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Challenge: Winter Survival Secrets

Strategies to Get You and Your Family Through the Winter

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When you're thinking of keeping your home nice and cozy during the winter and making sure your kids are fine, there's a process that comes with it.

In addition to keeping your house safe during the winter, you'll need to figure out how to deal with cabin fever and basic necessities. Since winter is the home stretch of the year going into the holidays, you'll need to do what you can to make things right.

To learn more about braving the winter with your family, read on.

Make Your Home As Safe as Possible

Winter is a time where the kids get some down time, presents are opened and we spend more time indoors. However, there are some serious health risks that you'll want to mitigate so that you and your family make it through the winter comfortably.

The best thing you can do for yourself is fortify the home in the offseason.

With it being summer, you can get some inexpensive work done on your HVAC system, seal your insulation and make sure that your exhaust remains in order. For instance, getting your bi-fold doors inspected means that you're able to keep your sitting room warm even when there's snow on the ground outside.

You'll also want to get your carbon monoxide monitors and smoke detectors checked. Now would be a great time to have them looked at, in addition to swapping out the batteries.

Since you and the family will be spending more time indoors, keep all your utilities in order so that you're reducing the risk of electrical shock, fire and other problems.

Use This Time to Get Close to Your Kids

Make the winter a time where you and your kids can grow closer than ever. In addition to holiday traditions, you can make snow days epic.

If you're unable to go to work due to inclement weather, make a day out of it with the kids by having snowball fights, building snowmen and enjoying lots of smores and hot chocolate. Once the forecast calls for it, hit the grocery store and stock up on supplies so that you're able to weather any storm.

Stay in the moment with your kids and use it as a time to enjoy each other's company to the fullest.

Keep Health A Priority

Finally, be sure that you're not letting health slip just because you're snowed in.

This is less a matter of vanity and more about protecting your well-being. Seasonal depression is real, and it affects 5% of the population each year. You can beat this depression or at least curb it by still deciding to exercise during this time indoors.

Get your kids into the action with family aerobics and fitness challenges, so that they still keep their blood pumping and their energy high. Give them some multivitamin doses, making particularly sure that they get lots of Vitamin D -- which is increasingly important due to winter time deficiencies.

While comfort food and chocolate are hallmarks of wintertime, make sure that your everyday meals are healthy and nutritious.

Consider these tips so you and your family get through even the worst winters.

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