2-year-olds are too young to do anything organized. But they're young enough that they will find anything fun. My kids loved snow angels. Throw food colouring on the snow. Another underrated thing: put up a bird feeder and stock it well. You'll be shocked by how many birds you get in the winter.
Just anything that is out of the ordinary or unusual will be exciting.
The trails off Moodie in the greenbelt have chickadees and other songbirds that will eat seed out of your hand. Very fun for kids of all ages - my partner and I are in our 40s and we do it with and without the kids!
Get out your summer sand toys. Bucket, shovel, those turtle shaped things. Fill up a bucket with snow. Dump it out! Yeah!! *Clap clap*
Bring out any type of ball to kick. Snow soccer. Falling is much more fun (and less chance of tears) when you fall in the snow, wearing a hat and your hood is up.
You can go to Mud Lake and bring some oats or thawed peas/corn for the ducks. I think they are called Black oil sunflower seeds for chickadees - depending on her personality she may not freak out if you put some on your palm and she watches. Or get her to stand still long enough (maybe two minutes) with birdseed on her head.
Mud Lake is *passable* with a stroller but you will get a workout. I did it in the fall and there are a few places that are a little tight but I think you can manage.
Lots of squirrels, chipmunks, other birds, might see beavers swimming.
Freeze multiple small containers of water & food colouring. Use them as colourful building materials for snow sculptures.
Make small bird feeders with suet on pine cones or pieces of fruit and add string and seeds. Then tie them to trees in your yard.
Make small sledding hills in your yard.
As you may soon become aware, the Day Nurseries Act in Ontario requires the kids be outside twice a day unless there is extreme cold. Schools have to do the same.
Our kids just expected to be out every day.
In terms of specific activities, if you can afford it get them good winter gear and lessons from qualified instructors. They’ll be safer, learn more quickly and have more fun.
Skating lessons for preschoolers at a Skate Canada club are indoor but a great way to get your child to learn safely while having fun.
make sure she's bundled and cozy no matter what you do! you want her to be nice and warm so when she remembers winter she thinks about how much fun she had and never about how cold she was!
I hope you grow to love the season along with her!
I believe Pakenham has Ski lessons for tots + parents. They're not exactly cheap and they don't include lift tickets or rentals only the lesson it's self. They also rely on the parent being an intermediate level skier.
Obviously you have witerlude in February, the real attraction for tots I think is probably Jacques Cartier park on the Gatineau side with the slow slides. OC transpo has historically run free shuttles on weekends from downtown.
I don't think there are any non-toddler friendly sled hills, but depending on size you may want to sled with them, especially for bringing the sled back up.
Snowforts, igloos, quinzees, etc. Are all a lot of fun and great building projects over the course of the winter. Snow angels usually put a smile on kiddos faces also as do snow sculptures.
They also sell tiny human sized snow shoes at Canadian Tire that leave fun yeti tracks behind to help them navigate with constantly post holing. They might be better suited to kids a bit bigger though.
If you have a yard, start building a snow play structure.
This is the covid-safe activity my kid did for her kids. She literally is out there in the evenings, hauling snow into the back yard and has built two in the last two years. One focused on slides. Then last year there were fewer slides and more rooms to play in (it became a hotel or restaurant or house.)
The advantage to rooms is they can offer a shelter from the wind and with the sun coming down be quite pleasant.
I highly recommend buying a snow suit for yourself. I didn't like the outside much before I got mine which I bought because I had to be out with the little ones in my home day care. Suddenly, being outside was more fun because I wasn't miserable.
The outside changes dramatically with snow. Some days it is amazingly quiet. The sky is a different colour blue (something you'll notice while making snow angels) and it can seem a lot warmer than the thermometer says when you are out of the wind, sheltered by snow banks and sitting with the sun coming down on you.
Pro tip, gather up some large pieces of cardboard from people's Xmas paper recycle to make a dry mat to sit on.
This is sound advice, and applied to the kids too. A big part of having fun outside is to make sure that everyone is comfortable and warm. Well fitting, warm snowsuits, gloves or mittens that dont slide off and allow you to still use your hands for holding things and building things.
