Day 23: The Easter Tree
We’ve always had an egg tree at Easter time…why is that?
Because I had one when I was growing up.
Why is that?
Is the tree just for pretties, or should there be more to it than that?
In seeking to answer this question and to give more meaning to the Easter egg tree
tradition in my own family, I first decided to replace the plastic eggs and décor
with handmade embellished chicken eggs. I made a few for the kids based on
their interests and personal family themes, one featuring Jesus on the cross,
and I’m working on completing one decoupage egg for each of our Easters
together.
But I wanted to tell the REAL story of Easter on the tree…
I came across the idea of a “Jesus Tree” on the blog, A Holy Experience. Here is the link, but I will warn you that the author is a writer- the post is quite
lengthy, and the part about the Jesus Tree comes at the end of this post about
her interpretation of the personal meaning of Lent: http://www.aholyexperience.com/2012/02/what-lent-really-means-free-easter-devotional-book-to-make-a-jesus-easter-tree/
To make the Jesus Tree discussed here, you need Ann Voskamp’s free Easter devotional, Trail to the Tree- it’s a 17-Day , aimed at preparing the family for the good news of Easter, gives a scripture-based account of the significant events in the life of Jesus. Each day includes scripture, a selected verse to pray over and reflect on together, an “action plan” for the day, and a piece of art (which can be printed and made into ornaments for your tree). It is designed to be shared with the whole family, though it seems geared toward a slightly older audience than my own two. To access the devotional, you need to sign up to follow the blog- which you won’t regret!- and you will find the link to the devotional at the bottom of the
email in the RSS feed.
I read the devotional and adapted the tree idea: I printed the pictures at the end,
cut them out, and adhered them to clear acrylic tags by Tim Holtz. I then
recorded the related verses on the back of each ornament, along with a phrase
or sentence that spoke to me from that day’s devotion.
I hung these on our Easter tree while the kids were sleeping, and I plan to answer
their questions about the pictures as they come. I have a bin of Easter books
and age-appropriate resources I will use as reference pieces if they need them.
I can tell I will need a larger tree next year…
We’ve always had an egg tree at Easter time…why is that?
Because I had one when I was growing up.
Why is that?
Is the tree just for pretties, or should there be more to it than that?
In seeking to answer this question and to give more meaning to the Easter egg tree
tradition in my own family, I first decided to replace the plastic eggs and décor
with handmade embellished chicken eggs. I made a few for the kids based on
their interests and personal family themes, one featuring Jesus on the cross,
and I’m working on completing one decoupage egg for each of our Easters
together.
But I wanted to tell the REAL story of Easter on the tree…
I came across the idea of a “Jesus Tree” on the blog, A Holy Experience. Here is the link, but I will warn you that the author is a writer- the post is quite
lengthy, and the part about the Jesus Tree comes at the end of this post about
her interpretation of the personal meaning of Lent: http://www.aholyexperience.com/2012/02/what-lent-really-means-free-easter-devotional-book-to-make-a-jesus-easter-tree/
To make the Jesus Tree discussed here, you need Ann Voskamp’s free Easter devotional, Trail to the Tree- it’s a 17-Day , aimed at preparing the family for the good news of Easter, gives a scripture-based account of the significant events in the life of Jesus. Each day includes scripture, a selected verse to pray over and reflect on together, an “action plan” for the day, and a piece of art (which can be printed and made into ornaments for your tree). It is designed to be shared with the whole family, though it seems geared toward a slightly older audience than my own two. To access the devotional, you need to sign up to follow the blog- which you won’t regret!- and you will find the link to the devotional at the bottom of the
email in the RSS feed.
I read the devotional and adapted the tree idea: I printed the pictures at the end,
cut them out, and adhered them to clear acrylic tags by Tim Holtz. I then
recorded the related verses on the back of each ornament, along with a phrase
or sentence that spoke to me from that day’s devotion.
I hung these on our Easter tree while the kids were sleeping, and I plan to answer
their questions about the pictures as they come. I have a bin of Easter books
and age-appropriate resources I will use as reference pieces if they need them.
I can tell I will need a larger tree next year…
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