Jesus and Easter

Easter is coming up fast! It is at the end of March this year, so we have a little over a month. I have started making Easter plans. (Look at me, actually getting things done before the week of the holiday!) So here is our plans:

Traditions We are Starting:

Eggs: As I have mentioned before, I have begun looking at Easter traditions and their origins. The egg is meant to symbolize new life. The shell symbolizes the tomb and the cracking of the egg represents the resurrection. This year, we will be making pace eggs the color red, to symbolize the blood of Jesus. You make them basically by boiling eggs wrapped in red onion skins. There are several ways to naturally dye your eggs with items around the house. We may try more colors next year, but we will see how this goes first.

Easter Foods: Easter basket was originally filled with foods and brought into the church. Instead, we will fill her basket with foods and have a family dinner on Good Friday with some traditional foods. Since breads play an important roll in traditional Eater foods, we will be making Resurrection Rolls and possibly Hot Cross Buns. I am not sure what else, because we are not huge fans of lamb, which is the traditional Eater meat. Maybe Jessie will catch a turkey this year! :)

Baskets: Speaking of baskets, we will be making Sam an Eater basket just for fun. More like a Spring gift if anything, because we generally fill it with educational materials she can use in the springtime. This year we will be filling it with outside toys! (Sam does not have many outside toys because we never really had a big yard. She has a bike, and then some toys for the beach, and that is it. So I need some ideas for CHEAP, SMALL items to put in her basket so she can play outside here.) We considered a sand and water table as a big gift, not just for Easter, but for just as a new toy. They are pricey and she is getting a bit older, so we may only do that if I get pregnant in the next few months, so the new baby can use it later on. We will also get her a pool this year. But I am getting off track...

Misc: We will also make another chain with the story of Eater written on it through pieces of scripture. Sam enjoyed the chain we made for Christmas and she learned a lot from it. She was always excited to see what the next verse was, so I think she will enjoy making an Easter one too. And since Sam is getting so well at cutting, she will be able to help me make this chain.

We will also use the Resurrection Eggs again this year. They are great at explaining the story using Bible verses and by giving the children something to touch and look at so they can connect everything. 

We will do an egg hunt or just Sam the Monday before. (Although, we have not decided if we will continue our tradition of doing it at the Battle Field because of the significance it holds for us or use our yard this year.) We will use the pace eggs during her egg hunt. I am not sure if we will use plastic too or just stick to the older traditions for her egg hunt and let her do the plastic eggs for her hunt at my Nana's. We will probably have our traditional Easter foods on Good Friday. And then on Easter Sunday we will have church. (I am sure I won't be speaking anywhere that Sunday...At least I hope.) And then we will go to my Grandparents' and spend some time with them, have a cookout, and Sam will do another egg hunt with Brennon.

Also, side note, Spring is commonly associated with fertility...So maybe Springtime will be good to us. :) Ha Ha Ha.