I have included so many ideas in this post regarding meaningful family traditions that bring meaning and connection to the holidays and in this case Easter.
The ideas include creative ideas to engage both younger and older kids, family and friends, many, many Easter recipes and treats, and even Easter tablescapes that include super cute bunny ear napkins and napkin rings!
Meaningful Family Traditions have always been important to me. Passing them on to my children, and sharing them with family and friends has been a passion of mine that stems from the wonderful memories and experiences of my childhood home.
My mother had always been the driving force in our family when it came to holidays and traditions. My mother was born during the Great Depression, which may be why she took every chance she could to celebrate life; and holidays were her favorite way to celebrate.
There were always tons of decorations around the house for every holiday. Holiday meals were always an event, and we all put on our Sunday best for the occasion.
It was not unusual to have families or friends eat a holiday meal with us, especially if they did not have a family close by or if they had nowhere else to go. Watching my mother reach out to neighbors and friends gave me a sense of family and community. And as a Christian, it also gave me a vision of mission.
Somewhere along the way, I realized that I wanted my children to experience the holidays and traditions of my childhood. Also, I/we wanted to incorporate some of my husband's childhood traditions as well. We wanted our children to know and understand the Christian meaning behind the holidays we celebrated.
Most of us are familiar with the meaning of Easter. It is arguably the most special holiday of all the holidays for Christians.
The meaning of Easter signifies Jesus Christ's victory over death. His resurrection was predicted in the Bible hundreds of years before and was proof of His claim to be the Messiah, the savior of the world, the son of God.
If Jesus had not risen from the dead, he would have been considered just another teacher or rabbi. Most importantly, his death was required for the forgiveness of sins, the sins of all of the entire world from the beginning of time until the end. His death brought an end to the need for animal sacrifices; because Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, the perfect sacrifice.
I have always loved Easter. Starting with the celebration of Palm Sunday- Jesus's "Triumphal Entry" into Jerusalem. I love the picture in my mind of Jesus riding on a donkey into the city as the people waved and strewn palm fronds before him shouting "Hosannas!"
Then Good Friday also known as Great Friday, or Black Friday- the day we observe Jesus's crucifixion. A very solemn time to reflect that awful day, but as the famous Shadrach Meshach Lockridge once preached...."It's Friday, but Sunday is coming!" Sunday is coming! It makes me cry just typing these words.
I will never forget a very special Good Friday when my oldest son Chris was around 11 years old. We went to the Good Friday service at our church that evening. It was a very simple service. People could come and go as they please. There was a video running that showed the events that happened before, during, and after Christ's crucifixion. The room was dark, only lit by candle glow and the light from the video screen.
My son was crying and talked to me about his feelings. He asked me to walk with him to the altar. It was on that solemn night that he gave his heart to Jesus. A very special night for so many reasons, and a memory I will never forget.
❤️ A sweet photo of my family. Starting from the left: My daughter, Victoria, my dad, my youngest son William, my nephew Connor, my niece Claire, my step-mom Janie, and my oldest son Chris.
One of my favorite pics of Chris and me.
It is May of that year....his 5th-grade graduation, a couple of months after Easter.
Because Easter is so central to why we are Christians, we did not want to make this holiday only about bunnies and Easter egg hunts...although I love those things! But I/we wanted to make it more than that; we wanted the real meaning of Easter to shine through in our traditions.
Celebrate with Activities
1. Easter Egg Hunt with a Twist
I love Easter egg hunts! Easter egg hunts are also wonderful ways to engage and celebrate with your neighbors.
In the picture to the left, Carey, The Easter Bunny, is hiding the eggs with the other dads...all wearing bunny ears! 😂
We love Easter egg hunts, and we would have one almost every year when the kids were younger. It does not have to be complicated. We would have our friends, family, and neighbors bring a dozen or two stuffed plastic eggs for the egg hunt. We would usually have the dads or the older kids hide the eggs. I love the picture of Carey above with the bunny ears. That was such a fun day. All the dads got involved!
When the dads were hiding the eggs, we would go over to my next-door neighbor's porch. It was a good location, and it was out of sight of the men hiding the Easter eggs in our backyard.
