I seem to go in spells as to which holiday I'm eager to invest lots of energy in and this year it is Easter. I've been reading the Gospel accounts of Holy Week, poring over other books, looking online etc... to come up with a plan that is best suited for my family.
Here's what I'm planning: (note: when I say read a certain passage; we'll probably read the page that covers this from our favorite Toddler Bible)
Palm Sunday: Jesus the King
* read Matthew 21:1-11 and The Colt & The King (a gift from my aunt)
* coats on "donkey" (either daddy or our dog)
* coats/blankets on "road"
* wave palm branches (found at Hobby Lobby) and say "Hosanna!" Talk about what that means (Oh, save!)
* Sing Blessed Is He
Monday: Jesus the Servant
* read John 13
* wash feet; talk about what it means to be a servant
Tuesday: Jesus the Betrayed
* read John 18
* money bag with 30 pieces of silver
* talk about what it means to betray
Wednesday: Jesus the Deliverer
* read Exodus 6-12
* talk about fleeing from Egypt and Passover history
* perhaps older children would enjoy watching Prince of Egypt tonight
Thursday: Passover
* Seder Dinner & Passover Meal (more on this to come)
Friday: Jesus the Lamb
* read John 19
* cross on wall (Homespun Memories for the Heart recommends writing down sins on paper and nailing them to a cross! Great visual for older children.)
* hammer nails into wood
* burial in tomb
* have Hot Cross Buns
Saturday: Jesus our Savior
* read Mark 27:62-66
* guards posted at tomb, waiting
* go through basket of Easter items (more coming on this)
* Cinnamon Rolls in cross shape
Sunday: He is Risen!
* read Luke 24
* Resurrection Biscuits
* new clothes
* crocheted lamb egg cozy
* tomb is empty!
* Just before church, have each family member release a pink or purple helium balloon and sing a favorite Easter song - a great visual! (This idea is from Homespun Memories for the Heart)
* Lamb Cake for dessert (I was thinking about doing these cupcakes instead of buying a cake pan that looks terribly time consuming!)
Good sources for ideas:
Treasuring God in our Traditions by Noel Piper
Homespun Memories for the Heart by Karen Ehman, Kelly Hovermale and Trish Smith
What about bunnies, baskets and eggs? I'll be sharing how we do this at our home tomorrow! I'd love to hear what you are planning at your house!
25 comments:
Love your ideas...I just finished several of your Easter garlands which I plan to give to some ladies in my bible study. Thanks for sharing all your wonderful ideas!
I hadn't even begun to think about Easter! Thanks for the reminder. I had wanted to have a Seder also...better get planning!
Oh my goodness...I've never known anyone to go into as much detail as you. How wonderful to teach your children in a way they can understand. Thank you for the ideas, maybe I can implement some of them into our home that week.
Elise
Monica,
We used to do the Ressurection Eggs with our kids. Have you ever heard or seen that? They are older now, but we still have them. Email me if you are interested in using them.
glory2him111@gmail.com
I'm so excited about your plan. My oldest just turned 3 and I've been anticipating starting our family traditions since I read Noel Piper's book after we first got married. Oh, and I love the idea of a Seder dinner. I hope to get that into our Easter traditions. Can't wait to hear about the details!!!!
Wonderful ideas, Monica! As always, thanks for the inspiration. :)
Monica-I love your ideas & especially the Palm Sunday plans! Can't wait to read how you're planning on the Seder. We also do the resurrection eggs with our kiddos. Last year we bagan the tradition of making Easter Story Cookies the night before Easter. http://www.dltk-bible.com/recipes/easter_story_cookies.htm
My guys are little chefs & like to follow recipes. It was very hands on & involved reading the scriptures along with each part of the ingredients. I started to cry when we had to beat the pecans (symbolizing Jesus being beaten for our transgressions). It was very touching & got thru to all of us.
Great ideas. I just checked out Treasuring God in our Traditions from our church library. I am looking forward to reading it.
Thanks for the all the great ideas! I hope to be able to incorporate some of them into our Easter plans. I always feel rushed with our vacation falling right around Easter and don't have much time to come up with actvities to reflect on the meaning of Easter with my children. I really appreciate the ideas you posted. I look forward to reading more about your Seder plans. Thanks!
One of your spiritual gifts must be teaching because you are a natural! Your children are so blessed.
I'm back again, because I just had a thought. Your kids might enjoy Miss Pattycake's Easter video. It's very sweet, and tells the story of Christ's Resurrection. My favorite song on the video is called, "Jesus Said, 'Yes.'" It's about how Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. I ALWAYS tear up when I hear my kids sing along. I want them to always say, "Yes," too, no matter what the cost...just like Jesus did!
You have so many wonderful ideas! Please don't do the balloon release, however. It is very dangerous to wildlife, who often mistake fallen, limp balloons for food. Leslie in Canada
Hey Monica! YES! I am so glad you got the book. To get the lapbook, yes you have to register. It is totally free to register , and when you sign up for their free newsletter, you get weekly notices letting you know what the new freebie of the week is. Yep, a new freebie weekly! Here is the link to the lapbook...
http://www.currclick.com/product_info.php?cPath=&products_id=26913&affiliate_id=378
but do hurry, the Hidden Art Of Homemaking Lapbook is only good for one week. Next week is a totally new freebie.
I'm really looking forward to hearing about how you plan to do the seder meal with your family. For the last couple of years our family has done a seder, but I feel like we could really use some good ideas on how to make it practical, smooth, and meaningful.
Wonderful ideas of how to teach the really meaning of Easter.
I printed this post for reference. So much good information in one place! My kids love to read Benjamin's Box and play with the Resurrection eggs.
The book Homespun Memories for the Heart sounds really good. I checked my library and they do not have it. Do you think it is one that is worth buying?
Monica, I just gave "The Colt and the King" to my two year old nephew on Friday. We read it so many times over the weekend that he had the last word of EVERY sentence memorized by Sunday night. It's a great book!!!
Wonderful ideas, Monica! I too struggle with Easter being all about the Easter bunny, eggs, and candy. Last year we found--hidden deep among all the chocolate bunnies--some Christian chocolates and so gave those out. I have been straining to think this year on what to give and if I will be able to find anything. The search begins! Thank you so much for this post, Monica. :)
P.S. Are any of you old enough to remember wearing the white gloves for Easter? I would LOVE to do that again but have never run across any. Anyone know of a source?
I really enjoy your blog ... just wanted to let you know that I've linked this post over at my blog.
I don't know how to crochet but that lamb egg cozy is about the cutest little thing I've ever seen. I might have to ask my sister to make one.
You've inspired me and have got me thinking about what my husband and I can do now before kids to start Easter traditions.
I love this post! I have been looking for ideas of what we will do for our family, to celebrate passover and the resurrection of our King! Thank you for all the great ideas, I'll be using a lot of them!
Your plans for Easter week were so meaningful to me! I have incorporated some of your ideas into our Easter week...and beyond! The foot washing and idea of Jesus as Servant really hit home for my 3 Little Ones!
Thank you for posting this plan. I am going to copy much of it. I have made the resurrection cookies before and they were pretty neat. I've been hoping to have a passover seder meal in our home this year, but my husband may be out of town. Sad about that, but looking forward to celebrating Easter! Your detailed plan is going to save me much work and make it possible to teach my children more. Thank you.
Thank you! This is exactly what I was looking for this Easter 2010! My boys and I had a blas singing Blessed Is He and acting out the story. Looking forward to the rest of the week.
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