When I first got the Poler Sleeping Bag Poncho, I was—to be completely honest—confused. I kept looking at it trying to find a good situation to test it in. 

Even when I took it camping with me, I couldn’t find the right situation to throw it on. In part it was because of my responsibilities at the campsite and my family. It was too much stuff to be around me while I was cooking or chasing after the kiddos.

But this past weekend, I was at a mountain retreat preparing to consume five grams of psilocybin and I was cold and wanted something comfy. I went to my camp box and pulled out the Poler Sleeping Bag Poncho, threw it on, and proceeded to prepare myself for some medicine work.

This poncho is the perfect companion for a mushroom trip. There were so many times where I fluctuated from being too hot to too cold and this was the perfect thing to throw off and on or just to hold onto for some soft, fluffy comfort. 

It has also become a companion to my meditation practice. It’s the perfect size to drape over my entire body as my legs are folded underneath me and provides a nice, grounding weight as I try to connect to something deeper than my own ego.

While not everyone will be on the same journey, if you are looking for something soft and fluffy to chill or just be in, the Poler Sleeping Bag Poncho is the way to go.

I have been getting gradually more frustrated with the amount of things I carry in my pants pockets: phone, wallet, keys, and with mask mandates going back into effect, a mask.

My pockets are bulgy and not in a funny “or are you just happy to see me?” sort of way.

With fanny packs becoming in fashion again (thanks, Matthew McConaughey), I’ve been casually browsing various outdoor brands looking for the right fit and after visiting the KAVU booth at Outdoor Retailer, I found my match: the KAVU Spectator Fanny Pack.

There are a lot of Fanny Pack’s the choose from, but the reason I settled on the KAVU Spectator Fanny Pack was because of its simplicity in design and it’s wide range of color options.

First, when it comes to design, it is a two pocket fanny pack. The smaller pocket is perfect for my wallet and keys, while the larger pocket comfortably holds my iPhone 12 Pro, a pair of sunglasses, and a mask.

And with its wide-range of designs, I was able to pick one that I felt captured my current life phase. They have a lot of fun designs, and I ultimately settled on one that had a bit of an outdoorsy vibe that didn’t clash with my wardrobe.

Since jumping on the fanny pack bandwagon, I couldn’t be more happy. My KAVU Spectator Fanny Pack is setup so that it’s ready to go. My wallet, keys, sunglasses, and mask are always in there. I no longer have to hunt for each, which is a great time saver. 

Additionally, those times where I’m in my car and need to access my wallet or phone (not while driving, mind you), I don’t have to shimmy to gain access to my pants pockets and then dig around to find what I need. 

Now, while it is called a fanny pack, I tend to wear it as a front pack. My hips and butt don’t like fanny packs. The design of the pack also allows you to utilize it as a sling, which I have done on some bike rides when I just need those essentials.

If you’re ready to come aboard the fanny pack train, look no further than the KAVU Spectator Fanny Pack.

U-Konserve has a solution for consumers looking to reduce their waste with their line of reusable containers. They sent me a few of their stainless steel containers with platinum-grade silicon lids to try out.

U-Konserve to-go containers come in a variety of sizes. They are perfect for school lunches, spontaneous picnics, or other outdoor activities. The silicon lids slide on easily and fit tight enough so that there wasn’t any leakage. 

We tested them over a few weeks in a variety of ways.

Daily, my kids use U-Konserve containers to pack dry snack food for their school days.

We also used it to store leftover spaghetti (thinking of the most stainable food to test with) and the silicon lid didn’t turn pink after a day or so in the fridge.

For a recent camping trip, I pre-cut vegetables for cooking and stored some seasoned steaks in them (separately of course). What I appreciated about this test scenario was that I would usually use gallon plastic bags or glass to store in. And this provided a solution that didn’t cause waste or have a potential hazard at the campsite (e.g. glass).

If you’re looking for food storage solutions, these are a great option. 

Anxiety can be a funny thing. 

Sometimes you’re feeling great and your mental and physical state is feeling more balanced than it has in days. But sometimes it hits you and while you’re not sure what entirely triggered it, you just don’t feel quite yourself. Your stomach is in knots. You feel a heavy weight in your chest. And when you feel into enough, you begin to feel queasy. 

My son and I both have these symptoms. While I have had years to deal with them and to figure out how to manage them, he hasn’t. When it hits his emotions get really big until he starts to cry or flops on the floor (which sometimes leads to injury).

When Reliefband offered us the opportunity to test their Reliefband Sport, we were interested. What if amongst the CBD and DHA and Magnesium there was something else that could help treat the symptoms in the moment.

RefliefBand is an innovator in wearable technology that prevents and treats nausea and vomiting systems. Their wearable devices generate a pulse that stimulates the median nerve which is located on the underside of the wrist. The pulse travels throughout the body’s nervous system to the place in the brain which controls nausea and vomiting. The pulse has a rebalancing effect which normalizes the nerve messages from the brain to the stomach and reduces the symptoms.

They recently released their new Reliefband Sport model. This is their first waterproof model that includes a flex fit comfort band. It’s battery can provide up to 30 hours of use on a full charge. It has several modes so that you can control the strength of the pulse on your median nerve. 

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard my son complain about nausea when his anxiety has spiked. And for him, it’s debilitating. He freezes and freaks out, causing myself, as a parent, to freeze and freak out about how I can help him. And when he’s complained about nausea in the past, we don’t know, in the moment, if it is anxiety or sickness related and it’s caused him to miss school or activities.

With us being an active family, having to wrestle through his anxiety to get out the door for hikes, camping trips, or other outdoor activities has been challenging.

But the Reliefband Sport works.

For his first day of school, my son woke up complaining that he felt like he was going to throw up. I got the Reliefband Sport, but the conductivity gel on his wrist, strapped it on, and turned the pulse setting on it’s lowest setting. And he calmed down after a few minutes and his nausea went away.

Now, while Reliefband is a FDA-cleared treatment for nausea and vomiting symptoms, it is intended for adult usage (at least from a FDA standpoint). If the story about my son resonantes and you’re thinking about using this for your child, please talk to your pediatric doctor first.

I have to tip my hat to Showers Pass. Consistently, the products I am sent to test quickly become new favorites and their Wildwood Running Cap is no exception.

And let me be clear: I have a lot of hats. My wife reminds me of that fact constantly. So it takes a lot for a hat to make it to the top.

But I am beyond stocked that Showers Pass continues to expand its portfolio of running specific products.

It’s the perfect companion for trail runs with the wide brim for sun protection (UPF 50+), but also its material wicks away sweat and is incredibly light (only 2.5 ounces) and comfortable. The material is also incredibly breathable. This summer has been a scorcher and this hat has been a great companion on hotter days as I’m pulling out all stops to not overheat.

On the technical side, the style of the Wildwood Running Cap is a classic five-panel style. It sits lower on my head, unlike some of the other running hats that are a trucker style. It’s easy to adjust with a rear buckle strap. The material is a nylon/spandex construction, so it has some flexibility and stretch.

If you’re looking for a new running hat, look no further than Showers Pass.