We would gather the kids up, and have them sit on the steps of my neighbor's front porch. Another parent or I would take out the Resurrection Eggs and wait until the kids were settled down.
Resurrection Eggs are from FamilyLife, and are a wonderful and creative way to teach kids about the resurrection story, and can be used for big gatherings and/or quiet settings with your own kids. See the section below for details.
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Resurrection Eggs by Family Life 🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚🥚
This is a kit that includes twelve colorful eggs which contain items that symbolize events in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
The small objects include such things as a donkey, three coins, a cup, praying hands, nails, a die, crown of thorns, etc. A booklet is included that explains how to interact with children in telling the Easter story in a really fun and interactive way.
When the kids were young, we would start about a week before Easter. We would open up one or two eggs a day, and talk about what they mean. When the kids were older, we could do all the eggs in one or two days.
And of course, we would include them in our activities if we did a neighborhood Easter egg hunt! We highly recommend Resurrection Eggs by Family life. To order Resurrection Eggs on Amazon, click here or on the highlighted title above, Or you should be able to find them at your local Christian book store.
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Children would raise their hands to pick an egg and open it up. Then we would talk about what the item inside the egg had to do with Easter. If you decide to do this with your children or at the beginning of a neighborhood Easter egg hunt, I recommend you first ask the children about the item and find out what the kids know already.
If the kids are young, be sure to keep the explanation short and simple. You don't need to open up all the eggs. A couple of times I could tell we were losing the attention of the younger children, so we stopped short.
By the time we were done talking about all twelve (or less) of the Resurrection Eggs, the men were done hiding the eggs. Then the fun would begin! If we had a large group, we would let the youngest kids get a head start. Let the egg hunt begin! Such fun and lasting memories!
Easter egg hunts through the years.......❤️💕
Okay, so I got a little carried away with the pictures! I so wanted to include more! These memories make me so happy...and kind of sad because time goes by so quickly. But one thing is for sure in our family....we are never too old for an Easter egg hunt!!
2. Going to church on Easter Morning
I know this may seem obvious, but one of the most important traditions we had and still have is going to church on Easter Sunday.
Our church would be talking about the meaning of Easter and the events that led up to it.
This helped spark many good conversations with our children. We would read these events from the Bible the week before Easter Sunday. Whatever we did during this season, we wanted to make sure we communicated to our kids why we celebrate Easter.
Many times my brother and his family will join us for Easter service, and then we have an Easter brunch followed by an egg hunt. Often, we dye eggs and make special Easter treats.
For activities and recipes for Easter Breakfast or brunch see below.
3. Dyeing Eggs and making Easter treats together
Besides having an Easter egg hunt, the kids usually dye eggs and we all make some sweet Easter treats or make an Easter craft.
Since we usually have Easter lunch at our house, my sister-in-law, Lalita, will bring a craft for the kids and sometimes the adults as well. Although these activities can be messy, they bring us together as an extended family and make such precious memories.
Here are some ideas and pictures of the activities we have done in the past:
I could not find pictures of some of the craft activities....but one year we made really cute "animals" out of ceramic eggs....thanks Lalita! They were so cute!!
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For the recipe for the Chow Mein Noodle Nests with Eggs:
1. Combine 2 cups of miniature marshmallows with 1/4 cup of butter over medium heat in a saucepan; stir until the butter and marshmallows have melted.
2. Stir in 4 cups of chow mein noodles until evenly coated. Butter your fingers and press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a muffin pan sprayed with cooking spray or greased with butter. Refrigerate until firm.
3. Add candy eggs and marshmallow peeps to the top.
For the Easter basket cupcakes:
1. Use a box mix to make the cupcakes using cute Easter baking cup liners. Frost the top of the cupcakes with canned or homemade frosting. Sprinkle green-tinted coconut on top of the cupcakes for the grass.
For the grass: Add a few drops of green food coloring and a few drops of water to a plastic resealable bag with 3 cups of coconut. Seal the bag and shake until the coconut is evenly tinted. Sprinkle over cupcakes. Or toast the tinted coconut and dry- out the coconut slightly: Spread the tinted coconut on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 5- 10 minutes until dry and lightly brown. 2. Sprinkle the tinted coconut (grass) on top of the cupcakes.
