The holidays are upon us and with the excitement of this fun time of year, we also welcome colder temperatures. Gone are the long days of summer when we could easily bring our rowdy kiddos to the park for hours on end to burn off some of that seemingly endless energy. Since we can’t always venture outside for long periods of time, colder temps and rain usually mean that we have to get creative in order to pass the days with our little ones so that we all end up happy (and with our sanity intact!) by the end of the day. Here are a few suggestions for activities to fill those cold winter days that are coming our way.
Toddler Gyms/Playgroups
Community centers, museums, and libraries are wonderful places to escape the cold while experiencing something new and exciting for the little ones. We are lucky to have many great centers in our local area! Here are a few to add to your list this winter:
Winter crafting
What better time to craft than during the holidays! Making ornaments and other holiday art projects is sure to be a hit. Try out these crafts for loads of fun:
Cottonball snowman – What you need: construction paper, glue, cotton balls, pom poms, contact paper, and markers.
Cut out snowman figures from the contact paper and glue the non-sticky side to the construction paper. Once attached, lift the top layer off the contact paper and let you little one place the cotton balls and pom poms on the paper to make a snowman.
Handprint mitten ornament– What you need: construction paper, finger paint, scissors
Trace a mitten on construction paper (make larger than your child’s hand). Dip child’s hand in finger paint and place handprint in traced mitten. Let dry and cut out traced mitten. Attach string and hang on the tree!
Baking
Toddlers are a delight in the kitchen and love to help when it comes to baking. If your kids are young enough that this is their first time helping out, here’s a helpful reminder: KEEP IT SIMPLE! Have your little ones help by measuring out the ingredients, sifting flour, icing cookies or dropping sprinkles on frosting. Chances are after a few minutes they will be ready to move on to the next activity so keeping them engaged for a short period of time is all it takes for them to have loads of fun.
Embrace the cold
Get out with the family to participate in winter sports we can only enjoy during this time of the year. Bring your kids to the ski slopes for their first taste of skiing and snowboarding. While you’re in the snow build a snowman and make some snow angels!
Even if you’re not headed to the snow, be sure to enjoy the outdoors locally. Kids love to be outdoors, so just bundle up and head outside!