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Camping Gear

15 Best Instant Tents for Camping (Easiest Tents to Set Up Yourself)

April 17, 2022December 1, 2021 by Mimi McFadden
The Best Instant Tents for Camping

If you’re tired of wrestling with tent poles, we’ve found the best instant tents for easy camping.

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

10 Best Double Camping Cots (for Comfortable Camping in 2022)

April 17, 2022December 1, 2021 by Mimi McFadden
Best Double Camping Cots

The best double camping cots for more comfortable nights at camp, no matter what type of sleeper you are.

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

13 Best Canvas Tents for Every Occasion (2022 Buying Guide)

April 17, 2022November 7, 2021 by Mimi McFadden
Best Canvas Tents

Whether you’re looking for an elegant gathering space or a weekend family camping tent, these are the best canvas tents for any occasion.

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

70+ Gifts for Campers (That They’ll Actually Use on Their Next Trip)

April 18, 2022August 20, 2021 by Mimi McFadden
Gifts for Campers That They’ll Actually Use

The most thoughtful, fun, and practical gifts for the camper in your life, whether they’re a beginner car camper or an expert backpacker.

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear, Gift Guide Leave a comment

Best Tent Waterproofing Spray (For 2022) – Stay Dry at Camp

April 17, 2022January 13, 2021 by Mimi McFadden
waterproofing products for tents

Short on time? Our pick for the best tent waterproofing spray is Kiwi Camp Dry Water Repellent. The best tent waterproofing sprays to help you stay dry on your next outdoor adventure, plus how to use them. Even the best tents get worn out and need a little TLC from time to time.  If your shelter isn’t shedding … Read more

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

How to Waterproof a Tent: Step-By-Step Guide to Waterproofing

April 17, 2022January 8, 2021 by Mimi McFadden
waterproof tent seams

How to waterproof a tent – waterproofing tips, tricks, and techniques so you can always enjoy a comfortable and dry camping trip. Your tent’s main job is to keep you dry. To that end, waterproofing is essential to a functional tent and a comfortable camping trip.  Every tent, from a cheap pop up to a … Read more

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

Best 3 Room Tent for Camping With More Space (2022 Buying Guide)

April 17, 2022December 8, 2020 by Mimi McFadden
best multi room tent

How to choose the best 3 room tent for your next group adventure with your family or pod. Short on time? Our pick for the best 3 room tent is the Ozark Trail 12 Person Tent.   Camping is usually a messy, cramped, communal activity. When you think of camping, you don’t usually think of a lot … Read more

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

Best 8 Person Tent for Family-Style Camping (2022 Buying Guide)

April 17, 2022November 25, 2020 by Mimi McFadden
What to look for in an 8 person tent

Short on time? Our pick for the best 8 person tent is the Gazelle T8. The best 8 person tent to get everyone outside – whether you’re backyard camping or heading for the mountains. Camping with eight people can be a lot sometimes. Keeping everyone dry and comfortable is a tall order under any circumstance, … Read more

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

13 Best Pop Up Tents for Camping, Beach Days, and Backyard Hangouts

April 17, 2022November 10, 2020 by Mimi McFadden
how do you set up and take down pop up tents

Short on time? Our pick for the best pop up tent is the Kazoo Family Camping Tent. Our picks for the best pop up tents for no-hassle instant camping. When you’re exhausted after a long day on the trail, at the beach or chasing after kids, the last thing you want to do is spend … Read more

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear Leave a comment

Best 6 Person Tent for Camping (2022 Buying Guide)

April 17, 2022October 16, 2020 by Mimi McFadden
best 6 person tent for camping

My picks for the best 6 person tents on the market, whether you’re car camping with friends or the whole family.

Categories Gear Tags Camping Gear 1 Comment
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Even though I’ve been running my website since 2 Even though I’ve been running my website since 2012, it always used to be my passion not my main source of income. 

It was a way of sharing my experiences and perspective about the places I traveled. I never had a business plan or looked all that much into how to make money from it. 

Over the next six years, I went from bartending to running a somewhat successful consulting business as a freelance marketer that still allowed me to travel and work remotely. 

Although I always imagined being able to make a living from my website, it honestly seemed unlikely that I’d be able to make money from something that I enjoyed so much. 

It wasn’t until 2018 that I started teaching myself SEO and invested in numerous courses. 

It took another year after that to start looking into how to monetize my website, and that was only after I lost one of my biggest clients and my monthly income was cut by 80%.

