4 Fun, Easy Activities To Do When It’s Freezing In Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois
It is time to embrace MinneSNOWta and have some fun with the snow and cold temps. My kids seem to embrace this time of year better than I do...so I decided to channel my inner child and share a few "snow and cold" ideas that you can do outside when the temperature dips below freezing.
4 Easy Activities To Do When It's Freezing In Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin
1) Ice Marbles: this took longer than I thought (even in the negative numbers we have had) but it did work. Watch the video to see how we made these.
2) Frozen Bubbles: We usually bring these out on the days when it is warm and toasty, but these are actually a fun toy in the winter too!
Find your bubble solution, blow it like you normally do and let it float in the air. As it is floating, it will start to crystallize and freeze. You might see pieces of it broken but it truly is an amazing experiment to witness. Your kids will be amazed!
3) Magic Air: While you are nice and warm (a.k.a. inside) blow up a balloon and tie the end. Let your child know that you have placed magic air in the balloon today.
Have your child hold on tight and take the balloon outside. The magic air will disappear in the balloon while they are holding it. Have them bring it back indoors and they will see the magic air filling up the balloon again. (fyi - no special air is needed!)
4) Snow Ice Cream: Yep...there is no longer a need to head to the grocery store for that special treat. You can make ice cream with the snow that is just outside your door! I have done this with my kids and even my daycare kiddos back in the day...and they had so much fun! I recommend grabbing some new, clean snow...maybe after a fresh snowfall. Here is a simple recipe from Paula Dean on the Food Network:
- Ingredients: 8 cups of packed snow, one 14-ounce can of sweetened condensed milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Directions: mix it all together by hand & serve in bowls
Check Out These Fun Winter Ideos From Other Moms in Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin
- Playing with the snow inside! Suzanne said she puts out a plastic tablecloth, fills up a bucket of snow and lets her kids play inside with it. They get out cookie cutters, spatulas and just have fun...while staying warm!
- Jenny's kids made up a new activity that they are enjoying: dog sledding! They have a laundry basket, their dog a put it all together and their dog pulls them around their yard and street.
- Amy said SLEDDING! If you are looking for a great sledding spot in town, look below for a huge list of the top spots.
What cold-weather activities do you like to do with your kids?
Let me know what fun activities you do with your kids! Share those with me on my Facebook page - Jessica On The Radio! I'll be sharing those on my page throughout the week.
