The First Easter Egg Hunt

Chances are, your baby went through one Easter unaware or uninvolved of all the fun. However their second Easter is when all the fun begins, and you may have already had some ideas... or questions... about what to do and what not to do for your toddler's first Easter Egg hunt.

I am but a mother myself, preparing to experience Easter 'for the first time' all over again. It's probably more exciting for me than it is for my son... so far... but I want to make sure that, if he is able to maintain this memory... his first Easter egg hunt will be unforgettable for both of us. With an older stepdaughter, I have already decided that the first thing I will do is have two separate Easter egg hunts.

Older children, regardless of age, need to be humored as long as possible. In the case of my stepdaughter, it was apparent she stopped believing in the Easter bunny 3 years ago... so that year we didn't put out any eggs for her thinking she might have outgrown that as well. We were wrong. Although she received the same amount of gifts, only this time all were in her Easter basket... we were quickly reminded that the egg hunt is the 'funnest part'. My point is that your child, whether they are 18 months, 8 years, or 18 years old... all deserve an Easter egg hunt on Easter morning.

However, when you are celebrating Easter with children of separate ages, it is the ages that really make all the difference in how you go about. The first most important thing to consider is do your older children still believe in the Easter bunny?

If they are old enough, they are old enough to understand the need for two separate egg hunts. This makes things easier, as they can both hunt for eggs at the same time (the toddler will quickly copy an older sibling) and older siblings will know which eggs are not theirs to find (the ones in plain sight.) This gives you the chance to think of very creative, challenging places to hide Easter eggs... which can be almost as much fun as finding them!

Or, if you would like to have the egg hunts at separate times, the older sibling will most likely search for their Easter eggs earlier, and then want to help 'hide eggs' for their younger sibling. Older children can have fun playing both sides of the fence here, and are often just as excited as you are about a toddlers first Easter egg hunt experience.

On the other hand, a younger child (say 5 or 6) that still believes in the Easter bunny should be handled delicately. When planning a first Easter egg hunt for a toddler, it is important to get a little sloppy. At the same time, it is important not to be sloppy with an older child that still believes in the Easter bunny. The best advice here is to have the Easter bunny leave a note for the older child, explaining that the 'visible' eggs in x room were left for (the baby's) first egg hunt, and that there are eggs hidden very carefully everywhere else.

There are actually many ways to handle the situation of multiple children of different ages in an Easter egg hunt, and it is very simple to reach a satisfying solution as long as you plan ahead.

Now we can focus on the first egg hunt for the little one. The first thing you want to do is choose brightly colored eggs, stay away from the pastels. Those florescent shades will catch your toddlers attention the moment they wake up. The second thing is that you want to put the eggs in plain sight. You might not want to just scatter them carelessly around the floor, but place them where little eyes can easily spot them, and little fingers can easily snatch them (though slight challenges make it more interesting.)

The size of the egg really doesn't make too much of a difference. You may be more drawn to choosing the bigger eggs, but the 'regular' eggs are actually the perfect size for little hands to grasp and carry proudly.

The biggest concern many parents have with a first Easter egg hunt is what to put in the eggs.

Considering that Easter eggs are not easily opened by little fingers, the first tip I offer is change. The change will go into a little piggy bank that your child may already have (or, if they don't.. piggy banks are a great thing to put into an Easter basket!) The change will also make a rattling noise that your child will love to play with. (Supervision is required, just in case an egg does open.)

Though some parents don't like to give it to toddlers... candy is a classic Easter egg filler. You have to choose carefully, avoid little things that could be a choking hazard (such as jelly beans) but there are many safe candy options available for both the Easter basket and the Easter eggs. The marshmallow peeps are one strong example. Bite size Milky Ways and the Easter Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Eggs are also safe and yummy for your toddler. These are also candies that you can give to older children to set a limit to the 'special attention'.

Or, if you are a parent who is dead set against giving candy to your toddler, there are other edible options to place inside an Easter egg. Dry cereal, like Lucky Charms or Cheerios, are both yummy, healthy... and make little rattling noises that your child will love. Also try small crackers or cookies such as animal crackers or teddy grahams.

While there is a limit to the smaller sized toys for toddlers due to choking hazard... larger eggs are good for hiding small toys in. Alphabet magnets and small bath toys are a good idea to start.

Well, if there is one thing I know as a mom it's that nothing will go as planned... nothing will ever go perfect... but you will enjoy yourself just as much. The most important thing to remember is to keep a camera nearby to record precious moments of your toddlers first Easter egg hunt. Enjoy!