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Hi folks,
As much as I loath the winters in New England here is where I'll be. Outdoor activities, while doable, can only be for short periods of time. Therefore I'm looking for projects that can be completed indoors that are interesting and take 6 months to complete. :) (Long winters up here...)
My son has shown an interest in both electronic and mechanical type projects. He'd like a hammer for his birthday so he can break rocks. Cool, geologist. Can't find rocks too well under the snow and ice, sand and salt, in the wintertime.
He'd also like an electronics kit but I'm not sure what to to get him that will last a long while. I think at this point he's more interested in building something, electronic or not, rather than learning theory. He often mentions robots but to get something that would last for months would cost me more than the budget allows.
I'd certainly appreciate suggestions and I'm sure there are other parents who might benefit from your experiences!
(Score: 3, Insightful) by butthurt on Thursday October 13 2016, @11:54PM
In Sweden, Norway and Iceland, parents leave their babies outside to nap while the parents eat at restaurants or shop. It works, thanks to an invention called "clothing." Of course, in the harsh climate of New England it might be problematic. And of course, for an eight-year-old it's a different matter.
http://www.treehugger.com/culture/let-sleeping-babies-lie-chilly-temps-build-tough-nordic-tots.html [treehugger.com]
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21537988 [bbc.com]
http://relocation.no/archives/culture-shock-norway-outdoor-sleeping-babies/' [relocation.no]
https://survivinglifeinsweden.blogspot.lu/2010/11/parenting-tip-3-babies-sleep-better-in.html [blogspot.lu]
http://blogs.babycenter.com/mom_stories/02222013swedish-babies-sleep-outside-in-freezing-temps/comment-page-2/ [babycenter.com]
https://www.babble.com/baby/baby-sleep-parenting-wisdom-scandinavia/ [babble.com]
(Score: 3, Informative) by goodie on Friday October 14 2016, @01:12AM
I'll just answer here but this is related to other comments above as well.
Leaving a baby sleeping in a well-covered crib/stroller (i.e., a protective shell) is one thing. Having your kid play in the snow (make that ice with a centimeter of snow on top) for long periods of time as suggested by some when it's -30 Celsius is another matter altogether but I guess that's besides the point. First off, the kid won't stay there too long because she/he will be bored after a while. This is not summertime playing with your buddies and running everywhere. The gear is warm indeed (this is where a good investment pays off even though you have to buy bigger sizes every year for kids), but also quite a pain to run around in after a while. So yes it protects you but that's not the point I was trying to make. At some point the temperature is just too damn cold.
I guess I must be a pussy then... When I shovel the snow I sweat but about 5 minutes after that, the sweat cools down and you start being cold quite fast. If I'm cold, I figure my kid might be as well and sure enough after a while they are. This is not for a couple of days either. This lasts for weeks and sometimes for about 2 months somewhere between January and March where I live, with milder days (around -10/-20 Celsius) here and there.
So yeah, you need things to keep the kids busy indoors because they won't be outside all day. And it's not because we're pussies, it's because in those temperatures, not many people have fun for more than 30 minutes or so. Hell at that age you take longer gearing up than actually playing outside ;-). Heck, even if you stretch that for 2 hours, that still leaves plenty of time where your kid will need to be stimulated in a different manner.
http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/En/HealthAZ/SafetyandtheEnvironment/OutdoorSafety/Pages/Outdoor-Winter-Safety.aspx [aboutkidshealth.ca]
http://www.caringforkids.cps.ca/handouts/winter_safety [caringforkids.cps.ca]
By the way, in comparison, most older people I've talked to agree that younger generations spend more time outside than they did, thanks to the gear we now have. So it's not really an issue of "back in my days...", at least not in my experience.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 14 2016, @01:47PM
I guess I must be a pussy then.
Your words not mine, but they ring true. I lived in Fairbanks Alaska for a number of years. I would see the weather dip down to -30f (-34c) for a few weeks and then rise back up to 0f (-17c),
We would be outside in flip flops and shorts. It was like a heat wave. The cold temperatures are NOT A PROBLEM if people would acclimatize themselves a bit better. Meaning when it starts getting chilly you continue wearing your summer clothes and slow your transition into winter clothes until it is actually cold out. Too this day I do that and being that I live in Colorado now, I have no issues needing coats for most of the winter. I am perfectly comfortable outside. You can do this in reverse as well, wearing your winter clothing further into the spring then you normally would.
Now doing actual hard work outside like shoveling snow it sounds like you are screwing yourself over by wearing heavy enough clothing that you start to sweat after 5 minutes. Man up, leave the heavy winter coat inside and after 5 minutes of shoveling snow you will be perfectly comfortable. You should also be dressing in layers (NO PUFFY HUGE COATS, you cant take it off if you get hot cause you'll be freezing then, and you cant wear multiple layers under it. DONT DO IT TO YOURSELF OR YOUR KIDS) and using a wick away undergarment. I also recommend wool outer coats, wool is one of the few materials that maintains insulating abilities when wet. Cotton kills. When you start to get hot you remove a layer. If you sweat outside in winter you are doing nothing but putting yourself at risk for hypothermia. Its better to be a bit chilly then to be over heated and sweating in cold weather.
But yes, as it is right now your a wimp when it comes to cold weather from what it sounds like.
(Score: 1) by butthurt on Saturday October 15 2016, @02:06AM
The links provided by goodie have what appears to be sound advice about outdoor, winter activities such as tobogganing, skating, skiing and snowboarding.