Cozy Activities with Kids for Cold Days

Download Pretzel Recipe

When the days are short and the weather keeps us close to home, I find myself craving slower, cozier ways to connect with kids. Cold days don’t have to mean extra screen time or complicated plans — often the simplest activities are the ones that feel the most comforting.
Baking together, mixing up homemade play dough, or shaping soft clay at the kitchen table gives children a chance to use their hands, calm their bodies, and feel a sense of rhythm and creativity. These kinds of activities invite conversation, imagination, and presence — and they fit beautifully into the natural pace of winter.
In this post, I’m sharing a few of our favorite cozy recipes and hands-on activities that are easy to make, comforting to create, and perfect for cold days when home feels like the best place to be.
Some of the links below are items I personally use and love. If you choose to purchase through them, it supports my work at no extra cost to you.
Yummy Letter Pretzels
Dissolve 1 tablespoon yeast in 1/2 cup warm water
Add 1 teaspoon honey and 1 teaspoon salt
add 1 1/3 cup flour
4. Knead the dough
5. Form shapes..maybe the letters in your name!
6. Brush with beaten egg
7. Sprinkle with course salt and bake on parchment paper for easy cleanup for 10 minutes at 425 
​
​

Uncooked Play Dough
Mix together 2 Cups flour & 3/4 cup salt
add 1/4 cup vegetable oil
​Add a couple drops of food coloring to the water (optional)  and add the water to the flour & salt mixture until you get a good consistency for molding.
Store in airtight container or zip lock bag.  The dough is good for about 3 days.
Cooked Play Dough
Mix together 2 cups of flour, 1 cup of salt, and 2 tablespoons cream of tartar.
Add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 cups of water and a touch of food coloring- you can always add more.
Stir until smooth.  Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens and sticks to the spoon.  Allow to cool before playing with the dough. 
Store in an airtight container or ziplock bag.
Homemade Silly Putty AKA Slime
Materials:
1 cup liquid starch
2 cups glue
food coloring
Procedure: Slowly add liquid starch to glue a little at a time gently stirring until the silly putty develops and lift it out of the bowl.  for colored slime add a few drop of food coloring into the bowl while combining. Keep in the refrigerator in air tight container or zip lock bag when not in use.  

Colored dry pasta for projects like mosaics and necklaces.
Materials:
2 cups ziti or rigatoni (this shape is great for stringing necklaces but you can color any shape)
food coloring
3 Tablespoons rubbing alcohol
ziplock bag
bowl and mixing spoon
cookie sheet & parchment paper
Directions:
Put the 2 cups of pasta in a large ziplock bag
Mix the food coloring and rubbing alcohol in a bowl.
pour the liquid in with the pasta, seal the bag and shake the pasta around until it is evenly colored.  pour it onto the parchment paper covered tray and allow to dry