The winter months can be hard on both parents and children, especially when the weather is cold and you're stuck inside the house. To prevent cabin fever, here are some indoor activities you can do with your children.

Start a Meaningful Family Project:

• Create a family tree (Link here to other article) tracing your family back through generations.

• Make a collage or scrapbook out of family photos.

• Create a special decoupage keepsake box using either magazine photos or color copies of family photographs. Cut out the pictures using small scissors and paste them on a box by covering the back of each picture with clear-drying glue, then brushing more glue on the front. (Or you can buy special decoupage medium at your local craft store.) You can have a theme, like sports or flowers, or just use pictures of things you like.

• Make a family documentary video or storybook. If you have a video camera, you can shoot footage of each family member's day. You could also make up a script and act it out for the camera. If you don't have access to a video camera, you can make a storybook with either drawings or photos of family members acting out the story.

Make Something in the Kitchen:

Something edible:

• Cookies
• Soft pretzels
• A gourmet dinner
• Snack mix

Something fun-but don't eat it!

• Play dough recipe¹
  3 cups flour
  1/2 cup salt
  1 tbsp alum or cream of tartar
  3 tbsp vegetable oil
  
  Mix all the ingredients with 2 cups of boiling water and add a few drops of food coloring of your sculptor's choice. After your dough has cooled, knead it into a smooth ball. You may need to add more flour if the dough is too sticky. Offer your artist a rolling pin, cookie cutters, cookie press and plastic knives. You can store the dough in an airtight container to use again.

Other ideas include building a fort out of furniture or creating an indoor obstacle course, but these depend on the space available in your home and how willing you are to rearrange your rooms!

¹ Family Fun Expert Advice. Activities to Fight the Winter Blahs, last referenced 1/20/2003.

• Allrecipes.com
• ParentsPlace.com Family Therapist. Cabin Fever? Tips to Keep Your Kids Active This Winter.
• All Info About the Family Screen Scene. Winter Pleasures.
• Philly.com. Cures For Cabin Fever.
• Bulb.com. Great Indoor Garden Projects For Kids.