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Meagan Wriston
23 Plays20 days ago
Join Alasdair and Meagan as they discuss turning a pre-social media blog into a thriving business
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Transcript
Introduction & Sponsor Message
00:00:00
Speaker
Hello and welcome to the Outdoorsy Educator Podcast, the show where curiosity meets the open road. I'm your host Alistair and I invite you to join me as we explore the world through travel, nature, getting outside and the power of learning.
00:00:17
Speaker
Each episode we will dive into stories from inspiring educators, adventurers and global citizens who are reshaping what it means to learn whether it's in a classroom, on a mountain trail, or even halfway across the world.
00:00:31
Speaker
From backpacking trips that change your perspective to educational journeys that transform communities, we will cover it all. So pack your curiosity, lace up your boots, and let's discover how the world teaches us.
00:00:44
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One step, one story, one adventure at a time.
00:00:56
Speaker
Since 1970, Whole Earth Provision Company has been the Texas outfitter for side quests, big and small. Whether you're gearing up for the open road, chasing a trailhead, or hunting for that just right gift, they have got you covered.
00:01:11
Speaker
Think durable clothing, shoes that will actually go the distance, gear that's road trip ready, and books, puzzles, and toys that will spark wonder at every age.
00:01:23
Speaker
You'll find Whole Earth in Dallas, Austin, Houston, and San Antonio, or anytime online at wholeearthprovision.com. And hey, because you're rolling with the Outdoorsy Educator podcast, here's a little extra love. Use the code OUTDOORSYEDU for 20% off your next adventure at Whole Earth.
Megan Wriston's Blogging Journey
00:01:50
Speaker
And on this week's episode of the Outdoorsy Educator podcast, we have founder of Mummy Travels, Megan Wriston. Megan, how are you today? I'm great. Thank you for having me.
00:02:01
Speaker
Good. Yeah, thank you so much for being here. We've been trying to connect for a little bit and we've we finally managed. um i know you live not very far from me, but we're both quite busy and i'm just really appreciative that you have made the time to talk.
00:02:15
Speaker
Of course. but and Glad to make it happen. I was out of town for, I think, 25 days straight. so Goodness. A few days ago. Well, we'll certainly get into that, but I stumbled across Mommy Travels on Instagram and was just... I like travel pages, businesses that really seem to focus on community and building a community. And it struck me just looking your pictures that that's a big part of what you do. So wanted to reach out and talk to you a little bit about that. But why don't you tell our listeners about Mubi Travels? Where did this idea come from? What is it? I'm sure they would love to hear from you.
00:02:54
Speaker
So i started Mommy Travels in 2008 before travel blogging was kind of a thing. um It's a travel and lifestyle blog. So I cover all aspects of travel, whether it's family. I'm single, so I travel a lot with my girlfriends. um So a lot of people are like, oh, it's just family travel. It's not. it's It's all of it. And especially like you can't be around for almost two decades and not cover literally every aspect of travel at this point. Right. Right.
00:03:21
Speaker
um But yeah, I started it. I met a coupon blogger. um but So I'm, I'll back it up. I was a military wife for 15 and a half years. We moved nine times in 11 years and I could not get a job.
00:03:35
Speaker
Right. And I was very frustrated. And even if I did get a job, the, BRAC would drop. And the next thing you know, we're moving. So I'd have to quit that job. So it didn't matter if I got a good job, I'm gone anyway in six months or, you know, less than a year.
00:03:51
Speaker
So I was looking to build something and I didn't know what that was going to be, but I needed or I wanted a job. And so I was at a Mothers of Preschoolers, which is um a nonprofit at like local churches usually. And it's a great way to meet other mommies. And when I'm moving every five seconds, I'm desperate to meet people everywhere we're stationed. So I would join a mobs group.
00:04:17
Speaker
And one of the days I was at this mobs group and they had a coupon blogger there. And this was when like they were having those couponing shows where people were like doing those massive grocery. I remember those. Yes. And she brought in like all these, um like all the grocery ads and the Walgreens coupons. And she was like,
00:04:40
Speaker
Trying to teach this coupon method. I didn't understand any of that. That's too complicated for me. And I'm going to spend hours to get, you know, $50 worth of free groceries. That's not a good use of my time. And so, which it's fine for other people. I think it's great. But for me, I was just like, this is too complicated. But during her talk, she's like, go to my blog, go to my blog. And this is 2008, mind you. So I'm like, what's a blog?
