The holiday season can be a great time to appreciate the children you have. Not to mention that your school-aged children will have some time off for the holidays. Taking some time to slow down and enjoy some activities with them is a great gift for both of you. Here are a few suggestions on fun holiday activities that you can try with your children this winter.
Ornament Making
Being able to let your children express their individualism is a great benefit of being a parent. Grab some materials at your local craft store and plan an ornament-making day for the family. You can all create ornaments that you can put on your Christmas tree or even give to their grandparents. This is a great activity that will allow you all to get creative and have fun seeing what each other comes up with. Printing off pictures of your kids to glue on foam shapes or popsicle stick stars will add personalization that you or the recipient will cherish. At the end of the season, you will have a keepsake that you can take out year after year and remember this time.
Fancy Bow Tying
If your kids like playing dress-up, it’s likely they want to know how to make hair bows that they can wear. You can assist them in making some fancy bows to go with their Christmas outfits for pictures, family gatherings, church, or just for fun. If your kids aren’t interested in hair bows, opt for teaching them how to make the perfect topper for the gifts that you’ll be wrapping. Or, have them make a hair bow for their grandmother or cousins. Either way, having your children create something wearable from scratch is a great way to show a gift from the heart to those around them. Plus it is a skill they can pass on when they have a family of their own.
Outdoor Adventure
The holiday season is a great time to enjoy the landscape around you. Consider taking your children for a hike through the snow-covered woods. You’ll enjoy seeing their eyes light up as they get to enjoy seeing the wildlife around them. With the winter snow, it makes it much easier for your children to spot the animals and really get to take a look. Maybe even plan for some sledding at the end or some hot chocolate in a thermos along the trail. Spending some time in the great outdoors reconnecting with nature is a great way to slow down the fastness of the holiday season. It should also wear out the kids by the end of the day, so you and your spouse can enjoy some quiet time this winter.
Baking Together
Baking is a tradition this time of year in many households. It fills the home with wonderful smells, keeps the house warm, and everyone loves treats around the holidays. It is a great way to spend time with your kids as well! Let them pick out recipes they like by having them flip through your cookbooks. If your kids are too young to stir pots on the hot stove, help them measure the dry ingredients and whisk them together by hand. If you make big batches of cookies and candies to share, they will have fun handing them out to teachers or neighbors.
The holiday season is a time to slow down and enjoy spending time with loved ones around you. When it comes to your kids, you’ll need to plan some fun activities to keep them entertained while they are home from school. The above are three great activities that can be done both indoors and outdoors that will allow you to create some special moments with your children. Realize that planning these activities now is imperative to you actually doing them when the rush of the winter season hits.