Buy your Yowie Books here!

You can customize your basket and tailor it to your child’s interests and ability. Here’s a list of everything we’ve included in ours. Click this link to download a printable list to take with you when you go shopping at Walmart for your supplies!

• Yowie Surprise-Inside Chocolates (we used one of each of our six Yowie friends)
• Basket (look for something that can be used for a different purpose after the holiday is over)
• Paper “grass” (can be recycled after the holiday)
• Terra cotta pot(s)
• Potting soil to fill the pot(s)
• Variety of seeds (flowers that can be planted in the yard, vegetables that can be used in the garden)
• Wooden bird house (unfinished)
• Acrylic paints
• Paint brushes (look for brushes with wooden handles)
• Bird seed mix to fill the finished birdhouse (you can make your own birdseed at home, as well)
• Cookie cutters in fun spring shapes
• Your favorite sugar cookie recipe

Step One

First, we started with a basket that can be re-used for other purposes after Easter. We found a soft woven rope basket that is both sturdy and flexible and can be hung on the wall for easy organizing later. We’re going to use our basket to store our collectible animals that we find inside each Yowie Surprise-Inside chocolate!

Step Two

Next, we filled the basket with paper “grass” (we’re so happy to see more paper grass in the stores!). After the holiday, the grass can be recycled or added to a compost bin. You could even make your own paper grass by shredding scrap paper from your home or office.

Step Three

Of course, we added lots of Yowie Surprise-Inside chocolates, because it wouldn’t be an Easter basket without a sweet treat inside! One of the best things about Yowie treats are the surprise collectible animal or Yowie character inside each chocolate.

Step Four

Next, we found a small wooden birdhouse, paints, and paintbrushes. Kids will love decorating their own birdhouse and then placing it in the yard where they can watch the birds gather to snack on seeds while learning about what their neighborhood birds eat! You can buy some pre-made birdseed or find a homemade birdseed recipe that you can mix up at home. Throughout the year, you can use the bird feeder to observe birds and learn how to keep your own neighborhood birds healthy and safe from things like poisonous pesticides.

Step Five

Spring is the time to plant seeds, so we were sure to include a clay pot, soil, and seeds in our basket. Kids love to watch the seeds that they’ve planted sprout and grow into plants. They can not only help plant the seeds but also take care of the seeds as they grow. They’ll learn responsibility and take pride in helping a living thing develop!

Step Six

Finally, we added a cookie cutter (or two) along with a recipe for sugar cookies. Now the whole family can bake some cookies together. Kids love helping out in the kitchen, especially when they can snack on a tasty treat that they helped make afterwards! Sprinkle your cookies with colored sugar before baking or whip up some homemade buttercream frosting and decorate your cookies together once they have cooled completely.

Here are some additional ideas for a bigger DIY eco-conscious basket:

• Include a mason jar and craft sand:
  Work together to create a habitat inside a mason jar for the animals you collect inside Yowie Surprise-Inside chocolates. Add additional rocks, twigs, etc. to round out your animal home.
• Add colored pencils and paper:
  Draw scenes that encourage imaginative play with the animals you’ve collected.
• Colored paper and ribbon or string:
  Create a book where you can glue or staple the information sheets on each animal from your Yowie Surprise-Inside chocolates. Books can be made by stapling together some colorful paper or punch holes in a corner and tie your pages together with a ribbon or string.

What additional items or activities would you add to your eco-conscious Easter basket? Think outside the box and get ready for a fun, educational, and bonding experience this Easter.

View the current Yowie Surprise Inside series here – IN STORES NOW.

Yowie Surprise Inside chocolates are The Smart Treat!

Yowie Surprise Inside chocolates are delicious, highly quality, 100% Milk chocolate which is Rainforest Alliance Certified – this means it’s made with 100% sustainably sourced cocoa beans. Our chocolate is also non-GMO, nut-free, gluten-free and contains no artificial colors or flavors.

Inside each of our character-shaped chocolates is a surprise animal collectible on the spectrum of endangered species, along with an information leaflet about that animal’s habitat, behaviors and threats. Kids can download the free augmented reality app, YowieScope, to keep track of their collection and learn even more about the animals they reveal.

With all of the natural wonder that comes with Spring, this is the perfect opportunity to help children engage with eco-conservation. You can start with an Easter basket filled with fun and interactive products that encourage creativity, imagination, and quality time with your kids.