We get it, a vacation to tropical beaches is not in your forecast this winter and you are longing for the hot sand in between your toes. Beating the blustery weather blues is sometimes not easy unless you have an outsider’s perspective. When the cold and dry weather has got you feeling down, you can use these tips to warm up your outlook.
Take a day and plan a summer movie marathon. Crank up the heat and queue up all of your summer favorite flicks. Pick movies with a beach-y, summer theme. Then rub on that coconut scented sun tan lotion, layout your beach blanket in the living room and have a BBQ picnic style lunch. This “inside day at the beach” is sure to conjure up memories of summer and erase the winter cold for the day.
Chocolate and sweets make almost any situation better. Have some campfire fun without burning out your budget. Light your fire pit, or make a campfire and roast marshmallows, you can even go all out and make s’mores by adding chocolate and graham crackers to your roasted marshmallow treat. Be sure to save a few marshmallows to add to your hot cocoa, and snuggle by the fire. This is so much fun, you will want to make it a weekly tradition all winter long.
If summer seems like such a long way off, start planning your summer vacation now. Spending time making travel plans and ironing out all the details of something fun to do this summer will surely get your mind off of the cold weather for a while. Even if you cannot squeeze in a vacation during the winter, planning one for summer can be fun and exciting and give you something to look forward to. Maybe picking out a new bathing suit or cute pair of sandals will quell a bit of the longing for summer for a while.
Last, but not least, embrace the winter in a “if you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em” attitude. Make the snow fun again. Build a snowman, make snow angels, have a snowball fight. Go ice skating, sledding, or skiing and do all of the things that people who vacation in the snow do. When you look at it from an outsider’s perspective, like that of someone vacationing for the winter weather, it will be easier to appreciate it. If you are missing the sun, sand, and sandals, don’t fret, use these great ideas to carry you over until the spring warm up arrives.
Amanda Greene is author and Brand Manager for RHL.org, online supplier of college bedding and dorm décor.
My kiddos just saw snow for the first time and they loved it. We live in FL and I can’t imagine having long cold winters. These ideas all see super fun.
I get major winter blues! I totally agree about planning vacations early, half the excitement is the planning and talking, it definitely helps!
I know how important sunlight is to your well-being and sanity! So I try to take my boys out for at least 15 minutes everyday and on really nasty days I make sure to raise all the blinds and pull back the curtains!
I always get SAD during the winter months. I seem to snap out of it at the first sight of spring. I like your tips a lot. I can definitely do the summer movie marathon thing.
These are good tips. I’m sick and tired of winter! Ready for the warm weather back.
Great post! I definitely agree that chocolate can help any kind of blues – especially Winter Blues! 😉
I love the “Can’t beat ’em , join ’em” approach! We’re i Texas so we don’t really have a full blown winter as such but I’d love for the kids to go out and build a snowman!
I tried to go sledding the last time it snowed here…but we don’t actually have a sled and it seems we are both too heavy for a tarp to work these days. It was fun to get out in the snow and try though!
And the hot chocolate sounds like a really great idea!
I must admit that I love the idea of sunbathing inside and the smell of coconut always transports me to somewhere tropical! Another way to beat the winter blues is to take a short walk everyday – walking on grass is especially good. Getting that little bit of daylight can make you feel much better. If you can combine it with a charity winter walk or Santa fun run and raise money for a cause dear to your heart, that’s all the better.