00:05:04
Speaker
So I went to her blog and I'm like, oh, this girl's making money. So I reached out to her. I'm like, hey, Would you mind talking to me about this? She's like, yeah, of course. um she was She was really good friends with one of the gals at Mops. And that's why she was there. And so she was really kind about it. She wouldn't tell me how much money she was making. But she said, I'll never teach again.
00:05:24
Speaker
Well, this is in the panhandle of Florida. you know, two decades ago. And so, and I happen to know how much a teacher gets paid in Florida because I'm on the wait list for a teaching job.
00:05:34
Speaker
Right. And um which fun fact, four years later, I got off the wait list. And by then I lived in Portland, Oregon. I didn't the job. Didn't good do that. Yeah. So she said, I'll never teach again. and I knew kind of based on her age and like how many years maybe she'd been teaching in the panhandle of Florida, that could be 28 $38,000 at that time.
00:05:57
Speaker
And I thought, you know what? $28,000 a year is better than no dollars. Right. So I think I'll start a blog. And so I started several blogs and tried to figure out like, what what do I know enough about that I could turn this into something?
00:06:15
Speaker
And we lived in Panama City Beach. And then we got stationed in Las Vegas. And then we got stationed in Portland, Oregon. Those are all travel destinations. Right. Right. So ironically, all the blogs I started to be a business didn't work. But I had started this family blog where I talked about what we were up to because our families live far away.
00:06:37
Speaker
Our friends live far away. So i'm like, today we did this.
Adapting to Blogging & Social Media Changes
00:06:40
Speaker
You know, last week we did this cool weekend trip and I'm just talking about it on Mommy Travels.
00:06:48
Speaker
And that's the blog that hit. I love that. And I'm going go out on a limb and guess that was the one that you were most passionate about. And the week it's about you and your family. Yes. And it was the most relatable because I wasn't trying to make money. so go figure. But yeah. And then when people are looking for like where to eat in Panama city beach, I've just talked about this.
00:07:12
Speaker
You know, killer restaurant we went to that just opened and it was so fun. And here's the kids playing. They put a playground at the beach at this restaurant and turns out other people want to go there and do that same thing.
00:07:23
Speaker
Well, when it starts catching on, I realize what's happening. So I'm like, oh, 20 best places to eat in Panama City Beach. Here we go. Right. And then it just starts to grow and grow from there. And then, i mean, I love the fact, I've spoken to quite a few people who have done similar things, but they all started, I would say, in the last five years, maybe 10. You're an OG at this. Yeah, so it's a lot easier to start now. Right. So, I mean, when I started, there were no resources. There were no courses. There was no such thing as WordPress. I started on Blogspot. I remember that. brand Remember Blogspot. Yes.
00:08:02
Speaker
Yeah. So when WordPress got invented, you know, I'm hearing about it and I'm thinking maybe I should switch. So i was probably three or four years into this when I switched to WordPress and I was like, wow, this is so much better. And then used to, you know, there was no such thing as like these ad companies where you become part of an ad network and they just run your ads for you. I'm putting ads in by hand.
00:08:25
Speaker
Right. wow And that I'm sure has paid dividends as things have changed and your business has grown. Now, how does, you know, I'm on Instagram and I can just about navigate TikTok and, you know, I don't know. Some of that's a little beyond me still. Now, where does blogging fall these days? Is that still something that's active or have people kind of moved away from that in terms of your audience and it's now social media based? Yeah.
00:08:52
Speaker
I think there's multiple things happening at once. I think a lot of blogs are falling off because they don't know how to run the whole things and they've outsourced so much that as the rise of AI has essentially stolen traffic because it crawls your website and gives the person the answer for free so they never come to your website. As their traffic has declined and they've made little to no money or as they lose that Whatever the revenue was, you know, if you take a 75% hit and you're outsourcing everything, you're done. Your business is tanked. Right. Luckily, I've been around so long.
