Planning A Winter Staycation With Your Family

During the summer break from school, most families try to get away even if it’s just for a few day trips so that the kids can get out and be active before school starts again. But unless you’re the kind of family who travels to exotic places for the holidays you probably just spend winter break in your town or city getting ready for the holidays and letting your kids sleep late and play video games. And while that can be fun there are also fun things that you can do with your family right where you live to make winter break special. Here are some fun ideas for planning a staycation with your family during the kid’s winter break from school:

Find The Best Local Sledding

If there is snow go on a hunt for the best local sledding hill and plan a daytime outing for some rousing family sledding fun. Buy new sleds and let each child pick out their own. Head off to the sledding hill with no agenda except to enjoy each other’s company and make some family memories. Your kids will love sledding with you and with each other on a frosty winter afternoon. Stop for some hot chocolate and a sweet treat on the way home to complete the family fun day.

Christmas Light Extravaganza

Pick a night to bundle the kids into the car and drive around to look at all the festive holiday light displays. Start with your neighborhood but also explore other neighborhoods. Some towns and cities have special contests for holiday light displays and you can get a map of houses that are participating in your town hall. Make it an event to drive by all the houses and pick your own winner.

Downtown Shopping

If you live in a midsize city or smaller town that has an old-fashioned downtown a great thing to do with the kids is to take them downtown and let them walk up and down to see all the holiday displays in the windows. You can even let them shop for gifts for friends and family members in the little boutiques and shops. A quick stop in a coffee shop for coffee and hot chocolate will make the day seem special even though it’s only a day spent where you live.

A Moonlight Snow Walk

My own kids love this so much it’s become an annual tradition. The first night after the first snow when the moon is out I will wake the kids up and we will all get bundled up and go outside to walk around the block in the snow. Making a special event out of the first snow is a totally free way to make the holidays a little more magical for your kids. Make some popcorn and hot chocolate and watch a holiday special when you come back inside and then the kids will sleep in late so that you can get some extra sleep too.