A local museum just added an outdoor ice skating rink, and we can’t wait to try it.
As someone whose favorite season is summer, I’m not naturally drawn toward winter activities. But with four kids in the house, it is essential that we go outside during every season.
My kids love all the typical outdoor winter activities such as ice skating, sledding, and snowfort building, and they have become incredibly good snow skiers thanks to their dad and grandpa teaching them. But they also enjoy a few unusual outside activities. Winter gear on, hot chocolate items set out for when we come back in, and out the door we go:
Snow Baseball
This game is best played with a tennis racket and when the snow can easily be packed into balls. I highly recommend a large pile of snowballs for the pitcher and soft bases for the players to side into. Enjoy endless outdoor fun of watching the balls explode on impact with the tennis rackets and people running the bases at will because there is no ball to tag them out (hence lots of sliding into home base.)
Snow Ice Cream
Two words: Fresh. Snow. 🙂 When the forecast calls for several inches or more of new snow, we put out a bowl or two (or three) to fill for snow ice cream. We’ve tried various recipes and methods of mixing the snow into ice cream, but it doesn’t seem to greatly matter – our results aways turn out delicious. Fresh snow; milk or cream; sugar or maple syrup; chocolate or strawberry flavoring. It’s all a yummy way to bring the outdoors inside.
Ice Fishing
Disclaimer: We have only watched people ice fish since we don’t own the equipment nor have the patience to successfully complete this activity (yet). There is something magical about walking across a frozen pond on a sunny day that give the outdoors an another-worldly feeling. And in doing so, the experience lends itself to discussions on safety on the ice. When the fish are biting, it is very fun to watch the lines bob up and down, then see the fishermen pull in their catch.
Frozen Bubbles
I read about this unique outdoor activity a few years ago and wondered if it would really work. It does! We take regular bubble mix outside on a frosty day and blow frozen bubbles. Sometimes they freeze instantly to the wands, but usually they become frozen in midair and slowly fall to the ground where my kids poke and play with the bubbles until they break. It’s a fascinating outdoor sensory and science experiment!
Ice Treasure
This activity takes a little bit of forethought and preparation. My kids choose small treasures (small dinosaurs, little cars, trinkets from the dentist office) and put them in plastic cups. Next, they pack the containers with snow. Then they fill the remaining space with water (usually from the dripping drainpipes, to be honest) and leave them on the porch to freeze overnight. The next day, they dump out the ice chunks and chip away at them with various sticks and gardening tools to “find their treasures.”
Snow Painting
We made sure to talk with the neighbors before trying this creative outside activity since there was a possibility to get paint on the sidewalk and street. Since none of our neighbors had any concerns, we spent an afternoon spray painting the snow drifts on our block. Yes, real spray paint. With my supervision, the kids made flower gardens in the snow and thank you notes for the mailman by our box. The artwork dissolved slowly as the snowdrifts melted, but they enjoyed bringing some color to white outdoors.
