Nerf Guns and Nail Polish: Meanwhile, in FRIGID Minnesota...

Okay folks, if you know me at all, you know that I do NOT like the cold (you may be asking why I live in MN, but I don't have an answer for you other than I have yet to convince my entire family to move somewhere warm with me). Anyway, it's been a particularly cold winter here in Minnesota. I'm talking, negative double digits with wind chills in the negative forties and fifties some days. I'm mean, come on-even for the heartiest Minnesotans, that is COLD. So we've been doing a lot of staying in, staying warm, and going a little stir crazy. Anyway, I'm not trying to complain ~~too much~~, so I wanted to discuss some fun things to do with your kids to stay busy while living in arctic conditions.

1. Have an indoor 'campout'. This is one of my kids favorite things to do. Not only do they love tents and blanket forts, but they also adore turning the lights out and using their flashlights. We usually bring in play food and pretend to eat and sleep in the tent. It can keep my kids entertained for quite a while:)

2. Baking with your kids. Depending on your kid's ages, this can be a really fun activity to do when it's cold outside (and who doesn't love warm cookies on a cold day, right?). My kids love to help measure, pour ingredients, and mix everything together. They are also very willing taste testers:) Our favorite things to bake are cookies, muffins, and banana bread.

3. Indoor Obstacle Course. This activity tends to work better if you have a large open space in your house, but if not, you can make one on a smaller scale. For preschool aged kids, finding small things to jump over, crawl under/through, and weave in and out all work great (think hula hoops, jump rope lines, small boxes, etc.) It doesn't have to be glamorous for the kids to really enjoy it and get out some energy.

4. Beach Party. Get out the swim suits, beach towels, and some beach toys. Fruit and yogurt smoothies are a fun treat to keep you thinking of warm weather, and some beach tunes are a must! If you're feeling up to it, let the kids 'swim' in the tub.

5. Carpet Roadway. Set up tape-roads on your carpet. A woman at church did this for all the boys in the nursery a few weeks ago and I thought it was such a great idea for kids who love to drive around trucks, tractors and the like. Using masking tape, you can draw out roads and intersections for the cars to drive on. The kids thought it was pretty cool to drive along it. (Smaller children may be more interested in pulling up the tape than actually driving cars along it, so be warned!).

6. Art projects. My kids really like to be creative and helping them complete an art project is a great way to do that. Pinterest is a great resource for all sorts of toddler/preschool/school aged crafts. Something as simple as coloring and cutting out pictures, painting, using stickers, or making shapes can be really fun. (This time of year snowman and snowflake creations are fun).

My kids aren't school-aged yet, but for those days off from school, here are a few ideas for older children: have the kids write a play and act it out as a family, watch home-movies from when they were little (or when you were little!), play a board game (January is the perfect month for monopoly), start a jigsaw puzzle, create a scavenger hunt for the kids to complete around the house, do fun science experiments to do at home, or start a chapter book read aloud with the family.

If all else fails, you can always venture out to an indoor play area/swimming pool, take the kids to an interactive store (think Cabella's), check out your local children's/science museum, or call in reinforcements (ie. Grandma & Grandpa or friends with kids). I would love you hear your ideas of the creative ways you keep your little ones active!