Day 31: National Craft Month Ends...
As National Crafting Month draws to a close, ask yourself: what are you doing each
day to CRAFT a meaningful life for you and your loved ones?
How are you spending the time you are given each day?
Are the choices you are making each day making you and your loved ones happy?
If not…what are you going to do about it?
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Friday, March 30, 2012
Day 30: Resurrection Eggs
Day 30: Resurrection Eggs
Whether you purchase a premade set, like these, or make your own (several online
tutorials on how to do this), I think they’re worthwhile. If you’ve never heard
of Resurrection Eggs, they are a set of twelve plastic Easter eggs which each
hold a small item related to the events in the Easter story. If you buy the FamilyLife
set from the store (I got mine on sale and with a coupon that made it about
$10), you also get a little story book to help teach the story to children. You
can also make your own set fairly easily, and there are variations on the items
included in the eggs, but it all boils down to the same story…the most
important story you’ll ever hear to tell!
tutorials on how to do this), I think they’re worthwhile. If you’ve never heard
of Resurrection Eggs, they are a set of twelve plastic Easter eggs which each
hold a small item related to the events in the Easter story. If you buy the FamilyLife
set from the store (I got mine on sale and with a coupon that made it about
$10), you also get a little story book to help teach the story to children. You
can also make your own set fairly easily, and there are variations on the items
included in the eggs, but it all boils down to the same story…the most
important story you’ll ever hear to tell!
After “playing” them several times over the last week, here is what I heard being explained
from the four-year-old to the three-year-old in the back seat on our car trip today:
1. “This is the donkey Jesus rode on.” (donkey)
2. “These are the coins for the bad guys that killed Jesus.” (three silver coins)
3. “This is the cup for when Jesus said, ‘This is my Blood, now drink it.’” (silver chalice)
4. “This is the hands for when we pray.” (praying hands)
5. “This is the whip that the bad guys used to hurt Jesus with.” (strip of leather)
6. “This is the crown with points on it that the bad guys put on Jesus to hurt him.” (crown of thorns)
7. “This is the cross that Jesus died on.” (two nails in the form of a cross)
8. “This is the dice the bad guys played when Jesus died.” (die)
9. “This is the spear they poked Jesus with.” (spear)
10. “This is the blanket they covered Jesus with when He died.” (piece of fabric)
11. “This is the rock for the front of the tomb.” (rock)
12. “And THIS is the best one, Buddy- this is the EMPTY EGG because Jesus wasn’t in the tomb anymore- He went up to heaven!”
from the four-year-old to the three-year-old in the back seat on our car trip today:
1. “This is the donkey Jesus rode on.” (donkey)
2. “These are the coins for the bad guys that killed Jesus.” (three silver coins)
3. “This is the cup for when Jesus said, ‘This is my Blood, now drink it.’” (silver chalice)
4. “This is the hands for when we pray.” (praying hands)
5. “This is the whip that the bad guys used to hurt Jesus with.” (strip of leather)
6. “This is the crown with points on it that the bad guys put on Jesus to hurt him.” (crown of thorns)
7. “This is the cross that Jesus died on.” (two nails in the form of a cross)
8. “This is the dice the bad guys played when Jesus died.” (die)
9. “This is the spear they poked Jesus with.” (spear)
10. “This is the blanket they covered Jesus with when He died.” (piece of fabric)
11. “This is the rock for the front of the tomb.” (rock)
12. “And THIS is the best one, Buddy- this is the EMPTY EGG because Jesus wasn’t in the tomb anymore- He went up to heaven!”
She held each item up, telling him about the meaning of each item. She was pretty much spot on, and I thought that was pretty much great.
PreKinders has a little snippet on their site and a good picture of a set like the one we
have: http://prekinders.com/easter-resurrection-eggs/
have: http://prekinders.com/easter-resurrection-eggs/
Practically At Home has directions on how to make your own similar set, which includes
slightly different objects: http://practicallyathome.blogspot.com/2008/02/dozen-days-to-easter.html
slightly different objects: http://practicallyathome.blogspot.com/2008/02/dozen-days-to-easter.html
There is also a book to go along these lines, which I have not read- but here’s the
info: it’s called Benjamin’s Box: The Story of the Resurrection Eggs by
Melody Carlson http://www.amazon.com/Benjamins-Box-Story-Resurrection-Eggs/dp/0310715059/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1333163741&sr=1-1
info: it’s called Benjamin’s Box: The Story of the Resurrection Eggs by
Melody Carlson http://www.amazon.com/Benjamins-Box-Story-Resurrection-Eggs/dp/0310715059/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1333163741&sr=1-1
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Day 29: YOUR Easter: Is It About the Bunny or the Lamb?
Day 29: YOUR Easter: Is It About the Bunny or the Lamb?
I ran across this question on a blog a few weeks ago, and it has been running through my head ever since as I have been gathering Easter-teaching materials and Easter-celebrating materials. I don’t want to get rid of the bunny, and I don’t
want to commercialize and cheapen the Lamb…so where is the happy medium?
want to commercialize and cheapen the Lamb…so where is the happy medium?
We started talking about Easter bunnies, and the fact that they leave gifts to
help us celebrate the good news of the risen Christ…but that seems to be a flimsy
connection…obviously anything that involves finding presents in a basket sounds
great to a kid, but what’s the point of it all, really?
help us celebrate the good news of the risen Christ…but that seems to be a flimsy
connection…obviously anything that involves finding presents in a basket sounds
great to a kid, but what’s the point of it all, really?
We started off the conversation: how can YOU be like the Easter bunny and share
the good news of Easter? At this point, I have mostly just focused on the idea
of sharing happiness in celebration of Easter, and how WE can do that too, by
telling friends about the Easter story and sharing treats to celebrate.
the good news of Easter? At this point, I have mostly just focused on the idea
of sharing happiness in celebration of Easter, and how WE can do that too, by
telling friends about the Easter story and sharing treats to celebrate.
We pasted our faces on a bunny color page I found online through Yahoo images, and will move on from that to look at the “Real Eater Bunny” picture idea shown on the Happy Home Fairy’s blog (below).
I would love to hear about YOUR ideas for teaching and celebrating a meaningful Easter with your children!
Real Easter Bunnies from Happy Home Fairy
http://happyhomefairy.com/category/easter-ideas/
Real Easter Bunnies from Happy Home Fairy
http://happyhomefairy.com/category/easter-ideas/
Great ideas for teaching the real meaning of Easter from Impress Your Kids:
http://impressyourkids.org/resurrection-easter-ideas-for-kids/
http://impressyourkids.org/resurrection-easter-ideas-for-kids/
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Day 28: Easter Books
Day 28: Easter Books
Looking for some books to use with your little ones to teach the real meaning of
Easter? Here are a few!
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