When Ben and Hannah Cox were children, long before they thought about getting married,they were given many opportunities to get outdoors. They’d explore around their homes, travel to parks and do all sorts of crazy things. Their parents wanted them to get familiar with a broader space beyond the confines of ‘inside’ and the limits of toys and technology. Today, they build on that legacy by giving their 4 children abundant access to a big outdoor family room.
Watch this video conversation with Ben Cox to see how their family “Shout!” outdoors:
HANNAH’S TIPS FOR THAT NEXT BIG OUTDOOR FAMILY TRIP
- Make sure everyone has their own special chair at the campsite. This reinforces the importance of and joy in making time together to simply sit, share in conversation and activities and fellowship.
- Pack fun backpacks. This includes letting each kid pick a favorite snack. This is great training for our children to critically think about the packing process on many levels.
- When you plan to do cooking for more than a day, let each kid pick a favorite meal. This transforms meals from just sustenance into being an offering to each other, a celebration, an important way each family member can contribute and be appreciated.
- Each member of the family should have their own Individual flashlight or headlamp. Bring a spare and extra batteries. As children grow and take ownership of this basic camping need they can eventually learn to take responsibility for other aspects of the camping experience thus fostering a commitment to teamwork and appreciation for what God has given them – family!
- Bigger trips with far off destinations are something that every family can look forward to doing. But let’s be honest, they usually take more planning, time, resources, money, and effort. That often means you simply don’t do as many big outdoor family getaways. To give your family more frequent outdoor times plan day trips to local parks, beaches or nature preserves. They often cost less, require less coordinated effort, fit better within your schedule demands and can become favorite recurring activities.
- Do details in advance that make life much easier. Pack a cooler and take a to-go breakfast that you can eat in the car. This saves time, money, disappointment and frustration from doing fast food.
- If it’s more than an hour away plan to do an overnight. Get your gear ready and organized the weekend before. Also, make sure park passes and fishing licenses are up to date.
- Plan to make the hotel part of your experience. 2 days and 1 night are easy weekend getaways for destinations in a 3 hour radius. Look for hotels that offer amenities like indoor pools and complimentary breakfasts. We like the Embassy Suites for our family but find the ones that work the best for you.
- You can also look for private campgrounds with activities and amenities. Every year in October, we return to Graves Mountain Lodge. They have buffet breakfast and dinners along with primitive camping – what we like. They are pet friendly too. And – because they border the Shenandoah National Park we have close access to all the park has to offer.
- We’ve found we don’t have to over plan and put demanding expectations on our time together. Eating a good meal and having a hiking adventure with maybe some fishing may be simple but it’s also simply beautiful. There’s no need to plan any more. Getting away, getting outside, and watching your kids play and enjoy the view is a simple strategy for building a family legacy that invites Christ to be at the center of your outdoor lifestyle.
Cox’ Big Outdoor Family Room Gallery
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Are you on the road to your own outdoor adventure or doing something outdoors and just can watch the video right now? This AUDIO version of our conversation with Ben Cox is just for you!
MUSIC FOR YOU AND THE FAMILY TO ENJOY IN YOUR BIG OUTDOOR FAMILY ROOM
SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FRIENDS SO THEY CAN SHOUT! TOO
