Easter is right around the corner, and you what that means: it’s time to visit the candy aisle for your kids. Gift-giving at Easter has become so popular, this is now the third largest purchasing holiday for children behind Christmas and Halloween.
As a parent, I’m a believer of everything in moderation. Like me, many parents are concerned about the amount of candy and junk food their children are eating. With that in mind, we’ve seen a transformation over the last three years in the toy industry where parents are choosing to buy inexpensive toys and include them in Easter baskets as gift. This year, there are actually three times the number of Easter-themed toys available for the holiday compared with what existed just a couple of years ago.
It’s hard to choose what to throw in that Easter basket. I personally love the toys that come in eggs so you can plan a massive egg hunt as an Easter activity. Isn’t that what it’s all about – the joy of searching for eggs and the surprise of what’s inside?
I’m also a huge fan of the Hot Wheels Eggsclusives. Hide these around the house Easter morning, and a child can search for an egg and find a Hot Wheels Car or even hide the Easter-themed Play-Doh eggs. How cool is that? If your child collects Squinkies, there’s the special edition Easter Egg pack out this year. Another one of my favorites is the transforming Easter eggs from the Disney stores. These are soft Easter eggs that transform into stuffed animal characters from Bambi.
Whether you have a boy or a girl, there’s a plethora of toys to choose from that can make Easter a lot more fun (and last much longer) than just the candy. For a child, getting candy and a toy as a holiday treat – does it get any better than that?
Jim Silver is editor-in-chief of www.TimeToPlayMag.com, a playful family website which provides information, entertainment and services on what’s fun for children. Visit us at TimetoPlayMag.com to check out even more ‘eggs-cellent’ Easter toys.