The months of January and February can be a bit tricky. Holiday hype is complete. Not much is growing outside. Summertime seems far away. So, what can parents do to create wintertime creativity, fun, and excitement not only for themselves, but for their whole families? Here are a few ideas:
- Move things around – clean out closets, move furniture to new locations, paint walls, bedroom doors, and/or ceilings, bring out stored décor, bring in new plants, or anything to make your living space look different. Stimulating the mind through visual change can just be the positive newness that will brighten the winter months.
- Learn something new – with the ease of online classes, availability of free/low cost classes, and go-at-your-pace classes, this option becomes pretty easy to do. What out-of-the-box ideas can one learn? Sign language, watercolor painting, braiding, yoga, or even furniture refurbishing. Lots of options abound.
- Create an alter space – from large, such as an entire room, to little spaces, such as a corner of a bedroom, creating a personal alter space is so fulfilling on so many levels. This focal point allows anyone the opportunity to center, balance, and regain calm. A quick online search will provide a flood of ideas and suddenly the enjoyment of creating a special space for meditation or personal time which elevates one’s mood with ease. Already have an alter space? Think about redesigning it to keep it fresh.
- Be silly – for a month, have breakfast for supper and supper for breakfast. For a period of time, switch bedrooms, sitting spots in the family room, and chores. Play games, create new games, complete puzzles, and visit people you’ve not seen in a while.
- Appreciate the dormancy of wintertime- meditate, journal, relax, and soothe during this time. Of course, snuggling with a book or two is definitely on the list for wintertime. Try these: https://a.co/d/gPYiFp0,https://a.co/d/4hP7njD, https://a.co/d/9CrpTvZ, https://a.co/d/hnuLgvS, or any of my 15 books for parents and teens. Nature’s wisdom reveals much to us in wintertime. While doing things to lighten the mood, appreciate the time to quietly nest at home before the hustle and bustle of spring and summer.
Bringing in newness is the key. When life seems drab, introduce something new. When like seems like ordinary, bring in different. When life seems routine, bring in change. Before you know it, blooms will be popping on the trees, bursting through the soil, and reappearing at the ends of plants. Bridging the gap until nature provides us with spring renewal can be lots of fun.