Well, hello there!
Run Wild My Child
Welcome to Run Wild My Child, your destination for all things kid-friendly and outdoorsy. Kids need to spend time outside and off screens now more than ever. Time spent playing outside makes for happier, healthier, smarter kids. Playing in nature gives kids confidence and independence. It promotes creativity and teaches responsibility. This website is dedicated to helping parents get their kids outside and back to nature, one adventure at a time.
Whether it’s through family travel, nature crafts, outdoor educational games, or an outdoor activity, we know that kids are happiest and learn best when they’re outside, exploring and getting their hands dirty. We want to be your main resource for outdoor family inspiration and to help you find new ways to encourage your child to run wild.
Sara McCarty, founder & editor
I’m Sara and I’ll be your tour guide. My husband and I are both attorneys in St. Louis, MO, and have three children – affectionately nicknamed Mac (11) and Mim (9) and Moe (5). We share a love for the outdoors and are committed to raising our kids to respect and appreciate nature.
I grew up in the country and did lots of camping, canoeing, and exploring the woods when I was little. My husband developed a passion for fly-fishing at an early age and a deep love for all things nature-based as a biology major. Together we’ve hiked an active volcano, swam with sharks, explored ancient Mayan ruins, fly-fished mountain streams, skied black diamonds, climbed waterfalls, rafted through underground caves, and camped in the snow…just to name a few of our outdoor adventures.
But our biggest adventure by far has been parenting!
Becoming outdoor parents
From the beginning with our first child, we quickly realized how much easier it was to parent outside. The baby was calmer outside. We felt better outside. Everyone slept better when we spent time outside…and that’s a very big deal when you’re a new parent.
We prioritized spending time outside our house together and wondered why more people weren’t doing the same. We started taking the baby along on our hikes, bike rides, fishing trips, and farm weekends. His third word (after dada and no) was “outside!”
Adding a second child to the mix definitely made things harder, but again, I was surprised by how much easier parenting was when we were outdoors. Everyone got along better outside. I wasn’t as overwhelmed with everything there was to do inside when we were outside. Was this some secret parenting trick that no one tells you? There was something magical about being outside.
How Run Wild My Child got started
In 2017, I created Run Wild My Child to let everyone else in on that magical parenting secret I discovered – it’s all easier when you’re outside! It was also in response to the endless questions I was getting on my personal blog about our outdoor family adventures: Where do you hike? What fishing gear do you recommend? How do you go camping with kids? Is it ok to let them play in the creek?
We weren’t doing anything revolutionary or super adventurous – but we were doing enough that people noticed and wanted to give spending more time outside a try. These were parents that didn’t want their kids growing up on a screen and wanted to give them a childhood similar to how they grew up (outside). They loved being outside, but didn’t know how to incorporate kids into the mix or were pushed more into indoor kid-friendly options like music classes and storytime.
Entry-level outdoorsy
I realized there was no “entry-level” website that helped parents become more outdoorsy and confident in nature. So, Run Wild My Child was born. I started writing about our family’s outdoor adventures – fishing with kids, playing in the creek, camping. It was my creative outlet and kept me accountable for planning adventures and prioritizing our time outside. Mainly, I was just trying to get parents to realize how much easier parenting is when you’re outside!
But I’m just one mom with one story. My way isn’t the only way. I certainly don’t have all the answers. And after having a third child, I was limited with how much I could give to the site. I wanted help. And I wanted more voices and experiences represented on our website.
So, I opened up applications to be a contributing writer as part of our Creative Team in the spring of 2019. Little did I know there were thousands of parents out there with a passion for storytelling and inspiring others to get outside with their kids!
Where we are now
Now, Run Wild My Child is the ultimate online resource (website, podcast, social community) for busy parents who know the importance of getting kids off screens and outside, but may need some help actually doing that!
The Run Wild My Child Creative Team consists of 30+ parents from around the globe who all share a passion for getting their kids outside and want to share their experiences. zOur team is diverse in experience, location, age and ability of kids, ethnicity, and interests, but we’re all committed to raising amazing humans outside and helping you do the same.
We offer super helpful (and completely free) content on our website, all about outdoor activities, nature crafts, kid-friendly travel, gear recommendations, and more! We’re also continually coming up with new ways to help encourage and inspire parents to get their kids outside. We started hosting online challenges. We offer some fun downloadable digital products. We have a few city-specific outdoor family-friendly travel guides. We organize an annual nationwide Treasure Hunt for families.
We’re also moving beyond little bitty kids. As our kids get older, we’re facing new challenges and pushback to our outdoor adventures. Big kids, tweens, and teens need outdoor time in nature more now than ever before. We’re adapting with our kids and discovering new ways to connect with them and with nature. We’re eager to share what we’re doing (and learning) with you.
Our mission
Run Wild My Child’s mission is to emphasize the importance of outdoor play and to inspire, encourage, help, and support parents to prioritize time spent outside. Our entire team is committed to raising happy, healthy, confident kids that love and respect nature. We want to help you do the same!
I’m excited to share our love of the outdoors with you and hope this will be a place where you feel inspired, supported, and encouraged to get yourself and your kids outside, no matter where you live!
