It was a late spring and and a much awaited Easter, and I wanted to make the Easter baskets more meaningful this year. Fewer plastic eggs, less candy: more necessary, useful stuff that will last. So I took a trip to Dollar General.
This no-frills store is a staple of mine. I buy detergents, trash bags, greeting cards and personal products here at rock bottom prices. Sure, they had plenty of chocolate bunnies and plastic grass here, but I had a pleasant brainstorm.
I found colorful plastic shower totes with handles, that were the size of large pails. Cheery and sturdy, they would make good storage containers after the holiday, in a way that more fragile woven baskets would not. I put some colorful Easter grass in the bottoms of these.
I picked an eclectic mix of surprises: a small bag of Doritos, blue Gatorade, a DVD movie. Hair accessories for the girls - barrettes, coated rubber bands, clips and ribbons. Nail clippers, tweezers, lip gloss, fingernail files. A couple of pieces of jewelry to accent an Easter dress. A little bit of good chocolate candy, but with all the other surprises, I didn't have to load up on the "bad" candy.
We also picked out special cards to tell the children what special Easter gifts they were to us. It was nice to tell them that again, and have fun with little gifts away from the madhouse of the Christmas season. No one was expecting as much, so it was fun to do it then. Dollar General made all of this more affordable. I like the simple approach of this store. Some of these stores haven't kept up as well, and have junkier inventories, but the one I go to is well kept and clean. One thing I like is the two charities the corporation supports - one for literacy, and Autism Speaks. Good causes, both.
The kids had hunted eggs on Palm Sunday, so I didn't hide any this time. They had some fun with Silly Putty - remember when we were told to press it down on the Sunday comics, to copy a picture? Then it was possible to stretch the pictures out and make them even funnier. Silly Putty, in its egg-shaped container, was a good fit with the Easter theme.
The kids had dyed eggs at school, so that had been done also. I love when they bring home milk-carton craft bunnies and edible Easter scenes. Marshmallow Peeps, pastel candy corn - what is wrong with me? Maybe it's time to cook a nice roast. Leave the candy to the kids. It all brings back memories though, of innocent Easters long ago. Bonnets, and families in their Sunday best. Nothing wrong with that.
This no-frills store is a staple of mine. I buy detergents, trash bags, greeting cards and personal products here at rock bottom prices. Sure, they had plenty of chocolate bunnies and plastic grass here, but I had a pleasant brainstorm.
I found colorful plastic shower totes with handles, that were the size of large pails. Cheery and sturdy, they would make good storage containers after the holiday, in a way that more fragile woven baskets would not. I put some colorful Easter grass in the bottoms of these.
I picked an eclectic mix of surprises: a small bag of Doritos, blue Gatorade, a DVD movie. Hair accessories for the girls - barrettes, coated rubber bands, clips and ribbons. Nail clippers, tweezers, lip gloss, fingernail files. A couple of pieces of jewelry to accent an Easter dress. A little bit of good chocolate candy, but with all the other surprises, I didn't have to load up on the "bad" candy.
We also picked out special cards to tell the children what special Easter gifts they were to us. It was nice to tell them that again, and have fun with little gifts away from the madhouse of the Christmas season. No one was expecting as much, so it was fun to do it then. Dollar General made all of this more affordable. I like the simple approach of this store. Some of these stores haven't kept up as well, and have junkier inventories, but the one I go to is well kept and clean. One thing I like is the two charities the corporation supports - one for literacy, and Autism Speaks. Good causes, both.
The kids had hunted eggs on Palm Sunday, so I didn't hide any this time. They had some fun with Silly Putty - remember when we were told to press it down on the Sunday comics, to copy a picture? Then it was possible to stretch the pictures out and make them even funnier. Silly Putty, in its egg-shaped container, was a good fit with the Easter theme.
The kids had dyed eggs at school, so that had been done also. I love when they bring home milk-carton craft bunnies and edible Easter scenes. Marshmallow Peeps, pastel candy corn - what is wrong with me? Maybe it's time to cook a nice roast. Leave the candy to the kids. It all brings back memories though, of innocent Easters long ago. Bonnets, and families in their Sunday best. Nothing wrong with that.
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