Easter Traditions

Happy Spring and Easter!

Here is a glimpse into some of our favorite Easter traditions so far. 

First of all, BOOKS. We read through lots of books during the month leading up to Easter and here are some of our favorite read alouds for 2-6 year olds. We put all of our books in our purple Easter basket and there they sit for easy grabbing and frequent reading! 

Hymns. Through the year we do hymn study, but during the month leading up to Easter we do a few that are specific to the cross or the resurrection. Last year we did "Jesus Paid it All", and "Up from the Grave He Arose" and this year we did, "Were You There?" and "Up from the Grave." Our hymn last month was "Nothing But the Blood" so that ushered in the Easter season well also. 

Easter Egg Hunts. We've done community egg hunts, which are a little chaotic for me to be honest. We've also done some fun friend egg hunts, which are my favorite. We didn't do one this year, but hope to make it a tradition with friends and neighbors. 

During the week leading up to Easter we read through the biblical accounts of Holy Week starting with Palm Sunday. My favorite story Bible to use is the Catherine Vos Children's Story Bible, but we also use the Jesus Storybook Bible. We have a few favorite videos we watch as well, such as Buck Denver What's in the Bible Volume 10, and the Read and Share Bible Easter DVD. 

On Good Friday we make a resurrection garden. We usually build a "tomb" out of duplo blocks and lay a figure in the tomb wrapped in linen (er...kleenex). We find weeds and grass from our yard to decorate the garden. 

In the past we've gone to a Good Friday service but I think this year we will do a family Good Friday service at home with Bible reading, hymns, prayer, and watching one of their Easter videos. Either way, we do some sort of a worship time on Good Friday evening, either at home or at a church. 

On the Saturday before Easter we color eggs and decorate them! We usually listen to a wonderful Spotify Easter playlist and just enjoy some fun family time making beautiful eggs. 

When the kids wake up on Easter morning they find that our resurrection garden has been transformed. The droopy and dying weeds have been "transformed" into beautiful flowers, symbolizing new life. Also, the figurine is gone and the tomb is empty. Up from the Grave He Arose!

On Easter morning we do a family Easter egg hunt where we hunt for the eggs we colored the day before, as well as our Resurrection Eggs. We use one of our companion books to tell the story of the resurrection through the resurrection eggs, Benjamin's Box or Lily's Easter Party. We will then have a bigger than normal breakfast and hopefully read through the Easter Story from a story bible and maybe another book depending on the kiddos attention span. 

Then it's off to church to celebrate our Risen Savior with our church family, and then usually a supper and one more egg hunt with grandparents and extended family. 

None of these traditions are original to me, so feel free to copy any that you like. I pray they enrich your holiday season celebrating the Risen Lord with your family. Treasuring God in our Traditions by Noel Piper has been an especially helpful resource for me. 

Happy Easter. He is Risen!