Now we could spend all of next weekend eating chocolate, in fact I am actually dreaming of that right now, but in order to ensure the girls don’t completely OD on sugar I am going to try and create some other fun activities to keep them busy whilst they wait for Easter Bunny.

Obviously there will be some of the chocolate variety and I love a bit of Easter baking as it is probably one of the simplest to do. Melt chocolate, chuck in some cornflakes and away you go.

Baking

I’ll start with the baking. Actually I should just call it ‘treats’ as there is no real baking required. Yes, all are chocolate based but super simple that even the littlest can get involved. You may have spied Mabel and Alice having a go on our Instagram feed. Needless to say they ate most of the chocolate in the bowl but then that’s half the fun.

It wouldn’t be Easter without Easter nests. Now I’m presuming everyone knows how to make these but if not melt some chocolate (I also add a knob of butter and a squirt of golden syrup), once melted stir in cornflakes or shredded wheat. Press in to cake cases and leave to set. Fill with mini eggs.

I also love some Easter rocky road. Use a similar method to above but instead of cornflakes I stir in some crushed digestives, raisins and mini marshmallows. Then press in a tin and leave to set before cutting in to squares. I also added Easter shaped marshmallows on the top.

We had oodles of fun making the pretty pastel coloured chocolate shapes. You will just need some white chocolate, food colouring and silicone moulds. First melt some white chocolate then distribute between a few smaller bowls. Get mixing in the colours of your choice. If you prefer you can buy candy melts from somewhere like Hobbycraft. They come in a ridiculous range of colours. Once you have all your colours ready get the little’s to spoon it in to the moulds. You could do single colours or just pile it all in as we did. I like the marbled effect you get. The finished chocolates look so cute and would make the perfect gift (if you don’t eat them all first).

Easter Hats

It wouldn’t be Easter with out a good old fashioned bonnet decorating contest. This is one of the girls most favourite things to do and I love it as it really requires minimum mess and chaos. You can pick up simple hats in places like HobbyCraft or even the Supermarket for around £1. We then collect up some pretty ribbon, Easter stickers and any other paraphernalia we can think of. Self sticking items are the best as it means you don’t have to get any messy glue out. I spread everything out on the tables and let the girls get creative. Now they probably won’t win prizes for neatness but they always look super cute.

If you fancy a simpler party hat for wearing during Easter lunch then these little cuties are just the best and super simple. Make a cone hat from white paper or card. Then cut a little pink triangle for the nose (or just draw it on) and add a mouth and eyes. Cut out some ears from contrasting paper or card. I’ve gone for patterns but you can just use colours if you preferred. Simply attach to the back with tape or glue and finally add a little elastic or ribbon to hold it in place under the chin.

If you want super super easy then how about a little bunny headband. Cut a long strip of white paper (or join two shorter ones together) and secure with tape at the right circumference for your child’s head. Cut two bunny ears out of white paper or card and stick to the back of the inside of the band. Adding a contrasting strip in the middle of the ear for detail looks cute.

Crayons

This is quite possibly one of the most fun things to make. You know that pile of broken crayons that you endlessly sift through and never quite get round to throwing away? Yep, we all have one. Well how about creating new crayons instead. It’s super easy to do. Simply remove all the paper wrapping from the crayons and cut in to small chunks. Use a silicon mould in any shape you like. These are obviously Easter themed but the world is your oyster. I would suggest using a different one to the one you might use for chocolate shapes (above). Once you have cut the pieces pile them in to the moulds so that they are mounded up rather than level. You could go all one colour or mix it up. Place the mould on a baking sheet and place in an oven at 200c for 15 minutes. Carefully pull the tray out and leave the crayons to reset. The melted wax will be extremely hot so be careful and don’t let the children near it. Once set pop them out and voila. Instant new crayons. These would make a super cute Easter gift instead of chocolate. Just package in a pretty bag or box and there will be hours of fun.

Carrot Treat Bag

This is the perfect little bag for Egg hunts or to make for presents. Make yourself a paper or card cone as above. I then wrapped strips of orange crepe paper round, securing with glue, but you could use tissue paper or even ribbon. Then I added a few strips of green around the inside edges, securing with tape and finally added a pipe cleaner handle. Poke this through the sides and twist back on itself to secure.

Cards

Molly insisted on making a card for Easter bunny this year. Hers is a version of the chick card you can see above except she also covered in pink glitter so it became more of a disco chick than Easter chick!

To make the chick card get some yellow paper or card. Fold in half and cut out a simple chick shape (a big circle and a smaller circle head). Make sure the side of the body is on the fold so that the card opens properly rather than ending up with two separate shapes. We then added yellow feathers that I bought in Tiger and some googly eyes.

We all love a mini handprint card. Either dip your little’s hand in white paint, or paint on with a paintbrush, then stamp on to the card. When dry add a little face using crayons or pens.

Fingerprint cards are quick and easy to make. Dip your child’s finger in yellow paint to make chicks and then white (or pink if you are Molly!) for a bunny rabbit. Once dry add some detailing with a black pen.

 
I hope that has given you a bit of inspiration and do let me know any craft ideas I should be trying out. Have fun!