A Mom's Winter Survival Guide

Last winter I went a little nutso staying inside the house too much. I guess since I was new to staying home I didn't realize all the things that were available to get me and my daughter out of the house. So, I am compiling this list as a reference so I don't get the winter blues this time around. Yes, it does seem a little early to be talking about winter, but some of these things start in the fall and are accepting registration now.

- Seeing animals never gets old for my daughter and the annual membership is very reasonable. Plus it's super close.

Minnesota Children's Museum - Hours of entertainment with pretend, sensory, physical and artistic play. The passport membership isn't too expensive either.

Dakota County Libraries - The Dakota County library system offers tons of storytimes at different locations. In addition to storytimes they have a lot of other fun events and activities for kids. They even consolidate all of the different library activities onto one easy-to-read calendar.

Dakota County Parks - Surprisingly, they offer a lot of events year round. The Lebanon Hills Visitor Center in Eagan has an indoor play area with a large fireplace as well as ski, snowshoe and kicksled rentals.

Mall of America - Toddler Tuesdays and Free Family Flicks on Saturdays are great diversions at the Mall of America. They also have a Stroller Strides class that meets on Tuesday mornings for walks with other moms around the mall.

Burnsville Center - Has an indoor play area as well as free play every day from 10 to 11 a.m. at Reach With Me (between Sears and JCPenney's). There is also a Chuck E. Cheese attached to the mall.

Kid Create Studio - A little bit of a hike to Eden Prairie, but Kid Create Studio hosts art classes for kids. They even have a Date Night and Mommy's Time class where you can drop your kids off for a few hours.

Sea Life Minnesota Aquarium - Children less than 2 years old are free. I go to the Mall of America all the time and totally forget this is there most times.

Edinborough Park - Located in Edina, Edinborough Park offers a huge indoor playground, concerts in the "park" and a swimming pool.

Indoor Waterparks - I didn't realize it until recently, but lots of hotels have little waterparks inside them that are cheap and open to the public. Of course, there's always the Water Park of America, too.

Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) Classes -The classes are organized by the age of the children, held once a week, and very cheap. A great way for both you and your kids to make friends. They also have playtimes that don't require preregistration.

Swim Lessons - Community offered classes are the cheapest, but there are also aquatics classes offered through the Burnsville YMCA and the Wise Swim School in Apple Valley.

Gymnastics - The Burnsville YMCA offers tumbling and sports-related toddler classes and so does TAGS Gymnastics in Apple Valley.

Dance - Toddlers as young as 18 months can enroll in dance classes. We're starting a Mommy & Me class next week!

Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) - MOPS is a faith-based group of mothers who have children aged birth through kindergarten. I have a friend who swears by this group of ladies. Our local MOPS group meets two times a month at church in Apple Valley, with meetings lasting two hours. They also provide daycare so you actually get to relax and talk at the meetings.

Meetup.com - A lot of the stuff on this list I would have never known about if it wasn't for meetup.com. There are tons of other moms out there that are looking to get out too and they know all the local spots. Two groups that I attend meetups with are South Metro Moms & Tots and Farmington Area Moms Group.

Anything you would add to the list? Let's hope this winter is better than the last!