00:09:24
Speaker
I know how to do everything myself. So I'm able to trim the fat real fast because I can, i don't have to outsource it and I don't necessarily have to pay anyone else to do it. So I'm still blogging and I update my blog one to five times a week, depending on what I'm up to.
00:09:41
Speaker
Right. And I'm guessing that you've got a core following people who I do. yeah I've got a newsletter that goes out every week to more than, i don't know, 30,000, 60,000 people. so you know, this is because I have been around for so long. I'm very lucky. So I got hit with AI just like everybody else, which is unfair and not a lot you can do about it yet. Right.
00:10:03
Speaker
um But because I do have such a large following on a newsletter, on Instagram, you know, here, there, and everywhere, it all adds up. So I would say, you know, i know some people just do Instagram. I was on a trip with some people and they they're just Instagrammers. And I thought that's so interesting that,
00:10:21
Speaker
But the brand values that and and it is valuable. Everybody's on Instagram and everybody watches it and says stuff and bookmarks it. But after about 24 hours, it really drops off. Right. Whereas a blog is going to continue to produce day after day after day. And I mean, it and if it hits, man, it really produces. Whereas, you know, my best Instagram has a couple of million and then it tapered off.
00:10:48
Speaker
Yeah, I was just thinking about that. but I've made some Instagram posts that have been that people have really liked. But then you it's it's difficult to refer people back to it in a couple of months. You know, you know people have to go and search for it a bit. or gets bit With a blog, I imagine once it's made, it's there forever and easier to find.
00:11:08
Speaker
Well, it's interesting. I just had a video go viral that I posted about, it was just a... I did a walk through, was staying on a private island, in Belize called Cayo Espanto. And it's a super luxe property. And I mean, I see why it went viral, but it got picked up in India.
00:11:27
Speaker
And I don't know how many people from India are coming to Belize on vacation. I would assume not many. Right. Right. So that's really cool that it did that well. And I'm happy did that well, but I pushed it out to, it still went on my website because that's Americans and they're going to travel to Belize. And so I have the ability to put content in front of a certain audience. Not that I control the audience on my website, but it is very very American. So right whereas Instagram, I mean,
00:11:55
Speaker
If it gets picked up in some random country, I have no control over that. so Absolutely. That's so interesting. I wonder why just thinking somebody with India has the income to go to a a beautiful island. There's plenty in that part of the world. so I wonder what drew them to Belize. yeah I don't know.
00:12:13
Speaker
i don't know. i was just, and I got so excited because I was like, oh, 100,000 views and really fast. And then 150,000. I was like, man, this is just going up, up and up. And then I looked at it and I was like, hmm. Yeah, and I'd be curious as to what's what's going on there. That's interesting. don't have a large following from India on Instagram.
00:12:31
Speaker
So I have no idea what happened. One person probably shared it or reposted it. Right, somebody with a following there. So you have your successful blog. It's going well.
00:12:42
Speaker
How did you, let's say, well, just over 10 years ago, social media really taking off 10, 15 years ago. How did you find that transition into having to to develop a platform on Facebook, Instagram, things like that when things really started?
00:12:57
Speaker
Well, you got to back it up even further than that. I mean, when Twitter twitter hit the market, I was one the first people on Twitter. So I've got a really nice Twitter following. But they're not active on it anymore. So, you know, so it's like you build this, you amass this big following and it's going great and it goes great for years and then it's done. Right. Same thing with Pinterest, you know, amassed a massive following on Pinterest and it was like the gift that kept on giving it's dead as a doornail now. yeah.
00:13:27
Speaker
At
Group Trips & Community Building
00:13:28
Speaker
least for me, it is. So, you know, it's and then um TikTok, by the time TikTok hit the market, I'm burnt out on building a following on every social media hitting the market. So in COVID, when TikTok blew up, I'm not even on it. So I was so late to the game. My TikTok is very...
00:13:46
Speaker
I have no following on TikTok. So go follow me on TikTok. Okay. It's my name. um But yeah, so which it's a lot of work. It's a lot of hustling. like So I started creating content. like i So Instagram's probably my biggest social media platform.
