Tips and Ideas for a Sugar Free Easter

sugar free easter

It has been 9 years since we have eliminated refined sugars from our diet. This was for the benefit of my son who was not only experiencing extreme mood and behavior but was having trouble sleeping as well.

Though it was challenging to do in our everyday lives, the real challenge came around the holidays, as in our culture there is a lot of focus around food and feasts, especially sweets. As you can imagine Halloween is the biggest, with the entire focus of trick or treating being on collecting candy, with Easter being a close second.

P4240615Over the years we have found many different tips and tricks to enjoy these holidays without the focus being on all the candy and chocolates. I have to admit our first sugar free Easter was a bit of a challenge. My son, who was only 7 at the time, was old enough to remember the basket and eggs full of chocolates and jelly beans, so when Easter morning he discovered a basket full of socks and books, he was a little disappointed and understandably so.

I did my best to make things special by making our usual Easter Brunch, complete with eggs and sausages, waffles and fruit, which he enjoyed immensely. He then got treated with a new pair of sneakers from Grandpa and a cactus for his room. He soon forgot about all the things he was missing and was enjoying what he had.

The next year was better, as in the interim I had taken a class on how to make raw organic chocolates so was able to make chocolates we could enjoy, in addition to the new treats that the Easter Bunny brought for us.

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Easter Chick

For the twins, it has been a non issue as a sugar free Easter is the only kind of Easter they have known. I imagine as they get older they will learn what other children do for Easter and it may or may not matter to them, but I believe that because they will have known this way since birth that they will have a strong foundation and may feel very happy with our Easter regardless.

Now Easter is back to being another fun holiday that we all enjoy with our various traditions and ‘treats’. The kids baskets are full of non candy items, the eggs full of cash, sugar free (and good for you) chocolate and a wonderful mid morning feast of our favorite breakfast foods. Of course we add in other things from year to year, but those are the ‘basics’. No one feels denied or left out, nor focuses are what’s missing but appreciates and gets excited about what we have.

Ideas for a Sugar Free Easter (or sugar reduced)

If you are looking to reduce the sugar intake this Easter here are some tips on how to do so without the kids feeling disappointed:

  1. Fill Easter baskets with toys, socks, books, sunglasses, seeds, gardening gloves, bubbles, chalk, etc. I like to buy things that are inexpensive but not cheap, as well as things that they will enjoy and use. One year Matthew got a movie he wanted and a few smaller items. It can vary from year to year but I am not one to buy junkie trinkets just to fill the basket.
  2. Make your own chocolate with natural sweeteners. It is easy to make your own chocolates; you can get Easter molds (I have found some at the Dollar Store) and add anything you want to it. You could even get the kids to make them with you, ready for Easter morning.IMG_2904
  3. Plan an Easter Egg Hunt. We have lots of those plastic Easter eggs that I fill with coins or stickers. Usually I leave a little trail from their bedrooms down the stairs and hide them all over the main level. Sometimes they even get hidden outside. There are many ways you can set up the hunt and ideas for non candy items to put in the eggs.  They could just be clues that will lead the kids to a prize of some sort at the end.
  4. Make a yummy (sugar free) Easter brunch or breakfast. If the kids are looking forward to their favorite french toast or waffles, they will likely be distracted and awaiting that yummy feast.
  5. Do Easter crafts or activities. Most kids love crafts, even my 10 year old son will still sit down and do a craft, painting or art project.
  6. Decorate the house for Easter. If the kids get into decorating the house this takes the focus off the candies and onto other stuff. The twins have been ‘decorating’ for weeks, setting up army men around the Easter tree or hanging crafts they made at preschool in their room. Decorating also makes it more than just about the one day and makes it more of an event.
  7. Get others on board. Encourage other family members and friends to get non sugary treats for everyone; then the kids see that everyone is getting the same, so it must be ok.
  8. IMG_2903Color eggs. You can do this on Easter as an activity or prior to. Either way it is another way of removing the focus and putting it onto something else that is fun and enjoyable.
  9. Be grateful. Encourage the kids to be grateful for what they have. Create a gratitude jar or choose another gratitude activity to do do with them.
  10. No matter what you do have fun. Whether you are creating new traditions, foods, or making crafts enjoy the Easter holiday. Remember why we celebrate, and what is most important to you as a family this holiday.


