1. Take extra mittens/gloves if you have them. Planning ahead can keep you in the snow longer when the first pair gets wet and cold.
2. Keep a clean, dry pair of socks on hand as well. Wet tights and three layers of clothes don't make for happy children and aren't easy to change.
3. Those little "hand warmer" packets work! You can likely pick up a pair a DII (5th Ave at 9th St) or G & E (5th Ave btw 14th and 15th Sts).
4. Pulling a stroller backwards is easier than pushing it.
5. Stick to the streets if you can—some of the sidewalks aren't shoveled.
6. Those plastic snowball makers REALLY work.
7. Set age-appropriate rules for snowball fights. One snowball in the face can take a kid out of commission for the rest of the day (this one from experience).
8. The plastic chalk container makes a perfectly sized snow brick. You can also use the plastic box from baby wipes.
9. Consider rubber bands and garbage bags to make gauntlets for between the coat and the mittens/gloves as well as the boots and snowpants. One wrong step and snow down the boots makes for whiny kids.
10. It might be time to wash the snow gear when you get home. If you try to put dirty stuff in the dryer, you may end up with stains you can't get out.
11. There's nothing like a nice warm bath to thaw you out after a session in the snow.
12. Sometimes there is Free Hot Chocolate by NYC Parks at 9th Street and Prospect Park. We'll post to Facebook if that is happening. Like our page so you are in the know!
13. Parents—peppermint schnapps in hot chocolate is YUMMY and tastes like a melted Andes candy!
14. Snow with drizzled maple syrup is YUMMY! (Bah humbug on acid snow!)
15. Fill squirt bottles with water and food coloring and spray it on the snow. Make a snow rainbow, decorate your snow angels, make faces, write names, etc.
16. Please shovel if you've got a sidewalk! Also—help a neighbor shovel theirs. It's super dangerous, and folks with disabilities can have a tremendously hard time on un-shoveled sidewalks!
17. If your teenager is old enough to snovel snow, put up their info on the PSP Classifieds so they can get some extra cash this holiday season.
18. Building a snowman is always best when you use things from nature—pine cones make great eyes, sticks make great arms, etc. Hey—build a snow family with everyone in your family represented (even your pets)!
19. Try making a snow sculpture rather than just a snowman. Snow mermaid, turtle, snow snake-- be creative. (Google "snow sculpture" images for some great ideas!)
20. Consider helmets when sledding (a friend's niece died inner-tubing on snow). For more info on safe sledding, head HERE.
21. You can sled using an old cardboard box. It doesn't have the shelf life of a plastic sled, but then again, you probably already have a big box on its way to recycling.
22. PLEASE BE COURTEOUS AND SAFE on the sledding SLOPES! Walk up the sides, not the middle, and get to the side quickly so others can go after you.
ENJOY!
