How to Survive Winter with a Newborn

My little girl was born the end of October, right at the beginning of winter. We have had maybe two days of good weather since she was born, so she really hasn't been outside much other than running from the car to somewhere inside.  To make everything worse, this winter has been colder than normal, with worse air quality than normal, and higher cases of flu and whooping cough than normal.  Needless to say, we've tried to keep her in as much as possible.

Now, she is my first child so it was quite a shock to go from working everyday and going out whenever I wanted to run errands, to being trapped inside all day.  I mean, I love being a mom more than anything, it's always been my dream.  But it would be hard for anyone to be stuck inside for months.  We have also been successful so far and she has not gotten sick (knock on wood!). So here are some of my tips of how I kept myself sane this winter, while keeping little one healthy:

• Get ready for the day.  Even though I hardly ever got out of the house, I felt a lot happier and had more energy once I had showered and done my hair and make-up.
• Hobbies. Try new things and improve old ones.  I play piano, so I've been practicing that and I've also done some sewing projects.  I am starting to blog more and take more pictures.
• Try to get out at least once a week, whether it be church, a quick Target run, or just a walk.  Just get out and see what the world looks like outside.  When our daughter was first born I would leave her with my husband while I went out.  Now that she's a little older we'll take her with us sometimes.
• Read!  If you have Amazon Prime you can get one free book e-book a month, with thousands to choose from.  Or libraries are great!
• Find a new TV show.  This was great for me soon after giving birth because I didn't really feel up to doing anything major quite yet.  Netflix and Amazon Prime are great because they will have whole seasons of old shows.  I wouldn't watch these when she was awake, but babies sleep a lot so it kept me busy and relaxed!
• Use a car seat cover when you do go out.  I am so glad I have a car seat cover.  When I take my daughter out, it keeps her warm, but also keeps peering strangers away.  Everyone loves looking at babies, I do too, but this winter I just did not want anyone breathing on her.  
• Move around.  We are just in a two bedroom apartment, but throughout the day we move from the couch to the floor in the front room, to the master bedroom, to her room, and to the kitchen.  It keeps it interesting for me and her.
• Think of a variety of ways to play with your baby:  sing songs, use puppets, play with stuffed animals, read, cuddle, tickle, the possibilities are endless!
• Listen to music. Like I said above I don't like watching TV when my daughter is awake, I'd rather be interacting with her.  But this does make for a quiet house, so I just turn on some music, and she loves it!  It can really be anything, it doesn't have to be kids music if that drives you crazy.
• Exercise.  Now, I haven't been the best at this, but I can tell you that the days I did exercise I sure felt a lot better.
• Visit family and friends. This way you can get out, but you can ask beforehand to make sure everyone is healthy.  I also have a group of women I get together with that are all new mothers once a month . It's great to swap ideas and also validate that what your baby is doing is normal.

I hope some of these ideas helped you!  If you have any other ideas I would love to hear them.  Let's all just keeping hoping that we'll wake up one morning and spring will finally be here!

I made the cute hat using this tutorial:  http://www.makeit-loveit.com/2011/02/knit-receiving-blanketknit-baby-hats_08.html