00:14:03
Speaker
So if I'm going to create a reel for Instagram, I'm going to repost it on TikTok. I'm going repost it on YouTube shorts. I'm going post it on Pinterest. I'm going post it on Facebook reels. Like, so I, I, because it is so much work with so many platforms, I kind of create the content once and then just share it everywhere I can think of. That's very similar to me. I'm not somebody who is or really aspiring to make income from social media. I'm very thankful to have a job I love. It's just something I enjoy. but
00:14:34
Speaker
we all have only so much bandwidth. And it's like I enjoy Instagram. That gives me things I'm looking for. I have a community there. But when we start talking about threads and even TikTok and other things, I can't dedicate or even honestly really want to dedicate the same amount of time to all these different things.
00:14:54
Speaker
Yeah, it's just a tremendous amount of work. So, yeah, I know some people don't take social media like as a very serious job. but It is so time consuming. So, yeah. i I didn't fully appreciate that until I started this podcast and I met lots of interesting people who are spending hours a day.
00:15:10
Speaker
i mean, at minimum for some, it's a part-time job, if not more, just creating and putting out content with no guarantee of what will happen with it. it's Yes. Yeah. It is truly a grind and survival of the fittest. it And that is kind of why it's smart to put the same piece of content everywhere because I'm shocked how well something will bomb on Instagram.
00:15:32
Speaker
and just blow up on YouTube shorts. And I'm like, okay, great. Isn't that interesting? Like who knows how the algorithm actually works. And when did you sort of develop and start creating actual trips for people?
00:15:47
Speaker
um I'd love to hear the sort transition into that. Cause you take groups places, is that correct? Oh, no I just did that for the very first time. That's That's brand Oh, right. Okay. So I just kept getting asked over and over again,
00:15:59
Speaker
Like, do a group trip, do a group trip. I want to go with you. and so... I was very nervous about it. um I just took 14 women to Fredericksburg, Texas for the very first time. It went awesome. It could not have gone better. We had such a great time. um And I've been to Fredericksburg so many times on press trips. I know all the things to do. I know where to eat, what to do, where to shop.
00:16:21
Speaker
I know which wineries suck and which ones are great. So everyone's like, this itinerary is incredible. Like that was just, and I was like, yeah, it was. Right, because you' you've got this down to a science and in Fredericksburg.
00:16:35
Speaker
Yeah, so and then, um you know, sometimes people just want to work with us. So ah the kids and I are going to host a Thanksgiving cruise with Ammo Waterways, not this year, but next. And so families that have kids similar ages as mine, which they're young adults, they're not children. Mm-hmm.
00:16:53
Speaker
you know, and they want their, they want everybody in the family, these different ages to be happy. So they really like the idea of like, you have built in people to hang out with that are the same age their people. So that should be pretty fun. So a handful of people have booked that cruise to cruise with us. So it'll be really neat to see how that goes. I love that. And is that kind of the direction that you feel your, your brand, your business will go? um There seems to you lots of interest in it.
00:17:21
Speaker
I don't know. um The Fredericksburg trip went so well that I did go ahead and become a travel agent. So now I can book people's travel. I haven't actually done that yet. I'm still going through the training. um and But yeah, I don't I don't know. That's a good question. um i think it will just be one slice of my business.
00:17:39
Speaker
Right. Not all your eggs in one basket. Right. So I'm going to St. Martin. I'm staying at a resort in St. Martin in February. And I thought, wow, this is a great resort. I should open this up. So I'll be there on a press trip.
00:17:52
Speaker
So I'm there working. But I was like, how easy would it be for me to say, hey, girls trip, meet me there. Right. I mean, it's all inclusive. So if I'm eating at this restaurant, so can they. So I'm i'm trying to kind of like figure out.
00:18:08
Speaker
what that looks like. Is this possible? Is this a good idea? Or does it need to be completely separate from, you know, if I'm on a press trip, I'm on a press trip and it can't be anything else. I'm not sure yet. that's good like out I'll be curious to keep watching your Instagram and see how this story develops. Yeah. Cause I mean, this must be a quandary that's a lot of people run into as their company grows and new opportunities come around.
00:18:35
Speaker
Well, and I've noticed a lot of travel writers have quit doing travel writing because they're their websites are doing so bad. And so they became travel agents. I'm really lucky. My my website's doing okay. um I took the hit like everybody else, but then it started going back up. And I do think it's because i I've just been, i have content from 2008 onwards. it's just, I have thousands and thousands of articles. So I just didn't get hit quite as bad as other people.
