Ideas for a Snow Day as an Adult

Growing up the most magical part of winter, for me, was always snow days. I remember waking up early to watch the news with my older brother, hoping with all our little hearts that school would be canceled. And I remember how excited we’d be as we watched it crawl across the bottom of the screen. It was the only time our parents would let us bounce on the couch and we’d take one good hop and be off to plan our day of fun fill snow adventures. Back then, staying indoors wasn’t an option.

Now that I’m older, sometimes I get so caught up in “adulting” that I can forget to appreciate the wonder of winter and the spell snow can have. As a teacher, while I do get snow days where I don’t have to go to work, they’re usually filled with grading a lesson planning, which, while important, can sometimes make winter continue to drag on and on and become less and less exciting. I know this happens to lots of people, so today I wanted to share with you some of my plans to have some adult snow day fun this year!

Host a Hot Chocolate Party

As an adult, sometimes it can be easy to push your personal life aside when you get busy with work and chores. A snow day is a perfect excuse to get in touch with your friends and if it’s at all possible for you to get together, take advantage of the snow as a great excuse for a hot chocolate party! (You definitely want to make sure it’s safe to travel, though. Safety first!)

It’s pretty much what it sounds like: getting together and drinking hot chocolate! You can simply sit around and catch up with warm mugs of happiness in your hand or watch a movie, play a game, or get crafty. Anything you and your group of friends would enjoy most and it will be made even better as you sip on liquid sunshine.

Hot chocolate also has the capacity to be personalized. Not only would it be fun to make a batch of homemade hot chocolate with your friends, but you can all add in all kinds of extras. Marshmallows, peppermint, pumpkin, salted caramel, vanilla, mint, cinnamon. And that’s just the start of some popular flavors, The list can seem endless. Get little cups or shot glasses and have a sampling party to find out which combo you and your friends like. Not only is it a great excuse to get together and have fun, but it’s also delicious!

Create a Cooking Challenges

For a snow day (or any winter day really) I always love to bake something. Usually it’s cookies that are warm, soft, and gooey. And most of the time, for dinner, I like to have some kind of warm soup or stew. My mom always made chili on cold days and it’s still a snow day favorite of mine.

However, if you do enough cooking and baking in your every day life, you might want to spice it up at all try a cooking challenge. There are all kinds of challenges online, but one thing I find exciting is taking the first ten ingredients I see and finding ways to combine them into something that is edible. Sometimes it’s difficult, but it’s a challenge that not only warms you up with the heat of the oven and stove, but it’s also really great for giving your brain a great workout and your cooking skills a serious test. And you never know, you might come up with a great new recipe or a brilliant new combination!

Do a Workout Challenge

One of the hardest things about snow days, for me, is that, since I do a lot of workouts outdoors, it can sometimes be difficult to get all my exercising in. Plus, when there’s snow on the ground, for some reason I seem to have a much harder time getting motivated to want to get out of my fuzzy socks and break a sweat.

That’s where workout challenges come from. Of course I’m referring to the kind that allows you to binge watch your favorite shows while giving you certain exercises to perform once you spot different elements. For example, on I sometimes do is based on The Office (probably my favorite show ever). Every time Jim looks at the camera while another character does something silly you do fifteen push ups. Any time Dwight talks about his superior abilities you do twenty crunches. Whenever Michael says “That’s what she said” you do ten scissor kicks.

You can tailor the exercises, the repetitions, and the things you watch for in the show to whatever your needs, wants, and likes are. Plus it’s a great way to either enjoy your old favorite shows or catch up on some serious binge watching you’ve been slacking on. And the best part is: getting in a workout while you watch takes away the guild when Netflix asks if you’re still watching!

 Follow an Online Tutorials

When I was in junior high and high school, one of my favorite snow day activities was learning a new song to play. And now that Youtube has millions of different tutorials to offer and the internet has some amazing how to articles, it seems like our access to learning all kinds of different tasks is almost endless.

You can watch Bob Ross paint and follow along. You can make all kinds of do-it-yourself craft tutorials to have some amazing new decor for your home. Learn to make a dessert you’re obsessed with or cook a new meal you’ve been trying to try. Find something you’ve always wanted to learn to do and get started. Sure, you probably won’t be a master at the end of the day, and you’re probably still going to need a lot more practice, but there is no better time and place to start than a snow day.

“Camp Out” by the Fire

I’m very blessed to have a fire place that I can keep stoked throughout a snow day. There is something so beautiful and inspiring about hearing a fire crackle and spark and feeling the warmth and power is comforting and reminds me of being a little kid and laying in the floor enjoying the heat.

One of my favorite things to do on a snow day is pile up some pillows and blankets in front of the fire place and read a good book. It’s hard to beat curling up and being cozy with a great book. It’s not only a wonderful way to spend an afternoon, but it’s also a fantastic way to get through your reading list.

Plan Your Fashion

A snow day the perfect excuse to stay indoors and do some cleaning and organizing. Extend that love and care to your closet. Go through your clothes and figure out what you don’t wear anymore. Make plans to donate it or give it away to friends who would look great in it and enjoy being fabulous with new fashion. Spend time trying things on and making sure you feel comfortable.

It’s also a wonderful excuse to start putting together looks. If you’re like me and not naturally gifted at piecing together beautiful outfits that not only flatter you but make you feel fierce, then you need some time to do your research, try the pieces on to give them a test run together, and figure out exactly what kind of look you’re going for. I love spending a free afternoon putting together outfits that I wouldn’t have been able to throw together on a normal work week. I love knowing I’m going to feel confident and look amazing in something and to me, it’s incredibly important to be confident in yourself and what you’re wearing so you an exude every bit of the super star you are.

If your friends can make it over, have a fashion show. Take their advice. Get together and exchange clothes you no longer want. Make an entire fashion filled day that not only has a lot of fun, but also some wonderful time with friends.

Write Greeting Cards

To me, sending letters and cards is a lost art that I wish more people spent time doing. It’s so inspiring to get a card from someone you care about that lets you know they’re thinking about you and want to make you smile. They’re so much more powerful that text messages or social media messages. Something about having written words is irreplaceable.

So sit yourself down at a table and get to writing. Buy a pack of greeting cards and write little, personalized messages in each one to the people you adore. Tell them how much you appreciate them and how grateful you are to have them in your lives. Or write entire letters that tell them how important they are to you. Write something funny or encouraging. Be inspirational or supportive. Cheer up someone who has been having a hard time or congratulate someone who has accomplished one of their goals.

These cards don’t have to be a grand, spectacular undertaking. The thought, alone, says a lot of the things you might have trouble putting into words. Make sure it’s something that will make someone smile and feel the love you have for them.

These are some of the things I plan to do on my adult snow day. What are the things you like to do on a snow day? Let me know in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow my blog for more fun content.

Until our next adventure, stay curious.

–t