The Real Story of Easter- Resurrection Eggs Tutorial

We all know that Easter isn't just about eggs, bunnies and baskets... but it can be hard to teach our children the true story of Easter in a way that they can grasp. This year, I decided to make my own "Resurrection Eggs"  to teach Little Sweets the story of Jesus' death and resurrection. You can buy these at Christian book stores or online but they're pretty simple to make yourself! This project is so easy and cheap... most, if not all, of the items are things you already have around your house.

What you need to make your own Resurrection Eggs*:

egg carton

12 plastic eggs

list of items and Bible verses

piece of bread

coin(s)

piece of purple cloth or ribbon

thorns from a rose stem

piece of string or rope to represent scourge or whip

cross

nail(s)

sign that says "This is the King of the Jews"

spear or sword (or piece of toothpick)

rock

Total cost: $1.00
Everything but the eggs should be laying around your house somewhere!

*Please note that these are ALL choking hazards for young children. This is meant to be used as a teaching tool not a toy for young children.

First, you'll want to write or print up a list of the items and corresponding Bible verses. Each item represents something that occurred during the week of Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. (You can download and print my list here if you'd rather not do it yourself. Mine also includes a sign and a cross.) Tape the list to the inside of your egg carton. You might want to paint the outside of your egg carton so your Little Sweeties don't think that the true story of Easter has anything to do with a certain brand of eggs. =)

Then, put one item inside each egg, leaving the last one empty.

To teach your children the true story of Easter, you'll open each egg and read the corresponding Bible verse. (Verses below are all from the New International Version of the Bible.) You could open up one egg per day in the 12 days leading up to Easter, like an advent calendar. Or you could open them all on Good Friday to give the kids time to process the story before Easter Sunday.

1. Bread
Matthew 26:26
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”


2. Coins
Matthew 26:14-15
Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver.

3. Purple Cloth
Mark 15:17
They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him.

4. Thorns 
Matthew 27:29
...and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said.

5. Scourge
Mark 15:15
Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

6. Cross
John 19:17-18
Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.

7. Nails
John 20:25
So the other disciples told [Thomas], “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

8. Sign 
Luke 23:38
There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

9. Sponge
Matthew 27:48
Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink.

10. Spear/Sword
John 19:34
Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.

11. Rock
Matthew 27:59-60
Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.

12. (Nothing)
Matthew 28:6
He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.

That last one is my favorite... nothing tells the true story of Easter better than the Empty Tomb:

Image: KruseKronicle

- Tricia from Sweeter Than Sweets

How-To Tuesday: Tissue Paper Flowers

I'm sure that many of you already know the basics of making tissue paper flowers, but I thought I'd share a quick tutorial on how to make some cute, quick flowers! I love crafts like this because I can use something that is waaaaaay past its prime (ie crumpled re-gifted tissue paper from who knows when) to make something cute and gift-worthy! These are really simple and kids can help make them, too!

Materials needed:
tissue paper, in any colors you'd like!
pipe cleaners
buttons
hot glue gun (mom tool!)
scissors



We started out with big sheets of tissue paper, that I cut into squares to make them more manageable for the kids. I cut them into squares about 4 to 5 inches big...As you can see I was not so precise in them being exact squares.



Next layer four or five squares on top of each other and folded them into quarters. Then cut petal shapes out of the folded quarters of paper...I cut mine in a sort of heart shape for Valentine's day. **REMEMBER TO LEAVE THE CENTER FOLD UNCUT!!!** (We had a couple of mishaps with this step...if you cut the center of the paper you end up with a bunch of unattached petals!)



After all the cutting is done unfold the petals and separate them from one another. Then you can layer them back together, overlapping and filling in gaps.



Gently push a pipe cleaner through the center of the flower, put a button on it, and bend it over, and through the other button hole to make a little center for your flower. (You may have to help with poking the holes in the flowers.)




The next few steps are ones that Moms should probably help with! Put a little dab of hot glue under the button, and gently pulled the button down onto the tissue. (This step is optional, but makes your flower a little sturdier. If you're doing this project with younger kids, you can skip the next few steps altogether and go straight to the finishing step!)


To cut leaves, I just folded up some green tissue paper and cut a leaf shape out. After fastening the top of the flower together, I glued a couple of leaves to the bottom of the flower, and pinched them to give some dimension.




Then I used a strip of green tissue, and wrapped it around the rest of the stem, gluing as I went and adding a couple more leaves. (Again, this is totally optional, but makes the flower look a little more finished...especially if you are using white pipe cleaner, instead of green, like I did!)



To finish the flower gently scrunch the layers of petals upward, to add some texture, and then 'fluff' them up.


Ta-da!! A simple and sweet tissue paper flower! (I know. It's not Martha Stewart. But hey...it's a pretty good knock-off, eh?)



You can create all sorts of petal shapes, and edges to your flowers! Use pinking shears or other shaped scissors to get some really fun effects! You can also layer different colors together to make some truly unique flowers!

A bouquet of these adorable tissue paper flowers would make really sweet gifts for teachers, grandmas, and other special ladies in your kids' lives!

This was originally posted on Sarahndipities.blogspot.com on January 31, 2011. (http://sarahndipities.blogspot.com/2011/01/make-something-monday-tissue-paper.html)

-Sarah @ Sarahndipities