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We have had more snow days this year than, well, than the last time we were visited by the polar vortex a few years ago. From a kid's perspective, the term "snow day" brings to mind cozy days stolen away from school and spent cozied up in pajamas, watching the snow fall and fall outside the window. The truth this year has been a little less traditional. We've had multiple "cold days", when the temperature was too low (negative 45 degree wind chill low) for kids to wait safely at bus stops; we've had multiple ice days, when every outdoor surface was encased in at least a quarter inch of solid, stubborn ice; we've had "the storm is coming days" and "the storm is only during the bus travel time" days, and we've had traditional snow days. Since the second week of January the kids in our district haven't had a single week without at least one weather day off of school, usually more than one.

For a homeschooler a snow day can be what they make it. We usually hold to regularly scheduled school day, which, for Calvin, who spends afternoons at the public school, means at least a few extra hours off for hot chocoloate, or snow play (if it's warm enough, and snowy, not icy), or whole days spent in pajamas. They are stolen days of warmth and comfort and self care during a brutal winter.

But that's for the school kids. 

For the families who got puppies for Christmas, snow days are a whole different situation. A whole different, problematic situation. 

After Gimli's first two-hour long puppy play date at the local boarding facility, the staff told us that he was delightful and brilliant, but also the only puppy they'd ever had that never slowed down. The whole two hours and he never slowed down. Then, at his last puppy class the trainer told us how impressed he was with Gimli, but also that he'd never—never—had another puppy in his class with this much energy. One thing that puppy parents often overlook is a puppy's exercise requirements. It varies from dog to dog, depending somewhat on breed, but even more so on the individual, but for a puppy to be healthy, happy, connected, and trainable, he needs his exercise needs met in full. For a puppy with the apparently extreme energy that Gimli had, that means a lot of exercise and entertainment, which is really, really hard to make happen when going outside is dangerous.

The answer? Enrichment. Because exercise means mental as well as physical. Of course, no amount of one type of exercise can eliminate the need for the other, but there's a lot of gray area, or overlap, in the middle. So while the outside has been a complicated place we've had to up our mental stimulation game. We've added tricks to the training sessions, we've tried new games, and we're doing a lot with food. Gimli hasn't eaten out o a bowl in weeks. Instead we are using puzzle feeders and treaters, some store bought, some homemade. Here you see Gimli "finding" his meal, which is hidden in some of the cupcake tins. 

When they say getting a puppy in the winter is hard, they're not just a-kidding.

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