Embrace the Elements

Wind chill readings have long replaced UV ratings and “after-school” activities might as well be renamed “fun after dark”. Winter’s here.

Luckily, we’re a nation of explorers and a nation of hot chocolate drinkers too. We know this because you savvy moms shared with us so many great ideas for winter family activities. (You can imagine our delight with so many responses!)

So get savvy this winter with your family. Here are some of the tips and tricks we learned about from our readers. 

You Love It
There is nothing more fun in the winter than playing in the snow—building snowmen, skating and toboganning— but want to savvy it up a notch?

Sylvia Rountes of Maple likes to build snow castles on the lawn using buckets and shovels just like they do on the beach.

Lori Lewis of Toronto uses food colouring in spray bottles to make beautiful colors and decorations—just add snow she says. Apparently the adults love it too (just be careful of staining)!

Stephanie Brooks from London must have boys because she knows that throwing snowballs has become forbidden at most schools and homes. To drive out the temptation and burn some energy, they throw snowballs at chalk drawings of each other on the backyard fence!

Need to venture further than your backyard? Nature walks are popular too with destinations like The Humber Arboretum. Linda Galloway from Toronto likes to hike through the woods of the arboretum and feed the birds from the palm of her hands along the trails. Further north, you can hike through the Caledon Hills like Monica Kerr Costner. Her family sets out to look for animal tracks including deer, raccoon, foxes, squirrels and dinosaurs!

You Live With It
Looking for something more educational? Melissa Warner from Hamilton goes to the butterfly conservatory in Niagara Falls because the tropical weather inside warms them up and lets them forget about the cold for a while. Kimberly Maharaj likes the indoor/outdoor attractions at the Toronto Zoo. There are a lot of indoor areas to stay warm there and the kids can run around and burn off energy. We agree that this is the best time to visit the zoo. It’s never crowded and it doesn’t smell!

Just Stay Cozy
For a really special treat, Marianne Eaves from Toronto likes to pretend she is on vacation and get a hotel room so the kids can play in the pool all day. Then they order room service and watch a movie in bed with the kids.

Andrea Maikawa pretends to go on vacation by cranking Bob Marley and some Calypso music. A broom makes a perfect limbo stick and then they build a tent and drink hot chocolate.

So for all of you who said you like to go to IKEA or Tim Horton’s for a family outing (yes, there were some!), we hope you are feeling inspired.

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