Easter treats

[susiestar]

I am a little stumped this Easter. It will be a non-traditional one for us. Jess is getting too old for the egg hunt, and thank you isn't terribly interested. If there is one someplace local he might try it, but not something he would search out.

I will do chocolate candy and some peeps (for me and for exploding). I got Jessie a teen book about a teen who is a werewolf (she loves this kind of thing) and I got thank you one of the Artemis Fowl books. He likes to have his own copy of books because he mangles them and feels bad if it is one the rest of us like to reread. He just gets so IN to the story he loves the book to bits.

I don't want to buy a bunch of trinkets that won't be used. I have a stash of stuff I collect that is for gifts. I think Jessie will get some earrings out of that and thank you may get a potato gun.

Is it typical when your kids get a bit older to get them things that don't necessarily scream EASTER, or am I being too tightwad? I don't mind getting them things, but I don't want them to be 1 day things. I want to invest the $$ on things they will actually enjoy for a while.

What do the rest of you do with older kids?

 

[house of cards]

I've cut way back on the candy this year...I get a small gift for each kid, mostly movies or music cd's, that is it.

 

[C.J.]

I don't think a gift has to scream "Easter" in order to celebrate the day. You might buy a DVD or board game that your whole family would enjoy.

My N*'s older brother was younger and was living with us, too, I'd still hide the Easter Eggs. I bought those plastic eggs that can be filled with "stuff". I'd designate which colors belonged to which kid and then hide them. I filled a few with candy, some with a dollar bill(s), but what they loved best were the gift certificates to be redeemed from me.

Ideas: 20 minute back rub, your favorite meal (on a weekend night), watch a favorite program together, skip your daily/weekly chore, extra hour for curfew (with prior approval when it would be used), game playing night, etc.

I will put out a few again for N* this Saturday - she'll be pleasantly surprised to see that I do this.

 

[Shari]

Our Easter backets grow with the kids. The fun little Easter-y things when they were little...and they grew up with them...the big boys' last baskets contained silly t-shirts (difficult child 1's had a set of flexed cartoon arms on it and said "free tickets to the gun show" - he's such a clown) and dvd's, along with a little traditional Easter candy and the obligatory chocolate bunny (which gets put in a burlap sack and smashed to smitherenes and used for chocolate bunny-chunk cookies - cause no one in my house will ever actually consume one of those things otherwise...)

 

[KTMom91]

Miss KT loves quarters...they're shiny! I plan to put several quarters along with candy in plastic eggs and put them around the living room.

 

[SRL]

I gave up last year and went to all candy. They didn't care one bit.

What my kids do like (even the teen boys) is I usually make a short scavenger hunt for their baskets. I write the clues and keep all of them together for 3-4 stops and then leave instructions for each of them at that last stop where to find theirs.

I write really bad poetry for the clues.

 

[trinityroyal]

Let's see...

Little easy child is still into some of the traditional Easter stuff, but not all of it anymore.
This year, we're decorating hard boiled eggs. (Poor husband will have awfully colourful lunches to take with him to work!)

We also got him a professional size football, a little car-and-truck set, and since he still loves stuffies, a little cuddly bunny.

difficult child is getting to spend the weekend with his Nana, which is a big treat in itself, and he's also getting a chocolate bunny.

 

[DammitJanet]

My kids loved the egg hunt up until they were adults. I actually did the egg hunt at Jamies first apartment when he was in the Marines..lol. We also hid eggs for the MP's around the gates after dark that year...it was so fun!

Now I just do baskets for the grandkids. I do get a bag of assorted candy for the adults to dig into but once you have kids, they get the fun stuff.

 

[Andy]

I love making up baskets. This year 18 yr old Diva will get a basket with prepainted finger nails, a hand held massager, a bunny holding chocolate, and a bag of jelly beans.

12 yr old difficult child will get a basket (metal pail with sports on it) with two small Lego sets (police men), a bunny holding chocolate, and a bag of jelly beans. (I suppose I better stop with the stuffed animals for difficult child now? Boys are not that into stuffed animals by 12 yrs are they?)

I like the challenge of making things similar yet age appropriate for each of them. I don't give everything that screams Easter but figure the candy on the side in a basket of grass will set the stage for the holiday.

We just got back from the cities so looks like colored eggs are out this year. I will try to get their baskets on their beds while they are sleeping. If Diva goes out tonight, I will put it in her bed for her to find when she comes home.

So, just like Valentines Day, each kid will always receive something (not much, but something) and I also like longer lasting gifts. I am very fortunate in that both kids have always liked what I got them. Easier to give to thankful kids. Once they start grumbling about not getting what they wanted, then I will stop getting them anything all together.

 

[Kjs]

My sister did something neat for her two grandkids. (6 and 3) no candy. She got them an easter basket with a little toy from the dollar store. then she hid Ten gold coins in the plastic eggs. A few others with just some small change in it. the kids filled their baskets with those and were so excited to find each egg.

 

[Hound dog]

Easter baskets stopped at age 12 for this reason. It was too hard to find cheap things to fill it that they'd like. Older kids got to enjoy candy from dishes around the house, younger kids still got baskets.

As Nana......I refuse to do anything for Easter. Grands get overloaded at home, they don't need me adding to it.

 

[compassion]

difficult child and I went to dollar store and got a bit of candy and stuffed bunnies and I got husband a mug. Picked up bunny parchuists(realized forgot to launch them and a bendable bunny taht got placed atopthe dog's head. It was fun! Compassion

 

[rejectedmom]

I buy each of my grandkids an outfit for summer. I do it at the end of the previous season on clearance and put it away in my closet. It could be their bathing suit or a sundress or shorts and a t-shirt. Ifind it really gets them looking foward to the warm weather and comming out to the beach with me. I'll also throw in a book or a coloring book depending on the child. -RM

 

[hearts and roses]

We still do baskets. When my girls move away, I will stop with them...and then when I have grandkids I will do for them.

I love doing the baskets. I put each dds' favorite candies - I usually buy things that are not ordinary, but like old tyme candy and also some of those silly toys from the toy isle at the drug store, like punching balloons, paddle ball, jacks, silly putty, etc. difficult child likes white chocolate and easy child likes traditional milk, so that's what I buy. They also love the candy coated cadbury eggs and those little egg cartons with bubble gum. That's pretty much it.

We usually STILL have an Easter Egg hunt, though this year H and I were not home and easy child was working Easter morning anyway, so that was skipped. Believe it or not, both girls were sorely disappointed we didn't have the hunt. Hahaha.