Weather-wise, winter in the 80s was maybe a little snowier and colder than winter today, but it was also a lot more fun. If you were a kid in the 80s, you probably remember these classic ways we survived the coldest months of the year.
We Rocked Our Moon Boots
Thick, puffy, and often rainbow-colored, moon boots were the winter footwear of the decade. Everyone had them, at least in the upper Midwest. My parents bought them for me because they were warm and kept my feet dry, and their colorful, hoof-like appearance made me feel like a My Little Pony.
It Was All About the Layers
While moon boots were keeping our feet fairly warm (at least for the first hour or so), the rest of us was swathed in layers of insulated outerwear. Over our normal clothes, we dressed in thick snow pants and an (often color-blocked) puffy jacket. Some lucky kids had the convenience of a one-piece snowsuit. Add in mittens, a scarf and hat, and sometimes even goggles, and we were good to go for what usually ended up being hours of outdoor play.
We didn't have a lot of fleece or high-tech gear, but most of us wore so much clothing we could barely move. When we got back inside after a day in the snow, we needed help from our parents to take off our outerwear.
We Knew the Joy of Unsupervised Snow Days
A snow day was a special joy in the 80s because a lot of kids got to have an entire day of unsupervised fun. We'd listen to the radio or watch the TV in morning, hoping our district would be called. This was the decade of latchkey kids, so many of us were on our own after our parents went to work. We could mix up a batch of cookies (who says 10-year-olds can't operate an oven?), dress up in our warmest clothes, and head out for some sledding or playing in the snow.
We Built Wonderfully Dangerous Snow Forts
Sure, our parents warned us of the dangers of collapsing snow forts, but that didn't stop most of us from digging into the piles of snow left by the plows. We would work on these forts for hours with other kids in the neighborhood, digging steadily until we'd carved a den or a tunnel. There was a special kind of quiet deep inside a snow fort.
We'd Drink Our Weight in Hot Chocolate
We drank so much hot chocolate during the winter in the 80s. Moderating sugar intake was yet to come, and a lot of us weren't all that supervised anyway. We'd come in from outside and heat up water in the microwave or on the stove, dump in a couple of packets of Swiss Miss, toss in some marshmallows, and enjoy the sugar rush as we warmed up.
Our Inside Blanket Forts Were Almost as Fun
When we got cold outside or the weather was too nasty, we built forts inside, too. This was made possible by absent parents since it required tearing the living room apart and dragging furniture around. We'd pull all the cushions off the couch, bring in all the dining room chairs, and yank the blankets off of every bed in the house. Bonus points if your blanket fort had multiple rooms or a long tunnel.
Related: 10 Things Kids in the 80s Did That Would Shock Kids Today
We Played Classic Board Games for Hours
Because we didn't have smartphones and only some of us had access to primitive video games, we turned to board games for entertainment. Classics like Monopoly, Sorry, Stratego, and Chutes and Ladders kept us busy when it was cold outside. We played with friends, neighbors, siblings, and sometimes even our parents.
We'd Beg Our Parents to Rent a Video
Since we couldn't just turn on our TVs and stream anything we wanted to watch, choosing a movie from the video store was the next best thing. In the winter, that usually meant getting our parents to drive us (and pay for the rental). It wasn't an endless selection, either. Sometimes, we'd rent the same movie over and over because we just loved it. The best videos made the winter evenings pass quickly.
Let an 80s Winter Inspire You
Even though a lot of the ways we lived through the winters in the 80s are very typical for that rad decade, they're also kind of timeless. No matter how old you are, it's still fun to play board games and drink hot chocolate or build a huge snow fort in your yard. Whether you lived through the 80s or only know about it from stories, being an 80s kid in the winter is great inspiration for enduring winter today.
