Making the Most of a Snow Day
Winter makes me nervous. Will the roads ice? What happens if I can’t avoid driving on an icy road?!?! I am so grateful that nowadays I can work from home if needed, but back in my days of “slinging espresso,” that wasn’t usually an option. All that to say, I don’t usually see snow in the forecast as something to look forward to. But, I’m happy to say, although it took some warming up to, Joss and I made the most of our recent snow day! So I thought I’d share some tips to help you plan the perfect snow day 🙂
1. Start Small
As I mentioned above, I had to warm up to the snow day. When we woke up, there was little-to-no accumulation on the ground. An hour later, boy had that changed! Joss talked me into bundling up and going outside. We built a tiny snowman, and an even teensier snow cat, at which point, I was ready to head inside and call it a day.
2. Self Care
Self care for me right now looks in part like trying out new face paint ideas. (New to me, anyway. They’re all variations of images I find on Google.) So after building our tiny snowman, I turned myself into a snowman! I think it was at this point that I really started embracing the snow day. And by this point, things were really looking gorgeous outside, which helped! But it was nice to have a little time to myself before committing to spending more time outside.
3. Snow Ice Cream
It doesn’t take much convincing for me to agree to making a sugary treat. So when Joss reminded me it wouldn’t be a snow day without snow ice cream, I caved. Coat, hat and gloves back on, along with all the accoutrements towards making snow ice cream. A bowl full of milk, sugar and vanilla, and (per Joss’s request), maraschino cherries, chocolate syrup and sprinkles. We didn’t use an exact recipe, but it was about 1 c. of milk, a generous handful of sugar, a splash of vanilla, and then however much snow seemed right.
4. Snow Man
After spending some more time indoors (and a scroll through social media), I was inspired to try building a bigger and better snowman. When is the last time I’d tried building a full-sized snowman? Possibly never?! But seeing other people’s amazing creations made me want to give it a go! So Joss and I headed into our side yard for some truly excellent snowman-construction material. He had marble eyes and mouth, an oblong yellow tomato for a nose, stick arms, a Santa hat and scarf and – this being 2020 – a mask!
5. Sledding
I think the last time I went sledding was in college. The memory is very distant. But Joss had been gifted a “snow glider” from my Aunt Shannon, and he couldn’t wait to use it! Our front yard has a very small hill…but it was absolutely perfect. A nice gentle slope, he had fun going down again and again – and so did I!
6. Christmas Baking
Thanks to Instagram ads, I know that there’s a new Hershey’s Kiss flavor this year: Sugar Cookie. Which meant I had to try them! (The candy cane ones are better.) Anyway, I’d purchased a few different flavors of Kisses for a gift, and added them to this recipe for Candy Cane Kisses from Sally’s Baking Addiction. This is a great blog if you’re ever looking for a new cookie or other recipe!
7. Holiday Photo Shoot
A day in was the perfect excuse to take photos in front of the Christmas tree! Joss and I have matching pajamas, and I love it!
His red pajamas, paired with his black winter boots, reminded him of Santa Claus. He kept referring to himself as Santa Claus throughout the day, so I finally asked if I could paint his face like Santa. And he actually said yes! He really got into putting imaginary presents under the tree.
So…I think that’s it! Of course, we sandwiched some TV-watching in between activities. And altogether, it was the perfect snow day, with plenty of fun and no reason to leave the house. In fact, we had enough fun that I might not mind seeing snow in the forecast a few more times before spring 😉
What snow day activities did we miss? Let me know in the comments!
