Hop To It: 7 Fun Ways To Celebrate Easter At Home

Tulips are blooming, birds are chirping and the winter coats have gone into storage. And we all know what that means - spring is definitely here and Easter is quickly approaching! Easter is a wonderful time to celebrate the new season and enjoy some crafty activities and festive foods with your family. And when you’re not able to make it to the annual neighborhood Easter egg hunt or go out to brunch, don’t worry. There are still plenty of ways to celebrate Easter at home with your family! 

Here are seven fun ideas, all of them interactive, fun and kid-approved!

1. Mix Up A Batch Of Bunny Bait

A few days before Easter, enlist the kids to help make a special snack mix to entice the Easter Bunny to visit your home. Let them decorate plastic snack bags with stickers and using markers. Then, fill the bags with a combination of their favorite sweet-and-salty nibbles, like popcorn, mini-marshmallows, pretzel rods, chocolate chips or candies, dried fruit and bunny- or fish-shaped crackers. 

And once you’ve filled the bags for the Easter bunny, mix up some extra for a tasty snack for you and your kiddos!

2. Make an Easter Bunny Pancake Breakfast

Sunny spring mornings are the perfect backdrop for a casual family brunch at home. While the bacon’s in the oven, whip up a batch of super-cute bunny pancakes! Using your favorite pancake recipe or brand of ready-made batter or mix, pour small, medium and large circles on your skillet to make different-sized pancakes. 

Put these shapes, along with a variety of toppings, like banana slices and rounds, strawberry slices, milk chocolate morsels and shredded coconut, on the table. Frozen berries work great here, too. Just let them thaw out in the refrigerator overnight, and gently pat dry. 

Let the kids assemble their own bunnies using the pancakes and toppings. Don’t forget the whipped topping to make fluffy bunny cottontails! 

3. Plan a backyard Easter treats hunt

Try updating the classic egg hunt concept and include other treats (like packaged chocolate goodies) with your plastic eggs that are fun for kids to find. For girls, try stuffed animals, books or hair clips and bows. For boys, try small cars or trucks, army men, toy building blocks or bouncy balls. 

In a pinch, little written or printed coupons that can be redeemed for future treats. Think: “good for one episode of your favorite TV show” or “extra bubbles in your bath”. These fun paper gifts will help make a backyard hunt an entertaining adventure for the whole family. 

4. Try A Batch of Bunny Bars

Marshmallow cereal bars are a tasty bake-sale favorite that everyone loves. Give the classic recipe a holiday twist by swapping in different kinds of cereal for plain rice cereal. Bright or pastel-colored cereals (or ones with colorful marshmallows) work perfectly to make these Bunny Bars especially Easter-themed. 

And for a decadent treat, form the bars into bowls to hold a scoop of ice cream! If choosing a fruity cereal for your Bunny Bars, a simple vanilla ice cream is a great choice. But, if you make your bars using sweetened cereal with colorful marshmallows, go with fruity ice creams like strawberry and peach. 

5. Get Creative With Easter Egg Dying Kits

The dye that comes in Easter egg kits doesn’t necessarily have to be used for eggs! These pretty pastel pigments can be used to add a pop of color to all kinds of everyday objects. Plus, kids love to watch the magic of the colorful dye in action. Try these unique uses:

• Make a colorful lining for Easter baskets - Instead of plastic “grass”, dye strips of paper, then let dry on wax paper on the counter before adding to your baskets.
• Use the dye as watercolor - Easter egg dye can double for watercolor paints, so take the kids outside on a nice afternoon with the dyes and a stack of paper, and let them work on a landscape masterpiece.
• Create springtime garden decorations with stones - With adult supervision, your kids can dye rocks and pebbles found outdoors to make Easter “eggs” that make festive additions to your garden! Simply rinse off the stones and put them on a baking sheet in a 200-degree oven for a few minutes. Next, make your dye solution with hot water, then carefully submerge the heated rocks in the dye. Allow them to sit overnight. In the morning, you’ll have colorful rocks that are garden-ready!

6. Decorate Sweet Treats For The Holiday

Another fun way to celebrate Easter at home is to decorate cookies or cupcakes as a family. So, bake your favorite sugar cookies or cupcakes using premade cookie dough, a mix or a homemade recipe and get ready to decorate.

If you choose to decorate cookies, use festive cookie cutters to make flowers, butterflies, eggs and so on. But, if you don’t have cookie cutters on-hand, simply use a butter knife to cut out your desired shapes. 

Now that your cookies or cupcake are baked, set up a decorating station with things like sprinkles, bowls of colored icing, mini marshmallows, chocolate chips, pretzel sticks - and anything else your kids might want to top their treats with. It’s all about having fun and making tasty memories together!

7. Share A Bit Of The Easter Joy 

We all have a neighbor who could use an extra gesture of kindness around the holidays. So, for our last way to celebrate Easter at home, we’re talking about an idea for sharing some positivity with your neighbor. Leave an Easter lily or an Easter egg dye-painted card on your neighbor’s porch to spread a little bit of sunshine and holiday spirit. 

Ready to start some fun new Easter traditions with your family? Stop into your local Food Lion (or place an order via Food Lion To Go) to pick up Easter essentials at low prices. We hope you have a wonderful holiday and make lots of happy memories together at home, however you choose to celebrate!