To believers in Jesus Christ, Easter should be the most exciting and joyous holiday of the year. Easter is when we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and His total victory over death, instead we get Easter Bunnies and plastic eggs.

This year I thought we’d try to re-insert the deeper meaning of Easter into the cultural celebration. I took the original Easter story and mixed it into the 21st century Easter festivities and sprinkled in a little visual aid invented by Charles Spurgeon in 1866. The result is a simple, inexpensive project that is fun and inspirational.

You may have heard of Spurgeon’s “Wordless Book”. It’s a simple evangelistic tool that expresses the means to salvation through a series of colored panels. It has been amplified and expanded over the years to its current form.

We hid five large plastic eggs in increasingly difficult places, so that they’d be found in the correct order. As each egg was found and brought to the front, I explained the significance. There are lots of great resources online where you can learn more about the wordless book, but the short version is:

Black represents sin. (It won’t be easy to find a black egg. We used the tops of two panty-hose containers connected together. If I had it to do over, I think I’d just spray paint a regular plastic egg.)

Red represents the blood of Jesus Christ, which was spilled on Good Friday of the Easter story.

White represents perfect righteousness, which can be claimed by believers through the sacrifice Jesus made. (It is harder than you might think to find a white plastic egg, but they are out there.)

Green was not in Spurgeon’s original wordless book, but it was added later and fits appropriately. Green represents growth in Christ over our lifetime.

Gold was likewise a later addition to Spurgeon’s original. It represents Heaven, or the eternal reward for those who believe. (We settled for a yellow egg. In retrospect, a spray-painted gold egg would have been better.)

So, there you have it – inexpensive, simple, and effective. We took the wordless book and made it bookless, too. I hope you find this tool useful and fun for your children at Easter.

Now that Valentine’s Day is over and St. Patrick’s Day as well, Easter decorations are in full bloom. Not that the candy did not already start sprouting up in the local CVS stores or Walmarts at the beginning of March or anything, but the green decorations are gone and now you can focus purely on the pastels.

However, the best thing you could do for your kids when they’re going on their egg hunts is to try to stay away from those pastel colored bags in the stores. All of those Hershey eggs, Reese’s eggs, and chocolate bunnies, are delicious treats, but your family will not benefit from them. Sure, it is fine to have a few here and there, but the amount of candy that kids get on Easter is a little insane. You know those Cadbury Creme Eggs? The ones that are oh so delicious and that only come out at Easter time? Well, compared to an everyday chicken egg, a Cadbury’s Creme Egg does have one  thing about it that makes it “more healthy” than a real egg- less cholesterol! But other than that, there is not much more to brag about. For example, one egg is 170 calories with 54 of those calories coming from fat. One egg has 6g of total fat with 3.5 of those grams coming from saturated fat and accounting for 9% and 18% of your percent daily value of fat (respectively). There are 28 grams of carbohydrates with 25 of those grams coming from just sugar. A little scary huh? And that’s just the plain Cadbury egg.

So, when you fill up those plastic eggs this year, try to stay away from the sweets.  If your kids are used to getting sweets, give them a few treats here or there. They’ll get over the fact that they didn’t get loaded this year pretty quickly (though it may take a few days). But hey, they’re kids.

Here are a few ideas for healthier snacks.

• Cheerios, Fruit Loops, or Kix
• Trail mix, mixed nuts, or Chex pretzel mix
• Raisins, dried apricots or other dried fruit
• Marshmallows
• Cookies
• Granola
• Popcorn

And if you’re feeling really gutsy–coins or dollar bills.

I hope your kids don’t get too upset about the switch this year!

Easter bread is a holiday tradition in the Slavic countries – one I’ve tried to adopt over the years since my marriage. I say “tried” because the recipes, no matter how dumbed down for modern bakers, were usually too much for me. Finally, I came up with my own version. If you’re not too conscientious, you can call it “kulich” or “babka”, but it’s based on The Joy of Cooking’s Brioche Loaf Cockaigne. Please don’t tell anyone.

You’ll need:

· 3 eggs
· 3 tablespoons milk
· ½ cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
· 2 cups flour
· ½ teaspoon salt
· 2 packages (or tablespoons) yeast
· ½ cup dried cranberries
· 2 tablespoons sliced almonds
· a little white frosting

Set your bread machine (another break with tradition!) on “dough”. The eggs, milk, and butter should go in first, then the other ingredients, except for the frosting, with the yeast on top.

When the machine is getting near the end of the cycle, preheat the oven to 450°. Grease the inside of any large empty tin can you happen to have. Coffee cans are good, but you can make two smaller loaves in tomato sauce cans, too. In Soviet times, people (who weren’t really supposed to be celebrating Easter) used tin mugs.

Make sure the oven rack is positioned low enough to hold the can standing upright.

Put the risen dough in the can and even out the top. Bake 15 to 20 minutes. If the top of the bread begins to brown too quickly, cover it with aluminum foil.

Be careful taking the bread out of the can. Let it cool a little before covering the top with frosting – but try to eat it when it’s still warm. That’s when it’s best.

Easter is almost around the corner so it’s time to start getting crafty with your kids! Celebrate this fun time of year with unique craft ideas that everyone can enjoy. Easter crafts go beyond decorating eggs- think greeting cards, handmade Easter baskets, and more! You can browse the Internet for fresh ideas or check a few craft books from the library. Your kids and you also could come up with some creative ideas. Read below for some brilliant and crafty ideas.

