Frozen Balloon Ice Bowling
Ice Bowling in the Snow
Looking for a fun winter activity to try this year with your children? Then creating these bright colored ice balls will really bring some excitement to these snowy winter days. After seeing friends post about using balloons to make these colored ice balls, we decided to make some of our own. Taking it a step farther, we created our own bowling lane and pins using simple materials of tape, cardboard and plastic cups.
frozen balloon ice balls
Sometimes it can be difficult to motivate ourselves and our children to get outside, especially when temperatures drop below freezing! Although we are well aware of all the health benefits of being outside such as absorption of vitamin D, promoting exercise, reducing stress levels, decreasing cortisol levels and muscles tension; it still can be difficult.
So the next time you’re faced with a cold, snowy day utilize it for the perfect opportunity to make ice balls with your children. This simple activity requires minimal materials, most of which you can find lying around your home. The execution is quite simple, but we’ve got a couple tips to help make the process go even smoother. So let’s begin!
Materials Needed
Balloons
Gel Food Coloring/ Food Coloring
Cardboard
Plastic Cups
Tape
Tray
Directions for How to Make Frozen Water Balloons
Start by holding open the balloon and drip food gel or food coloring into the balloon.
Utilizing a faucet, slowly fill the balloon with water until it reaches the desired size. (around 3”)
Carefully ease the balloon off the faucet while supporting the base. (It helps to have two people) This is the step where dye coloring can easily end up on your hands, so go slowly.
Tie the balloon, shake the balloon to mix the color, and gently set it on your tray or directly outdoors.
5. Place balloons outside in below freezing conditions. Leaving them over night also works well. We placed them on our picnic table instead of in the snow, since snow acts as an insulator, which can take longer to freeze. In the morning we were greeted with a dozen colorful ice balloons.
Use a bowl or rotate for a rounder shape
* Another option is to place them in your freezer if temperatures aren’t cooperating. This activity can be done in the summer if you use this method. If you’re concerned about having them round you can rotate them through the freezing process or utilize a bowl so they form uniformly. We weren’t that concerned about making them perfectly round, but did experiment with freezing one inside in the freezer while using a bowl to observe how it helped with a uniform shape. (It froze after 6 hours)
6. Finally remove the outer balloon from the frozen ice balls and get ready to play.
Directions for Making a Snow Bowling Alley
Cardboard bowling lane for frozen balloon ice bowling
Take several long cardboard boxes and cut them lengthwise
Connect them using tape to make a long lane.
Build up the side gutters with snow to keep the ice balls on the cardboard lane.
Set up 10 bowling pins (we utilized red solo cups but water bottles or plastic bowling pins would suffice)
The windy day proved to be a bit of a challenge and kept blowing the cups around. My children problem solved by scooping a little snow into each cup which quickly alleviated the problem. (They also used a hockey goal for a backstop, but it’s not necessary!)
Not all the balloons froze in a perfectly round balls, but it didn’t pose a problem. The ice balls slid more than rolled like in curling, which was just as fun! We spent a couple hours outside constructing the lane and bowling. Check out snow bowling in action with this Ice Bowling video on Instagram .
Fair warning Make sure children stand back from the bowling pins. My knee can attest that ice balls can really hurt if you’re struck with one. While we were bowling, I was standing at the end of the lane so I could reset the pins and an ice bowling ball bounced up and hit me squarely in the knee, leaving quite an impressive purple bruise. Be careful not to make the same mistake I did!
Don’t lose this unique idea. Pin and Save for later. Hope you enjoy this fun winter activity. Happy Bowling! If you enjoyed this activity follow Discovering Anew for more kid’s activities, nature crafts and US vacation destinations. If you’re searching for more fun winter ideas, then try some of these creative snowy day activities. Here is a round up of some of the best Outdoor Winter Activities to try this winter with your children. On frigid winter days when you just can’t get outside, we’ve compiled a list of engaging Indoor Activities to Help Kids Burn off Energy .
