Cool Ideas for Easter (that aren’t chocolate)

This ancient pagan celebration has somehow turned into a commercialised chocolate-fest!

The pressure is on parents to make Easter another Christmas but with copious amounts of cheap, nasty chocolate. It’s easy for kids to get caught up the hype.

Okay, so how do you participate in Easter, enjoy some chocolate and not be a party-pooper?

My tips are to go back to basics.

Create family traditions based around making Easter treats together (homemade hot cross buns and Easter eggs are really not too hard to do!) You can put a limit on treats or let the grandparents supply the chocolate while you get the kids something else for their Easter basket.

When it comes to chocolate, buy smaller amounts of good quality, fair-trade chocolate and really savour it.

Here are some more ideas and alternatives for you.

♥ Bamboo Easter Signs

These bamboo signs are hand made in Melbourne and start at just $15.00 You can get a generic one or get it personalised with your kids’ or family name! Check it out here.

♥ Recycled Sari Easter Basket

At just $9.95, this gorgeous Easter basket is made from recycled saris and ethically made in Bangladesh. I want one of these for myself. Just adorable! Get it here.

♥ Terracotta Bunny Lantern

Perfect for the person in your life who doesn’t want chocolate for Easter but you still don’t want them feeling left out. It makes a gorgeous decoration for the house at Easter as well. Get it online here.

♥ Organic Crochet Bunny

Beautifully hand-made in Australia using organic cotton, you can get one of these adorable bunnies here.

♥ Wooden Counting Rabbits

This set of eco-friendly counting rabbits with carrots can be used as a puzzle or free play. Totally safe for kids with non-toxic paints and plantation timber.

Get it online here.

♥ BBYO Bunni Water Bottle

For those too old (or cool) for toys, this Bunni water bottle is super cute. The bottle has no plastic at all and is heat resistant so you can use if for water or hot drinks! Get it here.

♥ Oxfam Unwrapped

Gift some chickens or a goat or a myriad of other life saving things to those in need. Check out Oxfam Unwrapped here.

♥ Gingerbread Bunnies!

I am such a fan of Gingerbread Folk’s products. They are handmade in the Blue Mountains and contain no artificial nasties. The bunnies are wrapped individually in compostable packaging and perfect for baskets or for hunting! Get them online here.

♥ Healthy Marshmallows

The very clever Jo Whitton from Quirky Cooking has just come out with this yummy, all natural, honey-sweetened marshmallow recipe just in time for Easter. It’s so easy to make and relatively inexpensive too. Try out some different flavourings and have fun! Get the recipe here.

♥ Naturally Dyed Easter Eggs

A really fun project to do with the kids is dyed eggs. Using natural ingredients like turmeric and beetroot, Mommypotamus shows you step by step how to do it. Read more here.

♥ Cute Eco Easter Bags!

Super easy, eco-friendly and really, really cute. A great way to share your homemade treats. Find the tutorial here.

♥ You might also like to read:

Healthy Homemade Easter Eggs

Your complete guide to a Healthy Easter

Healthy Hot Cross Buns

Healthy Easter Ideas

Your complete guide to a healthy Easter

Easter is early this year!

One thing I have noticed you all chatting about is how overwhelming all the chocolate is at Easter time. Well-meaning friends and family love to spoil our kids and it can all get a little crazy. It’s worthwhile establishing some boundaries around this if you feel uncomfortable. One of our gorgeous mums made a cute graphic saying ‘thank you but no gifts for Easter’ and shared it amongst her family and friends. Great idea!

There is also a huge amount of horrible chocolate out there – full of nasty additives, palm oil and fillers and produced in an unethical way. My thoughts are always quality over quantity! Get some really good, quality chocolate and just have a little amount. The same goes for hot cross buns – make them yourself with high quality ingredients and you will be less inclined to eat dozens of yucky supermarket ones.

Here are my top picks for Easter this year…..

♥ Healthier Chocolate

If you are after healthier or allergy friendly Easter Eggs and chocolate, check out the range at Biome.

I always recommend you look out for chocolate that is fair trade and free of palm oil. Unfortunately, chocolate production comes with issues such as deforestation, environmental pollution, child slave labour and unethical payment of workers. It pays to know where your chocolate is coming from and how it is produced.

♥ Cute Ideas for Easter Baskets

♥ I love the chocolate gingerbread bunny biscuits from Gingerbread Folk. They are individually wrapped so perfect for the Easter Egg Hunt too.

♥ Add in a cute bunny toothbrush to help get rid of all that sugar off the teeth! Find them here.

♥ I always used to include a book at Easter time when my kids were small! Check out the beautiful selection of Easter themed books here.

Homemade Chocolate, Buns and Bums.

♥ Special Easter Baking Pack. Cyndi at Changing Habits has put together an Easter baking pack filled with organic, whole foods that you can use to create your own healthy Easter Treats. She has also thrown in some freebies!! Woohoo. Check it out here.

♥ The BEST healthy hot cross bun recipes to suit any diet can be found here.

♥ Dairy Free Chocolate Cream Easter Eggs from Lisa at Happy Tummies.

♥ Paleo Creme Eggs from Hold the Grain.

♥ Bunny Butt Pancakes from Edible Life in YYC. Use a healthy pancake recipe like one of these.

♥ Sugar Free Easter Chocolates from Becomingness.

I would love to know what ideas and recipes you have lined up for a healthy Easter! Share with us!