Healthy Easter Baskets - Hop, Hop, Hooray!

Though my Mr and I have always loved the tradition of hunting for Easter baskets and eggs on Easter morning, we feel that our littles can do without all the sugar that generally comes inside of them.

"Hmmm...What do you think they're gonna fill us with this year?"

It is our belief that Easter baskets don't have to be filled with chocolate bunnies, jelly beans, and Peeps in order to enchant and enamor little ones. So, for the last few years we have put together "healthy" Easter eggs and baskets.

Here is a list of ideas for a fun filled basket of goodies without the tummy ache.

Snack/Treat Ideas:

• Yogurt/chocolate covered raisins
• Annie's snack-mix (Baked Cheddar Crackers, Buttery Rich Crackers, and Pretzels shaped like bunnies!)
• Annie's Chocolate bunnies
• Annie's Fruit Snacks (Hop Hop Hooray! They're organic!)
• Trail mix with a few jellybeans thrown in
• Dried Fruit (Craisins, pineapples, mangoes, apples, apricots, dates, etc...Note: be sure to read the labels! Dried fruit can sometimes have as much sugar as candy and contain icky preservatives and artificial colors and flavors. If you can't find anything healthy where you usually shop, try Trader Joe's or your local co-op)
• Fresh Fruit
• Fruit Leathers (again, check Trader Joe's or your local co-op)
• Granola Bars
• Stove-top popped corn
• Homemade bread (shaped)
• Homemade carrot muffins 

Try them! You're gonna LOVE them!

Non-Food Ideas:

• Tooth brushes and toothpaste (we try to change out our toothbrushes every 3 months so Easter, Summer, Back-to-School, and Christmas work out really well) 
• Religious Stickers
• Religious Temporary Tattoos
• Icons (We're actually making our own...we will purchase icon holy cards of each of our children's patron saints, cut a small piece of pine and stain it, glue the card to the wood, and finished it with a thin layer of polyurethane. I'll post a tutorial when we're all done)
• Books (For our nearly 2 and nearly 3 we purchased picture books by Tomie DePaola that had characters/saints with the same names as our boys)
• Seed Packets (to plant together later)
• Bubbles
• Sidewalk Chalk
• Art and Craft Supplies
  
• Play-Doh
• Matchbox Cars
• Safari Ltd. Toobs (Our littles just LOVE the sets we've given them so far, and WE love the way they role play with all the little people and animals and the way these toys help to expand their imaginations)

Safari Ltd. Toobs - hand painted animals and figurines...can you imagine the delight on your child's face when they open an egg with one or two of these little guys inside?

 

This is our boy's favorite set so far.

This year, our two exceptions to "healthy" will be a couple of these...

This little toy is so fun! It's a wind up chicken that waddles around and lays bubblegum eggs!

and of course...Easter just isn't Easter without a couple of these...

I like to eat mine with a spoon!