Making a Resurrection Garden

Thanks to a friend of mine we do this every year with our children. I think it is a good reminder of why we celebrate Easter. Hope you enjoy doing this.
Materials: Potting tray or dish, potting soil, craft sticks or twigs, twine, purple ribbon, rocks or stones, Dixie cup, aluminum foil, artificial flowers.
Procedure:
1.Fill tray or dish with potting soil.
2.Arrange a hill of soil on one side of the tray.
3. Make a cross with craft sticks or twigs, fastening them together with twine. (You may also hot gue the sticks first.) Place cross on the top of the hill)
4. "plant" a garden section in the soil using artifical flowers.
5. Make a tomb out of the Dixie cup, covering it with aluminum foil. Place stones around the tomb.
6. Make a loop with the purple ribbon to represent Jesus.
Tell the Easter Story to your children as you show them the garden:
Thursday
Jesus took his  friends to the garden. **Place purple ribbon "Jesus" in the garden to represent Him praying for your child.** Jesus prayed in the garden wanted me to know He loves me. Jesus loves me so much, he wants me to live with HIM someday. To live with HIM, all my badness must be taken away.  There are no "good all the time" people. I am not "good all the time". In the garden Jesus thought about taking away all my badness so I could live with HIM someday.
Friday
Jesus was put on the cross to take punishment for all the wrong things anybody had ever done or would do. **Place purple ribbon "Jesus" on the cross.** Jesus took the punishment for all my badness on the cross. Then my badness would go away forever. Jesus knew this would happen when He came to earth. Jesus' friends were sad. They would not be sad for long.  God had planned a wonderful surprise for them.
Saturday
After Jesus died, his body was put in a cave. A huge stone was rolled over the opening of the cave. Remember, God planned a wonderful surprise! **Place purple ribbon "Jesus" in the tomb and place a stone covering the opening.**
Sunday
**Ahead of time remove the purple ribbon "Jesus" and roll the stone away so that your child is suprised." Early Sunday morning there was an earthquake. An angel came from heaven and rolled the stone away. One of Jesus' friends came that morning. She saw the stone had been rolled away. An angel was there and said. "Jesus is not here; He is ALIVE!" That was God's wonderful suprise. God made Jesus alive again. Jesus' friends were not sad anymore. They told their friends the good news of the surprise. Jesus is not dead. HE IS ALIVE!