I don't know what the weather is like in your corner of the blog sphere. But, in my southern corner (you know, the corner where it's supposed to be nice and warm) it is freezing! Seriously, it's cold! When my friend Audra described our corner of the world as the North Pole she wasn't kidding. Yesterday morning, I had to stop and put gas in my car, and I could feel my limbs freezing as I stood in the cold. And no, I'm not exaggerating.
Here's a question I get asked a lot and see floating around in blog land a lot.
What do we do with our little ones when it's this cold outside?
I feel for my blog friends who live in places where they've literally been trapped inside with little one's for weeks at a time.
Let's face it... we love our little one's, but they have to have constant activities to keep them busy and fun things to do.
That's where this post came in.
With a high of 44 degrees today I thought I'd put together a little what to do with your little one's when it's freezing outside.
I hope this helps all of my anxious mommy's who are quickly running out of options!
Make an indoor fort
Grab some blankets and some furniture and let your little one's get creative. After you've made your fort grab some books or some movies, make a batch of hot cocoa, and settle in for a day of books and movies.
Have a dance party
I know it sounds silly. Let your hair down, swing your toddlers onto your hip, and grab the hands of your 8 years old. Put on some happy music and dance away! It's a great way to let your little ones dance off some energy and have a great time.
Go on a scavenger hunt
Make an easy to hard list of objects for your little one's to find throughout your house. Hand over your cell phone or digital camera and let them have it. You can have them looking for five things that are yellow or the garlic press. Set a time limit or don't, give a prize or don't. They'll have fun taking pictures and searching.
Have a crafting party
That's right... I said it. Pull out all of your craft supplies, throw down some butcher paper and let your kids color and paint until their hearts content. Bring out the things that your kids normally don't get to craft with. If your worried about them getting messy, don't be. After their craft party you can set them up for a warm bath play time and they'll get clean and have more fun while doing it. PS- The great thing about butcher paper is that after they've gone to bed if you don't want to keep it you can just wad it up and toss it. Easy peasy clean up!
Bring the snow inside
My corner of the world would give anything for snow, but all we ever get is cold weather. If you're lucky enough to have lots of white goodness on the ground outside scoop some into a big pot and bring it inside for your kids to play with. Set them in the floor of your kitchen, give them a couple of pots and pans, throw in some food coloring, and let them have at it.
Bundle them up for a lunch break play break
Do you desperately need to get out of the house? Warm up that car, bundle your kids up, and head to your local fast food place for lunch. Buy a couple of kids meals and let your kids play in the play place after they are done. The change in environment will be good for the little one's and good for you. I recommend going to a fast food place that has coffee. Let the little one's play and you mom should enjoy a latte.
Put on a puppet show
I have to be honest for my creative spirit this is my favorite! You don't have to do anything elaborate either. While all of your supplies are out from your craft party, grab some of dad's old long socks and make some puppets. After your done grab a sheet out of the closet, string it up, and voila... you have an instant puppet stage. Mommy & Daddy can put on a show for the little one's, the little one's can put on a show for mommy & daddy and they can have fun for hours.
Skype Grandma & Graddaddy
Take some time out of your day to let your little one's talk to their grandparents. You can also call ahead and ask grandma to have a book ready to read to your little one's via Skype. Set your little one's up with a bowl of popcorn and let them regale their grandparents with all of their grand adventures for the day.
Monopoly or board game marathons
If your little one's are old enough to enjoy board games set up a marathon or a tournament. They will love the chance to play with mom & dad. Make sure you have your bowl of popcorn handy, some nice music, and your game face on.
Make a movie
Oooh I love this one too. I wish that I had little one's of my own already so I could do this. Pull out your video camera and tell your kids that your going to make a movie. Come up with a story line or just tell your kids to act silly. However you decide to do it, not only will you be occupied for a while, but you'll have a priceless treasure to keep forever. Your little one's won't stay little forever so you'll be able to look back years from now on these cold days with a smile.
Yes, it's cold outside, but that doesn't mean we have to be bored or that our little one's are running wild! There are a lot of fun and exciting activities that we can do to keep our little one's happy and our mommy's and daddy's from going nuts!
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