Posts tagged #easter eggs

Do-It-Yourself Easter Tradition!

Mommy, is it time to bring out the colored eggs?

Are we finally 12 days away from Easter?

Is it my turn to open the egg tonight?

When my kids were little, we started the tradition of the Resurrection Eggs.  I made our little colored egg set and it has lasted all these years.  As I look back on different family traditions we have adopted, I think counting down to a holiday has always been a favorite.  My kids enjoyed doing something every day.  I love these eggs that no only are fun, but also build faith and wisdom into my kids’ lives.

Creating a sense of heritage and expectancy, we open a different egg each day. I have also heard of families doing all the eggs at once. Inside each egg, a surprise object and corresponding verse tells the Easter story.  Each day builds up to Jesus’ death and resurrection while giving tangible items for my kids to remember. Many of these years, I had a stack of great Easter books to read, one a day, counting down to Easter.  Of course, we ate chocolate, too.

Since many of you who read this blog have little princesses and knights, I thought I would give you the plan to make your own Resurrection Eggs.  They have been around for many years.  In fact, you can even purchase a set from Family Life.

Whether you make them or purchase them, my hope is you will start this new tradition this year.  You can make them or order them this week and be ready to start on March 16th - twelve days before Easter.  They are easy to make and not expensive.  I hope you will enjoy this craft that will give you years of enjoyable memories, as it has in our family.

Making Resurrection Eggs

To make the Resurrection Egg set, you will need an empty egg carton,12 plastic eggs (different colors, if possible), and 11 story starters with verses (shown below).  First, number your eggs 1-12.  Then place the story starters in each egg that corresponds to the number. Copy off the verse and put inside the egg, too.

 

(1) Jesus enters on a donkey - a small plastic branch or leaf

   Matthew 21:1-11; Zechariah 9:9

 

 

 

 

 

 

(2) Judas betrays Jesus - a dime

Matthew 26: 14-16; 47-50, 27:3-4; Zechariah 11:12-13; Psalm 41-9

 

(3) Jesus eats the last supper and washes the disciples' feet -small bite size saltines sealed with shellac and small cloth or soap

John 13:3-17; Mark 14:22-26

 

 

(4) Garden of Gethsemane - a small plastic cup or let children form small cups from clay

Mark 14: 32 – 41; Luke 22: 39-46

 

 

(5) Jesus is arrested and goes before the Sanhedrin – piece of twine

Mark 14:43 – 64

 

 

 

(6) Peter denies Christ – a rooster (can be paper copy)

Luke 22:33-34; Luke 22; 54-62

 

 

(7) Soldiers mock Jesus and he is sentenced to death - a small thorn or piece of a small rose bush stem/ I made a sign “King of the Jews”

John 19:1-16

 

 

(8) Crucifixion of Jesus - hot glue two small twigs together to make a cross that will fit into the egg or a nail, and a die (for the soldiers casting lots)

John 19: 16 – 24

 

 

(9) Death of Jesus – small sponge

Matt. 27: 45-56; Psalm 69: 21

 

 

(10) Burial of Jesus – a small piece of linen cloth or gauze and a spice (piece of vanilla bean) 

John 19: 38-42

 

 

 

(11) The Tomb-a stone (you can purchase pretty ones in bags in the craft section of stores) and paint the egg black 

Matt. 27:62 - 66

 

 

(12) He is RISEN!  leave this egg empty

Matthew 28:1-10; Psalm 16:8-11

 

 

 

Creating an Easter Book basket

Reading books along with opening the eggs is a wonderful tradition to start.  We do a similar practice at Christmastime.  If you don’t have any Easter books, I would suggest ordering a few this year and adding to your collection each Easter.  You also can fill in your collection with books from the library.  Here are a few classic Easter books to review.

The Easter Story by Patricia Pingry

The Legend of the Easter Egg by Lori Walburg

The Easter Egg by Jan Brett      

The Country Bunny by Dubose Heyward

P. Zonka Lays an Egg by Julie Paschkis

The Tale of Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt

Easter in the Garden by Pamela Kennedy

The Flowering Cross by Beth Ryan

Benjamin’s Box: The Story of the Resurrection Eggs by Melody Carlson

Of course, we would love for you to add our book, A Royal Easter Story, into your collection as you create wonderful family traditions to celebrate our Lord and Savior. 

What traditions do you keep and enjoy this Easter season?

~Jeanna Young

When Jeanna is not writing, speaking, event planning, or homeschooling, she can be found scrapbooking her life, redecorating her home, loving on her husband, planning fun events for her kids or eating healthy to stay cancer-free!

Posted on March 10, 2016 and filed under Parenthood.

