63 Last-Minute Easter-Basket Ideas

Gund’s mini–Peter Rabbit tucks into an adorable carrot-shaped sleeping bag.

Egg-shakers: a perfect “my first musical instrument” that also hits the Easter theme.

If you prefer wooden shakers over plastic ones, each of the five in Haba’s set makes a different sound.

Kids can build standard towers with the pieces from Melissa & Doug’sBlockablesline of wooden blocks or use the included connectors to link them into shapes like the barnyard animals in this Farm Friends play set.

A classic and heartwarmingly competitive tale of a parent and kid who love each other to the moon — and back — that gets even more poignant as the years go by.

Mudpuppy’s pouch puzzles are one of the newest additions to ourgift guide for 2-year-olds. There are several scenes to choose from, includingWoodland Picnic,Rainforest,Under the Sea, andConstruction Site; each one has 12 pieces and zips into a nearly flat storage bag that’s easy to take on the go.

These palm-grip crayons are one of our best-selling gifts for1-year-oldswith a shape that helps develop fine motor skills. They’re also nice for slightly older kids who tend to be a littleroughwith traditional crayons — and are especially apropos for Easter.

For the kid who’s always coloring — even in the tub — Honeysticks’ Bath Crayons come recommended by multiple Strategist parents.

The stylish kids’ sunglasses from Babiators are sized to fit small faces and come with an enticing guarantee: If they’re lost or broken within a year of purchase, the brand will replace them for merely the cost of shipping.

If your child is obsessed with cars and trucks, this set ofsturdy friction-powered construction vehiclesis a favorite of multiple Strategist parents. Senior writer Liza Corsillo has a 2-year-old who carries one everywhere he goes, and she appreciates that, because of the inner mechanism, “very little effort or skill is needed to get them going and make them go really far.”

Once thestickersphase hits, Corsillo also recommends Petit Collage’s combination sticker-and-coloring books because the stickers are pretty easy for her son to pick up and stick on his own, and the coloring pages are full of fun details. There are several designs, includingmonsters,mermaids,space,vehicles, andpets.

This simple wagon from Green Toys is made from recycled milk jugs and has plenty of space to hold Easter loot. My daughters have had theirs for years and still use it to tote other toys around the house despite having grown way too tall for the pull string.

Sturdy plastic buckets make great alternative Easter baskets, and they come in handy for backyard mud-making and summertime sand-schlepping. This heavy-duty, German-made option won’t crack even if it’s filled with heavy seashells.

When my elder daughter turned 1, this dump truck was her hands down favorite birthday present. It comes in three colorways (pink and purple,red and yellow, andblue and orange), and it won’t hold a ton, making it a perfect “basket” for younger kids who will be more than happy with a piece of candy and a trinket or two.

Magna-Tiles are probably the most valuable toy my family has ever owned in terms of sheer hours of playtime. This set of mini-tiles comes in a tin that makes it conveniently portable for spring-break travel.

Ooly makes some of our favoritekids’ art supplies; these nifty markers have regular brush tips on one end and emojilike stamps on the other.

[Editor’s note: Orders from Amazon will arrive before Easter. At Ooly, orders received by 8 a.m. PT will ship that same day; expedited orders will arrive in two to four business days.]

I first learned about Wikki Stix at a restaurant that handed them out to kids in place of crayons; they’re made of yarn that’s coated in food-grade wax, and they’re bendable and sculptable into all sorts of creations. Plus the colors don’t mix and get muddy, the wax doesn’t dry out, and the pieces never get tangled or permanently stuck. Playing with them is almost like having an extremely lo-fi 3-D printer.

Jump ropes are a classicoutdoor toythat kids can start getting the hang of around age 7 or so. The beaded ropes in this set of two are easy to carry in a backpack for practicing at school or the park, and have a good weight to them that makes it easier for beginners to learn.

The novelty of a ball that lights up makes spring soccer even more fun. (Choose size 3 for younger kids, size 4 for most elementary-schoolers, and size 5 for ages 12 and up.)

It’s easy to get obsessed with this one-player,Tetris-esque brain-teaser game that prompts kids to place one of the 12 shapes in a specific spot on the board and fit all the rest into the surrounding grid. I put it in my younger daughter’s Easter basket right after she turned6 years oldand was impressed by how quickly she grasped the concept; if you have puzzlers in your midst, I’ve seen a range of age groups get totally hooked (my 9-year-old is also a fan), and there are lots ofmore advanced versionstoo.

Clixo is one of our favorite open-ended building toys. This 18-piece pack also happens to be road trip– and restaurant-friendly.

For the kid who’s already in a summer state of mind, these easy-to-adjust swim goggles look like sunglasses and are gentler than most on delicate hair. They come in lots of colors and styles, too — even a slickpair of aviators.

These big-eyed “fidget pets” are small enough to tuck into eggs for a candy-free hunt.

Each of my kids has one of these, even though I’m a noise-sensitive person who sometimes has to claim they are “out of battery and need charging.” But the entertainment value they’ve brought to our household’s frequentDescendants, Chappell Roan, and Taylor Swift covers is undeniable.

I have begrudgingly made peace with the tactile appeal of slime (though I still force my kids to play with it on a plastic tray). My best tip is that the “cloud” and “butter” varieties are the least sticky.

If you just can’t make yourself give in, here’s another worthy compromise: berry-scented “slime” bodywash they can play with in the tub.

This six-pack of real-looking, Superball-esque bouncy eggs is best played with outdoors, where they can unpredictably ricochet off sidewalks and walls to keep kids guessing.

The latest Beyblade tops come with a rip cord to start each one spinning. If you’re shopping for more than one kid,get a fewso they can battle with each other.

My 7-year-old is going through a big Barbie phase; this doll from the brand’s Fun and Fancy line has extra-long hair and comes with extensions, clips, and a comb for endless styling possibilities.

Easter is the perfect time to crack open a fresh box of sidewalk chalk.

If they’re more of an indoor kid, Crayola has a line of battery-operated nightlights that they can decorate over and over again with the brand’s washable markers.

Or here’s a sweet mini-makeover for their Crocs.

Scentco’spencils,gel pens, andmarkerscome in a range of colors and scents, from neon shades that smell like fruit to this more subdued set of coffee-scented pens with black ink.

A populargift for teens, this silicone suction phone mount will let them stick their phone to nearly any flat surface.

Speks’s more grown-up fidgets are both cool-looking and hard to put down.

This collectible Rubik’s Cube is part puzzle, part room décor featuring very of-the-moment Stitch.

One of the most teen-friendly Easter “baskets” imaginable is a Baby Baggu filled with their favorite candy, snacks, and gift cards. Once the goodies are gone, they can reuse the bag for whatever they want.

A spinoff of the classic board game that’s portable, easy to learn, and playable in ten to 15 minutes.

Just some delightfully nostalgic red-velvet-flavored Lip Smacker in a carrot-shaped package.

For the frag head in training, Sol de Janeiro’s hair and body mists are a favorite in this age group and come in over a dozen scents.

One of our favoritegifts for bookworms (that isn’t a book), a clip-on reading light is handy for readers of any age.

Thesetween-approvedpaint markers are beloved by more advanced artists.

Why not throw in a new pack of socks for their fresh spring fits? (I’m getting my elder daughter thesepretty shades of blue.)