Frugal Hacks to Survive Christmas Winter Break

Sixteen days. SIXTEEN DAYS. That’s how long my kids, ages 5 and 7, will be in my house for Christmas/Winter Break. Please don’t misunderstand me- I LOVE MY KIDS. But that’s a lot of days of uninterrupted face time. So if you’re like me, you’ll probably be looking for some stuff to keep everyone busy, happy, and sane. Here are a few of my favorite FRUGAL HACKS TO SURVIVE CHRISTMAS BREAK.

AT HOME
Staying at home for a full day is daunting for me. But some days, we just need some downtime at home. Here are some things I keep handy to pull out in a pinch.

  • Art for Kids Hub. This YouTube channel is AMAZING. It’s an artist dad who draws simple characters with his kids in step-by-step fashion. I stream it to our living room TV and set my kids up with some printer paper at the coffee table. Even my 5-year-old loves drawing with them and is super proud of his masterpieces. Be sure you have plenty of refrigerator space after a morning or afternoon of Art Hub!

  • Kinetic Sand. This has been such a lifesaver for me so many times. Kid sick at home? Pull out the sand. Kids complaining they’re bored? Sand. Kids driving you crazy? SAND. I always put down a tablecloth I got for $3 at Walmart, provide some kind of container and some basic tools like a plastic knife and sand shovel, and let them go to town. In my experience, it hasn’t gotten too messy. It’s easy enough to sweep off the tablecloth and equally easy to vacuum off the floor, if needed.

  • National Geographic STEM Kits. These kits are a new discovery for us and my kids LOVE them. They’re fairly inexpensive- abut $8-11 for each kit- and provide a solid hour of entertainment for my kiddos. It’s basically a semi-solid chunk of clay that the kids excavate with provided tools, reveling things like dinosaur fossils, shark teeth, insect specimens, and more. The clay chunk is pretty solid and hard to get through, which works in our favor, Mommas- it keeps ‘em busy and engaged! And they learn science stuff along the way. (Bonus: My kids like to take the specimens they unearth from the STEM kits and bury them in the kinetic sand, listed above, for additional excavations. Win-win!)

  • Bake Something. Ha ha! Just kidding! Don’t bake anything with your kids unless you want to lose your ever-loving mind. Or unless you’re a stronger woman than I (totally possible).

  • Play-Doh. This seems obvious, but I tend to forget about Play-Doh until I’m pulling my hair out. And it’s so easy! As with the kinetic sand, I provide some basic tools with the Doh (and we have a few kits, like a Play-Doh kitchen and pizzeria) and let my kids’ creativity take over from there. I have to “eat” plenty of Play-Doh pizzas and ice creams, but they really enjoy it and I love hearing them be kind and creative.

OUT AND ABOUT
At my kids’ ages, we tend to enjoy a day where we get out of the house for a least a couple of hours the most. Here are my go-to places for when we need to get out of the house on a budget.

  • Local Library. The library is a great FREE source of entertainment for kids of all ages! In Frisco, we are blessed with a library that has several play and STEM areas for kids to explore, in addition to computers and iPads preloaded with fun and educational content. Many libraries have the same type of things. Some libraries even offer educational programming throughout the break. And picking out a few special books to read at home is always a treat for my kids!

  • Visit a Museum. Many museums offer daily free admission. In the DFW area, the following museums are always free: Dallas Museum of Art, Crow Collection (Dallas), Texas Discovery Gardens (Fair Park, Dallas), Interurban Railway Museum (Plano), Frisco Heritage Museum, Kimbell Art Museum (Ft. Worth), Modern Art Museum of Ft. Worth, Amon Carter Museum (Ft. Worth). Many larger cities offer similar free admissions. Research the museums in your area- I think you’ll be surprised! (On a less-than-frugal note, my personal opinion is that a day spent at a museum is money well spent. So there’s always the option of biting the bullet and paying for admission to an educational children’s or science museum.)

  • Go to the Mall. To kids, the mall can be a magical place, especially at Christmas. The lights! The trees! SANTA! One of my son’s favorite things to do is hang out at the mall, so we often make a day of it. We hit all his favorite stores to window shop (Barnes & Noble, LEGO, Disney, Nordstrom for a balloon, etc.), ride the carousel, play in the play area, and eat lunch in the food court.

  • Skate Park. Many cities have skate parks that allow the use of different kinds of wheeled vehicles, including bikes, skateboards, scooter, and rollerblades/skates. (Frisco has a GREAT ONE!) My kids would break an arm on a skateboard, but they love riding their bikes around our local skate park. It’s a fun change from our regular around-the-block routine. Plus there’s a regular playground on the skate park grounds for additional, no-wheeled play. Bring helmets!

Ok, Mommas, that’s all I’ve got! Winter break is coming… Be strong. Be brave. Have fun! I wish us all the best of luck! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!