Parenting in winter is harder. There, I said it. Here's how I get through it

Queensland mum Karen shares her tips for parenting on cold mornings - including how to get the kids out of bed! 

All wrapped up in the UK! Image: Supplied

I’m not a fan of winter. The weather is one of the main reasons we moved to Queensland from the UK. I got frustrated parenting small kids during months and months of cold, gloomy weather. 

While winters are warmer in Australia, it has been an adjustment. In the UK, houses have central heating, double glazing and insulation – they’re built for the cold. Feeling cold INSIDE has been a new experience for us. 

We’ve learnt to adapt to the challenges of an Australian winter though and we make the most of the bright blue skies and lower humidity that come at this time of year. 

Here are six of the winter challenges we’ve faced and how we’ve overcome them … 

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1. Getting out of bed in the morning

My kids are usually awake before me. Apart from in winter. In winter, nobody wants to get out of their snug bed. 

I find that the kids just roll over and go back to sleep when I wake them.   

My solution now is to turn the heating on in the kitchen so they can come into a warm room to eat their breakfast. And when I wake them, I task them all with making sure the others get up. That way, if at least one of them gets up, they make sure the others follow so my odds of getting them all moving is much better! It turns it into a competition which always helps. 

I won’t promise there are never any screams or fights as a result though as one of the boys will usually go in and yank my daughter’s covers off her if she doesn’t get moving which isn’t always the best way to begin the day, but at least then they’re all up and we don’t end up late for school!

All wrapped up in the UK! Image: Supplied

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2. Protecting delicate skin

Our skin dries out so much in winter, and it’s made even worse as we all wash our hands more than ever to try our best to avoid catching the winter colds and flu that are going around everywhere. One of my kids suffers from eczema in winter and another always ends up with chapped lips.

At this time of year, I head to the chemists and stock up on soap-free handwash, soothing moisturisers and emollients, and ointments that are perfect for slathering on dry skin. 

I also make sure the kids wear sunscreen every day, even on cloudy days – it’s on the list of things they have to do every morning before we leave the house, no matter what time of year it is. 

3. Getting the kids outside

My kids fight me about going outside when the weather is a bit cooler. They would much rather snuggle indoors playing video games. But getting outside is good for everybody, and when the weather is cooler it’s actually the perfect time to go for a bike ride or a run as often in summer it’s too hot.

Fresh air and sunshine make the world feel like a brighter place so I drag my kids out as often as I can and it always lifts their moods. I also find that it makes them nicer to each other, so that makes my day much happier too.

4. Giving the kids something to look forward to

In the UK, winter meant Christmas time, so it makes sense here for us to celebrate Christmas in July. 

Celebrating a second festive season in July adds a bit of fun to this cooler time of year. We cook up a roast dinner, we pop on some Christmas movies (my daughter loves any excuse to watch the Princess Switch and Christmas Prince movies!) and enjoy being in the warm together. 

It’s the perfect celebration to break up the winter months. We all love Christmas so now we get to celebrate it twice!

Image: Supplied

5. Helping the kids feel warm

Keeping the kids warm in winter is a major challenge. We’ve spent the last few years trying to make our draughty home a little warmer by adding insulation and curtains and sealing gaps. 

We’ve also bought electric blankets for all of our beds which was a life-changer! (Although that also contributes to my issue 1 – getting the kids up in the mornings, but it is totally worth it!)

The other thing we’ve done is get everyone Oodies – the kids love wearing them and they also come in handy for things like camping trips too. Everyone gets to stay toastie AND we keep the energy bills down – winning!

Dressing for the cooler weather

My teenage boys refuse to wrap up warm when it’s cold outside. I’ve tried and tried but they insist on wearing shorts throughout winter, and they won’t wear their school jumpers.

Even when we went back to visit the UK last year, they wore shorts most days even though it was freezing. (Thankfully, on that trip, they agreed to wear coats but I think that was just because it was a novelty as they never wear them in Queensland!)

My solution has been to buy them t-shirts or singlets to wear under their short-sleeved school shirts for an extra layer of warmth as they will actually wear those.

I always buy them the school jumpers (second hand so I’m not wasting money on something I know they’ll never wear) and make them pack them in their bags.

If they choose not to wear them, that’s on them but at least I know I’ve provided them and I’ve done as much as I can! 

As teenagers, they’re old enough to be allowed to make their own choices (and their own mistakes). 

Winter in Australia

I still wish we had central heating and double glazing at this time of year but thankfully in a few weeks, the hot weather will be back again. 

In the meantime, you’ll find me hiding in my office, sipping a steaming hot chocolate in my Oodie while warming my hands on my heated keyboard mat (yes, that’s a real thing and yes, it is amazing!) 

Originally published as Parenting in winter is harder. There, I said it. Here's how I get through it