Winter Activities for Kids

Brrrr it’s cold out there! Even here in Florida, the temperatures are very low and it’s chilly and very windy. I know so many people struggling with finding ways to entertain their kids in the cold and while home for school right now so I am gathering up a few ideas to share with you and hopefully inspire some fun in these dark, cold days where the sun is not always shining and we’re cooped up inside…

Sledding in the backyard

My sister sent me this photo of my niece Dylan the other day and I nearly died…How smart is this?! An inflatable snowmobile to sled down her snow covered stairs in the backyard! This provided hours of fun in the fresh, crisp air, all bundled up and ready for a cup of hot cocoa once she had enough! I looked online for these blow up snow mobiles and they are sold out almost everywhere but I did find one on Amazon that I linked in our shop here for you.

Boogie at the Beach

If you’re in a warmer climate like I am now, and you have access to the beach…hit it! Though it’s chilly here this winter, that doesn’t stop my kids from getting out there. This past weekend I took Luke to the beach to meet up with his friend Michael and they played in the sand for hours. Digging and riding the waves on boogie boards. Before leaving to get to the beach I had asked Luke if he was going to go into the water. He said no way because it will be freezing. I suggested he bring his wetsuit and wouldn’t ya know it…he put it on in the car and went right into the water when we arrived.

Water Color Crafting

I never pegged my kids as ones to be patient enough to sit and paint however after they watched a Faceboook Live that Maggie did on the LMP channel where she gave a tutorial on how to create a beautiful water color painting, they were hooked. We had run to the craft store to get the supplies and they would spend many afternoons painting pictures to send to family members or to tape on our walls. I found they were very calm when painting which was such a bonus. This week I’m going to break out our water color supplies to paint some cards for our family members for Valentine’s Day. I think it’s so special when you send something homemade and I know how much our family appreciates the effort.

Empty Your Cupboards…

Sometimes, when i’m stuck on what to do with the kids I go through all of my cupboards to see what I can scramble together and make an acrivity out of. I often find that I over buy at the craft store and have random items saved up for a rainy day. Paper plates, pom poms, cookie cutters…there is so much creativity to be had. Pull out your random items, set them up on a table and let your kids create the fun. Turn wood frames into pretty frames with glitter, glue, feathers and markers and then let your kids choose photos to print and put inside of them. Use paper plates to squirt paint onto or hold different craftable items like sequins and stickers. Bake off some cookies or use cookie cutters to make fun cut outs in cheese or sandwiches. You can also use cookie cutters for tracing objects to cut out and glue onto paper and other craftable objects. Don’t have these supplies lying around? Order online through our shop for fun tableware that can be used for a festive brunch, afternoon of crafts or of course browse through outlets like Amazon, Michael’s and more. Everyone is delivering now of course!

Plant your favorite herbs

Just because it’s winter doesn’t mean you can’t garden! Grab some potted herbs and cute planters and plant your favorite herbs to have in your kitchen. Your kids will love getting their hands dirty and while you plant these herbs you can also discuss how you use them in upcoming family meals. I found these adorable dino planters at Target last year. There are tons of options online if you do a simple search!

Virtual cooking classes

This is just about my kids favorite activity these days. We have been working with Freshmade to take cooking classes for years. As soon as Covid started they pivoted to virtual and my kids barely felt the change. You can book group classes (they offer really fun menus throughout the week and on holidays and school closures for kids of all ages!) as well as private lessons. My kids have made some AMAZING meals and these cooking lessons have really fostered their love of cooking which is such a great skill to have. Most recently Gavin made homemade gnocchi with pesto…which would have been perfect if we had a pot of basil in the kitchen! So plant those herbs and then get cooking!

CALM + RELAX

My sister recently told me about an app called CALM. She said that when her kids are too hyper to fall asleep she puts the app on to hear a soothing story, calming sounds or sometimes even meditate. We are not a family of calm people, this is one thing I know for sure. We are high strung, VERY hyper and always active. So to calm ourselves down…can be a challenge. Me and the boys gave this app a try one night and it was HEAVEN. We felt instant calm and started using it through out the day, not just at night. Sometimes when we’re doing the dishes or laundry, we put the app on and it gets us through our tasks with more patience.