Sandra Ali: Surviving snow days with your kids

Cabin fever is very real

Sandra Ali's twins Tamer and Grant playing outside in the snow.

DETROIT – Winter can get long, dark and here in Michigan, brutally cold.  Face it. Before you know it, you are dealing with cabin fever.   

Snow days for me always start out exactly the same way.  If there is even a hint of snow in the forecast for the next day, and I happen to be off, I am just as excited as the kids are, if not more so in a very geeky way.  

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They flush ice cubes down the toilet, jump up and down wearing their pajamas inside out, and do all the rituals school kids everywhere do to make sure school is closed for a snow day.  This plays out while I get every minute of it on video. Oh, and they put spoons under their pillows while they sleep.  

This past week, it worked.  Of course, I was just as excited as they were. I woke up with great expectations.  We would all wear pajamas throughout the day, snuggle together on the sofa, watch new movies, pop popcorn, bake cookies,  play board games and sip hot cocoa.  Then we would play outside in the snow the rest of the afternoon.  

Instead, the day played out a little differently.  

My 6-year-old sobbed when she found out school was actually closed.  She did not want to miss art class because they were going to be painting birds that day, and she was sad she would not see her friends.  So my cheering and declaring the day “a bonus family fun day” did not help things much. It may have made it worse. 

The ice kept us inside for the most part.  My oldest tried to “shovel slush” for a while but eventually gave up on that. There was baking. I made chocolate chip bread the kids had been asking for, which turned out delicious.   

For the most part, we lounged in our pajamas and spent time together.  Was it perfect? No. Did I raise my voice a time or two or 12?  You bet.  Was I annoyed I spent most of my day stirring up pot after pot of Annie’s Macaroni and Cheese?   You know the answer.  Cabin fever is very real, and it is not easy. Next time we are faced with a snow day, I know I have got to come up with a better game plan.         

The mothers I saw later that night all had the same look on their face. It is that glazed-over look you get when you have had a really rough night of sleep.  We all gave each other that knowing look, with a little nod.  We looked at each other, thinking, "You holding up OK?" and "If I hear someone call 'mommy' one more time, I don’t know what I am going to do." 

Snow days can be a doozy for parents.  That is why I have learned to keep my expectations very low. I am already checking the forecast for next week.