00:19:03
Speaker
But i was shocked how much I enjoyed leading the group trip. but I was really nervous going into it You know, you've got a lot of different personalities. I knew... I knew the majority of the people coming, but not all of the people. And then some of the people, even though I knew them, I'd only met them once or twice. I didn't know know them. Right. And when you put a group of 15 women together, I mean, it could go great. It could be a disaster. But I really thrive in that scenario. I'm i'm extroverted. I really enjoyed it.
00:19:32
Speaker
I had a blast and I thought, yeah, I should do this. I love that. And I would hope that by simply getting together on this kind of trip, there's a commonality amongst the group.
00:19:45
Speaker
It's certain kind of person I assume would want to go on a 15-person girls' trip to Fredericksburg. Well, and it was really, it was really cool too, just because, um, it was women. i think the age, it the age range was 45 to 78.
00:20:00
Speaker
And then I watched people making connections, people that had never met each other. Their only thing they they had in common was that they know me. Um, make deep connections. Like a few of them have lost their children and they were able to like really connect. And, um, others had that, like, there were two gals that have just, they're both estheticians and they really related. and cause I mean, depending on the economy that that's a very economy driven career. So they, they're,
00:20:30
Speaker
had the same frustrations and it was so cool to watch them connect. and they had a bunch of other stuff in common. and It was, they're like, how have we never met each other? Megan, how have you never connected us before? And I'm like, I don't, I don't know. I don't know. So it was really, it was so deep and meaningful at times. I couldn't believe that was happening. And I was like, wow, and that's so cool that I get to be a part of this. Like,
00:20:54
Speaker
I do love that. um Two things sort of spring to mind. The first, I've written this down on my little show notes that I do before and I interview someone, is it seemed to me like you'd built this huge community because it came through on the photos you posted. It it looked like this tight-knit community, which I'm surprised to hear that these people didn't know each other because yeah it radiated through the screen that these people had bonded. And I love that you're talking about that.
00:21:22
Speaker
Yeah. And I think, I mean, I think just with the rise of social media, people are more isolated. Yes. And I don't, I don't necessarily know that people, and and I think as you get older, you know, I leveraged my children when I was younger to meet other mothers. And that's how I made friends because our kids were the same ages and we were maybe doing volunteer work together or we're on a field trip together over and over again, or, so you know, something like that. So you meet or our kids are playing together in the neighborhood, but as you get older, at least for, you know, I'm an empty nester now come June,
00:21:57
Speaker
How do I go outside the house and make a new friend? Right. it's it's it It seems simple, but it's really not. It can be really challenging. I live in a really cool neighborhood, so they have, like, it's a master playing community, so there's a lot of, like, kind of neighborhood networking.
00:22:14
Speaker
So, like, last night I was out with neighbors playing bunco, and one of them I hadn't seen in two years, and she's like, hey, I saw that Fredericksburg trip. I was like, oh, yeah, you should go on the next one. It was great. Right. no You know, but I think i think even even if you do have, like, handbook,
00:22:29
Speaker
you're plugged into a few things. You still like, you might want to travel and not have anyone in your life that wants to travel with you. So I know several of the women that came, their husbands won't travel, you know, um whether it's they're too busy with work. One of them just works constantly.
00:22:45
Speaker
So he he's never available to travel with her. And then another one, he's just, um as they get older, he physically can't, but yet she's still in really good shape. So she's able to travel and she had a blast. It's her very first girl. She's in her seventies and it was her very first girl's trip.
00:23:00
Speaker
I, that just makes me smile. Like I love the i idea. And I love that. you know, thinking through all the people I've talked to over the last year and beyond, it doesn't really matter to me, it seems. If you go to Fredericksburg or Belize or you're going to base camp at Everest or a so a so a safari, it's community. It's the people you meet that truly make or break the trip. And yeah, a girl's trip to Fredericksburg just seems to echo that sentiment that, yeah, Fredericksburg, I've been there once, maybe twice. Lovely place. But the people you meet is what really,
00:23:35
Speaker
really makes the trip wherever it is you may go i know and i just got such a great group they were all just so wonderful i bumped into one of them two nights ago and i was so shocked to see her i i wasn't expecting to see her i hadn't seen her since the trip and i was at a holiday market and bumped into her was like oh my gosh right where a lot of the people went on the trip were you know both in the dfw area are they from here Or is it people came from all over? There were some from DFW, some flew in from Oregon. Others came in from other job markets like Houston, San Angelo. So yeah, it was an assortment.
