When my brother Gavin was young, my Aunt Nancy and my Mom wanted to try a new spin on your average Easter Egg hunt. Something a litte more fun, more challenging, and more rewarding! One way to do this, is to create an actual Scavenger hunt for kids…with clues, riddles, the occasional math problem…and some bigger rewards like eggs with money or larger special items inside. Then for the grand finale…they can find their bigger Easter gift or surprise with the very last clue! You can send your child on a search for his or her Easter treats with this holiday treasure hunt.
Here’s a photo of a very happy Gavin after he found his big Easter present back in 1993: a brand new baseball glove and mitt!
My Mom and Aunt love to joke about when they crafted these scavenger hunts for my brother. A funny story that we still laugh about: the first time they did this the night before Easter, it went well into the night. They started out with math equations and brain teasers that they knew Gavin would love. After a few hours of going back and forth, they went from this to “What do you think of…find an egg under the sink?” They laughed that this could have ruined a 20 year friendship. LOL! They learned the hard way that these types of activities should have clues organized beforehand for sure! So the 3P basic is: Plan out your clues well ahead of time and keep it simple. Here are a few stress-free ideas for your own!
There are also pre-made Scavenger Hunts that you can purchase for busy mom’s on the go! If you have a few extra minutes, you can still add those little personal touches to customize to your child’s age and interests. And: if being “Green” is important to you this Easter, environmentally-friendly/recycled plastic eggs and Easter grass are available at Whole Foods.
1. Start off by creating a map, typed up from The Easter Bunny. On this map, create a number of clues that will lead your child to each egg that The Easter Bunny has hidden, and eventually to the grand finale of a bigger gift.
2. Strategically hide your eggs according to the map, and hide the bigger gift at the very end.
3. Leave your treasure map out for your child next to where they’ve left carrots for The Easter Bunny so that upon waking up…the map and clues are ready for them to begin the hunt!
Some great clues would be family jokes, school related clues that they’ve been learning recently, little bits of trivia they love, and any other little riddle that’ll get them to use their noggins to find those eggs and that gift!
A few sample clues could be:
– When we went to ______ your favorite part of the trip was ________. Where do we have a photo of this place?
– What is your sister’s favorite color? Where is that color in the living room?
– When Nana comes over, where does she always sit down to greet you? Find your way there!
– If Aunt Nancy has 8 eggs, and the Easter Bunny hides 4 of them…how many are left? Take that many steps to your left to find your next egg!
So, we may have gone a little Popsicle- crazy over here at 3P….but with these awesome Popsicle molds we got for a DOLLAR…and with extra fruit and juice around the house we just couldn’t keep our brains from spinning! So, without further ado…here’s ONE more fruity popscicle recipe we are sure the kids will love after their Easter Egg hunt…
Cran-Banan Pops!
Ingredients:
– 3 frozen or fresh but VERY ripe bananas
– 3 Cups of (no sugar added) Cranberry Juice
THAT’S IT!
1. Cut up your bananas into one inch chunks, and add to your food processor.
2. Pour in 3 Cups of Cranberry juice and pulse/blend until smooth.
3. Carefully pour into your Popsicle molds, and place in the freezer for….
Voila! They are fresh, healthy and sweet…with just the right amount of tang from the juice. Perfect for kids (especially on Easter morning after their Scavenger Hunt!), and the adults will love them too! No added sugar, and yet delicious!
Just a few 3P ideas to change up your Easter routine, and have fun doing it! Do you have any crafts, or special traditions that you love to do with your kids every Easter? Seen anything new you’d like to try this year? Let us know!