Add candied eggs or marshmallow Peeps to the top. For the handle, use shoestring licorice, licorice twists, or sour punch straws.
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4. Easter Brunch .....and Pretty Easter Tables
In the pic to the left, I made a yogurt bar, a Sheet Pan Frittata, and a Sheet Pan Pancake for an easy brunch.
For more ideas, see the recipes below.
Easy Yogurt Bar
Arrange glasses on the top of a tiered container. Arrange different yogurts, berries, granola, and other fixings on the other tiers.
Sheet Pan Pancake by the Pioneer Woman
So quick and easy, you will never make pancakes on the stove again.! Click on the highlighted title for the recipe.
This is an all-time favorite for many people. Healthy and so easy to make for a crowd.
Click on the highlighted title above for the recipe.
Easter brunch with our family is one of my favorite things to do. Sometimes we go out to eat and sometimes I cook the Easter Brunch, and friends and relatives bring a dish as well.
My favorite Easter Dishes
My favorite Easter recipes are below. We sometimes will eat an Easter breakfast if we go to an alternate service for Easter on Sunday night. Otherwise, we snack for breakfast and save our appetites for Brunch. To get the recipes, click on the highlighted titles below.
Favorite Easter Breakfast
Beautiful and so easy, you can mix this pancake up in the blender and leave in the refrigerator overnight.
Put in a hot oven in a cast iron skillet in the morning, and 18 minutes later, voila! You have a beautiful pancake!
Make 2 for the whole family1
This Puffy Egg Omelet is an elegant and healthy breakfast.
It is a little sweet, and also light and fluffy.
A perfect light breakfast to eat on Easter morning.
Egg in a hole is a hit with both kids and adults alike! Cute cut-out bunnies, chicks, and eggs will make your kids smile. And it's a pretty healthy breakfast too!
These Spicy eggs are easy to make for a family or even a house full of guests.
These eggs are nutritious as well and are great for your family or guests who are watching their waistline.
Great for a small family or even a crowd. Make a giant pan of 6-10 eggs, and breakfast in done in a flash!
Elegant, savory, and delicious.
These eggs feed a crowd and are easy and fast to make. ❤️
Similar preparation to the spicy eggs above, but with a more mild creamy flavor.
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Favorite Easter Brunch
Lamb is always a must at our Easter table! I also buy a Glazed Ham for those who don't like lamb, and the guests and relatives bring the other side dishes.
Occasionally I will do something not so traditional like Standing Rib Roast and Carrots.
It is a fabulous dish and great for crowd. Another favorite is Roasted Beef Tenderloin; elegant, fast, and delicious!
Here are some of the Recipes Below: (click on the highlighted title to get the recipe.)
This has become one of my favorite dishes for Easter or any day!
Make one rack for a small group of four, or two or three racks for a crowd. The rack of lamb cooks in about 20 minutes for a fast and elegant Easter meal! *For the recipe, click on the highlighted title above the picture.
This is truly my favorite Easter/holiday side dish.
These carrots are both savory and sweet, my favorite combination!
The added brandy and mint just send this dish over the top, and pairs perfectly with lamb!
*For the recipe, click on the highlighted title above the picture.
Super Easy Lipton Onion-Roasted Potatoes (See recipe below)
So yummy, your guests will never know they are so easy to prepare!
Follow the recipe on the package. To make it even easier, I use canned whole New potatoes.
Follow the recipe on the package. Use whole canned new potatoes to save time. Mix all ingredients in a baking dish, and then bake according to the directions. So yummy, no one will know you used canned potatoes...I promise!
Grilled Lamb Chops with Mint
If the weather is nice, Grilled Lamp Chops would make a perfect casual Easter Brunch on the deck. Brunch can be followed by a fun family Easter egg hunt. 🐣
Recipe for Grilled Lamb Chops:
Let lamb chops come to room temperature. Read over tips on how to prepare lamb from the Rack of Lamb recipe above. Season chops, and or add a rub.
