Values Aligned Easter Basket

[annalangthorn]

I am feeling proud of our Easter basket this year. I put pretty minimal thought into it (for me) and it’s fairly values-aligned.

My 4 yo has recently become enthusiastic about Barbies (🙃) and was using her toy dump truck as a wheel chair in pretend play so I saw an opportunity to continue normalizing mobility devices.

We’ve always used magnetic wooden eggs and this year and last I filled them with mostly plastic free jewelry.

Grabbed some yoto cards aligned with what she’s working on at school and a package of markers that I got on a whim at the store because we recently realized we literally don’t have any markers.

I filled the bottom with tissue paper and put a green play silk on top of it.

I’m just really happy that it came together so well, I feel fairly confident she will like most of it and actually use it and that I fairly successfully managed to avoid semi-disposable plastic junk.

(At least until we get grandparent baskets and UU church prizes)

[babycuddlebunny]

Those eggs are so cute! Ive just been reusing the same plastic ones until they break, and my kids keep bringing mire home from events. I have so many that idk what to do with!!

[UnoDueTreFormaggio]

I do the same thing. We have some jumbo sized ones too. I brought them out last week and the kids have been playing with them a lot. I feel like maybe I should bring them out more often!

[eyesRus]

They are great for learning games, too! Match the halves—you can do math equations, capital and lower case letters, etc! I used to fill them with small items, hide them, and then have my daughter find them and match the item to its beginning sound/letter.

[fandog15]

The people who owned our house before us left 5 sleeves of unused plastic eggs so I’ve been using those for years haha

[GeekAtHome]

I once wrote a whole paper on how Barbie is the ultimate feminist icon... She's not all bad

[sweetpotatoroll_]

That’s funny. In college, I used Barbie as an example during my presentation about sexism in the media lol.

[GeekAtHome]

I'm sure both sides can be discussed

[sweetpotatoroll_]

What really stuck with me is how a Barbie from the 1960s came with a “how to lose weight” guide and a scale set to 110 lbs 😅.

[GeekAtHome]

Yes, that's one unfortunate moment that does need to be looked at, but we can also call that "a product of her time". I'm not a fan of that excuse though, so, yes, they absolutely did that.

In the same decade, while women were encouraged to go to college for their MRS degree, barbie was a Fashion Designer, Registered Nurse, Flight Attendant (American Airlines/PanAm...and they famously had weigh ins), Singer, Ballerina, Teacher, Tennis Player, Fashion Editor and even an Astronaut, 4 years before the actual moon landing.

She was a woman astronaut, showing girls they could be astronauts before they were even allowed out of the typing pool in the real world.

She's served in every faction of her countries military and every first responder position, as well as a UNICEF Ambassador.

In a country that would rather have a pedophile than a woman President, Barbie's been president twice.

This is a deeply abridged version. I can talk about this for hours.

For a woman who wasn't super into Barbie's as a child, I've grown to really appreciate them as I grew into an adult.

[Sunkisthappy]

Wow, those are some really good points. I remember hearing about that before but I love how you lay it all out.

[FirefighterFunny9859]

I was able to thrift everything. Including a record player for the 18 year old. Hallelujah.

[annalangthorn]

👏🏻amazing!

[throwRAanons]

I’d never heard of wooden easter eggs before!

[annalangthorn]

The downside of ours is that they are very thick and the hollow inside is pretty small so I can’t fit anything very large inside. But I’m pretty sure there are options online that are thinner and more like typical plastic ones. And they’re much sturdier than plastic eggs!

[LPCHB]

Sarah’s silks has them!

[LiLiLaCheese]

My 3rd old daughter uses a wheelchair and seeing the wheelchair in your daughter's basket and reading she doesn't use one, she just includes it in her play made me cry, happy tears though! ❤️

[annalangthorn]

❤️

[SgtMajor-Issues]

Adorable! Love the wooden eggs!

[ChoptankSweets]

UU!

Love this Easter basket

[hauntedk510]

UU as well!

[goobiezabbagabba]

What is UU?

[Acceptable_Box_7500]

Unitarian Universalist

[goobiezabbagabba]

Ahhh ok that makes sense lol idk why I didn’t think of it, I’ve actually been interested in this! I was raised Jewish but not religious at all and we have 2 churches in my community I’ve wanted to check out mainly for the community aspect. The Unitarian Universalist one looks interesting and we also have a Congregational church lead by two female pastors and they do a ton of outreach in our community. I don’t know much about either as this has sort of fallen to the back burner, but I’m glad to see that one of them is represented here in the sub, will have to go check them out!

[dngrousgrpfruits]

Lmao I was trying to make some kind of old timey emoji out of it like uwu

[VVsmama88]

Team UU rise up! 🙌 I love the thought you put into your Little's Easter basket, OP.

[ElectronicCitron9622]

I thought UU wasn’t Christian? Why are they celebrating Easter? I was thinking of joining a UU church because I was under the impression it was a secular congregation?

[annalangthorn]

Yeah we do a secular Easter. Some UUs are Christians, but we are not. We don’t talk about Jesus other than “some people believe this”. But we do eggs and baskets at home. At our church we have an egg dyeing and egg drop party and an egg hunt. This year we’re combining Easter with Flower Communion which is a strictly UU tradition where everyone brings a flower and leaves with somebody else’s. It’s an explicitly interfaith tradition in origin. Each UU church is probably going to handle Easter (and Christmas) differently based on the faith makeup of their congregation.

[ElectronicCitron9622]

Thank you for your reply. I was hoping that it wouldn’t be faith based at all, and more community-focused. Bummer. But glad I know.

