14 Sensory Easter Basket Ideas

Easter is right around the corner. The dreaded basket full of chocolates, jelly beans and other sugar the kids really don't need looms before us. Rather than loading up with sugary treats, here are 14 sensory toys that can be snuck into Easter baskets by a smart mama bunny.

Each is especially perfect for kids with autism, addressing their needs to feel different textures, play with and chew things, or calm overwhelmed senses. Many of these we have for M2, or I want to get. Even B would love them (well, the ones that are age appropriate). There is something for kids of any age on the list.

Happy Easter!


1. Water beads
Tons of fun, without the mess. Soak them over night, drain them, then let the kids have fun playing. We store them with water in an air-tight container for a few weeks.



2. Silicone teething necklaces, pendants and chews
I have a few of the necklaces for when B was teething. M2 decided they were great for her so likes to wear it and chew as she goes.



3. Textured balls
Perfect for babies and for older kids who like to explore different textures.



4. Liquid motion bubbler
This is one of the calming sensory toys I mentioned. ASD kids often find it calming to watch the bubbles fall.


5. Fidgets
These help the kids do exactly what they say -- fidget! Only, it's in a non-distracting way. The fidgets bend and twist to keep fingers occupied.



6. Glitter Tube
Another of the calming sensory toys. Plus, it's pretty!



7. Kinetic Sand
The fun of sand without all the mess since it sticks to itself.


8. Foam
The tiny foam balls stick together to make neat creations, or just smush.



9. Vibrating teether
For kids with oral sensory issues, a vibrating teether can work wonders.



10. Play-Doh
Need I say more? I think we all recognize this one. :)


11. Scented marks
Scribble, color and create with yummy smelling markers.



12. Silly Putty
A classic.


13. Chew Stixx Pencil Toppers
Another especially for kids with oral sensory issues. These toppers are made specifically for chewing.



14. Tempra Paint Sticks 
For the kid who finds paints soothing (and the mom who doesn't like the mess).
 

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Easter Egg Craft and Easter Basket Alternatives

Easter Egg Decoration Craft
M2 loved doing this craft and is SO proud of her egg. Her favorite part was the stickers. I think all kids tend to be obsessed with stickers so they're always a hit.

Supplies
1 Giant Easter egg (I found ours at Target)
2 packs Easter stickers of your choice
3 packs small flowers
Hot glue gun
Hot glue

Directions
Have your child put the stickers on however they want
Place a small dab of glue where ever your child wants to place a flower
Have your child stick on the flowers, alternating glue then flower so the glue doesn't dry too fast

Be careful not to let your child touch the hot glue gun!

Easter Basket Alternatives

Every Easter, there seems to be so much candy involved. Candy in baskets, candy in eggs, so. much. candy. Kids end up with way more sugar than is healthy. If you mete it out in little bits, it lasts forever and takes up pantry real estate until it's finally gone (or just turns nasty, like some of our candy from last Halloween).

Instead, try limiting the candy and use some of these nifty ideas. There are a variety of ideas to fit any budget and age. Some of the bit pricier ideas you could do rather than having a ton of small stuff in the baskets, or do instead of Easter baskets if your kids are older.

1. Light up chicks
2. Bubbles in a neat package, like these butterflies or turtles
3. Reusable sticker pads, like these house, vehicles, town, or dress up ones.
4. Egg shaped crayons
6. Nifty neon or regular sidewalk chalk
7. Paints, regular colors, neon, or finger paints
8. Coloring books and/or workbooks
9. Books
10. Cute cups, silverware, plates, or bowls
11. Socks
12. Toy cars
13. Jump rope
14. Hula hoop
15. Earrings, bracelet, or necklace
16. Action figures
17. Gift card for a store, Amazon, iTunes, Starbucks, movie theater, or something else your child enjoys
18. Event tickets
19. New outfit
20. Modeling clay in white so you can color it or multi-colors
21. Outdoor toy
22. Small Lego set
23. Doll
24. Little People single dolls, animals, or cars
25. Nail polish
26. Sand bucket, rake, and shovel
27. Sandals
28. Fun handsoap or bath soap
29. Tub toy
30. BluRay
31. Subscription service, like Citrus Lane

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Affiliate links are included in this post.

