Easter is the season of hope. Flowers bloom, birds nest, and children hope for big gobs of gooey candy. As a mother, I was never comfortable encouraging my daughter to gorge on an endless supply of sugar treats. As a former child, however, I remembered the delicious anticipation and exciting discoveries nestled in each colorful basket, especially chocolate Easter eggs.

Needless to say, my early Easter Bunny years were conflicted. Should I go with my adult sensibilities or my childhood memories? I have to admit, I am a sucker for nostalgia. It gets the best of me every time. It also got my daughter the big gobs of gooey candy she hoped for, numerous stomach aches, and a couple of cavities to boot. There had to be a better way.

I quizzed the mothers in our playgroup. While most of them served up traditional Easter baskets, there were some who did not. These women had a number of suggestions. They included a basket of toys, a basket of books, and notes from the Easter bunny promising a special family outing. While all were good suggestions, they didn’t quite feel right. That was when I realized I was being too literal. I was thinking in terms of black and white. Easter wasn’t black and white. It was pink and green and yellow.

It was also an opportunity to introduce a new family tradition. Holidays revolve around family traditions, and there is no rule that says yours have to be the same as your next door neighbor’s or your parents’ for that matter. Once I grasped this concept, I was free to celebrate Easter in my own way, according to my family values.

I knew that I did not want to exclude all candy, but I also knew that I did not want candy to be the center of attention. I wanted my daughter’s Easter basket to be something that we could enjoy as a family. Therefore, I started thinking in terms of activities we could share in. Activities that would make for a fun afternoon and encourage her natural interests. That is when I came up with what I call the Once Upon a Time Basket.

This basket combined two interests my daughter held at the time: dress up and fairy tales. Once upon a time was her favorite way to start any sentence. So, I built a basket around her favorite tale, Little Red Riding Hood. I filled her basket with baked goods and covered it with a gingham napkin. I also included a red cape and a map to Grandma’s house. This map took her through our backyard and was dotted with plastic Easter eggs that held small treats she could add to her basket.

The basket and the day was a success! I had found a way to celebrate the holiday on my terms. I continued to make baskets based on my daughter’s interests at the time. She loved each and every one of them so much that she didn’t even miss the big gooey gobs of candy! Here are some of the Easter baskets I created for her. Your child might enjoy one of these or you might get some ideas on how to celebrate this Easter with a new family tradition.

• Playground Days. This basket not only fed my nostalgia craving, it allowed me to share some of my history with my daughter. We talked about how I spent my time when I was her age. I showed her how to play some of my favorite games, including hopscotch, jump rope games, jacks, yarn games, and more. The basket included a jump rope, jacks and a ball, chalk, a bundle of yarn, and a book on hand clapping games. Miss Mary Mack anyone?

• Get a Clue. When my daughter was older and had developed a love of reading, this basket really hit the spot. The centerpiece for this one was the first three Nancy Drew books. The basket also included a bookmark and a miniature detecting kit, complete with a Sherlock Holmes style eyeglass and fingerprint powder. In addition to the books and toys, the basket held the first clue in a mystery scavenger hunt I had devised. The other clues were hidden in plastic Easter eggs around the house and yard. When she solved the mystery, she was treated to a surprise. Hiding in our azalea bush was small trunk that was full of secret compartments perfect for hiding clues when she made up mysteries of her own.

• Have a Ball. In fifth grade, my daughter joined the neighborhood Little League team and fell in love with baseball. Therefore, her Easter basket that year was a given. It included a ball, glove, and three books on the sport. One was the history of baseball. The second was on the WWII women’s leagues, and the third was a Hank Aaron biography. All of which she found on home plate in her very own backyard. Using sidewalk chalk and cardboard I constructed a miniature baseball field on which we had a pick up game that afternoon.

• Prehistoric Fun. At one time or another most kids develop a fascination with dinosaurs. My daughter was no exception. I used her interest in the prehistoric to put together an archeology basket. It included a 3-D T-Rex puzzle, a small shovel, a dinosaur identification book, and a book on fossils. I also put in a batch of ready made salt dough. We spent that afternoon making our own fossils and scientific discoveries.

• In the Kitchen. I started cooking with my daughter in second grade as a way to improve her math skills. She showed a genuine interest and inclination, which I encouraged by cooking up an Easter basket. In it I put an apron, two oven gloves, measuring spoons, a measuring cup, some cookie cutters, and a kit to make pot holders. I also included a recipe box with one card inside. It detailed how to make Easter egg shaped butter cookies, which we shared with delighted friends and neighbors.

Like all other holidays, Easter is a celebration of family. Use that thought to come up with a way of observing the day without compromising your family values. After all, it is your family, your celebration, and your traditions that make Easter what it is—the season of hope.