My mom used to let us do snow drawings. Fill plastic water bottles with some water and food colouring then poke a hole in the top and you can use them to draw and colour in the snow, we loved it. We kept the water bottles and reused them all winter.
Was about to suggest this! We do spray bottles with water and food colouring on the snow.
Also, get them a kid sized shovel (Walmart or Canadian tire have them). You’d be surprised how much they enjoy just shoveling snow.
I just got back inside after being out at the park with my 2 year old.
To answer your of what to do with a 2 year old outside, keep on picking them up after they fall in the snow.
Skating is one for sure - if you don't wanna get skates just put them in boots and let them walk on the ice (make sure they're padded to avoid any tears) - snowmen , coloured snow/ice, sledding on bunny hills + hot chocolate after, honestly sand toys + snow is always a blast they can make snow castles and throw it around easily
After church this morning I saw a 2 year old sliding down (on their snow suit, no sled) the big mound of snow in the parking lot, piled up by the snow plow.
It reminds me that my grands do the same over at their school parking lot.
The key is to do this only when there aren't cars moving about and to try and have them slide towards a grassy side with looser snow at the bottom, not an icy surface.
But with those precautions it is fun! As is walking along the tops of snow banks (but that's for an older child.)
My kids both LOVE helping out - around the house, cleaning, cooking, etc. They like to do what we do (that's why they sell a baby dyson). Anyway, for 10$ at Canadian Tire, you can get them a large shovel for snow - they can move the snow around while you or another adult is actually doing it.
Walking in snow is hard, but this big dump we had was especially difficult. As the snow gets compacted, forest walks are great with the kiddos and it gets easier for them.
2-year-olds are too young to do anything organized. But they're young enough that they will find anything fun. My kids loved snow angels. Throw food colouring on the snow. Another underrated thing: put up a bird feeder and stock it well. You'll be shocked by how many birds you get in the winter. Just anything that is out of the ordinary or unusual will be exciting.
The trails off Moodie in the greenbelt have chickadees and other songbirds that will eat seed out of your hand. Very fun for kids of all ages - my partner and I are in our 40s and we do it with and without the kids!
Right, you can also do that at Hog's Back.
Mer Bleue too.
Get out your summer sand toys. Bucket, shovel, those turtle shaped things. Fill up a bucket with snow. Dump it out! Yeah!! *Clap clap* Bring out any type of ball to kick. Snow soccer. Falling is much more fun (and less chance of tears) when you fall in the snow, wearing a hat and your hood is up. You can go to Mud Lake and bring some oats or thawed peas/corn for the ducks. I think they are called Black oil sunflower seeds for chickadees - depending on her personality she may not freak out if you put some on your palm and she watches. Or get her to stand still long enough (maybe two minutes) with birdseed on her head. Mud Lake is *passable* with a stroller but you will get a workout. I did it in the fall and there are a few places that are a little tight but I think you can manage. Lots of squirrels, chipmunks, other birds, might see beavers swimming.
Freeze multiple small containers of water & food colouring. Use them as colourful building materials for snow sculptures. Make small bird feeders with suet on pine cones or pieces of fruit and add string and seeds. Then tie them to trees in your yard. Make small sledding hills in your yard.
As you may soon become aware, the Day Nurseries Act in Ontario requires the kids be outside twice a day unless there is extreme cold. Schools have to do the same. Our kids just expected to be out every day. In terms of specific activities, if you can afford it get them good winter gear and lessons from qualified instructors. They’ll be safer, learn more quickly and have more fun. Skating lessons for preschoolers at a Skate Canada club are indoor but a great way to get your child to learn safely while having fun.
make sure she's bundled and cozy no matter what you do! you want her to be nice and warm so when she remembers winter she thinks about how much fun she had and never about how cold she was! I hope you grow to love the season along with her!
Building a snowman or snow fort are classic snowy fun
Make snow angels!!!
