This past week was historical for Tennessee. Some places got over eight inches of snow! Let me make something very clear: every Hallmark movie that shows Tennessee with mounds of snow in every Christmas movie is wrong. Most of the time, it’s one dusting of snow a year. This year seems to be the exception. Now I live outside of Nashville. However, I grew up in Minnesota. This weather was pretty much November through April for me. Not so much for all my southern friends. We’ve been snowed in for almost a week, more than most people are used to around here. People are going crazy and are hoarding their bread and milk. So from someone who’s used to snow days upon snow days, here are my top five snowed in activities.
1. Design a Sled
Growing up in a northern state, every garage had at least one sled. It’s as common as seeing a rocking chair on a southern front porch. When I moved down south, I was amused by how many different things people would use as a sled. People used kiddie pools, cardboard boxes, and even boogie boards. After getting cabin fever, I put some blankets and pillows in my laundry basket, bundled up my son, put him the basket, tied an extra dog leash to the basket and pulled him around our apartment complex. Now if you have older kids, this is an at-home science lesson waiting to happen. Experiment with materials for the best sled! And then let your artists and engineers design rocket ships, carousel horses, anything they want to ride down the snowy hill in!
2. Get Creative with Baking
Baking and cooking are classic snowed in activities. Obviously, make sure you know what your doing before you mix vinegar and baking soda in your muffins and destroy your oven. Our at-home date this week consisted of making a skillet brookie (that’s a cookie and brownie) with a blondie mix and brownie mix we had in our pantry. For extra flavor, we added a little bit of vanilla and added some hazelnut coffee grounds for an expresso flavor. And who says Christmas is the only time to make gingerbread or breakout the cookie cutters? Make yourself some Christmas treats and have a second Christmas!
3. Clean our your Closet
After I my pregnancy, there were several maternity pieces that did not fit me and were ready to go into storage. After sorting through those pieces, I found that I still had too many clothes. So I have been slowly making my way through my wardrobe to clean out the pieces I don’t need or ever wear. There are several great rules of thumb for cleaning out your closet. First, if you haven’t worn it in over a year it goes. Second, if you’re hiding it on purpose, just get rid of it and don’t worry about what Aunt Karen says when she finds out you never wore that one blouse. Finally, set a limit for how many items you keep. My limit has been ten per clothing piece. This helps me figure out which are my favorites and which just really need to go.
4. Make a Bucket List or Vision Board
This is another great at-home date idea or even a free family activity. As a couple, this gives you things to look forward to or set budget goals for: like that trip across Europe you want to take. For your kids, it encourages them to dream big. You even get more ideas for how to kill time when you’re snowed in. If your daughter puts up a magazine cover saying she wants to be a model one day, have an impromptu fashion show as a family. Make-up, music, crazy outfits and all!
5. Binge Movies
This is another classic snowed in activity but you can stretch this for more fun! Create the ultimate home theater. It could be a blanket fort or rearranging furniture. Pop the popcorn. Order or make your own pizza. Everyone chooses their favorite movie and settles in for a binge day. To have more fun with this, make some themed snacks to go with your movies. Some honey and toast if your three-old likes ‘Winnie the Pooh.’ Figure out how to make some schwarma and drinks if you’re watching ‘The Avengers.’ Now if it’s just you as a couple or you live alone, you have a great excuse to binge your favorite tv series!
When you’re snowed in, your perspective on the situation can change everything. So be patient with yourself and your family. I promise from experience, it does melt eventually!