Easter Egg Craft and Easter Basket Alternatives

Easter Egg Decoration Craft
M2 loved doing this craft and is SO proud of her egg. Her favorite part was the stickers. I think all kids tend to be obsessed with stickers so they're always a hit.

Supplies
1 Giant Easter egg (I found ours at Target)
2 packs Easter stickers of your choice
3 packs small flowers
Hot glue gun
Hot glue

Directions
Have your child put the stickers on however they want
Place a small dab of glue where ever your child wants to place a flower
Have your child stick on the flowers, alternating glue then flower so the glue doesn't dry too fast

Be careful not to let your child touch the hot glue gun!

Easter Basket Alternatives

Every Easter, there seems to be so much candy involved. Candy in baskets, candy in eggs, so. much. candy. Kids end up with way more sugar than is healthy. If you mete it out in little bits, it lasts forever and takes up pantry real estate until it's finally gone (or just turns nasty, like some of our candy from last Halloween).

Instead, try limiting the candy and use some of these nifty ideas. There are a variety of ideas to fit any budget and age. Some of the bit pricier ideas you could do rather than having a ton of small stuff in the baskets, or do instead of Easter baskets if your kids are older.

1. Light up chicks
2. Bubbles in a neat package, like these butterflies or turtles
3. Reusable sticker pads, like these house, vehicles, town, or dress up ones.
4. Egg shaped crayons
6. Nifty neon or regular sidewalk chalk
7. Paints, regular colors, neon, or finger paints
8. Coloring books and/or workbooks
9. Books
10. Cute cups, silverware, plates, or bowls
11. Socks
12. Toy cars
13. Jump rope
14. Hula hoop
15. Earrings, bracelet, or necklace
16. Action figures
17. Gift card for a store, Amazon, iTunes, Starbucks, movie theater, or something else your child enjoys
18. Event tickets
19. New outfit
20. Modeling clay in white so you can color it or multi-colors
21. Outdoor toy
22. Small Lego set
23. Doll
24. Little People single dolls, animals, or cars
25. Nail polish
26. Sand bucket, rake, and shovel
27. Sandals
28. Fun handsoap or bath soap
29. Tub toy
30. BluRay
31. Subscription service, like Citrus Lane


Affiliate links are included in this post.

Easter Dinner Redux

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter! We celebrated as a family on Saturday then M2 and I spent the actual day with her cousins, uncle and aunts. She had a ball and has spent most of today sleeping to recuperate. Her Easter basket of books, tub toy, stuffed animal and plate and bowl set was a hit. The little chair, giant ball and Cozy Coupe went over even better. She even figured out the egg hunt quickly and loved that, though she insisted on opening every egg (once she figured out they opened) as soon as she found it and bit a few head off some chocolate chicks and bunnies--foil and all.

As I mentioned in my Easter Dinner post here, I'd planned to share the recipes. However, I ended up not making the cheesecake, Jello salad or bunny rolls and the monkey bread went a bit screwy. It was still edible and not horrid by far, but wasn't what it should be or good enough to share. I'm still not entirely certain what went wrong, all the yummy goo just disappeared or turned hard. We were left with a pan of biscuits covered in cinnamon and a bit of goo here and there. M2 loved them, though she's also never had the really good ones so isn't the best judge.

The macaroni salad turned out well, that one is hard to mess up and I had A do it. It's his family recipe so he knows what he's doing. I'd share that recipe if I weren't afraid of making the family angry. Though, it'd probably be worse if I gave out the pierogi recipe that's been passed down through the generations. In my family, it's the sugar cookie recipe that's kept under tight lock. We'll be enjoying the leftover ham, veggies and mac salad this week.

How was your Easter?