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Bunnies. Eggs. Sunday. What do these words have in common?
All these words have something to do with Easter—the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
And with such a huge event to commemorate, we know we have to pull out all the stops on this one.
Here are some new ways to remember Easter.
Egg-lectic Crafts
An Easter egg hunt is a great way to welcome spring and to get the kids to spend some quality time under the sun—away from mobile gadgets.
But before heading out, of course your kids need a bag or basket to hold all the eggs they’ll find. Prepare a small crafts area where your kids (and even neighbors) can decorate their baskets or bags. Prepare glue, tape, colorful pieces of paper, some glitter, washi tape, and kid-friendly scissors.
After taking care of the baskets, it’s time for eggs.
If you plan on using actual eggs for the hunt, best to use hard boiled eggs. To strengthen the shell, add 1 to 2 teaspoons of vinegar in the boiling water. This will also help the paint stick to the shell better.
To make sure that everybody’s safe, use non-toxic paint. As much as possible, use organic materials to decorate the eggs. To color the eggs, you can use crayons, water color, acrylic paint, markers, dyes, or even melted crayons—just make sure you supervise the kids at all times.
Basket: Check. Eggs: Check. Bunny?
Another crafty way to get your kids to sit down and stay quiet for at least 30 minutes is by giving them the task of creating their own bunny ears for the hunt. Bunnies, for some reason, represent spring—so better use bright springtime colors for decorations. And don’t forget the carrot!
To document your Easter festivities better, adapt a wedding idea for Easter: Hang a giant Polaroid-like frame from a tree where kids can stand and take their pictures. On the wide side of the frame, write the hashtag you want to use if they (or their parents) will post pictures on Instagram, Twitter, of Facebook.
Eggs-citing Activities
Easter bunnies leave eggs around. Perhaps bunnies carrying eggs around may not be the best representation of a holy resurrection, but it has been a grand tradition in most western countries (and even eastern ones) and to let your kid go through his/her childhood without this fun experience should be considered a travesty.
To avoid one kid from hoarding all the eggs you’ve hidden oh-so-cleverly, try this idea from Pinterest: use colored eggs and assign one color for each kid. This way, they can only collect the eggs assigned to them and everybody enjoys crawling on their knees and finding a colored gem.
If you’re using plastic eggs (those that can be twisted open), fill it with notes (Bible verses would be great), written rewards (i.e. “additional 30 minutes TV time”), and even sweet treats so that the fun doesn’t stop when the egg hunt does.
If you want to introduce a bit more Biblical knowledge into your Easter festivities, a puppet show depicting a Bible story would be a great way to spend Saturday afternoon. That way, you can present the puppet show with your kids to friends and family on Sunday lunch or dinner. Ask your kids to help you create the puppets/characters and tell them Bible stories as you cut here and paste there.
Turn the egg hunt into some sort of scavenger hunt by providing clues where the eggs are hidden. To marry faith and spring happily, use Biblical clues to lead them to the right location.
Another way to get your kids involved in your community is to volunteer as a family if there are Easter events at your local church or municipality.
You can also incorporate practices that some cultures use to celebrate Easter around the world for an added touch of cultural education and excitement. For example, in some parts of Europe, a bonfire is lit at a hilltop on Easter’s Eve. In the Netherlands, a cross is traditionally adorned with flowers and ribbons.
Eggs-travagant Feast
For most Westerners, Easter feast won’t be complete without a succulent ham or lamb roast at the table. The Jews usually serve lamb during the Passover. Meanwhile, in the United States, ham is more popular because it usually comes from the stock of cured meat that was prepared during winter.
For a more modern approach to traditional fare, why not try making a lamb roulade or incorporating ham in salads or appetizers?
Most people who celebrate Easter also serve hot cross buns—spherical bread (usually spiced) with a cross on top made of sugar syrup.
For an added curiosity on your dining experience, why not serve a simnel cake?
A quick Google search for “simnel cake” revealed that these are actually a lot like the fruit cake and it contains 11 balls made of marzipan, which represent the 11 faithful disciples.
This might sound a bit too much for the weekend, but lament not. Here’s a super easy carrot cupcake recipe—courtesy of yours truly—to serve for dessert to quench your little bunnies’ craving for sweet treats.
HUNNY BUNNY CARROT-RAISIN CUPCAKES
Ingredients:
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup raisins
3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
4 large eggs
1 cup melted butter
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 3/4 cups brown sugar
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Optional: Walnuts (1 cup), cinnamon (to taste), chocolate chips
FROSTING:
Whipped heavy cream
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
Pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees.
In a bowl, combine eggs, sugar, buttermilk and melted butter. Make sure your melted butter is room temperature so you won’t end up with sweet scrambled eggs.
In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients: sifted flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Combine the egg mixture to your dry ingredients. Mix well. Add grated carrots and raisins. Stir well.
Pour into lined cupcake tin. Bake for around 25 to 40 minutes at 225 degrees.
Cream together heavy cream, cream cheese, and confectioner’s sugar. Pipe on top of cooled cupcakes. Decorate as desired. The carrots in the photo is made from air-dried royal icing.