Making Easter Personal for Mini

Trying to get my Mini to get the BIG picture of Easter is a challenge! There are bunnies and chicks everywhere, and plenty of plastic eggs all over my house.  But, I know my little brainiac is ready for some real info.  So I started thinking of the way to explain to Way that the Lord died on the cross for our sins and that he rose again!  TALK ABOUT A DEEP CONCEPT.  This Mama decided to BREAK IT DOWN!
Step 1:  What is sin? 
Step 2:  What are our sins?
Step 3:  Jesus died for our sins.
Step 4:  HE IS RISEN

Let's make this personal...because, lets get real...it IS!

Step 1: http://ministry-to-children.com/prescol-lesson-on-sin/

I found this lesson  on Pinterest and used and edited it to what we had!  We talked about what we do when our hands are dirty?  How do we get them clean? 
Then I asked him do you know what sin is?  No, he said!  It is when our hearts get dirty!  Our hearts get dirty by doing things we know we shouldn't do.....like not sharing, hitting, crying when we don't get our way!  While it is sad, we all sin!  But, in order to get our heart clean from sin, we need GOD!

Then I got our HIS Bible and we read Psalm 51: 1-9
*Lots of big words he didn't understand!  But, I we focused on Psalm 51:7b
"wash me and I will be whiter than snow!"  Jesus died on the cross so we can be whiter than snow!
Basically, we did the craft that they created on the site.  I cut an octagon out of red construction paper (a convex octagon....as a geometry teacher, I am ashamed of my not so accurate attempt at a stop sign).  We counted the sides, named it an octagon, talked about how is was red, reviewed how to spell red and then on his own he told me "like a stop sign!"  Exactly!  Instead of STOP we are going to write SIN because we want to Stop our Sin! 

The only was we can do that is through Jesus because he can clean our hearts and make us white as snow!  Flipped it over and had him use white paint to make the red sign...white! 

Then we just added the verse after he was done!
 
Easy, fast and effective!  Oh, and we sang "white as snow"  all afternoon too!

STEP 2:  What are our sins?  http://godcenteredmom.com/2012/04/02/making-easter-personal-for-preschoolers/

My boy loves all things OUTSIDE!  So, "everybody outside!"  (I just loved this idea and just tweaked it a bit)  We picked some rocks we could find in the yard and put them in our Easter basket! 

Then we napped!
While they napped!  I put the rocks on the cookie sheet!  And right before they woke up, I set the oven to 220%.  Got the box of crayons out that my son had gotten "naked" and cooked the rocks for about 20 minutes!  Then we carefully painted the crayons! LOVED LOVED LOVED This...just be careful!


Then we talked about how everyone sins.  I told him some of the things I do that are sins and asked him what he did!  He listed a couple and then I had to encourage a couple more!  We then wrote his sins on his eggs and put them in his basket!  Then we asked God to take this sins from us, clean our hearts and make us white as snow!  Then I took the basket, but it out of reach...but not out of eye!

Each night other then talking about our favorite part of the day, we are talking about one time we sinned during the day.  Then we are asking God to forgive us and asking him to help us not do it the following day. 

 

Now Step 3 and 4 I will be getting to throughout the next couple weeks!  We are doing it all from reading the Easter story over and over from all of the different gospels and his children books, to watching veggietales on the Easter story, Passion for kids, creating a handprint cross http://www.flickr.com/photos/picassoz/5520627763/in/set-72157623548388132, probably a handful of other crafts too and searching for empty eggs in the backyard to remind us that the TOMB WAS EMPTY!  Focusing on Bible verses Matthew 28:6!  "He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay." 

On Easter Eve, we will place a red towel or blanket (or shirt or whatever we can find) over his basket!  And pray again for God to take away our sin, make our hearts clean and make us white as snow!  Then we will go to bed!  Then, Easter morning, he will wake up to an Easter blessing (Jesus related) and an empty basket...just like the tomb. 

I just want my Mini man to know that Jesus died for HIM!!!!  Hoping that we can make it personal!  That he will see what a miracle he is, how SPECIAL he is to JESUS and how powerful the Lord's love is!