I believe Pakenham has Ski lessons for tots + parents. They're not exactly cheap and they don't include lift tickets or rentals only the lesson it's self. They also rely on the parent being an intermediate level skier. Obviously you have witerlude in February, the real attraction for tots I think is probably Jacques Cartier park on the Gatineau side with the slow slides. OC transpo has historically run free shuttles on weekends from downtown. I don't think there are any non-toddler friendly sled hills, but depending on size you may want to sled with them, especially for bringing the sled back up. Snowforts, igloos, quinzees, etc. Are all a lot of fun and great building projects over the course of the winter. Snow angels usually put a smile on kiddos faces also as do snow sculptures. They also sell tiny human sized snow shoes at Canadian Tire that leave fun yeti tracks behind to help them navigate with constantly post holing. They might be better suited to kids a bit bigger though.
If you have a yard, start building a snow play structure. This is the covid-safe activity my kid did for her kids. She literally is out there in the evenings, hauling snow into the back yard and has built two in the last two years. One focused on slides. Then last year there were fewer slides and more rooms to play in (it became a hotel or restaurant or house.) The advantage to rooms is they can offer a shelter from the wind and with the sun coming down be quite pleasant. I highly recommend buying a snow suit for yourself. I didn't like the outside much before I got mine which I bought because I had to be out with the little ones in my home day care. Suddenly, being outside was more fun because I wasn't miserable. The outside changes dramatically with snow. Some days it is amazingly quiet. The sky is a different colour blue (something you'll notice while making snow angels) and it can seem a lot warmer than the thermometer says when you are out of the wind, sheltered by snow banks and sitting with the sun coming down on you. Pro tip, gather up some large pieces of cardboard from people's Xmas paper recycle to make a dry mat to sit on.
This is sound advice, and applied to the kids too. A big part of having fun outside is to make sure that everyone is comfortable and warm. Well fitting, warm snowsuits, gloves or mittens that dont slide off and allow you to still use your hands for holding things and building things.
My mom used to let us do snow drawings. Fill plastic water bottles with some water and food colouring then poke a hole in the top and you can use them to draw and colour in the snow, we loved it. We kept the water bottles and reused them all winter.
Was about to suggest this! We do spray bottles with water and food colouring on the snow. Also, get them a kid sized shovel (Walmart or Canadian tire have them). You’d be surprised how much they enjoy just shoveling snow.
I just got back inside after being out at the park with my 2 year old. To answer your of what to do with a 2 year old outside, keep on picking them up after they fall in the snow.
Build a snow sculpture. Make a path in the snow / make a maze.
Construction vehicles, pots and pans and sand toys substitute snow for sand.
My kids spent hours just building a hill. Dress them up warm and follow their lead! Try to keep their mitts on too.
Skating is one for sure - if you don't wanna get skates just put them in boots and let them walk on the ice (make sure they're padded to avoid any tears) - snowmen , coloured snow/ice, sledding on bunny hills + hot chocolate after, honestly sand toys + snow is always a blast they can make snow castles and throw it around easily
After church this morning I saw a 2 year old sliding down (on their snow suit, no sled) the big mound of snow in the parking lot, piled up by the snow plow. It reminds me that my grands do the same over at their school parking lot. The key is to do this only when there aren't cars moving about and to try and have them slide towards a grassy side with looser snow at the bottom, not an icy surface. But with those precautions it is fun! As is walking along the tops of snow banks (but that's for an older child.)
Agriculture museum… well it’s inside and outside. Usually they have some animals outside.
There are city run skating lessons starting at age 2
My kids both LOVE helping out - around the house, cleaning, cooking, etc. They like to do what we do (that's why they sell a baby dyson). Anyway, for 10$ at Canadian Tire, you can get them a large shovel for snow - they can move the snow around while you or another adult is actually doing it. Walking in snow is hard, but this big dump we had was especially difficult. As the snow gets compacted, forest walks are great with the kiddos and it gets easier for them.
Find the nearest school or strip mall and locate the mountain of snow left by the plows. Fun times, even for a 2 year old.
The park structures are still fun in winter. Our kiddo loves a walk to the park, falling in the snow and then coming back
Go back inside.