00:24:10
Speaker
It's a nice diverse group. Well, I find this fascinating. I should have mentioned this earlier. So my daughter got married earlier this year and I i have no military experience. now Nobody in my family really does, but she is married in a military man. And so I'm now learning about this.
00:24:28
Speaker
this It's not even lifestyle, a life, you know, when you are married to somebody in the military. So it's it's tough, it's challenging and while she will be in Kansas for a couple of years, it's going to be a challenge when they move because who knows how
Travel Highlights & Personal Insights
00:24:44
Speaker
often it is. Cause you just start over. I mean, ah the longer we were in, the more we bumped into some people and and instead of showing up and knowing no people, we knew one family or two families or, and that was so nice, but yeah, when you don't have, yeah, it can be really tough. Luckily the military squadrons or,
00:25:05
Speaker
um you know, they they have a lot of resources to connect people. so yeah, I mean, this must be a fairly, you know, universal problem or issue amongst all branches of the military, all families, people need to make connections to feel like they belong somewhere. um If we take just a little sidestep from your business, obviously, you've traveled quite a bit. I'd love to hear about your favorite place or favorite trip that you have been to been on.
00:25:32
Speaker
Oh my goodness. Favorite trip, favorite place. Oh gosh, I've been on a lot of really good trips. right I've got, I have several favorites. I really love Greece.
00:25:44
Speaker
I think Greece is wonderful, but I think it's a lot like Texas. I feel like the people are a lot like Texans, but they're Greek. And I was like, if Texas was an island, it would be Greece. There's something to that. I would agree.
00:25:57
Speaker
And it's a positive. I mean, I'm assuming you mean this is a positive thing. It's a friendliness. It's a door open. I love Texans. Oh, I mean, that this is very good. Yes. that That's the way. that's the way as It's ah it's a opening the doors to the strangers. Come join us at our table. Yeah. Greece is such a vibe. Like the people are so nice and just, they like to have a good time. It's affordable.
00:26:20
Speaker
I feel like no matter where you go, whether you go to the islands or not, I mean, you can stay on mainland. Thessaloniki amazing. Halkidiki is amazing. Athens is amazing. But yeah, Santorini, Mykonos, the ones you hear about the most, also amazing. Like it's all of it. It's ancient.
00:26:36
Speaker
It's good food, good people, good prices. um I may have to talk to you about Thessaloniki off the air. My stepdaughter is going to study there in January for a semester.
00:26:50
Speaker
ah um You have to go. Yeah, at some point I'll have to get across there and visit. um I mean, it's ancient. It's in the Bible. Right. it's it's truly a biblical place. yeah um And a lot of the structures are there and they're still digging them out. I mean, it's phenomenal. You're walking amongst them. um So, you know, that's gonna be a good excuse for me or my wife and I to visit. But she'll be there for four and a half months, I think, on a, you just a student exchange sort of program.
00:27:21
Speaker
Yeah, we stayed at the Astoria Hotel. I really liked it. Right. Yeah. I may have to, when, as we get more details coming in over the next six weeks, I may reach out to you and and find out things to do. Um, now what, where do you see, mommy travels going in the next couple of years? Do you have any goals that you're not quite there yet? Any vision or you just kind of organically growing?
00:27:44
Speaker
Um, I think it, again, it's all of it. It's both. Um, I continue to just grow it based on what we're up to what you know i just went to Mazatlan in Belize. so I just dropped four articles on Mazatlan and a bunch of content from Mazatlan. I'm still working on my Belize content. I think I've only dropped two articles for that so far. but Um, so whatever I'm up to, I continue to do that. Some of it's strategic. Like, what do I think people are looking for? What do I think my website will rank for? What do I think would resonate with people? What are people looking for researching?
