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SoCal family shines sharing adventures online

December 13, 2024

With twin 7-year-old daughters, dual careers and a thriving business as content creators, life is a constant adventure for Erik and Adam McEwen – and they wouldn’t have it any other way.

Married since 2015, the McEwens have built the family they always dreamed of when they started documenting their journey to parenthood on YouTube eight years ago as @McHusbands. Their daughters Everest and Addisen were born via surrogate in 2017 and the family’s adventures are now followed by more than 400,000 people on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and X.

A typical week includes work, school, the girls’ favorite activities (soccer for Everest, art for Addisen) and fun family outings, like a recent day trip with their bikes to Victory Trailhead in Los Angeles in a 2025 Kia Carnival MPV Hybrid.

“We love to roller skate and bike everywhere, and we get to do some really cool things through our business that not everybody gets to do, so we try to take advantage of that,” Adam said. “We want our girls to experience the world.”

The couple said the Carnival MPV Hybrid checked all the boxes they look for in a family vehicle — space for all their gear, amazing safety features and the money-saving benefits of driving a hybrid. Everest and Addisen were especially excited by the dual-screen 14.6-inch rear seat entertainment system available in the SX Prestige trim package.

“The girls absolutely loved the touch screens,” Erik said. “It was fun to hear them get so excited about it, like ‘‘oh my gosh, there are TVs back here!’”

Eric McEwen packs up the family's bikes, taking advantage of the ample cargo space in the 2025 Kia Carnival MPV Hybrid. — Tony Medina / Skyline Studio

Erik McEwen packs up the family’s bikes, taking advantage of the ample cargo space in the 2025 Kia Carnival MPV Hybrid.

To the McEwens, sharing fun moments with each other and their online followers is more than just business as usual. They want their online presence to be an encouraging resource for people in the LGBTQ+ community looking for stories of families like theirs.

When the pair launched their YouTube channel in 2016 they had been searching social media for gay couples who had children through adoption or surrogacy, hoping to get some insights. “We knew we wanted to start a family, so we looked for other couples like us – but nobody was telling their story,” Erik said. “That’s when we decided to put our journey out there.”

In their early videos, the McEwens talked about what being parents would mean to them and shared each step of the process. Initially, adoption seemed the most likely route, but it wasn’t without risk. The agency they planned to use later went out of business, leaving some clients heartbroken and out thousands of dollars.

Erik and Adam might have been among them if not for family and friends who were also following their videos. In a huge surprise, Erik’s sister-in-law offered to be their surrogate and the couple’s best friend signed on as their egg donor.

Having that connection and being able to share it with their daughters has been an incredible gift, Erik said. “We always wanted our girls to be able to ask questions and get answers about where they came from and to know the amazing women who created them and helped build our family.”

In addition to creating online content as the McHusbands, the McEwens have separate careers. Adam is a musician and full-time dad and Erik is a product manager for a software company. Testing out the Carnival MPV Hybrid, both were impressed by its advanced infotainment and technology systems.

Adam loved the passenger-view camera, which allows people in the front seats to see what’s happening in the second and third rows from a screen on the vehicle’s panoramic dashboard. “To be able to check in on what the girls were doing without having to completely twist around was amazing,” he said. “I’ve never been in a car that had that before.”

Tony Medina / Skyline Studio

Everest and Addisen in the 2025 Kia Carnival MPV Hybrid.

The McEwens also appreciated the Safe Exit Assist feature, which prevents doors from opening if a vehicle or bicycle is approaching. “Our kids are at the age where, if they’re excited to be somewhere, they’ll jump right out of the car,” Erik said. “Having that safety feature is incredible. It not only protects the people inside the car from getting out at the wrong time, it makes it safer for everyone around you.”

The efficiency and gas savings that come with driving a hybrid is a priority, too, Erik said. “Honestly, the fact that the Carnival comes as a hybrid is a game changer,” he said. “To be able to go on long trips without worrying about how much we’re going to spend on gas is super important to us.”

As their girls grow, the McEwens are excited about each new adventure. You can follow them on Youtube, Instagram and TikTok and learn more about Kia’s 2025 Carnival MPV Hybrid at kia.com/us/en/carnival-mpv-hybrid.

This article was produced by Skyline Studio, the in-house creative agency for Southern California News Group and The San Diego Union-Tribune. The news and editorial staffs of SCNG and the U-T had no role in this post’s preparation.

SoCal family shines sharing adventures online Orange County Register

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SoCal family shines sharing adventures online

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