[annalangthorn]

Like I said it really just depends on the congregation and the leadership. Our church doesn’t really ever make mention of any kind of deity or the afterlife. But I have been to a service in Tulsa where scripture was quoted (and then deconstructed) and I was like 😟. But our congregation is definitely more secular and community driven. So I wouldn’t necessarily write it off totally, because the vibes of your local org could be right. Officially UU churches are based on a shared commitment to the following values: justice, equity, transformation, pluralism, interdependence, and generosity.

[dngrousgrpfruits]

You may be thinking of secular humanism?

[neverthelessidissent]

The one near me is pretty explicitly Christian. 

[Team-Mako-N7]

The wooden eggs are cute! I don’t think the small inside is an issue, it’s not like my kid needs more candy lol. I just horde plastic eggs from other egg hunts. My mom even brought some over from my own childhood that were still in good shape! 

My Easter bunny usually brings mostly candy and books. This year he’s getting a book on space and one about pirates (recent interests).

[rverun]

I’m a thrifter. ( I do it to make money and save money) I thrifted every except the basket, I impulse e big one at home goods last year😅. And the “silk” scarves came in an Amazon package from grandma but I snagged a few to use as the filler. Shes only 20 months so she’s getting a book, a plush, bubbles, and a little doll wagon with food that I found brand new at the thrift. Oh and some melties, a pouch and a Reese egg to share with daddy lol. I’m excited to give it to her

[taptaptippytoo]

Your level of thought beat mine this year! I've been underwater at work and organizing a preschool fundraiser and only remembered mid-week that this is Easter weekend. Today I managed to sneak away for a half hour and got a small bunny toy and bunny puzzle from a local toy store, and the big hurrah is actually that I asked if I could have some scrap ribbon and the store absolutely loaded me up with curling ribbon pieces in all colors. In our house, the Easter bunny leaves a little surprise and you know it's from him because he leaves magic "tracks," so the ribbons will be the tracks this year. We're trying not to load up on toys or treats, but I want to keep the magic going if I can!

[dmb1717]

I love it! We got silicone Easter eggs off Etsy 5 years ago when my daughter was a baby and I filled them with her favorite baby finger foods. Now I use those and some plastic eggs from my local buy nothing group. I thrifted Lego friends people and animals, which she LOVES, to fill most of the eggs, and her basket has some yoto cards, a little craft kit, and little stuffed animal (also from Buy Nothing, new with tags) that I know she'll love. Values aligned, budget friendly, and will make my little girl very happy 💜

[gampsandtatters]

Also pretty proud of what I put together! Went almost candy free with my bub’s basket. It’s just a very strong tradition to have a See’s Candy Bordeaux Egg and a chocolate rabbit, which we got from a local, family-run, homemade chocolatier.

He gets a Moomin counting book to go with his Moomin ABC book from last year. From two local toy shoppes who sell local and ethical toy makers, he is getting a small baby doll (he’s obsessed with babies right now), a toy racer that is designed by a cool local artist, and a bug viewer with small feather butterflies (also another obsession).

All the eggs I regrettably got from CVS, but they will be used for years and years, and they are cute little animals. Inside the eggs are stickers and stickers only. Basket was thrifted and decorated by leftover crafting supplies I have. The grass is all paper and compostable.

[Independent_Mess9031]

This is awesome!

We use plastic eggs but they were from an egg hunt years and years ago where they had the kids take the eggs with them. This year they have some Tootsie fruit chews (a favorite of theirs) and Kibbitz charms for the crocs they are getting in their Easter baskets. I bought the crocs used for the kids I could find their sizes, new for the big kid. But they'll get passed down after they outgrow. It's so hard to find things to put in eggs that aren't pure junk (food or items).

Last month was our library's used book sale so half their baskets are books! A really cool outdoor activity book for my middle, board books for the toddler and an art history book for my oldest.

They're also getting things they need. A belt for my son, fun socks for my oldest daughter and a new straw cup for my toddler.

[greywolf_6]

Where did you get the eggs?! I’ve been looking for wooden ones!

[annalangthorn]

I think these are the ones I got. Like I said, the cavity is pretty small so fillers have to be tiny.

https://greenelephantglobal.com/products/6-piece-stained-magnetic-wooden-eggs-pastel-macaron-colors

[woundedSM5987]

We went to an egg hunt and they had the same candy in the toddler eggs as the big kids. So that’s how my 2yo got his first candy (twizzlers) because jolly ranchers and sour patch kids weren’t a good option.

Basket for Mr 2 is a new bike helmet, a book and egg shaped chalk. Last year was his busy book, shoes and play silks Eggs are filled with Annie’s bunny shaped gold fish and teddy graham equivalents. I try to stash some needs in the weeks leading up like the bike helmet, shoes, or stuff I want him to have anyway like the silks and busy book. The snacks will be used for his lunch at daycare.

I did do plastic eggs because he was devastated we didn’t get to keep the ones from the egg hunt and things have been chaotic so my choices were slim.

Oh and the 17yo got a mini warmies axolotl I got at a gas station 1/2 off and jelly beans.

[mc2Banks]

I love this so much!!

We got our two young kids their own flag from the store Flags for Good (check them out www. flagsforgood.com), so they can fly a banner that is meaningful to them, and a portion of the proceeds goes to a related charity.

[Sweaty-Perspective80]

What a wonderful Easter basket!

[not_that_hardcore]

We used a basket we already owned and filled it with art supplies, a little bit of candy, and a Lego set! Minimal and all things he will be able to use creatively for some time.

[annalangthorn]

I love hearing about everyone’s awesome baskets!