Easy Baskets: Collect empty plastic strawberry baskets (one for each child) and rinse well. Next, gather or purchase some quality yarn in bright or pastel shades of yellow, orange, pink, and green. Starting with one piece of yarn, gently weave it into the basket much like you would sew something by hand. Weave at least two pieces of  yarn in different colors for each basket. When you’re done cut off the extra yarn, but leave each yarn thread slightly long enough to tie together to ensure that the weave doesn’t come undone. After that you can use your handle-free baskets to store candy or other Easter crafts!

Handmade Easter Cards: This is where you can get really creative. Start with a variety of cardstock, pom-poms, glitter, and other various embellishments. You and the kids will have so much fun crafting your own personal Easter greeting cards.

Bead Ducklings: These are so easy to make and so cute to look at.  Start with colored round beads (wood or plastic doesn’t matter) in at least two different sizes. Trim 6 inch pipe cleaners to about 3 or 4 inches, then glue a small craft feather near the top. Thread the smaller bead on top and then thread the larger bead in the middle. Bend the ends of the pipe cleaner so they look like feet. Draw a set of eye and a beak on the top bead to complete the craft!

If you have small children, make sure you supervise these activities for safety reasons.  Do not try these activities with children 3 and under.

Easter eggs feel like such a traditional craft, it’s surprising there are so many different ways to make them.

Hard-boiled eggs or emptied shells, elaborate patterns or solid colors, dye, wax, or both – there always have been lots of options. And now there are more ways than ever to whip up a batch of brightly colored eggs for Easter.

Egg coloring kits have come a long way since my childhood, when they consisted of a few dye tablets and a spindly wire holder for the eggs. They still do make that kind, if you’re feeling nostalgic. But you also can get kits that let you make glittery, sponge-painted, or stenciled eggs, and more.

(Anyway, if you just want a simple, low-cost, solid color dye, you can make your own out of water, a little vinegar, and food coloring.)

Stickers and/or crayons may be the way to go for very small children. Regular markers are probably not such a good idea, especially if you plan to eat the eggs.

However, some egg stencil kits come with special non-toxic markers. No guarantee that they’ll taste good . . . For years, this was my favorite way to color eggs with the kids. The stencils let anyone do a beautiful job.

This year, I’m leaning toward egg sleeves. These are made of shrink wrap; you put the eggs in them and dip the whole thing in boiling water. Of course, this takes a lot of adult help. But it’s an easy way to put really elaborate designs on your eggs – even if your fine motor skills, like mine, are lacking.

There’s an egg coloring kit for every taste and every skill level, so shop around online if you don’t see what you want in stores.

The rite of spring always starts with Easter. The flowers come out, the days become longer, and the weather starts to feel warmer than it did the previous months. In neighborhoods across America, families with young children often get together and start coordinating Easter egg hunt parties. If you plan on hosting one this upcoming Easter (Sunday April 4, 2010), make sure you have a supply of tasty refreshments and beverages for everyone. Here are some ideas on what to serve.

Healthy Snacks
Since the kids will get their fill of sweets with the candy-filled Easter baskets, it would be a smart idea to serve a tray of fresh veggies or crudites for everyone to snack on. Save time, and purchase a tray of pre-cut crudites including carrot sticks, celery, cherry tomatoes, and olives. If you want, add some salsa or ranch dressing for dipping.

Deviled Eggs
This classic recipe has been around forever for a reason: they are crowd-pleasers and make excellent hors d’ourves! Start by hard boiling whole eggs, then set them aside to cool off for at least 20 minutes. Next peel the shells off, then cut each egg in half and scoop out each half’s yolk filling into a bowl. Set your hard-boiled halves aside, and mash the egg yolks until they’re almost powder-like and add whatever seasoning or condiments you’d like. Stir well, and then take a small spoon and place some filling into each egg half. Do this with each half until they’re all filled. Once you’re done you either can serve them right away or keep them refrigerated until the guests arrive.

Beverages
Since you cannot serve refreshments without beverages, make sure you offer some cold drinks at your Easter egg hunt party. Keep it family friendly and serve ice-cold lemonade or limeade. Keep a pitcher or two of this beverage on hand to make sure that everyone is satisfied. You also could serve light alcoholic beverages for adults if you’d like.

As part of your Easter celebration, why not organize an Easter egg hunt for the kids? Whether the hunt will be small or large it helps to have a plan for organizing a successful one. Read on for some helpful tips for doing just that.

Put Safety First

If you decide to have an outdoor Easter egg hunt, then choose a location with safety as a top priority. Choosing an open space for the hunt is the safest option. Have enough parents to help with the hunt. Make sure everyone involved is aware of where the boundaries for the hunt have been set.

Determine the Number of Participants

Figure out ahead of time how many children will be participating in the hunt, and stick to that number. Purchase enough collection bags for the participants.

Keep a Record of Eggs

When you hide the eggs make a note of how many and where they are hidden. How will you know if they have all been found by the children at the end if you have not kept a record?

Use Plastic Eggs

Real eggs can get broken very easily and thus can cause a big mess. In the same way, it takes a great deal of time to cook and then dye real eggs. To cut down on the cost for the hunt, as well as to prevent messes, use plastic eggs instead. You might want to place little wrapped chocolate eggs inside each plastic egg. Make sure they are returned to you at the end of the hunt, so you can clean them up and use them again the next year.

Choose Different Colored Eggs

Be as creative and as colorful as possible! Choose an assortment of different colored eggs for the Easter egg hunt. Think pink, green, yellow, purple, orange, etc. To make the hunt fair to all of the children, you might want to use different colors for different ages. For example, pink eggs are for the four to six year olds while blue ones are for the eight to ten year olds, and so on.

Prizes

Instead of giving a prize to the child who finds the most eggs, here is another idea- put a note inside random eggs that says “Prize”. Offer an assortment of fun prizes to the children who find the winning eggs.