Easter Eggs: History and Faith Lessons

Growing up, I was always told Easter traditions began in the depth of pagan rituals.  So when I became a Christian, I shied away from certain holiday festivities.  Now as a mom, I have begun to come back to many of these “fun” traditions to take a close look for myself.  I have been pleasantly surprised at the history of many traditions.

With Easter quickly approaching, Jackie and I are taking a couple of traditions and exploring their roots and meanings.  We are so excited about Easter ourselves with the release of our new book, A Royal Easter Story.  The book has Easter eggs throughout the story and we did it on purpose! 

I have a new appreciation for all things commercially Easter.  You see, if our nation didn’t have these traditions to experience, they would not celebrate Easter.  They just would not do it!  Similar to Santa Claus, the Easter bunny and all the trimmings allow us to invite friends to Easter service and talk about Easter freely in our community during this time of year.  Saying, “He is Risen!” to the grocery clerk is not as crazy as it would be any other time of year.  For that reason, I think God looks down upon many of these traditions (although not in the Bible) and smiles!

Eggs were the symbol of new life before Christ’s crucifixion. Eggs are God’s creation and they do carry new life, regardless of who claims the symbol. When Christians began celebrating Lent in the year 330, they fasted for 40 days prior to Easter.  They abstained from all meat . . . including eggs.  Once the 40 day fast was over, they had an abundance of eggs to consume.  Breaking the fast on Easter morning, lent itself to eating eggs, which quickly became tradition.  In Jewish Seder Passovers, a hard boiled egg is also part of the meal.

Various traditions are associated with the dying of Easter eggs. An ancient story tells of Mary Magdalene being summoned by Emperor Tiberius where she explains Christ had been resurrected. The doubtful Caesar pointed to an egg and exclaimed, "Christ has not risen, no more than that egg is red"—after which the egg in question miraculously turned blood-red. One Eastern Orthodox myth presents either Mary Magdalene or Mary, the mother of Jesus, placing a basket of eggs under the cross. The blood of Christ fell on the eggs, turning them red. According to another tale, Simon of Cyrene was an egg merchant who had to leave his basket of eggs to help Jesus carry the cross. When he returned, he found that his eggs had changed color!

Eggs can be used to teach faith to your kids this Easter.  You may dye them, hide them, fill them, roll them or eat them! Your traditions are as personal as your family heritage is to you.  There is a quick faith lesson you can share with your children of any age. An egg’s hard shell can represents Jesus’ sealed tomb, and cracking the shell symbolizes His Resurrection. Eggs, which often remind people of new life because some creatures are born from them, reminded early Christians that Jesus is the true source of new life spiritually. 

Deepening the symbolism for your children you may choose a couple of ways to demonstrate this to your children. 

Egg knocking

This two-player game is messy, but does bring the point home.  Each player takes their egg and knocks it against his or her partner’s saying “Christ is Risen”. The one whose intact egg breaks open the other egg is considered the winner, and the broken egg is symbolic of Jesus’ empty tomb on Easter morning. You can do this with each family member until there is a “winner”.

Egg rolling

The tradition of rolling Easter eggs down hills began centuries ago in Europe as a way for children to celebrate how the stone that had sealed Jesus’ tomb rolled away on the day of His Resurrection. In the 1800s, one of the world’s most famous Easter egg rolls began: the one on the White House lawn (which first took place on the U.S. Capitol lawn), where children gather on the Monday after Easter to roll Easter eggs across the grass with spoons. Your family may choose to participate in a community egg roll if there’s one in your local area, or hold your own.

Easter egg trees

Decorating our dining table is the hollow eggs that hang from our egg tree.  This Easter tree represent Jesus’ tomb, which became empty (hollow) on the first Easter after his Resurrection. I brought this tradition back from Germany in my college years. It recently has become more popular in the United States, but is a centuries old tradition in Europe. You and your children can create an Easter egg tree by making small holes with a knife or needle at the top and bottom of uncooked eggs to blow or drain out the yolk and white parts inside, then putting either ribbons or hooks through the top holes to attach the hollow eggs to the branches of a tree. If you’re short on time, you can substitute modern plastic Easter egg ornaments that are as easy to decorate with as Christmas tree ornaments. The tree you choose to decorate may either be a live one that’s growing outdoors, or a craft tree that is small enough to fit indoors.

No matter what you choose to do this Easter, I hope you are able to incorporate the faith lesson of Easter eggs with goal to appreciate Jesus’ resurrection better and add a bit of fun for the kids!

~Jeanna Young

When Jeanna is not writing, speaking, event planning, or homeschooling, she can be found scrapbooking her life, redecorating her home, loving on her husband, planning fun events for her kids or eating healthy to stay cancer-free!