Fun outdoor Winter Activities for your Family to enjoy together – Guest Post by Dee

This guest post comes to you from the wonderful Dee of cocktailswithmom.com, I’m so excited to welcome her to A Hen’s Nest! Enjoy!

Winter comes with shorter daylight hours and cooler temperatures but this does not mean that you have to bundle up and hibernate until the spring. There are many activities that you can do as a family both inside and out to keep you occupied.

Indoors

Play Games – There are so many good quality games out there that you can play as a family no matter the ages of your family. Many games have a variety of levels so that the preschoolers can have as much fun as the older kids and adults do. Depending on the game and everyone’s attention spans, you could continue the game for several nights until it comes to its natural conclusion.

Do Puzzles – Another indoor activity is to work on a puzzle together. This may be a better idea if you have a place in your home where you can leave it out for a few days if it is a tougher puzzle.

Have a Family Movie Night– On those miserable nights, find a favourite movie from your collection, grab a bowl of popcorn and a cup of hot chocolate, and settle in for a night of relaxation and movies. You could start the evening with movies suitable for the younger kids and transition into ones for the older family members as the kids go to bed.

Outdoors

Make Ice Castles – If you live somewhere that gets cold, you can create ice castles. Find containers of various sizes – ice cream pails, milk cartons, yogurt containers, and fill them with water and add food colouring if you want. Give them a chance to free by leaving them outside. Once they are solid, turn them out and stack them to create a castle. Depending on how many containers you have, you may need to repeat this a few times or see if you can borrow containers from other people.

Go Sledding/Tubing — Nothing is more fun than sliding down a snow-covered hill! Bundle the kids up and take them sledding/tubing at the park where they will be entertained for hours. Afterwards warm up with a cup of hot chocolate.

Take a Winter Walk – Most people may not consider walking during the cold winter days but it is actually a great activity to get the kids moving and it doesn’t cost you money. You can take the kids out on a walk around the neighborhood or trail. Stop for a moment and take in the scenery. Notice the differences the season brings. Make it a learning experience and show your kids the difference between the trees. Finish up with some hot chocolate or coffee and enjoying getting warm again.

Just because the temperatures are colder doesn’t mean the fun times should end. There are many indoor and outdoor activities you can do with your family. Think about what it is you enjoy and use these as inspiration to come up with your own family winter activities and traditions.  

Dee is a writer from Texas who loves spending time with her family, shopping, and working on DIY projects. You can find her blogging at Cocktails with Mom. Keep up to date with Dee via Twitter at @MomCocktails.