When cabin fever strikes
So far, it has not been the prettiest winter. And with at least another six weeks to go, our chances for another several snow days are looking pretty good.
Back in December, snow days were a breeze. But now, as so many of them have stacked up, we’re all starting to run out of ways to stay entertained and keep from going stir crazy.
So here are a few infusions of inspiration as we face another snap of cold weather and threat of storms this week.
1. Rearrange a room
It’s technically still the beginning of the year. What better way to create the feeling of a fresh start and pass those house-bound hours? Put on some music and start pushing furniture around. For added fun, choose your child’s room and let them be creative with how they want to arrange their space. Added bonus for you: you all can get a bit of cleaning and organizing done in the process.
2. Put on a show
Grab some old sheets and hang them theatre-curtain style. Pull out some dress-up clothes, turn on some music and let the kids loose. Within minutes they’ll create some kind of story or performance, fascinated by how much their playroom now feels like a stage.
3. Get messy
Something about a snow day usually makes me a bit more accepting of clutter and mess. After all, it’s not like we’ll be rushing out anywhere. We’ll have time to clean it up. So on snow days, I’ll break out the finger paints or let both kids go elbow deep in cookie dough or cake batter in the kitchen. Spread out some butcher paper or newspaper for easier clean-up but mostly, try to just enjoy the moment. Your kids sure will.
4. Soak it up
One of my kids’ favorite things to do is play in the bath. But most baths take place during the bedtime rush and playtime is often limited. So on snow days, we’ll enjoy extra long afternoon baths with bubbles and every bath toy we own.
5. Tell a story
One of our favorite car games has become telling a shared-story—each person contributes a line or two and we take turns until someone reaches a conclusion. Snowed-in at home, we add a twist: we’ll write the story down or type it up as we go. After it’s done and recorded, we let our daughter create the illustrations.
6. Decorate
Valentine’s Day is coming up. So on our last snow day, my daughter and I cut out at least a hundred hearts (she loves nothing more than to be set loose with a pair of scissors and some paper). Now we have a curtain of hearts hanging in front of our playroom window.
7. Have a picnic
When all we want to do is lounge on the front lawn, sometimes we’ll spread a blanket in the playroom or the living room. Let the kids do the set up while you prepare lunch. And take comfort in knowing that in just a couple of months, these cabin-fever inducing hours will be just a distant memory.
