Throw a Kids' Easter Party to Make the Bunny Himself Jealous

Get Things Hopping!

As your little guest arrive, get them started on an activity as they wait for the others. A perfect start is the String Maze. You'll need several balls of brightly colored yarn and some special treasures (i.e. plastic Easter eggs filled with candy, themed costume jewelry for girls, Matchbox cars for boys, themed coloring books and crayons, etc.).

Tie one end of the colored yarn to the treasure and hide it behind the couch, in a cabinet, or in another nook. Unroll the ball of yarn throughout the house or rooms designated for the party. Swoop it through chairs, under tables, behind bookcases, and back and forth across the room. (Remember to keep the "maze" age-appropriate for your guests. You may have to do some very easy ones for younger children.)

Repeat this with a treasure for every child and make sure all the yarn mazes begin at a central location. Put one child's name on the beginning end of each maze. As they arrive, let them find their name and start following their yarn to their special surprise!

Or you may decide to get all the dying done at the beginning of the party, so the eggs have time to dry before hunting. Have the table and materials set up and ready to go when the children arrive. Provide many different materials for the kids' imaginations. Several different dying-kits will provide more than enough dye tablets for a group of children. Make sure there are several dye-cups of the same colors to limit spills as children reach across the table.

Dying kits are also a cost-effective way to offer different dying techniques. Maybe combine a tie-dye kit with a glitter-dye kit and a sports-themed shrink-wrap kit. Put several bottles of glues, some markers, wax crayons, glitter, buttons, stickers, pompoms and any other craft supplies you think the children would enjoy. Show them the basic techniques:

- Drawing on eggs with crayons before dying results in a wax-relief effect. The dye cannot stick to the wax.

- Dye eggs in light colors and then re-dye the ends in darker colors by holding the tips dye cups.