Welcome!

My name is Darla Slade and I am on a mission to inspire happy, healthy, active families by sharing travel experiences and fitness tips!

I blended my background as a fitness instructor and former gym manager, my passion for travel, and my education and corporate experience in marketing and information management to create FunFitnessFamily.com. 

I live in Columbia Maryland with my husband, our teen kids, and our two rescue dogs. Oh yeah, I also post about our dogs too because they are part of our family after all!

One question I get asked A LOT is do I ever stay home. And the answer to that is NO! I’ve always loved to travel. From my first big trip to Europe with my high school French class to my choice to leave New Jersey for University of Maryland and college internship at Walt Disney World in Florida, I have always loved to explore new experiences.

Travel has also always been a big part of my husband’s life. He grew up taking road trips from Maryland down to Florida to visit his grandparents. And once we were together, we were always out exploring both locally around Maryland and D.C. all the way to trips to Italy and the Caribbean.

However, we really kicked it into high gear after our abrupt introduction to parenthood! Our son surprised us six weeks early and made a grand debut with a helicopter ride to Childrens National Medical Center in Washington D.C. He was diagnosed with a serious infection and ended up spending the first six months of his life in the hospital.

Once he was home and healthy, we made sure to make the most of every minute! A couple years later, our daughter was born and happily joined us on our escapades. Many people were – and still are shocked – at how we have traveled so much with our children, especially when they were younger and my son still had special needs. But, kids adapt to your personality and we wouldn’t trade the knowledge and exposure they’ve gained through our excursions for the world!

And on top of all that, as you know, COVID took out more time from our lives. We did not let that stop us either though. We left no stone unturned from seeking out new hiking spots to socially distanced campgrounds, we made the most of the pandemic times.

I love sharing information about places my family and I have traveled to, inspiring other families to seek out adventure, and providing advice on how to save time and money. I also focus heavily on my Instagram account because it allows me to share instantly and interact with my audience in real-time. Be sure to follow me @FunFitnessFam