I love receiving a handmade gift, you know that time and thought has gone into creating it, just for you, so this Easter I wanted to make gifts from the heart. I didn’t want to buy your everyday foil wrapped Easter eggs, I wanted to make personalized gifts for family and friends, selecting their favourite chocolates and lollies and presenting them  in a simple and creative way.

Jam jars are the latest trend at the moment, they are used for vases, drinking glasses, candle holders and even light fixtures. I picked my jars up for around $3 at my local discount store, I also found some great twine and ribbon for decoration.

Next I visited my local supermarket to find yummy goodies to fill my jars with and to my delight I ran into The Easter Bunny, I couldn't resist having a photo, too cute!!
 
On my list:
  • Mini marshmallows
  • Mini Caramel eggs 
  • Malteasers
  • Smarties
  • Candy mini eggs
  • Medium chocolate eggs
  • Chocolate lollypops
Once I arrived home with all my goodies, I washed and dried my jam jars and placed the ingredients in bowls. Now the fun part, creating and assembling.

Results
It all went well: while working on my lollypop jar I discovered if you stabbed the lollypops into the marshmallows it stopped them from falling over. The multi-level jar was probably the trickiest, making sure there was a definite layer between ingredients. The only other issue was that few chocolates went missing in the process, I had to taste them to check that they weren’t bad!!!




 The Easter Bunny Legend
A colleague asked me what the connection was with Easter and the rabbit, not knowing the answer myself I researched it and discovered this:

Centuries ago a Norse goddess (Scandinavian mythology) named Eastre was responsible for ushering in the new year during the spring season. One year she was late in her duties and, to make up for her mistake, she saved a little bird injured in the cold. Because the bird could no longer fly as a result of its damaged wings, Eastre changed it unto a hare which had the ability to lay eggs, but only on the day Eastre was celebrated. Thus was born the tradition of an egg-laying bunny responsible for hidden chocolate all over our homes.

Even though the Easter Bunny stems from an old tradition, the rabbit itself still fits well within the modern Christian symbolism of the season. Just as the Atonement brings new life, so does spring. New life springs forth after the winter, and rabbits are a prime example of fertility and birth, since they have the ability to produce many offspring.

Like most holidays, much of the meaning behind the celebration is lost due to commercialization. However, even with colourful eggs and bunnies, the important messages behind Easter and the true significance of what took place two thousand years ago can still be remembered.

http://universe.byu.edu/2012/04/05/what-happened-to-easter/

Till next time, Happy Easter, Julie

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