Though it’s a balmy 60-something degrees today, I know that winter is fast approaching New England. Fall is this crazy up and down, sometimes 65, sometimes 45. But then, all of a sudden, winter smacks you upside the head. And you can sort of forget to prepare for it, when you’re contemplating your Thanksgiving menu on a sunny, 70-degree day and otherwise getting caught up in the holiday season whirlwind. But the next thing you know, it’ll be January. And with two toddlers on the verge of giving up their morning nap, I need to be prepared.
‘Tis the season for activity signups. I’m already registered for the next age group of the developmental classes we take. 15-to-20-month-olds, Thursday afternoons. Check. Registration for Music Together, which I’m looking forward to trying out, starts in two weeks. I’m thinking Wednesday mornings. There are two gymnastics places nearby that I want to investigate, and have sent emails to try and set up a visit or trial class. As far as organized, paid classes go… I need to stop there. Fees are adding up quickly, and while I think it’s worth it (especially in the winter, when playgrounds are not as accessible), I don’t want to go totally overboard.
I also finally got around to buying winter jackets and snowpants. Old Navy was having a sale, and $20 each seemed a lot more reasonable than the nicer-but-pricier ones at LL Bean. Either way, I have quickly realized that, even if temps are dropping, my kids still want to play outside a lot.
In the meantime, I need to stay on the hunt for good free outings. 
Library story hour does the trick, though we went today and Rebecca had a complete meltdown when I informed her she wasn’t allowed to keep the stuffed animal she played with while we were there. Eventually, back in the car, the Harness Buddy proved to be an acceptably cuddly substitute.
A nearby mall recently installed a small play space near the food court, so that’s an outing with readily available snacks, but to avoid unnecessary shopping, I don’t want to go all the time.
I’m suitably jealous of those friends who actually semi-finished their basements in order to have some indoor play space. M and I both went downstairs, hoping to see what we had been missing all along, but no dice. Our basement is fairly damp, and though not tiny, has no good space that would work for finishing. Boohoo!
To the cold-winter mom friends out there: any good ideas for wintertime outings or activities that you’d like to share?
Officially you would think I don’t count as a cold-weather mom, but we actually have to plan around hot weather in the summer. Way way too hot to be outside for large parts of the day, even at the swimming pool.
Rather than list everything out, I will refer you to the best post I’ve seen on winter things to do with toddlers:
http://twinkies.bastetweb.com/2007/11/08/mostly-indoor-things-to-do-with-toddlers-in-winter/
LauraC´s last blog post..Awakening
We’re very familiar with cold weather here in Minnesota. Temp drops from 65 to 45? How about 70 to 30?! Anyway, my best suggestion for cheap activities is to plan a playgroup. Talk to moms of similar aged kids that you’ve met at any of those other classes you mentioned or anywhere else, and organize a playgroup. We’re involved in one that’s every Wednesday morning, and we just rotate houses. In our group the host usually provides a mid-morning snack (typically one that parents and kids can enjoy, like muffins) and puts on a pot of coffee for the big people. One person is kind of in charge of the schedule and she e-mails it out at the beginning of every month. If you need to switch, you’re responsible for doing that via e-mail. It’s nice for kids and parents alike to have others to socialize with, and also totally free.
I did love the gymnastics classes when the kids were tiny.
Not much help here, it’s never very cold where we are.
threeundertwo´s last blog post..Finished for Friday: Amigurumi
You’d think that the chica from Alaska would have a few answers…sorry to disappoint!
I guess we really only have the weekends to play with, so normally they are already jam packed with errands, etc. But we do take a Gymboree class on Saturday mornings. Then we do our Costco run and grocery shopping while the boys have a snack. Then it’s home for lunch.
I’d say that the hardest time to “fill” is the 2 hours between when they wake up, and when they will eat dinner. Basically, it takes Brook and I 20 minutes to decide upon somewhere to go that doesn’t entice us to spend money (i.e. REI–which the boys LOVE!). Today, we went to the recycling center (we don’t have curbside recycling yet) and let the boys help with the sorting. Then we went to a bookstore and let them run around for 20 minutes. That should not be attempted without a 1:1 kid to parent ratio. I spent the majority of the time putting books back on the shelf.
We like to get out of the house (Brook and I), whereas I am sure the kids would be just fine staying here with their toys and books. We do take them outside everyday, but our cutoff is -5 degrees. That’s when they go apeshit. But fresh air is necessary, so we do what we can. Last weekend, it was above 20 degrees, but when we got up to the trailhead, the wind was blowing about 50 mph–so, we didn’t even get them out of the car. We headed back down the hill and went to a sled park instead.
Here are the boys top 3 favorite indoor activities:
1-throwing balloons (latex–I know, I know…) over the banister, then doing downstairs to get them, then going back upstairs…REPEAT.
2-Walking on Elmo. Brook is, shall we say, ‘thrifty’. The boys fell in love with Elmo thanks to some crazy expensive talking Elmo doll at our daycare. Brook went to TRU and purchased a very large gift bag (I mean huge!) with Elmo all over it, then cut it so that it would lay flat. They love it! They kiss Elmo, they put him down for a nap, they say goodnight to him, they give him sippy cups, etc. Brook thinks he is a genius because he saved us $65 on a talking Elmo doll. I think he’s right. They love it!
3-Jumping on the crib mattresses. We take their mattresses out of their cribs and throw them on the floor. They have an all out WWF match. Tons of fun!
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