because we're going to be comparing it totally for sure. Yeah. So I think that's such a good tip and learning as much as you can before you go out so that you're not caught by surprise by some of these things. You know what to pack. All of that definitely goes a long way. And there are so many resources now at our fingertips with social media, which is so nice. I would definitely encourage you to find like moms that are already doing it online and just learn from them as much as you can, because that's how much I've learned about products and various items like how to do stuff. I mean, I've figured out stuff on my own, but so much of what I've learned has just been kind of figuring out what other people are doing and then deciding, like, I think that'll work for me, and trying it out and just going from there. Yeah, like YouTube reviews, like reviewing different packs and like then you can kind of hear, okay, if this is important to you, then this pack is going to be great because you might not even think about something like, oh, having like a shade cover is going to be really important if you've never hiked a baby before. Yeah. So I think that those have been one of my favorite things for just like actually seeing gear reviews for baby items. Yeah. And especially for like packs and stuff, just going into the store and trying it on, like, it's super helpful to be able to go into stores like Rei and just get the help of someone that knows what they're talking about. Yeah, 100%. Whether it's just for yourself or for hiking with the baby. Um, cool. So any exciting plans for you and your family in 2024? Do you guys have any cool like bucket list trips or hikes planned? Uh, I'm super excited. Just between January and I think the end of May, we're going to do at least six national parks with Cooper. Um, I'm so excited. I'm taking him on a road trip in January with my parents. And then. Going to Hawaii with him again just for like a relaxing trip. So he gets to go on some flights. Yeah. And I'm just really excited for him to kind of see more national parks. And all these national parks are new to me as well. So far we've been doing parks that I've already been to with him, so I'm really glad to like do a park that we've never done together, which will be really fun. Yeah, there's something special about going to a totally new park and like having to figure it out for the first time. And that initial wonder of like, exploring a new place is so fun. A lot of our trips are road trips too, so I'm a little nervous how he's going to do for those long stretches in a car. There's my cat, 1s how he's going to do for those long stretches. But, um, so far he's really good in the car, so fingers crossed they go well and we'll make it work and adjust how we need to. Yeah, totally. Everyone told us we were nuts when we did a trip from Colorado to Banff, Canada in our van with our baby. She was like 13 months old at the time when we left and everyone was like, you guys are nuts. That's the worst age to do long road trips. Um, like there's no way that's going to go well. And she did amazing. Like, and she's like kind of a fussy baby and she actually degrades. So don't let you know other people's opinions deter you because I think it was well worth it. Obviously we had our moments, but it's really fun to do road trips with your baby. And you do have the liberty of like stopping when you want. And like if you just need to do a shorter drive day, like just building that time in, but it's it's not as bad as some people would think. I don't think like normally in the past it would be like drive all the way to the destination, even if it's 12 to 16 hours. And now it's like, well, maybe we go like halfway or just kind of a thing. Um, like, I do know we're gonna have to stop and feed them and let them out and play. And honestly, it's been my goal from the get go to have them used to the car. I didn't want him to not be used to driving. And obviously there's circumstances where some babies just don't like to drive. But yeah, that was something very intentional from the day he was born. We took longer trips and he's just kind of been used to that, so I'm hoping that helps. I think that's so true. Like getting out and doing things. Yeah. You might not have the perfect schedule. You might have some days where it's really like painful because they're just, you know, having a day. But I do think they get so much more used to those things, like just traveling, not needing to be like in their crib to sleep, not having to abide by a perfect schedule. And then you can still continue to do the things that you love to do and as a family without it being like the biggest deal ever. Like the sooner you can get out and start doing that stuff, I think it really, really does help, even though it's hard initially. I know a lot of people are very strict on like nap schedules, which, if that works for you, that's amazing. That's fine. I did notice when I was a birth to three teacher that the babies that like, slept through anything and slept really well were the ones whose parents did stuff with them no matter their sleep schedule, like they slept in a carrier, they slept in the car. And I think that can be beneficial if that's something you're wanting to do. Don't feel like you have to stick to like a set sleep schedule. Your baby can sleep in the car and it's okay. Your baby can sleep in the carrier. It's okay if that's something you want to do. Oh, absolutely. We've never been great with schedules with her, but a lot of that's because she's just not a great schedule, baby. Like, she rebels against any schedule. But I think it works okay for our family dynamic because we like to take van trips. We've, like, lived in another country with her for a couple months. We do a lot of things like after work. So it's just that's kind of how it goes. We're not going to have like a perfect schedule. And some people love schedules, but you don't have to. And I think if you want the flexibility to do some of these things, like not having to live and die by a schedule is so helpful. Yeah, yeah. Like Cooper has a nap every day at around 11 and every day around like 3 or 4. And I know those are going to happen, but it's okay if it's in the car or if it's on the trail. Like, I know those times, we'll probably fall asleep, but we may be out and we may be home. And either way, so far he sleeps through all of it. He has no problem. That's amazing. That's so nice. Well, cool. Thank you so much for coming on today. Could you just tell listeners where they can find you? And like I said, we will link that checklist in the show notes. But where else can people find you? Yeah, I have a blog with a lot of hiking guides and resources for hiking, backpacking, camping at Elizabeth Adventures. Com and you can find me on social media, Elizabeth Dot adventures. So I'm on TikTok, but I don't use it that much. I don't understand the TikTok world, but I have one. If you're TikToker but mostly Instagram, you can find me there. Perfect. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for coming on today. It was so fun talking with you. Yeah. You too. Thanks for tuning in to this episode of the fit for hiking podcast. As always, I hope it leaves you feeling inspired and informed on how to take your health and adventure into your own hands. For more content like this, be sure to follow along with my daily posts at Ponytail Underscore. On a trail that's ponytail underscore on a trail. You can also stay up to date on my new episodes being released at Fit Underscore for hiking, and find more free resources at ponytail on a trail comm. Happy and healthy trails.