Rumour has it that Mother Nature has left Old Man Winter for El Nino - the hot, young stud about town. I'm all for love affairs when warranted, but this is a bit much.

I'll admit I've never been a fan of long winters here in Ottawa, but I've always enjoyed snow in December. We get out and do ALL the activities (even skating, which usually involves the kids throwing themselves onto the ice in despair over their cold toes.)

So here are a few ideas to enjoy your green Christmas (although I do have hope that Mother Nature will see the error of her ways, and be welcomed back into the cold embrace of the Old Man.)

Go steal snow over at the ice rink

Seriously, they just dump the stuff in the back parking lot. Either go play on the mountain at the rec centre, or pack some into buckets and get home quickly to make your snowman

Make fake snow

Honestly, this sounds like the worst idea ever. All I can think about is my carpets caked in this stuff. But desperate times call for desperate measures. Check out this tutorial, but not if you have OCD or Obsessive Cleaning Disorder.

Freeze Stuff

The weather is so warm right now, you could actually play with rainbow ice cubes outside. That said, it can still be a bit chilly, so I would probably let my kids go wild with these in the bath tub!

Make Paintsicles!

What a fantastic idea for some messy, painting fun!!

Bring on Elsa

Create your own Snow Dance by blasting Frozen music and having the kids "bring on the snow." Then shoot confetti out of canon and have it rain down on the kids. Or not...Elsa music on its own is just fine.

What will you do for your green Christmas?