Family Easter Traditions

Easter-CardsEaster is a springtime holiday with lots of age old traditions attached. There is the Easter Bunny, dyeing Easter eggs, Easter baskets filled with candy, Easter egg hunts, Easter dinner with baked ham and other family favorites, Easter suits and dresses with matching hats and shoes, the Easter Egg Roll and the Easter Parade. For many Christians, Easter is the most significant of religious holidays, celebrating the day Jesus arose from the dead after the Crucifixion, experiencing new life in his resurrected body. But how did the Easter Bunny, chocolate candy, baby chicks and colorful dyed eggs become such a large part of the Easter celebration?

Many cherished Easter traditions have been around for centuries, and many of their origins remain a mystery. Rabbits have long been seen as an ancient symbol of fertility and new life. The Easter Bunny was reportedly introduced to America in 1700 by German immigrants who brought over stories of a colored egg-laying rabbit named “Osterhase”. Others attribute the word Easter to Eostre, a pagan goddess of spring and fertility. According to folklore, Eostre found a bird dying from the cold and turned it into a rabbit so its fur would keep it warm—but that rabbit still laid eggs like a bird.

Over the centuries, both pagan and Christian traditions have intermingled to give us the Easter traditions we practice today. For most of us, Easter is a fun way to herald the arrival of spring, celebrate new life, and spend quality time with family. The joy on a child’s face as they discover their colorful Easter basket filled with goodies, the cry of triumph as they find plastic eggs carefully hidden by mom and dad, the proud poses as each one shows off their new dress or Easter suit, the squeals of delight as family members gather around the table laden with all sorts of tasty dishes, these are the things Easter memories are made of.

To get your house ready for Easter, Current has a fun collection of outdoor and indoor Easter Decor.  We also have a huge line of Easter cards for you to send to family far away.  Do you have a favorite Easter tradition your family passed down to you? Have you started one you will pass down to your children? Write to us and tell us about it, or send us a message on our Facebook page. We’d love to hear from you!