Easter baskets or Spring Equinox gifts or...???

Who else gives their children spring gifts? It's Easter baskets here, and I am forever fighting two loving grandmothers who overindulge their only grandchildren. If they had their way, both of my kids would come away from the holiday with a sugar-rush for the next month, and enough goofy playthings to fill a storage lot!

I try to give the kids just a few small things, and a couple sweeties that they don't always get. Right now I'm thinking of:

a pair of neat socks with their favorite animals on them & a pocket maze for each kiddo along with a couple fruit leathers, 2-3 Bug-Bites chocolates, and some honey-roasted peanuts.

Then for my son (10) a book on CD, (Treasure Island or American Tall Tales) and either a tool he doesn't have for his toolbox, or a root-beer kit. And for my daughter (6) probably one of the Barefoot Books on CD, and either a glass bead kit or a rainbow light-catcher for her bedroom window.

What does everyone else do? I'm always up for new ideas, and other than the socks & the CD's really am hunting for other options

Oh yeah... and does anyone have any good ideas for what to put these in? Last year my son's "basket" was a butterfly net, and my daughter's was a pink purse. I can't think of anything for this year though. I've got metal pails here if I need to use them, but would love to find creative containers.
love,
mom

 

I've given them their "baskets" in funky-cool hats and flower pots with seeds and a packet of potting soil. One year their baskets were little fairy gardens (a wooden window box with soil, herb seeds, and pretty little trinkets and a small jar of honey to attract the fairies). They had lots of fun putting their fairy gardens together and decorating them.


My dd (10) in into crafty things, so this year she's going to get a storage box with appliques, glitter glue, beads and other crafty stuff. Ds (11) is a sports fanatic, so he'll probably get a mini duffel bag with sport stuff. ds (6) is into action figures, especially pirates, so a little box that looks like a treasure chest with some pirates for his collection.

if your dd is into beads, maybe a tackle box for organizing her beading supplies?
A new tool box for your ds?

I like the buttrefly net idea!

 

Oooh, thanks Brighid for the flower pot and fairy garden ideas! My dds (7 and 3) love gardening. I, too, want to steer away from the sugar overloading. I never do it, but my danged relatives love to pile on the sweets. They just don't get that when I say a few pieces of chocolate are fine, I mean don't give them five pounds of nasty sugary crap!

 

I'll have to borrow the idea of giving seeds!! The girls are helping me with the gardening this year. I'll get them some special flowers, just for them to grow. Marigolds, probably, yellow for DD1 and orange for DD2, their favorite colors! We only recently stopped eating sugar, so there will be some yummy Russell Stover sugar-free chocolates, probably some fruits and nuts and such nonsugary yummy treats. And we always do an egg hunt (my kids are still young enough to really like that). We'll plant whatever flower and veggie seeds are still left by Eastertime (I always start planting on what would be my father's birthday if he were still alive), since I'm pretty sure DH will have a long weekend. DD1 will get a new My Little Pony, and DD2 will get a puppy (toy)...


I'm the one that overdoes the sweets and treats, not our family

 

My kids get "Garden Baskets." About now, I take regular, wove baskets, line them with plastic (I use the bag that water softner salt comes in, it is thick) then I put some gravel or small rocks on the bottom for drainage, then fill with potting soil and top with seed starting mix. Then I take fast growing grass seed (cat grass is great, to mix with it, because the leaves are so thick) and then I wet the dirt, put the seeds in, put a little starter mix on top, and then cover it with plastic wrap, and place in the garden window. Soon, the seeds start growing and I take off the plastic and keep the soil moist.

By Easter (or whatever Holiday you celebrate) you have a grass basket, to put your kid's stuff in. No more horrible plastic Easter Grass.

 

We do spring baskets with a few small toys, books, and sweets. I also write little messages or "fortunes" on small slips of paper and tuck them into plastic colorful eggs and my kids hunt for them, plus get a little message from mommy and daddy. They absolutely love it!

I really like the giving seeds idea! My kids love to dig in the dirt just as much as I do, and they all helped me plant flowers last spring. They'd love it if I gave them their very own special ones to plant.

 

that's such a cute idea!
every year for easter, my sister and i always get baskets filled with candy....to the point that it doesn't even taste good anymore!
when leane starts hunting for her baskets and stuff, I'm definately cutting down on the candy! there's some really sweet ideas here!
This year i bought basically the same thing for my mom, omi and opi and sister....i found these awsome wooden baskets from the dollar store, and filled them with bluk candy from work with some little presents on top like some door hangers that say "welcome" and a teddy bear for my sister. I'm also giving my omi and opi a framed picture of my dd. I'm going to crochet some stuff, too....just still a little stuck as to what to do this time.