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After months and months (and months) of hearing your precious kiddos sing “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” the time has finally come to build one in real life. A ski resort a couple of hours from your home is holding a family day, and you want to bring your kids there for a fun-filled day of making snow angels, maybe trying the bunny slope a few times and, of course, building your own personal Olaf. Since you don’t regularly drive through snowy white conditions, you might need to purchase some specific gear to help you arrive safe and sound. Before hitting the snow-covered roads, consider picking up the following winter travel items:
A Winter Travel Kit
When you are traveling in icy and snowy conditions, it’s a good idea to have a well-stocked winter travel kit in your vehicle. This way, if you encounter a long backup in traffic or the weather changes for the worst, you will be well-supplied with items to help you get through the delay.
Your winter travel kit should contain things like a flashlight or two, a bag of kitty litter — this can help provide needed traction on the road — bottled water, high-protein snacks for the whole family, thermoses of cocoa and coffee, blankets, and extra hats, scarves and gloves for everybody. Of course, you should also bring your fully-charged mobile phone with you for the drive, as well as a car charger.
If you have room in your trunk, you might also consider bringing a small snow shovel.
Tires That Can Handle the Snow
Before you head out for a fun-filled day in the snow, make sure your car’s tires are up for the challenge. Even if your tires are relatively new and are still in great shape, you might consider switching them out to a brand that can really handle snowy conditions.
All-season tires feature sipes and pattern edges that will tackle snow-covered roads with ease. Traction grooves also help the tires grip the surface. In case you are unfamiliar with the term “sipe,” it is essentially a channel or groove that is added to the tread of the tires to help them bite into the snow.
These tires can handle dry and wet road conditions, which means no matter what type of weather you encounter on your family snow day, your tires will help you through it.
Heated Ice Scraper
If you don’t encounter an icy windshield regularly, you do not think you need a scraper. But you should purchase one before your snow day. While a plastic club card from your local grocery store can work as an ice scraper in a pinch, if your windshield gets covered with ice and snow during your day of fun, you’ll need something bigger and more robust to cut through the icy covering effectively.
An electric ice scraper plugs into a car lighter jack and sometimes features a built-in flashlight. As the ice scraper heats up, it will slice through the ice like butter and help clear your windshield and make it safe to drive.
Krystle Cook – the creator of Home Jobs by MOM – put her psychology degree on a shelf and dived into a pile of diapers and dishes instead. She is a wife and mother to two rambunctious boys, sweating it out in her Texas hometown. She loves cooking, DIY home projects, and family fun activities.
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These are great tips for those folks who aren’t used to snow. Here in Boston, driving in snow is second nature.
Oh, I bet. You could teach us a thing or two!
I agree heated ice scrapers are great for getting ride of ice especially in the weather we have been having!
Yes, it beats having to run back in the house for a bucket of hot water!
Smart tips. Lucky to live in Chicago where people know how to drive in snow.
Yes, it is lucky. Where I live now if it snowed the city would shut down LOL.
I grew up on Long Island, and even went to college in NH, so I am used to driving in snow. Now I live in SC and we get a 1/4 inch of snow and the drivers loose their minds. BUT, just when I want to scream, “MOVE”, I take a breathe and remind myself that this is how people must have felt when I lived in Texas – blinding rain and no one but me slows down.
I know what you mean. I live in Texas now. Much different weather than Kentucky.
That’s definitely helpful. I miss doing these type of activities with the kids, they are all grown up now!
Do you have grandchildren yet? You could do stuff with the grandkids 🙂
These are all a great tips. I never been in a snow place and i would love to experience it.
Visit somewhere snowy sometime. It’s lot of fun!
I want to visit for the snowy place. we don’t have a snow in my country
Wow. I hope you get to visit somewhere white and beautiful one day!
That is such a helpful post. I love doing this kind of activities
I love doing them too!
I love doing activities like this, this is a great posts.
The snow can be super fun but we need to be safe when driving in it.
Thank you for sharing these great tips. I moved to Florida from Michigan so I didn’t have to deal with this. I never know when I might have to though. Thank you so much for sharing
You know about real Snow then 😉