Der Ostereierbaum

No, I’m not trying to get fancy. The topic of this blog post is something known as Der Ostereierbaum. And unless you happen to have fairly extensive knowledge of German culture and language, this more or less translates to The Easter Tree.

In Germany, during the Easter season, they decorate trees and/or bushes. It’s basically like the equivalent of an Christmas tree, but for Easter! Funny enough, it seems no one is quite sure where this tradition started!

When I was a kid, my mother had these little Easter ornaments. I just thought it was something fun. She bought a set of these sweet little ornaments when we lived in Germany and I thought nothing of it. It wasn’t until I was much older (a few weeks ago) that I realized this tradition that I had grown up with was a pretty significant, real thing! Traditionally, the ornaments are colored wooden eggs or hollowed-out decorated eggshells.

In Germany, these Easter Trees exist both indoors and out! As Forsythia is typically in bloom for Easter and we have giant bushes of it, it’s my go-to. I also think it’s exceptionally fitting that it is part of the olive family.

For our activity of the day, as well as our mommy & Thea time while Nora was napping, we got to work! We braved the blustery day to snip some Forsythia. I happened to have a hyacinth in bloom so we snagged that too. She helped me get our blue mason jar, fill it with water, add a sprinkle of sugar, and a drop of tea tree. The sugar helps feed the plants while the tea tree helps stave off bacteria and keep the water cleaner longer!

Then, we pulled out the special Easter Ornaments! My mother was kind enough to share a few of her set. As Athena helped me hang each ornament, we talked about how mommy and nana always did Easter Trees too! How we lived in Germany, and that’s where nana got the ornaments.

Later that evening FaceTiming with my parents she loved showing them her special Easter Tree. Of course we had to inform pop that mommy lived in Germany.

I love that Athena is getting to the age where we can really start sharing and implementing sweet traditions like Der Ostereierbaum, and giving her little pieces of where she comes from.