NORTHAMPTON — With a winter storm looming in the forecast Monday, many parents took advantage of Sunday’s milder temperatures to get their children active before bunkering down for a few days.
For Daniel Manseau of Northampton and his 4½-year-old daughter Lila Pearl Flynn, that meant swinging at the playground outside the Bridge Street School. It was a brief respite amidst what Manseau says has seemed like a long winter.
The month of March, he noted, “can feel like the longest month.”
During winter months, Manseau, who is an instructional technology teacher at the Edward P. Boland Elementary School in Springfield, says he and Lila frequent community-oriented businesses like the Eric Carle Museum in Amherst and Mill 180 Park on Pleasant Street in Easthampton. On colder days — like those forecast for this week — they get hot chocolate from Woodstar Cafe or Dunkin Donuts.
Ahead of the snow, the National Weather Service posted a winter storm warning, predicting heavy snow with total accumulations of 6 to 10 inches from Sunday night into Monday morning. Municipalities such as Granby and Easthampton issued parking bans. Many area school districts either delayed or canceled classes altogether, which could pose a problem for parents, Manseau noted.
“As it gets deeper and deeper into winter, adjusting to those plans (the cancellations) can be difficult for families,” he said.
At Mill 180 Park, as their children played with oversized blocks and moved around giant chess pieces, many parents shared similar sentiments.
“When all else fails — I work at Amherst College — we’ll go to the cage and run them around,” said Caroline Hanna of Amherst, who was there Sunday afternoon with her children, Casey Hanna, 5, and Nora Hanna, 7. “We have to get out of the house at least once per day. They would go stir crazy if we didn’t.”
A few of their favorite wintertime activities, aside from running around at Amherst College or Mill 180 Park, include roller skating, ice skating, and jumping at Bounce Trampoline Sports in Springfield, Caroline Hanna said.
The Easthampton indoor park, in particular, attracts a lot of families during the winter, according to owner Michael Sundel. When the park first opened in 2016, Sundel said, they expected to engage more adults.
And while Sundel says they do attract an older crowd through intentional programming like live music — something they’re trying to do more of — many of the park’s patrons are under 10 years old with parents in tow.
The business has adapted to fit its audience. Last year, for example, Sundel said, they installed soundproofing to dampen noise for those who are looking for a quieter workspace.
“What do people do during the winter? Especially families? If you’re wealthy you can take a vacation or go to a gym or something,” Sundel said. “When the weather is bad, there isn’t much people can do.”
If there’s too much snow on the ground to drive after Monday’s storm, that won’t stop Caleb Ritter, who lives on Pleasant Street in Easthampton, from bringing his 3-year-old daughter, Carmen Ritter to the indoor park via wagon or sled.
“The kids like it. It gets them out of the cold,” he said. “It’s a good place to play indoors when the weather isn’t good.”
Andy Castillo can be reached at acastillo@gazettenet.com.