Spring is here and Easter is this weekend. Traditions have always been at the top of my priority list since I had my daughters. Maybe because I long to give my girls consistency, or I just want to look forward to something every season.
I have created many traditions for our family over the years.
Our Halloween Driveway Party, Pumpkin Station visit with our best friends, Christmas Light Car Tour in our Jammies, Summer Surf Camp with our cousins, and the list goes on and on.
One of my favorite traditions is our Annual Easter Egg Hunt.
I grew up in San Diego, going to an Annual Easter Egg Hunt at Harry Griffen Park. I remember everyone having their blankets and chairs in a massive circle. The dads would disappear to hide the eggs while the kids anxiously awaited the big Easter Egg Hunt. When our first daughter was old enough to grasp the concept of hunting for eggs, this was one of the traditions that I immediately wanted to bring back. We had a small group of about 10 families our first year in 2013. We just had our 6th Annual Easter egg Hunt and it has grown to over 75 families!
Want to create your own Easter Egg Hunt? Here is how to do it in 3 simple steps.
Step 1: Pick the Date
This was really easy when my girls were young and so were their friends. No one had weekend sports commitments yet or a million birthday parties to attend. We would always do the Saturday of Easter Weekend. However, with Spring Break plans, Easter Weekend Celebrations, and sports, that no longer works. We have settled on 2 weeks before Easter on a Sunday afternoon at 3pm. It really is impossible to pick the perfect date where everyone can make it. But this time frame has been working well for the last couple of years.
Step 2: Pick the Park
You need a good amount of space for the Egg Hunt and park bathrooms are a must. Check with your local Parks & Rec to see if a permit is required for large groups. I always get to the park bright and early on Sunday morning to reserve our spot and stake out the Easter Egg Hunting area. I used to stress out about getting the picnic table area reserved, but this year I just brought my own tables and pop up tents and it worked out much better! I let everyone know in the invite to bring blankets and chairs.
Step 3: Invite the Crew!
I used Facebook Events this year to get the word out. One of the reasons this tradition has grown so much over the years is that we have 4 daughters. Every time one of my girls starts a new preschool class or kindergarten, we meet a whole new batch of families. I love bringing people together and introducing new friends to old friends. I created this tradition, in particular, to bring our community together and it brings me such joy to watch it grow.
Now, you are thinking, how much does this all cost?? You didn’t think I provided the eggs for over 150 kids, did you? (My husband would kill me.). Easter Egg Hunt rules are to bring 20 filled eggs per child. I do provide kids snacks, water, and juices. That usually costs about $150 for a Costco run.
All the snacks are prepackaged, and that way we bring home anything that is not used and it goes into the school snack collection. I usually have a handful of friends who offer to bring an adult snack to share too. I did invest $100 in an Easter Bunny costume the first year and that has been well worth the money. Finding someone to wear it is another story! All of our nannies have been gracious enough to wear it over the years.
A few more details for you to help in the planning.
I created 3 divisions: Easter Peeps (Ages 0-2), Easter Chicks (Ages 3-5) and Easter Bunnies (Ages 6 and over).
Next year we definitely need to add an even older division. These kids are growing up way too fast and our Easter Bunny division had the majority of the kids. As people arrive I have them put their (20 eggs per child) in the bucket for their division. I put the dads to work to go spread out the eggs in the appropriate sections. We let the kids start their egg hunting one division at a time so that parents can help their younger children first. And of course, so that parents can take lots of pictures!
This has truly been one of my favorite traditions over the years. I never wanted to take my girls to the mass Easter Egg Hunts and hope that they would be able to snag at least a couple of eggs. This way, everyone is guaranteed to leave with 20 eggs each. I hope this helps you create a new tradition for your community. I promise it is not a ton of work and well worth the smiles at the end of the day!
