5 Easter Gifts That Won’t Give Kids a Sugar Crash

Picture this scene: The kids wake up early and tear into their Easter baskets. Before they begin their Easter egg hunt, they have already eaten several handfuls of jelly beans. By mid-morning, you have given up on telling them to throw-away wrappers and start picking them up yourself. Noon comes, and the kids are listless. They're cranky, and all they want to do is play video games.

You can avoid the sugar rush and mid-day crash with Easter gifts that don't melt in their mouths or their hands. Here are five ideas for putting fun, creativity, and quality time into their baskets.

1. Glitter Magic

Give school-age kids a journal or sketch pad with glitter gel pens, and watch their creativity ignite. Be sure to choose a journal with a theme that appeals to their interests, and include stickers or other items to personalize this gift.

If you're concerned they won't take to journaling right away, pair these magical colors with some intriguing coloring pages instead.

2. Creative Time Together

Toddlers and preschoolers love to be creative, but they will need your help. For young children, art is all about the experience.

Give young kids sidewalk chalk, finger paints, or play dough and be sure to provide them space and time to get messy. You can also try a group activity like creating a footprint mural with your little ones.

When giving the gift of creativity, the important thing is not what goes in the package; it is about your time together.

3. Nature-Inspired Crafts

Spring is a great time to get out into nature. Create a gift package with everything kids need to make art inspired by nature.

Everything that is, except for the natural materials, the kids can go outside to gather grasses, ferns, flowers, rocks, and leaves to use in their arts and crafts projects, from making a tiny flower pot out of an eggshell to using leaves as paintbrushes.

4. Gifts for Gardeners

Wrap up dimensional craft paints with some clay pots and give the kids another reason to enjoy some time outdoors.

For a complete spring garden, include some potting soil and seeds or small potted plants to put into their planters once the paint dries. These paints can decorate watering cans and garden boots, too.

5. Window Cling Art

When the spring sun is shining higher in the sky, window cling art kits provide everything you need to bring some color indoors. Even if it's still cold outside, creating your own colorful stained-glass-style window cling encourages kids to let the sunshine in.

This Easter, you can inspire your kids to channel their energy into fun and creative projects. Even if they still eat a few too many jelly beans, a gift that gets them going outside, spending time together, or sparking their creativity can set the mood for the day.

By feeding kids' brains as well as their bellies, you can set them up for an afternoon of contentment instead of a sugar crash.

What do you plan to give your kiddos this Easter?