Gratitude Activities for Kids

In yesterday’s post I talked about how being grateful for what we have in our lives increases the good that comes to us; and how important it is for us to teach gratitude to our children.

We are all very good at teaching them to say please and thank you but I believe that there is more to it. A deeper meaning that we can convey; so this morning I set out in search of activities that you can do with kids to teach them not only to be grateful but the value of being grateful. Kids love hands on stuff, games and activities. Not only do these things help them develop their motor skills, but it a great way for them to learn and helps the concept you are teaching stick. And presented in a variety of ways makes it fun for them and for you.

Gratitude Journal

I already mentioned creating a gratitude journal which works for both adults and children. But what I discovered today is to make it more interesting to the kids you can do a number of things. Let them decorate their journal either the cover or the first inside page. This allows them to be creative and to make it their own. For younger children, get them a binder or duotang to decorate. Then instead of writing what they are grateful for they can draw pictures and put them in their binder.

Gratitude Activities

The Best thing about..

Divide the kids into 2 teams. Pick a team to go first. Read a list of things or people, like Grandma or trees, and each person on the team has to say one good thing about that person or thing within 3 seconds. If everyone is successful then the team gets a point. If they are not then the other team gets a chance to answer about the same person or thing.

I Love

For each item kids have 3 seconds to complete the phrase “The thing I love about _____ is ______.” Use things like, dogs, birds, Mom, my brother, where I live, etc. Create your own list. You could have the kids create the list with you beforehand and then play the game.

Thank you Circle

Have all the children sit in a circle. Toss a bean bag to one of the children. They stand and list one of the things they are grateful for, then they toss the bean bag to someone else and they stand up and say what they are grateful for. Do this until everyone in the circle has had a chance to speak.

Gratitude Jar

Have children decorate the jar using buttons, ribbon, glitter, etc. Have little slips of paper prepared and each day have the children write down one thing they are grateful for and put it in the jar. Parents can help with writing for younger children. Set a deadline, such as one month later or a special event like Christmas. On that day have everyone sit down and read together all the things that everyone is grateful for from the jar.

Thank You Notes and Letters

Some may say that thank you notes are passe, but there is something to be said when someone takes the time to send you a card or a letter saying thank you. Encourage your kids to write thank you notes, not just for gifts they have received but for something they are grateful that someone did for them in the last 24 hours. Like “Thanks Mom for making my lunch”. This is important as it teaches children to not just be thankful for material things but for acts of service from others. And it teaches them to be grateful for all the little things in their lives as well, which in turn will create more good things for them.

Children can make their own thank you cards, there are a variety of simple ideas that they can do, either drawing, coloring or with glitter and glue. When writing the card encourage the child to explain how the person made them thankful. Then send the card to the recipient.

Older children may choose to write a letter, which may include a little more detail and description of the event. They can also add pictures or decorate it if they like.

Gratitude Crafts

There are many simple crafts that children can do to express gratitude. There is the Leaf Garland, where children write or draw what they are grateful for on a leaf and then hang it up. A similar concept is a thank you sunflower where they use the petals to write on. You can also do a gratitude tree or chain.

These crafts are simple, easy and colorful. With most of them only requiring some construction paper and a marker.

Gratitude Books

A really great way to teach children about being grateful is through books. Most children love to sit and listen to a story; so it is easy to pick books that incorporate this theme.

One of my favorites is The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. It is about a tree that gives and gives and gives to a little boy until the tree has nothing left but a stump, but even then has something to give.

Bear Says Thanks by Karma Wilson

Bear has come up with the perfect way to say thanks—a nice big dinner! When Bear decides to throw a feast, his friends show up one by one with different platters of delicious food to share. The playful text and charming illustrations bring to life this celebration of family and friendship. Children will love discovering the special gift Bear has to share.

I’m Thankful for Each Day by P. K. Hallinan

This story combines a child’s delight in the physical world and his thankfulness to God for the pleasure of each day – for summer days, autumn’s orange pumpkin haze, for the breezes, for peace, and for life itself.

Teaching children to be grateful is easy and fun. Being grateful is a wonderful thing, it lightens your mood and brings many wonders into your life. Regardless of your age, gratitude improves the quality of life by focusing on what you have. Counting your blessings is easy to do each day and is easily shared with children. Teaching them to be grateful at a young age will create a life long perspective of gratitude. If we teach them to be grateful not only will they be happier in their lives but they will help create a beautiful world where we will all experience the peace and happiness we desire.