Easter by the Numbers

Easter occurs on the first sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox and celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. So therefore, as a result of this formula, the date fluctuates, and Easter is observed anywhere between March 22nd and April 25th.

• The first recorded observance of Easter was during the second century, but the timing of the holy day was set by the Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325.
• Roughly 80% of Americans celebrate Easter, but not all of them view it as a primarily religious holiday.
• Between 60% – 65% of Americans attend church services on Easter.
• Americans send up to 43 million Easter cards each year.
• Americans decorate and dye up to 180 million eggs each year.
• Christians painting, dyeing and decorating eggs for Easter was first recorded in the 13th century.
• The largest Easter Egg Hunt consisted of 9,753 children searching for 501,000 eggs in Winter Haven,Florida.
• For centuries, the church forbade Christians from eating eggs during Lent, and it became a treat to resume eating them on Easter.
• It takes 24-26 hours for a hen to lay one egg.
• In 1885, Czar Alexander the Third commissioned Peter Carol Faberge to create an Easter gift for the czarina. The enameled egg with a jeweled treasure inside became the first of 50 Imperial Easter eggs created for the Russian royal family.
• The largest decorated Easter was 48 feet, 6 inches long and 27 feet, 6 inches around.
• The tallest chocolate Easter egg measured 34 feet, 1 inch had a maximum circumference of 64 feet, 3 inches and weighed 15,873 pounds.
• Each year, the First Family hosts the White House Easter Egg Roll.
• As a matter of fact, the tradition dates back to President Hayes in 1878 and today, more than 30,000 people attend.
• Today, Easter is the second most popular candy-buying holiday, after Halloween.
• In reality, 88% of American parents prepare Easter blankets for thier kids.
• More than 50% of kids grab chocolate bunnies first when reaching Easter candy.

How do you eat your chocolate bunny?

• 76% ears first
• 15% other
• 4% tail first
• 5% feet first

• 90 million chocolate Easter bunnies are produced each year.
• Enough Peeps are produced annually to circle the earth twice.
• It takes 6 minutes to make 1 peep.
• Americans eat more than 700 million Peeps each Easter.
• Jelly Beans weren’t a common Easter treat until the 1930’s.
• Americans consume 16 billion jelly beans at Easter, 5 billion of which are Jelly Belly brand.
• The first chocolate eggs were made in Europe in the early 19th century and remain among the most popular treats associated with Easter.
• Cadbury Creme Eggs were introduced in 1971, and more than 500 million are made each year!

Now we have gone through the numbers, have a Happy Easter Everyone! :-) 

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