The sun is shining and spring is in the air, so gather some friends, family and neighbours and organise a simple spring party full of easter treats. 

Don't worry if you don't have a garden of your own, consider asking grandparents or aunts and uncles to host the event. They might be delighted to see everyone having fun in their garden and might even be tempted to wear an Easter bunny outfit for the occasion.

Alternatively, use the local park. Gather up the children, pack up a picnic and pop in some shiny, easy to spot Easter treats.  A few small sweets simply wrapped in foil will still have young children squealing with delight when they find them. While everyone is enjoying the swings and slides, one parent can hide the treats. Just be careful not to trample the flowerbeds! 

Having a theme for your party can be fun, especially Mad Hatter's Tea Party, Farmyard Fun or Fairies. Children love dressing up and will enjoy putting together their own spring ensemble! Facepainting can be something lots of children jump at the chance to try, while others will be happy to just have a small egg or bunny painted on their hand. Encourage your child to join in the fun but allow them to choose how involved they get.

Simple, brightly coloured, hollow plastic eggs that you can fill yourself are perfect if you want to be able to control the treats. This is especially helpful if any of your family have allergies. 

For older children try adding clues to the hunt and camoflaging some eggs to make it a little trickier. Encourage the children to be involved in the party preparation, especially the older ones. Having responsibilty for hiding the eggs and hanging up bunting are great self esteem boosters. Just remember to praise their efforts even if things aren’t done eggsactly (pardon the pun) the way you want them, you could put them off wanting to help out next time. 

Help your little guests burn off some energy by playing musical games outside. Switch up traditional games like musical chairs with cushions to keep things easy, or use green cardboard circles as "lily pads" for them to land on.