Filling Up the Easter Baskets

Wild flowers are a-bloomin here in south Texas. I am determined to enjoy this week of nice weather. That’s about all it lasts here -- a week. Next thing I know it will be 100+ degrees -- so I’m basking in this paradise while I can.

I get ridiculously excited about holidays. It’s a problem that I’ve tried to tone down, but sure enough Easter is this week and I am having a hard reigning in the enthusiam. YEEHA!




When the Doc and I were first married, Easter was coming and true to form I spent several weeks getting his Easter basket ready. It would be a vision of perfection with the goodies, necessities, fun meaningful things he would not believe that I thought of. I woke up on Easter morning to sneak it out to the our dining room table that we had acquired from a dumpster (the chairs were rocking chairs that rocked FORWARD -- face plant into your food. We did not have many house guests in those days). My Easter basket was no where to be seen. Of course, when he saw his Easter basket, practically glowing and hovering in mid-air in all its Easter perfectness, terror immediately flooded his barely awake eyes.

“Are we doing Easter?!?” he asked with panic in his voice.

“Of course we are doing Easter! Who else is going to do it for us?” I replied incredulously.

“Oh, crap! I thought that was just what our moms did for us when we are kids! I didn’t even get you anything.”

Thud. My excitement hit the ground in a million pieces.

That’s a classic example of our first year of marriage. Unspoken expectations met with utter disappointment when he didn’t read my mind. We’ve come along way since then.

The Doc threw on some clothes and flew out the door and made a beeline for the only store that could salvage his new bride’s broken heart: Walgreens.

He came back to our one bedroom apartment beaming with the largest Easter basket I’d ever seen. It had all the loud, bright, nearly fluorescent colors and was overflowing with candy. I’m not kidding, candy was falling all over the ground. I’m talking nothing else at all in there. No green filler Easter grass, no little stuffed animals or other little “nuh-nuhs” (my word for extra little stuff). JUST CANDY. Jelly beans, candy corn Eater bunnies, chocolate kisses, chocolate bunnies, chocolate everything, jelly bellies, Lifesavers, licorice, Gobstoppers. He had cleaned out the candy shelves of Walgreens that Easter morning. I was touched and cracked up at his eagerness to give me a memorable Easter. And sure enough, nearly every Easter since then I mention the candy Easter basket. The one that I single handedly ate every single piece of candy out of that dang thing. No help from anyone, thank you very much. Back in those days I was serious about my sugar and needed no assistance in packing it away.

Easter around our house is much different now that we have 3 kids to focus on and the Doc has worked Easter for the past --I don’t know how many years. I no longer expect an Easter basket from him and don’t worry about putting one together for him. That’s what being married 14 1/2 years will do for you. Expectations are much more realistic.

But, we still have these 3 kids to think of --and if your Easter season is anything like ours you are inundated with candy. I swear it feels like we are already rolling around in jelly beans and chocolate (which happens sugar in my two favorite forms). So, what are some ideas for reducing the sugarness in this wonderful holiday? A few ideas:

• Focus on the eggs! Obviously, dying Easter eggs is great fun and happens to be my kids’ MVP of snacks. So, we have each of them dye around 12-18 eggs each and make a big production out of that. Those eggs are the only one that the Easter bunny hides here in the Reading home. Nope, we don’t search for the plastic eggs filled with candy. Frankly, between church and neighborhood parties, we’ve already had plenty of that. The kid’s love just finding the eggs that they dyed -- no sugar added. Then, of course, we enjoy hard-boiled eggs for days with the wacko colors on the inside. The weirder the better!

• The “Golden Egg”. OK, I lied -- we do hide 3 golden plastic eggs along with the hard boiled kind. In these eggs are a dollar bill. Since my kids are all 8 and under this is equivalent to winning the lottery. I’ve learned one for each of them is wise -- no tears or WWF moves to get to the Golden Egg first.

• We are a church goin’ family and I like to add some religious books and items that will help my kids reverently “survive” our church services. Books, manga doodles, journals, notebooks, stencils, stickers, scripture marking pencils, bookmarks -- all with a religious tone make it into the Easter basket.

• Summer gear. Summer is starting like next week here, so its time to get ready! The baskets are loaded with this summer’s bathing suit, swim shirt, swim shorts, and water shoes, and the all important goggles. I even had a sister-in-law use big sand buckets as the Easter baskets that she turned around and brought to the beach.

A few other ideas:

watches

markers, cool crayons, colored pencils

new books to read

crafts to do

any other Easter themed items (my boys love the parachuting Easter bunny)

bandaids (I don’t know why but these are a must every year)

craft items -- scissors, scotch tape, glue sticks, fun papers, etc.

yo-yos

small toys

bookmarks

And yes, I do throw a few plastic eggs with candy into their basket. This way, they get their Easter candy fix, but not the out of control, unending supply of sugar that goes on for weeks.

Hey, Fit Mommas -- I’m sure you’ve got loads of ideas for us...  Share them in the comments por favor! My kids will thank you!