20 Activities to Do in the Snow

Kate Powers

20 great games to cure cabin fever.

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Hoop It Up

Kate Powers

Grab a few hula hoops, and have a contest to see who can last the longest. It's a lot harder when you're all bundled up!

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Shake It Up!

Kindra Clineff

Use strong glue to attach a plastic toy to the inside of a jar lid, then add baby oil and glitter for a homemade snow globe; it makes a fun souvenir of a great day.

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Cool Critters

Heather Weston

Use bits of nature to embellish animals sculpted from snow.

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For the Birds

Heather Weston

Hollow out an orange and fill with seeds to feed your feathered friends.

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Ice Maker

Heather Weston

When the temperature drops below 32 degrees, blow bubbles and watch them freeze on the wand.

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Snow Graffiti

Heather Weston

Give kids spray bottles full of water that's tinted with food coloring to decorate the white canvas in your backyard.

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Tic-Tac-Snow

Kindra Clineff

Two players go for the championship in this classic game. Use crisscrossed sticks and pinecones as game pieces.

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For the Birds

Kindra Clineff

String cranberries, popcorn, and cereal onto fishing line for a garland to attract and nourish your feathered friends.

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Cold Molds

Kindra Clineff

Borrow some pans from the kitchen. Use them to build crystal fairy castles or to create cakes for a cold-weather "buffet."

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A Sweet Chalet

Kindra Clineff

Decorate your playhouse with laminated paper snowflakes, pinwheels, and a wreath dotted with plastic ponytail holders.

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Ice and Easy

Kindra Clineff

Freeze colored water into ice cubes, then hide them around the yard for a wintertime scavenger hunt.

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Frosty Toss

Kindra Clineff

Have a snowball-throwing contest! Make a target by creating a bright circle in the snow with colored water in a squirt bottle.

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Sugar Daddy

Kindra Clineff

Give your friendly snowman a candy-coated makeover with licorice, lollipops, and gummies.

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Build a Fort

Kate Powers

Build a fort. Use sand buckets, loaf pans, and cut-up empty milk cartons to make a cool snow castle.

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Go Tubing

Kate Powers

Beach toys aren't just for sand. Have your kids sit in inner tubes and then race to the finish line using just their feet.

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Swing Away

Kate Powers

Make a golf course by packing down a section of snow every few feet. Bury tin cans halfway down in the snow to create holes, and mark them with mini flagsticks.

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Pin the Smile on the Snowman

Kate Powers

Pass out chocolate cookies, then blindfold each child and let him try to get the mouth, eyes, and buttons in place.

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Practice Your Pitch

Kate Powers

Paint a bull's-eye target on a piece of cardboard, giving each colored ring a point value. Attach it to a tree, and keep score as the kids try to hit the target with snowballs.

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More Fun Ideas

Kate Powers

* Have a snowball fight. Divide your family into teams, then start throwing. Save this one for last so you can go inside, dry off, and have some hot chocolate.

* Walk this way. Have your kids follow your lead as you move like different animals: Waddle like a penguin, stomp like a bear, and wiggle like a fish.

* Create a maze. Put on your hiking boots and stamp out a path for your kids to follow.

* Plan a scavenger hunt. Hide an apple in a mound of snow so that a little bit peeks out. Give the kids silly directions to follow as they search for it.

* Play freeze tag. Can you think of a more appropriate game for a chilly day? Once someone's tagged by the person who's "It," he has to stay frozen until another player tags him again.

* Make faces. Use handfuls of packed snow to create funny characters on a tree trunk.

Originally published in the January 2007, January 2008, and January 2010 issues of Parents magazine.

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20+ Fun Activities to Do in the Snow

1 of 20

Hoop It Up

2 of 20

Shake It Up!

3 of 20

Cool Critters

4 of 20

For the Birds

5 of 20

Ice Maker

6 of 20

Snow Graffiti

7 of 20

Tic-Tac-Snow

8 of 20

For the Birds

9 of 20

Cold Molds

10 of 20

A Sweet Chalet

11 of 20

Ice and Easy

12 of 20

Frosty Toss

13 of 20

Sugar Daddy

14 of 20

Build a Fort

15 of 20

Go Tubing

16 of 20

Swing Away

17 of 20

Pin the Smile on the Snowman

18 of 20

Practice Your Pitch

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More Fun Ideas

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