Preparing Easter Eggs

Every Year like most families we decorate Easter Eggs. This is an event my kids look forward to so much!
Getting 11 eggs a day from our chickens has ensured us many eggs to decorate this year!A trick for decorating home grown farm eggs:
Fact: Fresh eggs don't hard boil as easily as store bought eggs.
Store bought eggs are usually at least 2 weeks old by the time you buy them.

Solution: Let your farm eggs age for a week before you boil them and they whites won't stick to the shell when you crack and peel them.

After decorating the eggs we read "The Legend of the Easter Egg."

Illustrated By: James Bernardin
Published By: Zondervan Publishing House
Age Group: 4-8 years of age
Type of Book: Christian Easter (Holiday)

About the Book: This book does a wonderful job of showing symbolism for the traditions and symbols of Lent and Easter in this story about Thomas and his sister, Lucy. One night Lucy catches scarlet fever and Thomas is sent to live with John and Mary Sonneman in their small prairie town. The symbolism begins when Mary wipes the stove ash off Thomas's face and forehead as people have ash on their foreheads to remind them of their sins and the need to repent on Ash Wednesday, On Maundy Thursday sometimes people wash each other’s feet as Mary did for Thomas. Mary teaches Thomas that the egg symbolizes Jesus breaking free of the tomb of death. Thomas dyes the eggs and prays by himself for the first time. It is on Easter Sunday that he is able to reunite with Lucy again and share his new faith.

The symbolism of the Easter Egg has long been a Christian tradition although there are many folklore attached to it as well. I personally believe that making Easter fun for kids is an important aspect of teaching them the relevance of Christ. These crafts help them to "remember" what Easter is really about.

For more ideas and books suggestions go to my post titled "The Legend of the Easter Egg" from last year.

Another fun Craft we enjoy doing, that my mom used to do with us kids when we were little is, taking the shells which are so beautifully colored and making pictures out of them by gluing them onto construction paper.
Here is a picture of Austin's Cross made from one of his Easter Eggs:


Here's another idea:
Stained Glass Crosses
While the kids are making their crosses for the window I read them books on Easter or we do a devotion reading scripture about the death and resurrection.

What you'll need:
Contact Paper
Scissors
Tissue Paper (colored)
Brown Construction Paper

You cut stripes of equal size for the kids to place on the contact paper and then cut themselves to make a cross. Then they cut small shapes out of tissue paper and place in the middle of the cross and then to finish you put another piece of contact paper on the back and then cut out the cross. You are all done and can tape it to you window. It looks like a stained glass window art!

Happy Easter!