Since we largely avoid candy and different processed meals, I’ve to get artistic and are available up with different Easter basket concepts every year. As youngsters, my brother and I at all times appeared ahead to Easter, getting baskets with a chocolate bunny, and occurring Easter egg hunts. Because of these particular reminiscences I work onerous to make my youngsters’ baskets simply as particular (with much less of the junky stuff).
Our household focuses on giving experiences as an alternative of materials presents, and I wished to search out methods to deliver this into our vacation celebrations. Over the years I’ve discovered some distinctive concepts and themes for the yearly baskets. The youngsters not solely have enjoyable digging into their baskets on Easter morning, nevertheless it encourages household experiences as effectively.
Healthy Easter Baskets: Taking It Too Far?
I’ve undoubtedly heard the objection that taking sweet out of an Easter basket takes the entire healthy factor a little too far. If your ideas are working alongside these strains, contemplate:
Easter is the second largest candy-selling vacation of the yr after Halloween. Over 16 billion jelly beans are made every year, together with tens of millions of neon marshmallow chicks and lots of of chocolate treats. Kids’ Easter baskets are sometimes crammed with high fructose corn syrup, food dyes, and substances our our bodies (and positively our youngsters’ our bodies) weren’t meant to eat.
My level is, if I’m excessive, it’s as a result of I’m reacting to a massive drawback.
Since food dyes could have an effect on conduct, and plenty of people eat over 100 pounds of sugar a year, it’s more and more important to contemplate more healthy options even on holidays. These easy switches don’t take away any of the enjoyable or custom; they simply scale back the sugar and food dye content material.
Certainly, generally the stress of selecting natural choices can outweigh the advantages. However, I really feel that is a vacation the place we will undoubtedly make enhancements. We can nonetheless have a good time all that Easter is supposed to be with out going to extremes on both finish of the spectrum.
Ok, that’s out of the way in which… on to Easter baskets!
25+ Candy-Free Easter Basket Ideas
Here are some of our household’s favorites from Easter through the years. Hopefully some of them get the wheels turning and encourage some concepts excellent for your loved ones!
Experience-Based/Themed Easter Basket Ideas
These experience-themed baskets are more enjoyable and long-lasting than a sugar-laden basket of sweet. Create an Easter basket based mostly round an exercise or theme like gardening, baseball, swimming, or tenting. Help give your youngsters the gift of a new skill or a favourite pastime.
These are some of my favourite themes from previous Easter baskets:
Gardening Basket
A favourite previously and a theme we select again from yr to yr. I use cheap clay pots for the “baskets” and fill them with child-size gardening gloves, seeds, small garden tools, and different garden-related gadgets. Each youngster will get a totally different sort of seeds that we’ll use in our garden and will get to help me start the seeds, plant in our raised beds, and water all year long.
Camping Basket
One yr, to help stock our tenting provides, every youngster obtained tenting gadgets of their basket. They acquired sleeping bags, flashlights, binoculars, whistles, and camping silverware.
Sports Basket
Baskets with gear to play sure sports activities and even tickets to our native minor league groups to go to video games as a household all year long are at all times a favourite. One yr we put in new attachments for our Ninja line in the backyard.
Movie Night Basket
The youngsters actually get pleasure from household film nights, so their baskets might comprise summer season PJs and film tickets or DVDs. Each child will get a totally different film and will get to “host” that film evening by making snacks and setting up for the film. Perennial favorites at our home are How to Train Your Dragon and Cinderella.
Craft Basket
Every mother is aware of the problem of protecting youngsters pleasantly and productively occupied. Especially in the summer months, which come not long after Easter! Craft-themed baskets are excellent for this. I would fill the hampers with craft provides like construction paper, glue, scissors, buttons, and modeling clay.
Scavenger Hunt Basket
With this concept, the basket is a component of the expertise. Some years I need to simply give one expertise/reward to all of the youngsters that received’t slot in a basket. I create a scavenger hunt across the reward and go away the clues of their baskets. Hide one half of the primary clue in every basket so the youngsters can work collectively to search out the primary clue and lead them on a scavenger hunt to the ultimate vacation spot or Easter reward.
Easter Basket Filler Ideas
If you don’t need to observe a theme for an Easter basket, fill it with a random assortment of some healthy Easter basket concepts.
And When There’s Time: Try Homemade!
Just say no to the neon jelly beans and marshmallow chickens! Skip the chocolate bunnies and Cadbury eggs utterly and contemplate making healthier chocolate, marshmallows, or gelatin fruit snacks (possibly in an Easter-themed mold). You can even make these cute meringue nests.
And though it’s not as handy, do-it-yourself sweet comes with a bonus: high quality time collectively making ready for Easter.
If your youngsters nonetheless like enjoyable Easter basket treats with out all of the sugar, there are lots of non-candy choices. There are even more healthy candies to select from, like darkish chocolate or dye free suckers. You can get a full listing of my favourite healthier candy options right here. The following Easter treats comprise a combine of store-bought and do-it-yourself choices.
Easter Basket Treats
Esater Gifts For Older youngsters
Many of the above concepts can work for older youngsters too, however listed here are a few concepts more tailor-made to this age group. Even teenagers like getting presents in the event that they’re one thing they like!
Easter Eggs
Easter eggs are a custom I can admire, with a stunning significance at this time of yr. Of course, I’ve some solutions when it comes to how to dye easter eggs naturally. Check out this post for more on that!
If you utilize plastic Easter eggs to cover treasures, strive filling them with small gadgets as an alternative of sweet. The eggs can even comprise “points” that can be utilized to “buy” larger prizes from a field. Better but, conceal actual eggs or create a scavenger hunt with clues that finish at a enjoyable prize or vacation spot! There are additionally some actually cute reusable material eggs which might be a higher option than the plastic eggs.
An Easter Basket to Treasure
It takes a little pondering exterior of the field to come back up with new Easter basket concepts. However, I’m assured that ultimately my youngsters don’t really feel disadvantaged or miss out on the season’s celebration. In truth, it’s superb how colourful, candy, and festive a healthy Easter basket may be. I hope these concepts help you fill your Easter baskets with goodies, pleasure, and good health!
What particular household traditions do you treasure at Easter? Do you’ve more healthy Easter basket concepts to share? I’d love to listen to!