Apparently, the complex in which we are about to spend Easter for the first time since our relocation does an egg hunt for all the kids before the kids go home and trade their haul in for a basket done up by their own parents. (Awesome, hey?)
My son’s basket will include the following:
- for the environment, a second-hand basket (there are tonnes in the thrift shops)
- for the environment, paper (not plastic) grass
- an Easter candle – The fancy, decorated, glass egg is “cracked” open, the wick inside. My son loves candles and he will enjoy opening and recapping this one again and again.
- “fruit and nut balls” – precisely the same as a Larabar but cuter and can be made with soaked and organic nuts (Jordan Maerin offers the recipe I use in her book Raw Food for Busy People), or a Larabar in one of the newest flavours
- an M&M fan – My son saw these in the store and was smitten. He is a very happy boy and rarely asks for things so when he does, I pay close attention. Just as when he receives Smarties at school, he will dump out the contents and play with those before filling the tube with anything else and spinning the fan with glee.
- possibly, Peppermint Patties (suitable only for those far enough into healing to be able to do cocoa) made with 100% fair trade organic cocoa rather than 73%, and honey instead of agave nectar, and/or Chocolate Raspberry BonBons (again, suitable only for those far enough into healing to be able to do cocoa) made with 100% fair trade organic cocoa rather than 73%. For those not able to use cocoa, I would suggest macaroons: fun, amazing, delicious and friendly for even early GAPS!
- a plastic duck and a plastic rabbit each filled with Playdoh, their feet little stamps for the malleable contents
- a little wind-up hopping chick
Not as eco-friendly a basket as I would have liked, but in a given year I weigh many variables and make decisions balancing all of them. My son is so committed to and honest about his health program, rarely receives extravagance (well, it wouldn’t be extravagance if he were receiving lavishness regularly), and is distinct in his food options. Thus, for a special occasion like Easter I break some of my eco-ness to provide my son with a day of sheer joy and sense of “sameness”. What I don’t feel the need to do, though, is compromise his health by offering non-foods to his belly!
Your son is a lucky little man! May I make a recommendation on a new Lara Bar flavor? I love them all but the Tropical Fruit Tart is hands-down my new favorite!
Have you ever wrote to them and asked if LaraBars are legal? I let my kids have them as a treat sometimes, but it would be nice to know.
And I was unsure what you ment by the M&M part..
are you buying him some?
Hi Christin,
No, I have never written to the folks that make Larabars.
As part of his Easter basket, I bought my son a toy, handheld fan whose handle was full of M&M’s. We didn’t open the handle – It was the fan he was excited about. The fan stopped working within 48 hours and I returned it for a refund, the candies still inside
My son has lots of encounters with candies and simply views/treats them as “toys” (sometimes actually playing with them). He knows we simply don’t eat them.
Best,
Baden