00:28:17
Speaker
Um, I know on Tik TOK, I just, I just read a study and it said that a huge, ah like a huge percentage of people are researching where to eat.
00:28:28
Speaker
on TikTok. I didn't know that. So I'm about to crank out some food content over there. Right. See how it does. Maybe it'll flop. Maybe it'll hit it. Who knows, but I'll at least try. So some of it is strategic. I launched a podcast with a friend of mine. She decided that's not for her. So she's going in a different direction. So I'm going to keep doing it. My daughter is going to be my co-host now because she's traveled her whole life. and Right. Right.
00:28:55
Speaker
we go on a lot of the same trips so we can talk at length about them. So it's a travel podcast called her travel expert. right I do automotive journalists. So I already had her auto expert, which is an automotive website for women.
00:29:12
Speaker
And so I didn't want to continue with the mommy. Cause I, a lot of people are like, Oh, well you only do family. I'm like, that's just not true. Like, Right. I mean, else yeah, an easy assumption. Some of my top articles are like girlfriend getaways or adults, all inclusive resort in, you know, whatever Island I'm like, come on y'all. Right. so little People can't look past the word mommy and they're like, Oh, you're a mommy blogger. I'm like, I have never been a mommy blogger. That's a very specific niche, which I have not embarked on, but, um,
00:29:44
Speaker
you know I love that. I'll need to see if I can connect. you I've spoken to a couple of people on this podcast and have some other friends who are women whose passion is getting other women to into the overlanding community. you know They have the tents on top of their SUVs, go out into the mountains and the deserts and spend the weekend together. Oh, I'm very familiar with that. I have a Bronco and I love off-road. I've got my 4x4 Explorer, which is rattling along. But um yeah, the new the new Broncos are pretty nice. I see a lot of the brand. Yeah, love I kind of wish that they were the new shiny toy, but not very good. But unfortunately, they sit they're awesome. They're fantastic vehicles. Oh my gosh. It is an off-roading machine. Right. The only thing is I get a little, like I paid for this car, so I don't want to damage it, but I've already, i realized the other day, i don't know, i don't know which off-roading trip it was, but I gashed the, one of the rims real bad.
00:30:43
Speaker
Right. was like, how did I not notice this? Right. Me, you're having too much fun. I'm guessing. Apparently I was having a great time. Right. Well, I love that. Yeah. That might be my, my next car. I'll hold on to the Explorer until the wheels fall off. it I like Ford vehicles and the Bronco. I i did too. I had an Explorer. I think we sold it at 250,000 miles.
00:31:03
Speaker
two hundred and fifty thousand miles Yeah, I mean, it's without getting too much into car chat, the transmission on mine is notorious, but that was rebuilt before I bought it. So it's got 120,000 miles on it, and I want to get another 100,000 out of it. You will. Yeah, like, I really think we will. Well, as we kind of come around the corner here into the homestretch, I've got three questions I would like to ask you. I'm going to put you on the spot. um Is there a book in particular that has had an impact on your life?
00:31:35
Speaker
An impact on my life or my business? Either. Either way. You can take this whatever direction you want to go. um Just a book that you would, you know, you may read again, you would hold on to if people were looking for a recommendation of an impactful book, if there was one that stands out to you.
00:31:53
Speaker
An impactful book. I read a lot. I read about 50 books a year. Goodness. Good for you. Um...
00:32:02
Speaker
I mean, I really love The Hunger Games. Have you read the new Hunger Games book? I mean, it that has nothing to do with my life, but I really don't like it. That's what we want. That's what we want to hear. I've not, because I find it not not intimidating, but know it's a commitment. Like, you got if you're going to start it, you've got to see this thing through. I've got my 12-year-old niece. She's on book two now. I'm like, yes, because I babysat my nieces a couple months ago, and I was like, have you read The Hunger Games? She's the perfect age to start reading it. Yeah. I love that. well Yeah. It's something I mean enjoy. I read it with the kids.
00:32:30
Speaker
um and There's this futuristic young adult fiction series. It's the Scythe series. It's like, i think the first book Scythe, the next book is Thunderhead and the next one's the toll.
