How to Build the Ultimate Frugalite Easter Basket

With Easter and kids comes the fun of Easter baskets. These baskets filled with toys, candy, and other fun things that will give your kids a sugar rush that is sure to last at least halfway until Halloween. Unfortunately though, filling those baskets can sometimes be anything other than cheap. Between all the candy your kids don’t actually need, and the toys and knick-knacks that will be forgotten, sometimes it feels like you’ve just flushed all of your hard-earned money down the drain.

This year we’re gonna change that. Below is a list of amazing things that your kids will actually enjoy that won’t feel like you’re putting your grocery budget at risk.

Sweets and Treats

While I did say don’t go too crazy on candy, it’s still nice to get at least a little bit. The best part is? Most of these can come from the dollar store for a buck or less.

1.  “Rabbit Poop” – get a box of white tic-tac’s, give it a label and call it rabbit poop. Your kids will get a kick out of it!
2. Chocolate – of course, it is Easter, after all, a little chocolate is practically a requirement.
3. “Carrot Seeds” – grab another box of tic-tac’s, these ones orange, and label them carrot seeds.
4. Bunny Tails – Get a bag of big Marshmallows, and call them bunny tails, after all, they are cute and fluffy. Trying putting them in those cute little plastic eggs to make it a little more fun.
5. Jelly beans – these were probably one of my favorite parts about Easter, we always seemed to get jelly beans.

Get Outdoors

As spring finally arrives, so does the warm weather and the urge to play outside. It makes now the perfect time to stock your kids back up with basic outdoors activities since you’re already buying them a gift. This saves you from having to get more later too.

1. Sidewalk Chalk – It’s not too expensive and with it comes to a world of possibilities. You can draw, you can play hopscotch, hangman or even X’s and O’s (also known as tic-tac-toe).
2. Jump rope or Skip-It – these two toys go hand and hand and are super fun for getting out some energy.
3. Hula-hoop – these were definitely one of my favorite toys growing up. I wasn’t the best, but I sure loved trying.
4. Bubbles – From ages 1 to 100, I’ve never met a person who doesn’t love bubbles, whether you be the bubble popper or the bubble blower, these magical floating balls of soap tend to put a smile on everyone’s face.
5. Buckets and Shovels – doesn’t matter if your close to a beach or just a local sandbox, most kids love to play in the sand, and toys like buckets and shovels can often be found cheap in a “beach kit” with a little bit of everything.
6. Balls – Be it soccer, basketball, or bouncy, there is just something fun about playing catch or seeing how high you can bounce that little bouncy ball.

Coupons

No, I don’t mean the kind that gives you 50 cents off a can of tuna, I’m talking about the homemade ones. Giving your kids coupons to redeem with you is a fun and creative way to give them something fun, make some memories and save a little money.

Here are ideas for different kinds of coupons you can give;

1. A Picky Eater Pass – give them a coupon to get out of one meal they don’t like, where they can just replace it with something simple like a PB & J sandwich.
2. Extra game time – is your kid one who loves to play video games? If they are and this is something you limit to a certain amount of time a day, give them a pass to get an extra hour of gaming.
3. Dessert for dinner – give them a dinner they won’t forget. I know one of my favorite childhood dinners was where I got to eat chocolate chip cookies and ice cream. It didn’t happen often, but it’s a memory I treasure.
4. Chore Pass – if your kid does household chores like laundry or dishes, give them a chore pass to get out of them for a day. (I’d just put a disclaimer that it can’t be used for cleaning their room)
5. Movie Night – Have a family movie night redeemable by coupon if it’s not something you do already.
6. Veggie Pass – While there are exceptions, many kids really dislike eating their vegetables. Have a veggie pass, where for one meal, they can pass on all vegetables. This means no fighting to get them to eat it and one happy kid. Besides, one meal without veggies won’t kill them.
7. Stay Up Late – Most kids have bedtimes, and often, they want to stay up past their bedtime.

Get Creative

There are lots of ways you can get creative, whether it be art supplies, activity books, or crafting supplies. Stocking up on these things will be great for the rainy days soon to come with early spring. To top it off, most of these things can be found at the dollar store.

1. Crayons, markers, gel pens, or pencil crayons
2. Activity books
3. Stickers
4. Crosswords and word searches (great for the older kids)
5. Notebooks or sketchbooks
6. Random crafting supplies (think pop-poms, pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, glue, etc.)
7. Beads and string
8. Sewing, knitting, or crochet supplies.

Put it All Together

Now that I’ve given you loads of ideas of things you can put in the baskets, let’s talk about useful types of baskets you can use. I know traditionally every kid gets a cute little basket with a handle in pastel colors that just winds up getting broken or thrown out, but let’s try switching it up to something more useful.

1. A laundry hampers – almost anyone can use an extra laundry hamper floating around, and you can often find them in pretty colors now too.
2. A towel or blanket – roll it up, and tie it with a bow, Just hide your goodies inside so it’s like wrapping paper and a basket all in one.
3. A storage bin – Want something a little smaller? A storage bin will be a great way to store some of your new gifts and look pretty too.

I hope you’ve got some good ideas and enjoy a very frugal Easter!