Celebrating Easter with an Easter Egg Hunt and fun Easter activities such as coloring eggs is a huge tradition in our family. In the morning, we enjoy all the activities. In the afternoon we eat a delicious, family meal with everyone gathered around the table.

Here’s a list of my family’s top 5 favorite Easter activities:

#1. The Easter Egg Hunt! We use plastic eggs and fill them with money! Yes, money! Quarters, dimes, silver dollars, and dollar bills. The oldest family members usually hide the eggs. Everyone (including adults) scrambles around to get as many eggs as possible. We usually pool the money at the end so no one feels left out and everyone wins.

#2. Dye-ing For Eggs. This tried-and-true tradition is essential at Easter time. First, hard-boil enough eggs so that everyone gets 1 egg to eat + 2 extra eggs for the race. Buy different colors of food coloring. Mix ½ cup water, 1 Tbsp vinegar, & 20 drops of 1 food color into a coffee cup. Use a different coffee cup for each color. Carefully place the egg into the cup. Use a spoon to remove it after it reaches the desired shade of color. Place the egg in an egg holder or on a paper towel to dry. You can use crayons to color designs on the eggs after they have dried. If you want to write on the egg before dropping it into the color mix, you can use a crayon, too, and the food color won’t cover that part of the egg. White crayons work well for this.

#3. Egg-y Relay Race: Make 2 teams. Have a relay race placing a colored egg on a spoon. Each person must run to one end of the yard and back holding the spoon with the egg. If the egg falls off the spoon, the person has to start all over again before handing the spoon off to the next person in line. The last person on the team to return to the finish line first wins the relay race for that team.

#4. Egg Bash: Give each person their colored egg. Two people hold their eggs towards one another with the pointy end facing the other person. Both people tap one another’s egg. Whoever‘s egg cracks is out. Continue to tap one another’s egg until only one person’s egg remains in-tact. This person is the winner! And everyone gets to eat their own egg.

#5. Hunt-O-Basket.  The last big search is for the giant treasure basket! My family always fills a huge basket full of arts & crafts. At the end of the day, we have a treasure hunt to find the hidden basket and all the kids share what’s inside. You can make the hunt extra fun by adding clues at 3-4 different locations which will lead the hunters to the ultimate treasure basket.

I hope you and your family have an exciting Easter like us. What are your plans and/or traditions?

By Sarah Koszyk, MA, RDN