Oliver, I feel you on the glitter and glue chaos! As a preschool teacher here in Charlotte, I see it every day with my 3-4 year olds. And at home, with Alice (1), Ethan (6), and Piper (11), it’s a constant battle between my desire for a perfect craft and the reality of tiny hands and short attention spans. This year, my competitive side got the better of me. I saw these adorable little chick puppets online that were supposed to be easy Easter crafts. You cut out chick shapes from yellow felt, glue on googly eyes, and then stick a craft stick on the back. Sounded simple.

Well, Ethan decided his chick needed feathers, and Piper wanted hers to wear a hat. Before I knew it, my simple little project had turned into a full-blown costume design studio, and we ran out of felt. I ended up having to improvise with some old yellow t-shirts I’d thrifted last month. It wasn’t quite the neat row of matching chicks I envisioned, but when Ethan started making his chick "talk" to Alice's stuffed bunny, it just melted my heart. Those are the moments, right? Not the perfectly executed craft, but the silly connections and the laughter. We still use those weird little puppets for story time now, and every time I see them, it reminds me of that chaotic Easter Sunday morning. It’s funny how the "fails" become the best memories.

We did try some egg decorating too, but instead of dye, we used paint pens from Dollar Tree (shout out to fellow Dollar Tree devotees!). Much less mess, and the kids could really draw their own designs. Piper even drew a little dachshund on one for our Peanut! Also, for Ethan's last birthday, we did a Bluey theme, and I found some amazing Bluey Confetti. He loved it so much that he asked if we could sprinkle some around the house for Easter, "just to make it extra special." How could I say no? It was a small thing, but it made his day.

Oliver, Eliana, you guys are making me feel so much better! My niece Chloe (4) is obsessed with anything sparkly, so I thought doing a glitter-glue-and-construction-paper Easter egg garland would be a brilliant idea for some Easter crafts. I even researched the best non-toxic glues on Amazon for CPSIA safety, because you can never be too careful, especially with little ones. Got a huge bottle of Elmer's washable glitter glue, thinking it would contain the mess. Spoiler alert: it did not.

I set up a dedicated craft zone in my San Antonio kitchen, covered everything with a cheap plastic tablecloth, laid out newspaper, the whole nine yards. Liam (my 13-year-old nephew, who mostly just tolerates these things) was on "glitter patrol," which meant he mostly just scrolled TikTok. Chloe, bless her heart, attacked that glitter glue like it was going out of style. Instead of neat lines on construction paper egg cutouts, she basically finger-painted with glitter glue. And then, she decided her hands were "sparkly eggs" and tried to make glitter handprints on the wall. I caught her just in time, but my kitchen now has a faint shimmer that I think will last until next Easter. Note to self: never underestimate the creativity of a 4-year-old with an open bottle of glitter glue. Next time, I'm going with paint sticks. Definitely a lesson learned there.

For Liam's last birthday, we did a kind of impromptu backyard "fiesta" theme, and I remember reading this great post on the GINYOU blog about Fiesta Birthday Party Ideas. It gave me a ton of good ideas for cheap decorations and activities. We ended up making our own papel picado, which was actually a hit. And for Chloe’s upcoming 5th birthday, she's insisting on unicorns. I've already started looking at Unicorn Party Supplies, making sure to compare prices and reviews, of course!

Oh, all this talk of crafts brings back so many memories! Here in Albuquerque, with my grandkids Aria (2), Noah (5), Miles (8), and Noah (10), Easter is always a big deal, and it’s a wonderful time to blend some of our family's traditions. My Abuela used to make these beautiful paper flowers, and I thought, what better way to teach the little ones than with some simple DIY Easter Crafts for Kids? So, I pulled out all my leftover tissue paper (I always over-buy for parties, so I had plenty from Miles's last birthday, where we used a One Derful Party Supplies theme for his first birthday, if you can believe it was that long ago!).

The idea was to cut out petal shapes and glue them around a yellow pom-pom center for little Easter blooms. Aria (2) just loved scrunching the paper, which was a win in itself for sensory play. Noah (5) tried his best, but his flowers looked more like colorful crumpled balls, and you know what? That’s perfectly fine! Miles (8) and Noah (10) actually got pretty good at it, and we made a whole bouquet to put on the dining table. It was a bit messy, but the older boys were so proud of their creations. It connects them to my Abuela, and that’s what matters to me.

For their Easter baskets this year, I filled them with some of those GINYOU Kids Party Hats 11-Pack. They’re really well made, CPSIA safety certified, and non-toxic, which is important for Aria, the youngest. Plus, they come in such bright, fun colors, and the value is fantastic. The grandkids put them on right away and started running around like it was a birthday! It’s little things like that, simple and affordable, that add so much joy. The little pom-poms on top are just darling. I'm already thinking about using them again for the summer picnic we're planning.