Easter is this Sunday and with it comes baskets of chocolate and candy. It’s true that this age of information we live in also comes with an era of stress and worry… especially when we want to maintain traditions like the Easter basket but omit all the cavities and potential health risks all that junk food brings with it. With that in mind, our resident outside-the-box thinker went search engine crazy to find you great last minute Candy Free alternatives for the usual Easter Basket the whole family will go crazy over.
The Cooler Guy Easter Basket
Instead of chocolates and generic, overpriced junk from chain stores, load up a new cooler, toolbox or tin beer bucket with your husbands favorite things. Fill-er up with shaving accessories, barbecue marinades, meat rubs, sports gear or gift cards and lotto scratch offs! Get creative and pick one theme and wrap it all up in a bow with a note for your favorite beau. Guys love the kind of gift that they can explore. If you are short on time, the online shop called Broquet has all kinds of themed bouquets for guys and ship the same day on orders before 3 pm eastern standard time. Pick from already arranged by theme or select items ala carte. They even make survival go-bags!
Candy Free Easter for the Kids
Fill up plastic eggs with yogurt covered raisins, nuts and goldfish crackers instead of jelly beans and chocolate eggs. Make a large carrot by filling clear candy bags with goldfish and tie with green ribbon or pipe cleaners. Add a little sweetness to the basket by shaping rice crispy treats into oversized easter eggs. Finally, add some depth to the basket by loading it up with arts and craft or discovery projects which you can find at stores like Michaels for under ten bucks. Stocking the basket with playing cards, stickers, chalk, drawing supplies and other fun hands on crafts will keep your kids occupied without the sugar rush!
The Impossible Teenager Easter basket
Teenagers are a tricky bag of tricks to master for Easter. One failsafe that will always put a smile on your teen is money. Fill up plastic eggs with dollar bills and a few fives or tens if you feel generous and load the eggs into a clear gift bag for them to open. If you feel variety is order, try adding some nail polish inside the eggs for girls. Essie fits perfectly in most plastic egg containers. For teenage boys, adding gift cards for google play, iTunes or netflix is an easy win. Add a few personal touches like a pair of fun sunglasses, a travel mug filled with a dunkin donut or starbuck gift card and a few power bars. Use a cute tote for girls and a cool gym bag for boys in place of the traditional basket and you will be the coolest parent this Sunday!
The Perfect Woman Easter Basket
There’s no doubt that Mom looks after the whole family and never takes time to worry about her own Easter basket… Which is why it’s important to surprise her with an exceptional basket of bliss this year. First choose a theme that fits mom’s style. Is she a gardener, in need of a spa day, a chef or a fitness buff? Whatever her passion is, make it the center of the Easter basket.
Gardeners: fill a garden tool tote with gardening gloves, sheers, a few essential tools, sunscreen, lip balm, a hat and a few packets of seeds or bulbs.
Spa Day: Create the perfect relaxation kit by filling a wicker basket with aromatherapy candles, lavender Body Scrub, Sea Salts, Tea Tree Oil, lotions, eye gel mask, loofa or pumice stone. Add bath slippers or a robe along with a soothing CD and some teas to complete the basket and win big points!
Culinary Diva: Replace a basket with a colored colander (martha stewart designs carries spring colored collection) or a porcelain mixing bowl. Fill the container up with matching dish towels, measuring cups, whisks, spatulas and wooden spoons. Top it off with some gourmet oils and spices and wrap with a pretty bow.
Fitness Fanatic: Load a gym bag up with essentials like protein packs/gels, a water bottle, socks, gym towels and headbands. Another great filler is Yankz; a special shoelace that never comes undone. The Smithhaven Mall has a few kiosks that will engrave/stitch her name on the bag and towel.