Easter Scavenger Hunt + April Fool’s Day Pranks

I know it’s only March, but have any of you started planning out Easter baskets? I can’t be the only one…

Aden is 11, so he is growing out of some of the little kid type things. I am thinking for this year of doing a basketball goal as the “basket” and a couple small treats. We were going to get him a basketball goal for Christmas, but he broke his arm horribly in October and was still in a cast until January. He still has to wear a brace during activities, but he has been cleared to play sports. In February, for his birthday, I found an awesome soccer goal on Amazon under $70 + free prime shipping. He loves playing outside & the soccer goal was a hit – so I’m thinking the basketball goal is a good idea too! *If you have any recommendations for in-ground basketball goals – let me know below! I haven’t found any yet!*

Ok, rewind to last year – Easter fell on April Fool’s Day. I took it upon myself TWO DAYS BEFORE Easter to put together a scavenger hunt full of little pranks. Obviously waited until last minute, woops, but it ended up being so funny, cute, and Aden thought it was awesome! I just made some little printable clues + used mostly things I had around the house.

The day started out with the first clue & Aden was very surprised! The second clue was by his iPad (where he plays Minecraft + watches “Try not to Laugh” videos on YouTube) – but he ran off so fast I didn’t get a photo!

Prank #1 : Googly eyes in the fridge

I got this big variety pack of googly eyes and used Elmer’s Glue to attach them to each item.

Prank #2 : Jelly beans in the toilet

Yes, gross, but look at his little smirk. What little boy doesn’t think toilet/poop stuff is funny? Anyway, I put a handful of jelly beans in the toilet with a sign from the Easter Bunny that he forgot to flush. (Don’t mind my weird handwriting. I was attempting to disguise it from my normal handwriting and it ended up being a mess. Ha!)

Prank #3 : Monopoly money Filled Easter eggs

Younger kids may not be super into money, but heading towards the tween years money becomes a lot more exciting. His response was a little chuckle and then shaking his head at me… I tried not to laugh myself!

Prank #4 : Easter Bunny’s “Photoshop” creation

It didn’t take Aden long to spot his school photo with bunny ears & whiskers! I just used some scrap book paper I had for the ears and then I used leftover sticker letters for the whiskers (the line parts of ! exclamation marks).

Prank #5 : Brussel Sprout Filled Easter Eggs

The boy’s face when he saw brussel sprouts in the Easter eggs was priceless. He absolutely hate’s them! (And no, I didn’t just buy them for this… I happen to looove brussel sprouts. Mmm!)

Prank #6 : Put clean underwear away + last clue

I had this sweet baby running all over the house… then his clue told him to put away his clean underwear & he’d get his last clue. As you can see below – it isn’t over yet!

Prank #7 : Donut seeds + carrots

For this one, I put a baggie of rainbow sprinkles in the pantry with the instructions. He had to plant them in a little container with Easter grass, close his eyes & count to 10. When he opened his eyes, a Dunkin Donuts box appeared. He was so excited (donuts are his favorite), but opening it revealed CARROTS!

Prank #8 : Basket of Cleaning supplies

Thinking the game was finally over… the seemingly last clue led to our coat closet. It did have a nice full basket… with lots of great cleaning supplies & a little “Happy Easter Aden” note! At this point, he was so confused, but he handled the disappointment pretty well.

Ending : The Real Easter “basket”

Next to the Cleaning Supplies basket was a little note (above) that said “Whew that was so fun! Better than a treasure map! I bet you’re super tired, Maybe you should go take a nap!” So Aden walked up the stairs and now he was starting to look defeated.

After the last “upstairs” clue, Chris put Aden’s “basket” in his bedroom while we were downstairs. When Aden walked in his room he was so shocked and excited!

We decided not to do a traditional Easter Basket again – as I like having a useful alternative for whatever the “basket” is. I also don’t do tons of candy and little cheap toys that will never be played with.

“Basket” – Adidas Duffel Bag

Goodies:

Sketch Books + Pencils ($5 each from Michael’s)

Book (My Life as a Cartoonist)

Headphones ($5 in Target Dollar Spot)

Charging Station (So affordable & a really useful gift!)

Post-its

Chips (Takis)

Peeps

Easter Eggs with a Little Candy

Am I crazy? Maybe… But I hope that these are the things Aden remembers when he gets older. He is only little once!