Since I’ve lived in Alaska one of the most common questions I get is, ‘how do you survive the winter?’ Now, if you follow me on Instagram you might assume that I enjoy winter. I always have to some extent, but surviving a 6+ month winter is a totally different ball game.
I am 100% a summer gal (although I’ve had to adjust my expectations since becoming an Alaskan). When I first moved up here my husband always said he loved winter and I was like ugh, how can you love it when its so long?! But I have to say, I’m coming around! I get it. After a summer of the sun never setting and trying to cram so much in a short amount of time, I definitely have an appreciation for the winter slow down.
I am still very much a sun loving creature, but I have found a way to make the best of the cold, dark, northern winter. Here is my approach to making the best of it.
1. Learn to enjoy winter through practicing gratitude
I think when it’s cold and dark, it’s really easy to settle into discontentment. There’s always something to complain about – how dark it is, the wind, how much snow we got, how annoying it is to have to move the snow, etc. And I think the first thing that will change our enjoyment of winter (or anything really) is to decide to keep the right mindset and to do what it takes to enjoy the season.
Living in an extended season of cold and dark gives me such a huge appreciation for the spring and summer. For example, I’ll step outside during spring and notice that the birds are actually singing. Because it’s been so quiet for months, I actually revel in how nice it is to hear the birds singing. It’s a simple thing, but I would have never noticed if I hadn’t gone without hearing the birds all winter!
If I find myself being a grump about winter, I’ll start each day by writing 3 things I’m grateful for. It can be anything! It can be small things. But I find that if I string a few days together where I can find something to be grateful for, my overall attitude will shift for the better. Apply this to any hard season of life! The more you practice this, the more you will find enjoyment in the little things.
2. Embrace the darkness & appreciate the slower season
It wasn’t until the last year or so that I stopped being frustrated that my body doesn’t behave the same in the winter that it does in the summer. In the past, I’ve felt guilty for not feeling as motivated or productive or wanting to sleep more. But it’s crazy to think that with little sun and low daylight, I would feel the same energy that we do in the summer.
There are examples all over nature that point us to the fact that hardly anything produces at the same rate constantly. Flowers don’t bloom all year, trees don’t have leaves all year, chickens in colder climates don’t lay eggs all year, bears hibernate.
Why would we expect to be able to have the same output during all seasons? In order to continue to be productive and creative, I think it’s important to embrace a season where things slow down. Enjoy a nap, read a book, go to bed earlier. Take a step out of the rat race and charge up for spring!
Embracing some extra sleep and rest is especially important as an Alaskan since we’re catching up from the sun never setting all summer!
3. Experience winter! Get outside
This is usually the first thing out of my mouth when asked ‘how do you enjoy winter?’ Whenever I start to get into a winter funk, I can usually trace it back to not getting outside enough. I know oftentimes that is the last thing we want to do, or the last thing we think will help us, but for me it’s usually the ticket to a better mood!
Whenever I am finding myself to be unmotivated, if I drag myself out for a short walk (or ski) and I feel so much better! I seriously can’t think of a time that I’ve felt worse from getting outside. The cold air is invigorating and when I get back to the house I usually have more energy for whatever task I was avoiding.
4. Light up your winter!
This is one of my faves! Since Alaska is so dark for multiple months, I add all sorts of lights to our home in the winter. Instead of Christmas lights, we do ‘winter lights’ ie: white lights on our house. We live in a rural area so if we don’t have our winter lights on a timer we’ll arrive home to a very dark house. When the sun sets at 3:30 pm, it’s nice to pull into the driveway and have some light greeting you. We run these from roughly November through February.
Another thing I like to do is have battery operated candles and twinkle lights in the house. There are many options that are programmed to be on for 4 hours and off for 20 hours. You turn them on once and then they follow the timer all season!
Finally, my favorite way to light up the house in the winter is with candles. My favorite are beeswax candles. Beeswax candles have a variety of benefits and aren’t toxic like many of the traditional candle options out there. I love that they are non toxic and it’s nice to add light that isn’t LED/blue light.
I’ll list a few of my favorites below. Also, recently a neighbor of mine sourced some local beeswax to pour our own candles, so I’m looking forward to that!
5. Marvel at the winter sky
Okay, you guys will have to tell me if this is the same where you live, but the sky is absolutely insane in Alaska in the winter. We get the prettiest sunsets, the alpenglow on the mountains is out of this world and we can’t forget about the northern lights! I know most states don’t have the northern lights but seriously, one of the ways I stay engaged throughout the winter is to appreciate the beauty in the sky.
Also, since we don’t have a lot of daylight, it’s an extra special treat if the sun is out.
Bonus Tip: I get out of Alaska
Before I moved to Alaska, I distinctly remember telling Jimmy that I would move here as long as I could escape winter at least once every year. Even when I lived in Michigan, most years I was blessed enough to head south and find some sun midwinter. Hawaii is actually ‘close’ for Alaskans (6 hour direct flight) so my absolute favorite way to beat the winter blues is to soak up some Hawaii sun!
I know traveling isn’t always feasible, but it’s something we budget because it helps me to get through the second half of winter.
There you have it – my top 5 ways to actually enjoy winter!
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