We forgot it was Easter (ahh!), so I thought of these fun, last-minute Easter activities (including our own Easter egg hunt) that the kids LOVED!
Happy Easter! Did you do anything to celebrate Easter holiday?
We FORGOT about Easter!
We actually realized it was Easter just a few days before Easter weekend. Travis and I had been so busy with family life and work that the holiday just kind of snuck up on us.
Has that ever happened to you? You get so busy with life or work, and you forget a holiday is approaching?
When we were hurriedly filling plastic Easter eggs with party favors and treats, Travis said he feels like this has been happening to us a lot lately. We lose track of the days and next thing you know, it’s time to celebrate another holiday!
I want to start keeping a notebook dedicated to planning holidays. That way when moments like this happen, we can just refer to our holiday notebook and easily come up with a plan!
Thankfully, our Easter holiday wasn’t a disaster. 😉
With some quick-thinking, I was able to come up with last-minute Easter activities that the kids LOVED! (And I’m definitely adding these Easter ideas to our holiday planning notebook.)
LAST-MINUTE EASTER IDEA #1: VISIT A LOCAL BAKERY FOR EASTER TREATS!
I thought it would be fun to try something new for Easter and get baked goods from a local bakery.
We visited New Palace Bakery (located in Hamtramck, Michigan– a small city just outside of Detroit). New Palace Bakery is one of my favorite bakeries in the metro Detroit area!
It’s a popular bakery to visit on Fat Tuesday or also fondly known as Paczki Day in Detroit.
We were going to get a whole cake for our family’s Easter dessert, but we thought it’d be fun if everyone got to pick out their own individual Easter treat.
The kids picked out Easter basket cupcakes, and we also got them some Easter cookies. I got a slice of carrot cake, while Travis got a slice of cheesecake.
Since Elijah and Michala (our two older kids) had to work all weekend, we picked out something good for them.
I’m trying to make it a family tradition to visit a local bakery for holidays and special occasions.
Last Halloween, for instance, we went to La Gloria’s Bakery (another favorite bakery of ours) in Southwest Detroit to celebrate Zhen’s 10th birthday (Oct. 30th), Halloween, AND Day of the Dead!
LAST-MINUTE EASTER IDEA #2: TAKE THE KIDS THRIFT STORE SHOPPING
Also, part of the plan was to go to the farmers market and buy the kids’ some new spring clothes.
But the kids were having such a good time, that we ended up spending the rest of the day in Hamtramck. We had a quick lunch in the van (pretzel pizza from Little Ceasar’s) and visited a couple of thrift stores.
We did a little thrift store shopping at Public Thrift— a new small business thrift store in Hamtramck. It’s also a co-op that practices sustainability and community support! I had heard about Public Thrift opening last fall, so I was delighted to stumble upon it while we were out with the kids.
Their prices are SUPER affordable!
We just so happened to visit on their “$10 Fill a Bag Day,” so it was perfect timing for the kids to pick out some fun jewelry and I found a cool vintage skirt.
We also visited Joy Thrift and the kids picked out fun boots and high heels for just $2 each!
“What are you going to use the shoes for?” I asked Zhen. “To play dress up!” she exclaimed.
Perfect idea!
LAST-MINUTE EASTER IDEA #3: HAVE A COOKOUT!
I know ham is usually a traditional Easter dinner idea (for Americans anyway), but our family doesn’t eat pork. Travis and I didn’t know what to cook for Easter dinner, so I hopped on my Instagram and Twitter and asked friends if they had any ideas.
Friends suggested lamb (I’ve actually never tried it!), lasagna, tacos (always our fav!), roasting a chicken, and steak.
One suggestion that I really loved was grilling steak! So, we decided to have an Easter cookout– the first cookout of 2023! We love to grill, so this was a fantastic idea for us.
Travis grilled burgers, chicken, steak, and vegetable kabobs. Another Instagram friend shared her creamy garlic mashed potatoes recipe with me. It sounded so good that I had to try it!
LAST-MINUTE EASTER IDEA #4: HAVE AN EASTER EGG HUNT!
On Easter Sunday, we had an Easter egg hunt for the kids. We bought so many goodies for them. It felt like Christmastime to me as Travis and I were filling the plastic Easter eggs with treats and mini toys.
The kids had found Easter baskets at the thrift store we visited, so we didn’t have to worry about rushing out to get a basket on Sunday. Travis also bought party favors and sidewalk chalk for their Easter baskets.
Thankfully, a few days before Easter, I had stopped by Dollar Tree to get bubbles, jump ropes, and pompoms. These items made good Easter basket gifts.
We didn’t want the kids to have a lot of candy, so we got Hershey Kisses and mini Resse’s peanut butter cups for their chocolate treats and animal crackers and cheese crackers for a non-candy snack.
We hid the Easter eggs at the playground, and they loved our family Easter egg hunt!
Despite waiting until Easter weekend to get everything together, we still had a great Easter celebration!
The kids enjoyed going to the bakery and checking out some of the small businesses in Hamtramck. Zhen even told me it was the best Easter ever, “and it just keeps getting better and better!”
Knowing my kids were happy and hearing Zhen tell me how much she loved our family celebration was a BIG reminder for me that our holidays do not need to be perfect.
All that matters is we’re together and we create our own special memories and traditions!
Here are some more photos of our Easter weekend.
All photographs are courtesy of J. Hamra for Good Life Detroit.
