After the longest year any of us can remember — filled with challenges and uncertainty — the dawning of a new Spring is in the air. Snow is melting, birds are chirping and the sweetness of Easter is just around the corner. Even the elves are looking forward to some warm weather.
Want to start an egg-citing new Easter tradition to spread joy to your world this Easter season? Reconnect with your peeps with a new way to celebrate that’s super thoughtful, generous, and a little bit on the sneaky side… start a “Secret Bunny” family Gift Exchange by “Egging” the neighborhood!
How To “Egg” Friends and Family
Have you ever been “boo’ed” at Halloween? The Halloween “boo’ed” tradition is when friends, family and neighbors secretly leave unsuspected gifts on someone’s doorstep or yard. At the same time, your family is assigned to another family in your neighborhood. You gather a little basket of Halloween goodies and secretly leave it on your neighbor’s porch, with a note letting them know they’ve been boo’ed—but be sneaky and don’t let them know you were ever there.
The concept to spreading Easter cheer as you take on the role of Secret Bunny for a “You’ve Been Egged” game is VERY similar to the Halloween boo’ed tradition, but with plastic Easter eggs hidden in the lucky receivers yard instead. You set up their own personal Easter egg hunt! Simple as that!
Using an online Gift Exchange website or app like Elfster makes it even easier to get your neighbors, family and friends inspired for a little springtime You’ve Been Egged fun, and helps keep it a secret and your family safe. If your neighborhood has a master list of everyone’s email addresses, it’s a quick and easy way to make sure you include everyone in the fun. Then Elfster will take care of assigning families, and don’t worry, your secrets are safe with the elves!
Each family participating in the neighborhood “egg-citement” will be assigned one other family they may or may not know, which makes it even better, and a great icebreaker for newcomers to the neighborhood. Be sure to invite older neighbors, too—they may not have Easter egg hunters at home anymore, but it’s still fun to join in the neighborhood escapades!
What to Include in your “You’ve Been Egged” Invitation
As the organizer of an Elfster Gift Exchange, you can personalize the look and message for your invitation and here are some ideas of what to include:
Please answer the following questions and post them so the person that gets you knows a bit more about your family. This is going to be lots of fun!
1. Does anyone in your family have a peanut allergy?
2. How many kids do you have? What are their ages?
3. Any favorite Easter candies?
4. Do you have a favorite color?
Please add anything else you think is important. You will deliver & hide your eggs secretly, but please let the organizer know once you have done so.
With rules and expectations clearly defined, let the “egging” begin!
How to Let Neighbors Know “You’ve Been Egged”
1. Create a sign for the door with the following message:
YOU’VE BEEN EGGED!
In your yard are 12 Easter eggs filled with Easter treats.
Happy Hunting!
Love, _______________
Secret Bunny Tip — Make you sign awesome & get creative! Let the kids decorate with crayons, glitter, tissue paper and more!
2. Fill 12 plastic eggs with toys or candy.
3. Hide the eggs in secret spots all over the neighbors’ yard.
4. Tape the sign to their door and, if you decide to include a basket to help with the hunting, hang it on the door, too. Then run!
Since hiding the eggs takes a little more time than just setting something on the doorstep, you’ll want to find a time when they aren’t home or they are busy and won’t see you!
[Alternatively, if you’d just like to do an Easter basket doorstop drop-off, include one of these sweet free printable cards to say “Happy Easter!” It will still let your neighbor know “You’ve Been Egged!”]4 Fun Easter Party Games
If you’d like to do a “Secret Bunny Reveal Party” after You’ve Been Egged, gather all the neighbors outdoors, even if they didn’t participate, for a festive and socially distant Easter Party. Ask around the group to find your Secret Bunny to say thanks.
If you want to add some goofy and meaningful fun to your holiday, these four Easter party games are a great idea. And the best part? You can play them at home, in a small backyard, in a park, or anywhere where you’re all together.
None of these games are just for the kids, though they’re all extremely kid-friendly. But Easter party games can be for all ages.
Here are a few of our favorites that are super easy and take very little planning:
Arts and Crafts
This isn’t a game as much as a fun activity, especially if it’s raining (which is not unheard of on a spring Sunday). Figure out a theme, gather your materials, and start crafting! This can be as simple as decorating eggs or as complicated as making Easter dioramas.
Guess the Jelly Beans
This one is pretty complex. Here are the tools you need:
- A jar
- Some jelly beans
Phew! I know it seems like a lot, but hear me out. You count a bunch of jelly beans, put them in a jar, and have people guess how many there are. It’s a basic variant on classic carnival games.
And then you get to eat the jelly beans. Really, there are no losers.
Scavenger Hunt
Just in case you didn’t get enough hunting with your hidden eggs, this is one that can be done either indoors or outdoors. There are a few steps.
- Create a prize (possibly an Easter basket filled with goodies)
- Create clues that lead people around the area. Each clue can be Easter themed, like having to find a stuffed rabbit.
- Give participants their clues in a plastic Easter egg.
- Have people go at it.
This one takes a good bit of creativity, planning, and watchfulness. It might not be for the little kids, but they can play on a team with adults or older kids. There are a lot of scavenger hunt packs that can help you with this.
Secret Santa Gift Exchange
A lot of families have started exchanging gifts at Easter. A Secret Santa-style gift exchange is the most fun way to do this.
You just have to make sure that everyone knows the Secret Santa rules and find an easy way to play. An online Secret Santa generator allows you to randomly assign Secret Santas (and allows you to create exclusion lists, like no spouses or partners), make your wish list online, and shop for your giftee straight from their list. It only takes a few clicks on a laptop or mobile device.
A lot of people are doing themed gift exchanges for Easter, with Easter gift ideas. A Secret Santa app makes it really easy to make an Easter wish list. One of my favorites is we all ask for plants or flowers or trees. Then, if the weather is right, we plant them. Or we take them home and plant them near us.
Over the years, they grow. They bloom every year. We’re giving gifts to each other, yes, with all the goofy mystery of a Secret Santa. But we’re also giving a gift to the earth and to the future.
This Spring, bring back the cheer and have fun starting an egg-cellent new Easter “You’ve Been Egged” tradition to spread joy to your world that can be used for years to come! Follow us on social media & please don’t forget to snap a few pictures after you deliver the “goods” so we can share in the joy too! Tag us on Instagram or Facebook for easy sharing!
At Elfster, the Elves have been busy hop, hop, hopping around to get ready for Easter—and we know you have been too! To help make your Easter fun, fresh, and oh-so festive, check out our incredible Elfster Gift Guides and stay organized with our easy-to-use and totally free online Secret Santa Generator.
