Enjoy the Winter Months! Here’s How to Make the Best of Each One

Welcome to Winter!

The winter months bring festive holidays and cozy nights in, along with the shortest, coldest days of the year.

Here’s everything you need to enjoy each winter month to its fullest.

What are the Winter Months?

The winter solstice, which occurs around December 22, marks the official beginning of winter, while the spring equinox in March signals its end.

Therefore, December, January, February, and March all count as Winter months, even if two of them are only on the cusp.

The Best Things to Do in the Winter Months

Here are the best ways to enjoy each month of winter – even the partial ones.

Have a blast despite the cold with these fun winter ideas.

December

Although we traditionally consider December a winter month, it is technically mostly a fall month, as winter doesn’t officially start until near 2/3 of the way through.

Tradition is better than the “official date” any time, right? So here’s how to embrace winter’s start in December!

All the Christmas Activities

December is the Christmas season. Enjoy the month by indulging your Christmas spirit with holiday parties, festive movies, gift-giving, and celebrations.

Visit light displays and mall Santas. Bake Christmas cookies and make your house smell like the holidays. Savor the magic of the season while it’s here.

Celebrate the Solstice

Our Pagan ancestors honored the winter season with solstice celebrations. Join them with a solstice party of your own.

Create a yule altar, host a feast, light candles, or use the shortest day of the year for quiet reflection.

Prep for the Cold

Winter is coming, and with it comes the frosty cold air. Take some time to prepare yourself this December. Winterize the car, cover the water sprinklers, and put insulation around the windows.

Hire an HVAC technician to service your heater to ensure it works well throughout the winter and stock up on winter supplies like candles, soups, and warm clothes.

Prepping in December will help you make it through the long, cold winter months.

Reflect on the Year

December marks the year’s end, so it’s the perfect month to reflect. Reread your journal entries from the year to see how much you’ve grown. Review your progress on your personal goals.

Reflection doesn’t just have to be about self-improvement or personal growth. Take time to remember all the good times you had this year, too. Spend time with all your photos, and print out a few for your yearly scrapbook.

Think about all the fun you had with family and friends this year, and make plans to do more of it in the future.

January

January is traditionally the coldest, snowiest month of the year, but there’s plenty to do to help you through it.

Here’s how to enjoy January despite the chill.

Start Your Resolution

January marks the beginning of the year, and with it, everyone sets their New Year’s Resolutions.

Don’t set it and forget it this year. Set it and use January to turn it into a habit.

Play in the Snow

Most places in the US will see an abundance of snow in January. Embrace it!

Build a snowman, host an epic neighborhood snowball fight, or make snow angels.

Let your inner child enjoy a fabulous snow day, then come inside and sip some hot cocoa. 

Explore Indoor Hobbies

Sometimes January’s brisk air makes it too cold to venture outside. So why not spend the month exploring indoor hobbies?

Try painting, knitting, journaling, or spending time with your favorite video game.  Appreciate the time you’re trapped inside doing things you forget about when the weather warms.

Read

January is the perfect month for snuggling up by a fireplace with your favorite book.

Get lost in a novel, or learn something new with non-fiction. Read old classics or discover new authors.

Rekindle your love of the written word.

February

February may be the shortest month of the year, but it always feels the longest as winter stretches ever onward without an end in sight.

There’s still a lot of winter magic to enjoy, even if you’re over winter by February.

Ice Skating

February is still cold, but it’s usually a little drier than January, making it the perfect month to hit the ice rink.

Grab your favorite special someone and float around the ice for a bit.

Though rural areas often have skate ponds, tread cautiously while enjoying them. Thin ice is harder to spot than you think, and you absolutely don’t want to risk falling through.

Book a Romantic Winter Getaway

Valentine’s Day in mid-February is the most romantic holiday of the year. Celebrate it by booking a winter getaway.

Take a trip to a cozy cabin and cuddle together next to the fire, or escape the cold with a warm beach getaway.

Either way, your special someone will enjoy the thought.

Museum Day

You don’t have to spend the day outside to enjoy the winter months. Instead, take a trip to your local museum and spend the day learning about something cool.

Most major cities host science and art museums, and many also have a variety of quirky specialty museums for a different kind of fun. Look up your local museums and spend a day enriching your soul. 

All the Winter Sports

February is a great month for hitting the slopes! Grab your skis, snowboard, or sled to enjoy the last cold, snowy month of the year.

Book a stay at a ski cabin, or hit up your local sledding hill. Enjoy the cold air as you fly down the slope in an epic winter adventure!

March

March roars in like a lion and leaves like a lamb. The first half of the month falls during the winter, and although you’ll see signs of the coming spring, the cold air won’t let you forget what season you’re really in.

Enjoy the last winter month before spring moves in for good!

Enjoy the Last Snowfall

When I lived in Chicago, I always expected a massive snowstorm the first week of March. It was traditionally the last big snowstorm of the season, blanketing the world in a final sheet before melting away to spring flowers.

I get that you’re probably over the snow and cold by March, but savor it! You won’t see it again for 6-7 months, so enjoy it while it’s here. Take the last opportunity to enjoy a winter wonderland.

Hike

March is the perfect month for winter hiking. It’s usually not so cold that the hike is miserable, but not too hot that you’re sweating.

A hike in early March lets you see the desolate world right before it’s reborn. Savor the eerie beauty of a forest without its leaves before the spring buds make their first appearance (or shortly after!).

Start Your Garden

It might be too cold to put your plants outside, but March is the perfect time to start your seedlings!

Every March, I spend a day in my garage carefully planting seedlings in started pots. The sprouts can cautiously break ground in the relative warmth of the garage, then, when the last frost ends, I can transfer them outside.

Plan for Spring

March’s end signifies spring’s beginning. Now that the world is waking up again, it’s time to decide what you will do with it!

Make your plan for enjoying each of the spring months.

How Will You Celebrate Winter?

The winter months may drag on, but rather than hibernating and waiting for the spring to come, we should enjoy them.

What’s your favorite way to enjoy each month of winter?