I thought it was as good a time as any to finally give it my best shot to create a successful blog that supported me. 

I started building up a monetization strategy, intertwining my SEO skills to start making a little more money, one month at a time. 

And then seven months later, March 2020 happened. And we all know how that went for the travel industry. 

l was very close to walking away at that point, but I had seen how much growth there was in just seven months before everything came tumbling down. I couldn’t unsee that potential. So, after three months of a lot of languishing,  I kept working on my site, more determined than ever. 

It took another year and two months after that to finally be making just enough to end all my client work and start focusing on my website full time. I wrote an income report a month after that in June of 2021.

It was called “How I made $6,598 from my blog in June 2021.” When I wrote that article, I had big goals to hit 100,000 page views in a month before the end of the year (which I did!) and to make over $6,000 in a month again. 

Secretly, I was hoping to double that amount by the following year, but looking back, I probably should’ve dreamed bigger. 

Continued in the comments below👇
11 fake ring boxes later, @suneelj1 finally gave m 11 fake ring boxes later, @suneelj1 finally gave me the real one today on our favorite hiking trail in Berkeley. 💍❤️
2 years since our first date. ✨❤️ My first i 2 years since our first date. ✨❤️ My first introduction to Suneel was coming across his profile picture on OK Cupid where he was ungracefully balancing an Oreo on his face. He hasn’t stopped making me laugh since.
We’re feeling 22! 💃🏻🎉🎶. . ✅Vaccin We’re feeling 22! 💃🏻🎉🎶. 
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✅Vaccinated + negative COVID tests for everyone the day of before the party. 
✅ Fancy on top, casual on the bottom.
✅Piñata, beer pong, rage cage, karaoke, confetti party poppers, midnight countdown, and all the food. 
✅ A memorable NYE with some of my favorite people. ❤️
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Happy 2022!! 🎉💃🏻🍾✨
In May 2021, I finally took the leap. I decided to In May 2021, I finally took the leap. I decided to end all client work and start working on my website full time. Since then, it has been a wild ride. It’s mind-boggling to finally see something grow into what you’ve always imagined it could be after 8 years of dreaming about it. 

In 2021, I published 87 posts. I finally learned how to delegate better, hiring one VA and three writers to create a team of brilliant and talented women beside me. Site traffic grew by 149% to around 870,000 page views for the year (averaging around 93,000 per month for Q4). Annual revenue grew by 300% and included hitting a new benchmark - our first five-figure month (with many more to come)! I also explored so many new corners of California in the name of research, including the Channel Islands, Pinnacles National Park, more of Big Sur and the Bay Area, and even tackled my biggest adventure yet - hiking the Trans-Catalina Trail over 5 days. 

My goals for 2022? There are too many to name here, but just know that it will be a year focused on growth and chasing big things. 2021 was a taste of what could be, and this year I finally feel ready to hit those big milestones I used to only dream of (a consistent publishing schedule, six figures, and well over 1M page views before the year is done). 

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year!! Let’s go kick some ass in 2022.💃🏻✨
A look at some of the books I read in 2021, I read A look at some of the books I read in 2021, I read 32 books this year! 
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In swiping order is 1) my favorite books that I read in 2021 (and one not pictured: “Second Foundation” by Isaac Asimov), 2) all of the fantasy/sci-fi books I read, 3) all of the non-fiction books I read, and 4) all of the misc fiction/historical fiction books I read. There were also a couple others that I read that aren’t pictured here because I read them on my Kindle: “Beach Read” and “People We Meet on Vacation” by Emily Henry, both of which I consumed in under a week they were so good. 
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In previous years, I’ve mostly focused on reading non-fiction business and travel books. I still read some of those this year (“Profit First” - actually a re-read, “High Performance Habits”, “Leave Only Footprints”), but this was the year I got back into reading just for fun. 
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My reading list this year consisted of a lot of good stories, and I especially dove into a lot of fantasy and sci-fi books, a genre I hadn’t explored much before. I also continued my goal from 2020 of reading more books from POCs (including both fiction and non-fiction racial justice books) to surround myself with a wider variety of perspectives. 
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The most disappointing book I read this year? Dune. Loved the movie, I don’t understand why so many people love the book though. It was a slog to get through. 
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So, what should I read in 2022? What was your favorite book from 2021 that I should add to my reading list? Looking for any and all recommendations (as you can see, I pretty much read anything) to hit my goal of 40 books for 2022.
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