Heat a grill pan or a grill to medium-high heat. Sear the chops for approximately 3 minutes and flip the chops over and cook for another 2 minutes for medium-rare, or 3-4 minutes for medium. Add a Chimichurri sauce or mint pesto sauce. See the lamb recipe above for 2 different sauces.
*Press on the highlighted links for the recipes!
This is a fast and easy recipe that looks fabulous and tastes even better!
Beef tenderloin is the cut of meat ordered in a restaurant called Filet Mignon.
This cut of meat comes from the most tender part of the cow. The taste is tender and buttery...simply out of this world!
To save time and energy have the butcher trim the beef tenderloin for you. I've included a link below from the Pioneer Woman that shows you easy step-by-step directions.
Roasted Beef Tenderloin is a fabulous meal for your meat lovers!
*For the recipe, click on the highlighted title above the picture, or directly above.
So Beautiful and delicious, but not so bad on your waistline! This is the perfect Easter cake!
Nest Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache and Pretty Chocolate Eggs
For the recipe: Use a chocolate cake mix and follow directions for a Bundt cake. Pour a chocolate ganache over the cake. Add sprinkles and chocolate eggs to decorate.
For the chocolate ganache recipe, go to The Best Chocolate Truffles recipe, and follow up to step number 5. Pour the warm ganache over the cake. 
I love carrot cake and so does my mother-in-law, Barbara. One time close to her birthday, I brought this carrot cake to the Cracker Barrel in Texas where we met them and some cousins.
I think carrot cake is a perfect Easter dessert. This is a homemade cake, no box mix! I like this cake because there is no fuss in messing with layers since it is a Bundt cake.
It also travels well! It is hard to see the cake clearly in the pictures above, but it is a really pretty Bundt cake.
This recipe is from The Pioneer Woman. I hope you love this Easy Bundt Carrot Cake Recipe from the Pioneer Woman...we sure do!
*For the recipe, click on the highlighted title above the picture, or directly above.
5. Pretty Easter Table
I love a pretty table setting with attention to the details. Bunny-ear napkins are a cute addition to any table and can be folded with most cloth napkins. I like to put chargers under my plates unless I have a really crowded table.
How to Fold Bunny Ear Napkins:
1. Use a square or squarish napkin and fold the corners together like below.
2. Roll-up the bottom once by approximately one inch or so. Press with an iron if needed to stay in place.
3. Roll one or two more times, depending on the size of your napkin. Press if needed.
4. Fold one side over like the picture below. Repeat with the other side.
5. Turn the napkin over and adjust as needed.
Chargers take up table space but they do add something extra. I have gold, silver, and Rattan plate chargers. Above, I put a cute old-fashioned Easter box a small chocolate bunny at each place setting.
The Table below is a little more formal with napkins under the plate, white china, and cute "old-fashioned" Easter boxes filled with chocolates on top of each place setting.
The table above has cute napkin-holders with bunny ears that can double as a placeholder. The rings are metal, so I wrote the names on the ears with a dry erase marker. Wipe them off with water or cleaner when done. I also put cute carrot poppers/crackers at each place setting. When you pop then open, each person will find a surprise. I purchased both the napkins rings and the poppers at The Fresh Market.
I always have candles on my table, real or fake, I love the soft glow of candlelight.
For more ideas on your holiday table including how to set a proper table, go to my blog post below, Your Holiday Table...Tips, Tricks, and Ideas For a Meaningful and Beautiful Table Scape.
I hope you have enjoyed this blog post and have been inspired in some way. May you have a blessed Easter, and enjoy this time with your family and friends.
Cupcake was not happy with her bunny ears! We miss this sweet girl. ❤️
On Easter morning, a tradition from my childhood includes a greeting as follows,
"He has Risen!"
The other person is to respond:
"He has Risen Indeed!" ❤️
Many churches have this tradition as well. Looking forward to celebrating all that is Easter, especially my Savior who has risen indeed! He is the reason for the season!
Thank you so much Leah!❤️
Well Penny, I think you covered every aspect of Easter in this post !!! Absolutely amazing ideas. One of my favorite is the resurrection eggs. I may have to wait until grand kids, but definitely incorporating these ideas !!!