Goodness, the past month has been a doozy, and though the hope of many was to be out of quarantine mode this month, it just doesn’t look like that’s going to happen, so Easter at home it is!
Easter is one of the holidays I look forward to the most – there’s just something about a day that starts with dressing up (in my new Easter dress, of course!) for a morning church service, spending the day with family, lots of fun outdoor activities, a big, yummy Easter dinner, and ending the meal with a delicious springtime dessert.
Though the state of our world (thanks to COVID-19) feels wobbly and scary right now, we want to make sure that you’re still able to enjoy Easter, even homebound, with those you love, so we’re bringing you 5 ways to make this year’s celebration memorable (as more than just “the year we spent Easter Day quarantined”)!
#1 – Connect Spiritually: Go to Church (Virtually)
How cool is it that we live in a day and age that we can literally attend church via a live-streamed service?! If an Easter Sunday church service is something that you would typically participate in, don’t feel like it needs to be missing from your day because of current circumstances. Check with your home church to see if they’re planning on streaming an Easter service (many are!) and if they aren’t, do a quick search of local churches to see if any have a service that you can tune in to. If you still aren’t having luck there, CrossBridge Community Church (in San Antonio, TX) will be streaming their service via this link, as will Revolution Church (in Canton, GA) via this link. These are just two options of many! Feel free to stay in pajamas cuddled up with your family in bed gathered around the laptop, or if you’re looking for a reason to get dressed up to feel a sense of normalcy, get dressed and ready in your Sunday best and gather your family in the living room for a live-streamed church service (still with a coffee in hand, of course)!
#2 – Keep it Classic: Dye Eggs
A classic Easter activity, and made even better with NATURAL homemade egg dye! Man, dyeing Easter eggs was one of my favorite holiday activities as a kiddo (and let’s be honest, I still love it as a grown adult!). There is something really magical about watching a boring ole egg become freckled and tie-dyed with beautiful, vibrant colors! What a sweet metaphor for Easter day + springtime in general. Dyeing Easter eggs dates back to 1290 – King Edward I is actually credited for the idea – and has evolved throughout the years to the family activity that it is today.
You do you – go with classic egg-dye or choose to go natural if that’s your thing. Here’s our recipe for a more natural egg-dye if you choose to go that route:
Natural Egg Dye Ingredients:
- 2 cups of water
- 2 cups of your chosen vegetable (we like veggies like shredded beets, purple cabbage, and yellow onion skins)
- White vinegar
- Hardboiled eggs
Natural Egg Dye Instructions:
- Simmer the vegetables and water together for about 30 minutes, let cool, and strain the mixture.
- Place your hardboiled eggs into the cooled liquid with 2 tbsps of white vinegar and let sit, refrigerated, until your desired color is reached.
Note: You can also use 2 tbsps of ground turmeric (yellow) or chili powder (orange) to get some fun colors!⠀
#3 – Get Creative: Activities for Kids
While the chaos of current circumstances forces kiddos to be home from school, cancel long-awaited birthday parties, and reminisce about sleepovers and playdates with friends, somehow our kids are able to look past the bad and truly soak up this time with their family. Kids are so resilient and their innocence and happy-go-lucky outlook is a beautiful thing to witness! Use these activity ideas to make this year’s at-home Easter celebration *extra* memorable.
- Easter Egg Hunt – the day won’t be complete without an Easter egg hunt!
- If you want to fill eggs with candy made with better-for-you ingredients, these Smart Sweets candies are really yummy, and so are these OCHO candies if you’re looking for a chocolate option. Our Halloween candy guide is a great reference when choosing healthier candy!
- These hair clips are great egg-fillers for little girls.
- For LEGO lovers, consider buying a LEGO set and separating the pieces (or at least some of them) to fill the Easter eggs.
- Easter Scavenger Hunt – this free printable is a super cute, interactive way for your kiddos to find their Easter baskets! Heidi, from Happiness is Homemade, has done all the work for you. All you’ve got to do is print the scavenger hunt, hide the individual cards in their assigned spots, and then let the fun begin!
- Easter Bunny Ring Toss – play this game inside or out, and prepare for a lot of giggles from your littles as they try to hook inflatable rings on the bunny ears!
- DIY Bunny Nose Craft – such a sweet idea for kiddos that’ll really spark some imaginative play! Once completed, these bunny nose crafts can even be used in a special kid-created production for some Easter evening entertainment!
#4 – Create the Atmosphere: Decorate Your Home
Decorate your home just as you would any other year! If you typically put decorations in your yard, do that! If you have spring/Easter decorations for the inside of your home, pull those out too. Be sure to set the table with your favorite glassware, table settings, and some fresh flowers! Sprucing up the table and your home with festive decorations goes a long way in making the day feel extra special.
#5 – Gather: Dinner at the Table
Though dinner may look different these days, Easter Sunday is a great day to gather around the table for a special meal and sweet conversation. In order to ensure that you’ll have the groceries you need for Easter dinner, we recommend shopping in advance. If you’d rather avoid going into a grocery store, consider scheduling an Amazon Fresh delivery (we’ve had great luck with this), checking if Instacart delivers in your area, or asking your local grocery store about curbside pickup options. Once you’ve decided on a game-plan for acquiring groceries, it’s time to set your Easter menu. We have a complete Easter recipe round up, but here are a few of our favorite Easter dinner options:
- Appetizer: Whipped Honey Feta Dip – perfect + easy! Feta is simply blended with honey for a creamy dip that’s equal parts salty, sweet, and tangy. Enjoy with gluten-free garlic toasts, your favorite crunchy crackers, or raw veggies!
- Main Dish: Honey Mustard Pork Roast – this pork roast is full of flavor, super tender, and requires very little prep!
- Side Dish: Spring Salad – with butter lettuce, radishes, asparagus, and a tangy lemon vinaigrette, this salad is the perfect way to take advantage of spring produce!
- Side Dish: Browned Butter Parsnip Mash – slightly sweet parsnips marry with savory, nutty browned butter to create an irresistible parsnip mash that is perfect for your Easter table!
- Dessert: Gluten Free Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing – moist, fluffy, and made in just ONE bowl! This carrot cake is everything that spring dessert dreams are made of!
Because groceries are hard to come by right now, make sure to have a backup plan for the main dish and any sides that you have in mind, we recommend creating a ‘good, better, best’ approach and know that it’s OK if you have to go with plan B. For example, your best-case scenario could be honey mustard pork roast as the main dish, your ‘better’ option could be honey butter glazed ham, and your ‘good’ option could be herb-roasted chicken. Just remember, the most important thing is to gather as a family!
Also, baking supplies are in high demand right now, so if you’re in need of things like flour, sugar, etc. for Easter dessert, we recommend ordering those items a minimum of 7 days out.
We hope that your Easter at home is even MORE special and memorable than Easter’s past! Who knows, maybe this Easter will be the start of a few new traditions to be celebrated year after year!
