7 Snow Day Activities for Kids (snark)

I can only remember a few times as a kid when my mom told us that we didn’t have to go to school because it was closed for snow. Back then, we waded through drifts of freezing flakes. Our feet were armed with a layer of socks, a newspaper bag, and moon boots. We carried our shoes in our backpacks and put them on over dry socks once we got to school. We saved our newspaper bags – wet side out – for the trek home.

When school closed, it was because the snow drifts were over our heads. Like this:

Here, though, in Metro DC, it’s a different story. Maybe this area is wimpy, or people these days are afraid of lawsuits. Maybe it’s just more densely populated and there’s nowhere to put the snow. Whatever the reason, they cancel school here. A lot. Like a whole lot.

And it’s begun to grind my gears.

Please don’t get me wrong – an unexpected snow day with my son is a treasure. I love playing in the snow, taking him sledding, and building snowmen. I had a blast when I brought out Tucker’s beach toys to make snow castles last weekend. I like having and making fun. I do.

What I don’t like is that Snow Day Brain is a real thing. Whether a result of being cooped indoors for the majority of the day, from trying to juggle a job, a five-year-old and life, or whether it comes from the impossible task of balancing screen time with better-than-screen-time activities, not having a single week where school is in session each day is wearing on my brain.

It’s making me even dumber than usual, people. Seriously. I’m forgetting things, I’m neglecting things, and I’m so completely ready for Spring that I almost wore a sundress today just for fun. Just in case you’re in the same boat, I’m sharing seven snow day activities that I came up with last year to help occupy your time. If you have others, please share.

Seven Easy DIY Snow Day Projects:

1. The Tampon Box Carwash
2. Does your kid like Spiderman? Mine does! So I’m thinking an intricate web is in order, in which I duct tape him to the wall, tell him he’s trapped, and hide. I figure that if I build this game up for a good 20 minutes before hand, that it will at least buy me a shower some Facebook time while he’s anticipating his rescue.
   
3. Duct tape would probably make a super cool Mummy. I haven’t graduated from toilet paper though.
   
4. Bake cookies. If you don’t know how to bake them, eat them. It’s okay and pretty much the same thing when you’re locked in the house. Also? You’re totally expunged from any cookie-eating guilt. Being cold and at home with young children burns more calories than running. Proven fact. Google it.
5. Build the worst snowman on the planet. Who cares if it doesn’t have a nose, or a face, or has a tick-filled sprig of pine on its head for hair. You just killed 45 minutes of time, and your kid will be proud and remember your blissful memories the entire time snowman dude is melting. Really. Forget the scarf, too, as that just means more laundry for your husband.
   
6. Face-Time your son’s Grandparents and tell them that they’ve got 6 hours to book a flight and come play with their grandson. They won’t come, but you’ll spend 2 hours laughing about it and telling everybody on Twitter how clever you are.
7. Got a boy? Does he have problems with handwriting like my son does? Encourage writing his name in the snow. With pee. It’s not only therapeutic, but encourages fine motor skills, bladder control, and will be beyond awesome on your holiday card if your family doubts your kid’s ability to function.

Share your snow day activities here and like my Facebook page for some actual real suggestions for snow day fun including making moon sand and Ooblek!

This has been a Finish the Sentence Friday post, where writers and bloggers get together and link up their pieces to a particular theme – a sentence that they finish in one way or another. This week’s sentence is “You wanna know what really grinds my gears?”

Your hosts:
Me (Finding Ninee)
This week’s co-hosts:
Michelle (and this week’s sentence thinker-upper) of Crumpets and Bollocks
Anna of Fitfunner