There are so many glorious reasons to love Easter, but one problem is all that flippin’ sugar. It’s a well known fact that on Easter a single child can consume 100 pounds of sugar. (In my youth, it was the one day when candy and soda flowed freely; it fueled our epic orchard Easter egg hunts and hours on the trampoline afterward.) If you don’t have an orchard and trampoline to burn off all that sugar or if you prefer fewer sugar crash-induced trantrums and less worrying about cavities, here are some alternatives:
Exhibit One: Confetti-Filled Eggs (a long-standing Sanchez Family tradition)
Consume many omelets for months leading up to Easter or make a dozen angel food cakes the week before (poke a button-sized hole in egg to shake out contents), rinse and dry, dye, let dry, fill halfway with confetti, tape or glue shut with tissue paper, hide said eggs, find them, crack them on unsuspecting children’s and adults’ heads alike, erupt in laughter. (Time crunched? Pick up a few dozen from Wal-Mart.)
Exhibit Two: Reusable Plastic Eggs Exchanged for Prizes (my sister Olivia is trying this out for the first time this year so we’ll let you know how it goes)
Buy (and keep for next year) plastic eggs, hide said eggs, have children find them, set up table for children to exchange eggs for small prizes like noisy putty, slap bracelets, bouncy balls, etc., revel in self-satisfaction as kids play. (Or type out silly “fortunes” and jokes and stuff them into the eggs.) I say collect some of those crazy prizes and reuse them next year. Seriously, I’d love to see any of the littlest kids remember that they already played with them.
Exhibit Three: Marshmallow Guns (a Suarez Family tradition)
Construct marshmallow guns using PVC (look here and here), strategically distribute said guns, load with mini marshmallows, shoot each other (but careful not to poke out an eye), pretend to be mad when you’re hit, get even, then everybody laughs.
Exhibit Four: Camouflage Plastic Eggs!
That’s right, they are camouflaged to look like rocks, grass, and other natural surroundings. This is the perfect remedy for making the hunt a little harder if your children are getting older. This year my son is into Legos, so we have filled them with Lego figurines, dollar bills and left over change. I try not to buy candy because Grandma and Grandpa give him his fill of it and our Dentist (my brother in law won’t be to happy with me). These are also very durable and re-usable. This is the second year we will have used them.
What candy alternatives do you use?
Happy Easter!
~S&R
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!UPDATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Looking for another day to use your children’s Easter baskets? I have found some community events around town that offer some fun Easter happenings on Saturday, April 23.
Rio Rancho Egg hunt (Free)
Where: Haynes Park, 2006 Grande Blvd., across form Intel on 528.
When: 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, April 2
Community Easter Egg Hunt Rio Rancho (Proceeds benefit victims of domestic violence.)
When: 11 a.m. – 1 p.m., Saturday, April 23
Where: King Park in Northern Meadows, 3601 King Blvd. NE, Rio Rancho
What: Food, games, bouncers, the Easter bunny and an egg hunt.
Lobo Letterman Easter Egg hunt (Free)
The UNM Student Lettermen will have their annual Easter egg hunt at the campus duckpond.
When: 9 a.m. Saturday, April 23
Where: UNM Duck Pond
Los Ranchos Egg Hunt (Free)
When: 10 a.m. Saturday, April 23
Where: Hartnett Park (The corner of Rio Grande and Chavez Road)
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