00:32:45
Speaker
Right. It's as vaguely familiar. Okay. And it sounds really weird, but it's very futuristic and AI is kind of controlling the world. And I'm like, Uh-oh, here we go. Right?
00:32:57
Speaker
It's like, that reminds me, I can't remember what streaming platform it's on, it's a Black Mirror, which lot of the stuff is set in the future, and it's very like that. Yeah, I read it years ago. So my my daughter loves Neil Shusterman.
00:33:11
Speaker
Right. And he writes all this young adult futuristic... um I'm trying to think of what that genre is called. There's a specific word for that genre. and now I'm blanking on it. It's not dystopian, is it? just Yes. Yeah, dystopian. I think that is it. And so so when my kids were younger, like my son wanted to read The Hunger Games, I'm like, well, I have to read it first because I'm not sure. And so I got in a habit of every book they read, I read so we could discuss it. And so... I've read all these dystopian, futuristic, and that was a decade ago. And now I'm like, oh, I can see it
Reflections on Success & Personal Wishes
00:33:44
Speaker
coming. like
00:33:45
Speaker
Right. You know where this is going. yeah i love that. um And particularly, i ask every guest this question. I'm particularly interested to hear your answer, just given your career. How has success and the definition of success changed for you since you started Mommy Travels almost 20 years ago?
00:34:07
Speaker
I think a lot of times the six, what I would measure success by was the phase of life I was in So I'm a stay at home mom. I want to make some income. Oh, my blog's making a little bit of money success.
00:34:20
Speaker
Um, now I'm getting divorced and I got to figure this out and it's, I got to turn this into a real moneymaker. This is, this is make or break it. Like I got to survive. I got to raise these kids. Um,
00:34:32
Speaker
And I did success. You know, now they're entering college. Things are only getting more expensive. Now I've got two in college at the same time. I'm doing it. I'm paying for their school.
00:34:43
Speaker
Feel really good about it Once graduated debt free, which is unheard of in America. Success, you know. So I think that's how my measure of success is, you know, ah providing. that Yeah, and you're tying it to like a tangible goal, providing for your children, college, things like that. My final question, tweaking this a little bit to be more specific to you. But on your next Fredericksburg trip, if you were going to go for a long weekend, if you could invite and have them attend one person,
00:35:12
Speaker
in the entire world, somebody from history, present day, somebody you know, somebody you've never met, a celebrity, an author, anybody in the entire world, who would you like to take with you on the trip?
00:35:25
Speaker
Dead or alive? Dead or alive, anybody, any human being. My Right. Yeah, my mom passed away three years ago. so I'm sorry, yeah right. Yes, to take her on that trip would be would be a wonderful experience. Wish I could take her anywhere. Right, the grocery store, isn't it? We were headed on a a big trip to Italy and we were taking her for her 70th birthday and she died about a week before we were supposed to leave for the trip. So, and that was going to be her first year. Europe first. I was like, I can't, I'm like, how unfair that I've been to 38 countries.
00:36:00
Speaker
And the one time i finally get to take her. Right. You know, so that's tough. That must be tough. And I'm sure there's a little bit of you that when you go on these trips, you're kind of doing in her honor a little bit. Every trip. Taking some of her with you in all these places. so Like anyone that's lost a parent, they know. you just It's always like right there. so Yeah.
00:36:21
Speaker
But I do have the book I read over and over again. I did realize what it is, and it's ah it's obvious. And it's the book probably most people read over and over again. It's the Bible. Right. Yep. That comes up many, many times. So I
Podcast Wrap-Up
00:36:34
Speaker
love it. Well, I'm excited to see where you know all the different branches of your ventures go. And I'm excited to keep following you on Instagram. Megan, it's been a pleasure. Thank you so much for spending this time with me.
00:36:44
Speaker
Yeah. Thanks for having me.
00:36:48
Speaker
Thank you again to this week's guest and I hope today's episode was as enjoyable for you as it was for me and perhaps even inspired your next adventure. If you did enjoy the show, please be sure to subscribe, leave a review or follow us wherever you get your podcasts. You can find more information at theoutdoorsyeducator.com or follow us on Instagram, TikTok or Facebook. Until next time, thank you so much for listening to The Outdoorsy Educator Podcast.