Posted by Lori Zanteson on Apr.10, 2009

©iStockphoto.com - jhorrocks

Spring is a time when we celebrate new life, rebirth, and the rejuvenation of the Earth. Rejuvenate the way your family celebrates Easter this year by coloring it green.

Rather than give in to the plush and plastic retail push, embrace tradition. With tradition comes simplicity. Nothing brings back childhood memories like coloring Easter Eggs with your family. This year, give natural dyes a try for a new spin. Involve the kids in the process and avoid the toxins from food coloring that inevitably leak into the egg white.

Ask your kids to think of foods, drinks, and flowers that will produce Easter Egg colors. Then, follow up with a quick internet search for dyes from common ingredients such as purple grape juice to make lavender or spinach leaves to make green. The process is as easy as boiling raw eggs with water, a teaspoon of vinegar, and fresh or frozen ingredients for about 15 minutes. If desired, colors will deepen if eggs sit longer, even refrigerated overnight.

In addition, there are all kinds of ways to jazz up natural dye effects like wrapping them in rubber bands for tie-dye eggs, drawing or writing on them with a wax pencil or crayon, or dabbing just-colored eggs with a sponge for texture.

Surely the Easter Bunny prefers the hard-boiled works of art to molded plastic. Humor him and bring back this childhood tradition that’s fun beyond the great hunt. Celebrate spring in the tradition of the White House Easter Egg Roll. Roll eggs down a grassy hill to see which reaches the bottom first, rolls the farthest, or does not break. Australian kids play the Egg-Knocking Game where partners tap each other’s egg in turn until one of them cracks. The winner goes on to challenge others. If you’re really daring, you can teach your kids the French tradition of throwing the eggs into the air and catching them until the winner holds the last unbroken egg.

Once egg hunts and games are over, Easter eggs are a healthy and novel snack for kids who love to peel and eat them. Develop their taste for egg salad and deviled eggs too. Don’t forget to add crushed shells to potting soil or mulch for extra calcium. They also keep snails, slugs, worms, and deer away from plants. You might even recycle shells into sidewalk chalk.

Though debatable, the U.S. Department of Agriculture suggests refrigerating hard-boiled eggs after two hours to prevent the possible multiplication of harmful bacteria. Many will say eggs are just fine for a couple of days in moderate temperatures.

If contamination is a concern, there are alternatives. Those temptingly inexpensive plastic eggs are not nearly as environmentally offensive when they are reused from year to year. Fill them with items that have minimal and recyclable packaging like foil wrapped chocolate eggs, jelly beans, dried fruit and nuts, small durable toys, or money. There is also egg-shaped sidewalk chalk, handmade knitted eggs, or your kids can mold and decorate Easter Eggs out of clay. You might even give a new tradition a try like a clue-driven Easter Hunt that leads to the prized basket.

The Basket is to Easter what the stocking is to Christmas. So save and reuse good quality baskets each year. Giving those baskets a green slant is as easy as it is satisfying. Unless you have plastic grass from last year, replace it with reusable items around the house like fabric, yarn, paper you shred yourself (tissue, wrapping, or colored), or air-popped popcorn for an edible treat. The Easter Bunny will thank you for one less thing on his list and the kids will love the creative new look. Just make sure your little ones won’t recognize anything!

Commercially filled baskets are pricey and heavily packaged and leave much to be desired. Say no to cheaply made trinkets and candies that are as chemical as they are sugar-oozing. Give the kids simple or homemade treats and activities. Make easy chocolate pops in Easter themed molds, Rice Krispy Treats, or bunny cupcakes. Tie together flower and vegetable seeds, a pint sized trowel, and gardening gloves. Mix up a batch of homemade silly putty, slime, and play dough.

Purchasing built to last toys like jacks or a jump rope are good, solid fillers because they can be handed down to younger siblings. Gifts of time to spend together such as tickets or membership to the local zoo, aquarium, or baseball game are sure to please and leave no waste. And young faces will certainly beam at a coupon for a day free of taking out the trash or doing dishes.

Easter is the fourth most popular holiday to send cards. Try not to purchase new cards, or if you do, look for those made from recyclable paper. Instead, turn used greeting cards from various occasions into new ones. Choose a pastel or spring-like background from your saved cards, cut with decorative scissors, add a family photo, or use an Easter cookie cutter to trace a shape to cut out and you have a clever new card with a personal touch.

Electronic cards from sites such as Hallmark or American Greetings are a terrific option for those friends and relatives who use email. Many sites offer free cards or at least a free trial period. Some of the interactive cards are a big treat for kids. You might also dress up a regular email with photo attachments and holiday sentiments.

In the often overwhelming rush to clean up after the big day, think ahead to next year. Save everything you can reuse next Easter from baskets to plastic eggs to ribbons and cards. Storage space may be tight, but think how nice it will be in a year to rely on your stash. Instead of purchasing and wasting, you will be reusing and saving. How symbolic for this celebration of rebirth and rejuvenation.

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Posted under Eco-Friendly Ideas, Family, GDM Kids, Tweens, Teens.