Playing outside this time of year?

[Josiegirl]

All the outside equipment has been stored for the winter, ground is getting frozen, sandbox can't be played in...what is there to do? I brought chalk outdoors, along with some cars, dinosaurs and bubbles but the dcks are getting bored whenever we go out.
I've never been so anxious for snow to get here!!
They do lots of running around and chasing games but it's hard for them to focus on any other kinds of games. What do you all have the dcks play when it's cold, frozen and dismal out?

[DaveA]

Bag of balls and a couple of riding toys put where I can grab them quickly. I wait till the last possible day to cover the little tykes stuff. Right now the big thing is a couple of plastic rakes- they are obsessed with making leaf piles to play in.

[Cat Herder]

Badminton, corn hole, ring toss, river stepping stones, basketball, hula hoops, ankle skip ropes, dance ribbons, soccer, jai alai, croquet, tunnel tents, hopper balls and group parachute.

The raking leaves things does work great as well. Mine love it, too.

[Lovisa]

We don't get any snow here, but we do get a lot of rain, which means a LOT of mud in the back yard. We stay in when it is super wet outside because trying to clean 5 muddy babies/toddlers a few times daily is NOT my idea of a good time . I just make sure to find an indoor activity that allows them to get their energy out.

I WISH we got snow!

[storybookending]

I’m waiting on the snow too and worried they are getting bored during outdoor time. I have the smaller little tykes stuff stored for the winter so they just have the larger play set that two of them aren’t big enough to climb.

I will admit we didn’t go out much last year like we should have so I’m considering this my first real winter where I’m playing by the rules. I have two 1 year olds, two 2 year olds and two 3 year olds.

No ones complained yet but one of the 1 year old that can’t figure out the larger play set whines sometimes frustrated he can’t do much of the activities that are offered with his mittens on. My 2 year old girls are struggling with this as well but my 3 year olds seem to get by pretty good. They are all in the mittens with the 1 thumb hole. Only 1 can figure out how to actually get her thumbs in the holes when she puts them on.

We’ve just been doing lots of walks waiting for the snow to start and then just ending with 15-20 minutes in the back yard.

[kendallina]

I have a dome climber ($160 on amazon) that I leave out all year and it's what they play with much of the year. I also have tons of balls, flying discs, buckets ( for all that mud), shovels, animals, logs, etc.