Affordable Easter Activities for your Family to Enjoy

Guest Blog #65, Entry #502, April 20, 2011

Each year, between the Easter dinner expenses, the cost of dressing the family in their “Sunday Best”, and decorating for the Easter Bunny, Easter tends to have a high price tag associated with it!

Today, my Guest Blogger shows you how to save money this Easter, and save the Earth’s resources at the same time. Whether you go on a free Easter egg hunt, or you invite neighbors over for great conversation, Easter can be affordable once again!

Make your Easter memorable for the events and your family time

Image courtesy of Great Decorating Ideas

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Whilst Easter is a great opportunity to spend some quality time with family and friends, it is all too easy for the cost of outings and entertainment to spiral out of control. With this in mind, it’s worth spending some time planning what to do to ensure that a fantastic time is had by all without breaking the bank.

There are a number of home-based activities that can be used to keep the kids occupied without costing the earth. Why not enjoy some traditional Easter festivities and engage your little ones imagination? At the same time, take advantage of the savings you will have made and tuck something away for a rainy day. Whether you wish to make regular savings, invest in an ISA or require easy access, there are a number of products on the market.

Whether you like them or loathe them, Easter bonnets are an essential component of any Easter. What better way to test the creative talents of you and your offspring than an Easter bonnet competition. Bonnets can be made from a wide range of materials including papier mache, cardboard, plant pots, or even old hats. Decorations can include everything from little toy chicks, chocolates, collages and flowers to any other craft bits and bobs lying around.

As an alternative to Easter bonnets, why not create some Easter crowns? Use card or an empty cereal box to make a strip that fits round your child’s head and then cut zig zags into it. Decorate with feathers, toy chicks, flowers or anything else that comes to hand to give a crown that is fitting for any young king or queen.

Decorating eggs is also fun to do with children. Hard boiled eggs can be used or, for the adventurous, eggs can be “blown” to remove their insides and create a hollow structure. Eggs can be decorated with anything from crayon to paint to stickers making them an ideal budget activity.

For those hesitant to use real eggs, an alternative is papier mache ones. Make up a flour and water glue and use it to stick overlapping newspaper strips to a blown up balloon. Once fully covered, stick strips of plain paper over the newspaper and leave to dry. Allow plenty of time as this can take several days. Once dry, burst the balloon with a pin and then proceed to decorate your egg.

For an activity designed to keep the whole family entertained why not set up an Easter egg hunt? Hide a range of chocolate eggs around the garden and, for older children, set clues or anagrams to aid in their search. Remember to set a limit on chocolate consumption first!

With so many Easter activities that allow fun without the family finances suffering, you’ll be able to sit back and enjoy your chocolate Easter eggs without a worry.

This article was written by Sam. Sam is a finance writer based in the UK and currently works for moneysupermarket.com.

For more Easter ideas on Stagetecture, click here.