Inexpensive Winter Fun

Winter is coming, and while it is not my favorite season by any means, I do feel some appreciation for a time of the year where snuggles, sweatshirts, and cute boots are needed. My kids and I can get pretty stir crazy when it’s too cold to do anything outside, so we try to get creative inside. We love anything with choice or competition. I enjoy anything that’s affordable and makes them giggle. Here are some ideas to keep spirits and smiles up this winter.

Homemade Ornaments

Look for any recycled material around your house. Clean them up (rinse out cans, plastics, etc.), let your kids loose painting, gluing, drawing, cutting, and creating. Give each kiddo a template, find one online, or let them build their very own recycled ornament for the tree. Don’t forget to add their signature and the date! These make great additions to any tree, but they also make wonderful gifts for grandmas and aunts.

Custom Bird Feeders

The environmental club at my school loves this activity. On a dry day, collect as many pine cones as you want for your bird feeders. Grab peanut butter, oatmeal, and bird seed. Attach a string to the pine cone first, then, let your kids apply the peanut butter to the cones. Once fully covered, they can add additional ingredients: oatmeal, sunflower seeds, bird seed, etc. Hang them on the trees outside and try to be the first to catch a critter feasting away.

Book goals

In the summer, our kids are inspired by the reading goals of our local library. If they read ten, they get stickers, twenty, they get puzzle books, etc. Why not have a winter book goal session of your own? Small readers can have a separate category as they can cover many more books. Older readers should set page goals. Start in December and see how far you’ve all gotten by March! Adults should definitely take part, and try to compete with sons and daughters for a prize when the first whiff of spring hits. A Barnes and Nobles gift card, a new book set, or a fun friend sleepover would be a great prize. If an adult wins the sleepover, maybe you should get a quiet hotel room? Just a thought.

Cleaning out the old

If you are like our family, then you also let things accumulate. Have a family meeting, explain you are trying to condense the chaos, and have your children gather as many  items as they can to donate. Explain what happens when they donate unused toys or clothing. Set a timer, and see how much they can clean out in the time allotted. Once done, drive everything directly to the donation center (or you’ll be like me and drive around town for two months with your donation bag taking up permanent residence in the trunk). When you get back home, have the kids go up to their rooms to rearrange a bit. They may just see the value in getting rid of the old. If your kids are sentimental like mine, have them try to gather things they no longer need and send them off to play while you complete their task for them. I have found them to not even be the wiser.

Write an Actual Letter

Snail mail is so much fun. Kids’ faces light up when they receive that card or invite in the mail. How much more fun would it be to receive an actual letter in the mail? This type of writing is an art form. It’s the art of creating, thinking, writing, and waiting. Teach them how to properly construct a letter and envelope. This would be a good time to go over addresses, zip codes, and stamps. If your recipients write back, it could be a fun pen pal experience for everyone involved. My mom friends and I have tried this with our kids and it’s so much fun for all. Grandparents and friends alike love mail.

Polar Express Holiday Lights Tour

I’ve mentioned this idea in a previous post, but I cannot express how much fun this has been for all of my kids. Even my 8th grader enjoys the element of surprise. You can read more about it here, but here is the gist of it:

• Search up holiday light maps in your town.
• Print out or make Polar Express tickets for your kids.
• Hide the tickets on their beds.
• Give the kids an early bedtime.
• When they are getting ready for bed, pop the popcorn, heat up the hot chocolate.
• When they find their tickets, pile them in the car in their jammies. Have the hot cocoa, popcorn, or other snacks waiting.

Enjoy a night with your own personal Polar Express Lights Tour.

We started this about eight years ago, and it is a tradition we love.

Product Challenge

Have older kids who may or may not be super famous inventors someday? Give them a product like a paper clip, a stapler, a book light, or a pen, and make them create a new product from it. You can give them as many rules as you want, but they should have to promote their product via video taken on their phones, computers, or other electronic device. The promotion  should be a commercial, and they should have already thought of their audience. The creativity never ends with this one.

Lego Wars

You already know my family is competitive, and I’ve written about this activity in a previous post, but I cannot express the amazingness of a good Lego war. Get all ages involved, be creative with the prizes, put the winning structures up on display for a day or so, before having your next Lego war. Read more about how it looks in our family here.

Epic Fort Battle

We’ve heard about epic battles in Fortnite, but what about epic forts at night? If you’re like me, you cringe when your kids bring up the indoor fort idea. It’s nothing but failure, tears, and a mess for me later. How about establishing some rules ahead of time and only allowing them to take place in their bedrooms? Their entire room could be part of the fort. The older the kid, the better the supplies. Pillows, blankets, stuffed animals, air mattresses, and more. If you have a too cool tween or teenager, have them help by hanging book lights or Christmas lights up in the fort. Definitely title the masterpieces when they are done, and take a picture of each. This could be a competition if your family is like mine. Here is a very creative idea regarding the art of the fort on Mommy’s Little Bundle.com. Come on, mom. Loosen up a little and let them build.

Grab Your Change and Give

Another massive search around the house could provide you with a ton of change you didn’t know existed. Have your kids search for loose change all around the house or in vehicles. They can collect it in their own pouches or bowls. When done, load them up in the car. For every kiddo you have, stop at a different store front. During the winter months, it is super easy to find a Salvation Army bell ringer. Have the kids give their change for a good cause.

Soup Kitchen Time

This season is the first year my boys and I will be joining our friends and serving at our local soup kitchen. If you know the name of yours, call them and find out what their rules are about giving back. In our case, since we would like to serve food, we need to have an hour training before we work. When I told my boys what I signed them up for, they were very excited to help out in their community. I am so proud of them, and I hope this is the beginning of a very long life of volunteer service.

Football/Music Awards night party

There is nothing my boys like more than football…well, beside football food. Why not have your own football party. If you’re like me, I enjoy football because my boys love it, and usually everyone will leave me alone so I can read my book. 🙂 Have them help you plan the perfect food for a Sunday or Monday night game. If you’re like me or my daughter, we love music awards. The Grammy’s, American Country Music Awards, etc. are so much fun and happen during winter. This year, we plan to have a music awards night party with all the same kind of yummy food we make for football parties. Look up your favorite awards shows and have your own party!

How do you eliminate cabin fever? Share with us in the comments!