Easter Fun

Shopping Tips:

• Limit the over indulgence of chocolate by buying small gifts to replace some chocolate - small toys, books, stickers, t-shirts or pyjamas are all good options.
• When looking at ingredients listings of Easter chocolate, the most common additive is 'flavour'. This can also be called 'natural flavour', 'nature identical flavour' or named such as 'strawberry flavouring' or 'banana flavouring'. Remember this is a broad title and that one ingredients can contain as many as 50 chemical ingredients that combine to make the 'flavour'. It is quite difficult to purchase chocolate without this but if this is the only questionable ingredient then this may be the best option for your family.
• Vanillin is artificial vanilla.
• Natural colours 160b Annatto, 120 Cochineal, Carmines and 150d Caramel IV may well be classified natural but can still have unwanted side effects such as hyperactivity, behavioural issues, rashes, headache, asthma, sleep disturbance and head banging.
• When buying fresh seafood, be sure to use a reputable seller. Some places will spray Sulphur Dioxide 220 on their seafood to help it keep it's bright colour. Sulphur Dioxide is an additive that asthmatics should avoid, may cause gastric irritation / damage, hyperactivity and behavioural problems, is a possible mutagen, and can be fatal to asthmatics.

Easy Craft Ideas

• Most discount stores and variety stores such as Big W or Kmart, have craft kits available now for decorating plastic, foam or real eggs, kits for making bunny masks, colouring in and so on.
• Purchase a basket with a handle from a discount store and let your child decorate it with ribbon, stickers, paper or material flowers, any thing you want really. A decorated basket is great for gathering eggs at the Easter Egg Hunt or for using as a prop in an Easter Hat Parade.
• On a piece of paper, draw an egg shape with a texta. Provide your child with a variety of collage materials such as metallic paper, cellophane, tissue paper, wrapping paper, coloured patty pans, cotton wool balls, scatters, stickers, and so on and let them freely glue the collage onto their egg. You can cut out the egg when it is dry if you wish.
• If your child loves to paint, you might like to provide them with paint to decorate the egg shape on the paper.
• Provide some Easter egg shaped cooking moulds with playdough for your child to experiment.
• There are lots of headbands you can purchase now with ready made bunny ears but to make your child look more like a bunny, why not draw on a nose and some whiskers with a black face paint crayon or black eyeliner.
• Rhyme Time have some fantastic craft ideas for Easter so be sure to check them out on Facebook.

Egg & Spoon Race

Purchase some cheap eggs and hard boil them. If you want to get creative, you can decorate them to go with your theme. Have a starting point and a nominated finishing point. Use the spoons to carry the eggs from the start to the finish once the organiser says 'GO'. If the children complete this well, you can make your race course more complicated by going around trees, taking giants steps, crawling and so on.

HINT: Younger children will do better with a dessert spoon as it enables them to complete the game with less frustration.Having a race that is a straight line will also minimise frustration.