Top Ten Ways to Make the Expo A Great Family Memory

#10 Buy the Kids a Disposable Camera

My children love the opportunity to take pictures during our family get-aways.  It gives them an opportunity to be involved, as they explore their surroundings and decide if something or someone would make a great photo. At the Expo, they look forward to taking pictures of their friends from other Counties of the church, or of the Pied Pipers (their favorites). They also take photos of things that they think are cool, like the bounce castles and the big signs.   Hotel lobbies are even fascinating to a six year old.  After the pictures are developed, we sit down and look at their pictures together as they tell me the story about their time at the Expo.   It is always a pleasure to hear about the weekend from their perspective.

#9 Sharing creates memories

Bake some cookies or brownies with your children (or purchase some candies or Gluten-free treats!) that they can wrap and give to their friends at the Expo. This helps our children to have something to look forward to share with their friends. Not only do we get the chance to spend time with our children doing something fun together in preparation for the Expo, we have the opportunity to help them learn to enjoy giving to others. Just think how encouraged their friends will be as they build memories!

#8 Plan a family date with another family

The Expo is a great opportunity to spend time with friends you have not seen in a while.  While your faith is encouraged, your children will be building lasting friendships and having fun.  You can even make this an annual tradition.  For example, play board games like "Family Feud" together during a break, or go out to breakfast en masse on Saturday morning!  Enjoy your family and your friends on this special weekend.

#7 Have a special quiet time on Saturday morning with your children.

Prepare the topic you will study with your children ahead of time. For example, the quiet time can be about 'being a friend', how to be a friend to God and to others. You can also talk to your children about what to expect at the Expo that day and how that ties into what they learned in their quiet time like making friends when they go to Pied Pipers, middle school classes, children's ministry, teen classes, etc. Encourage them to make new friends that day, teach them what that looks like and talk about how it went that night.

Pray with them to have a great day. If they are still little, read with them from their children's bible. In their journal have them draw and color a picture of the story you read together. You can even give them a little bag of candy to share with new friends they make that day.

#6 Enjoy the Children's Play Area

Bounce castles, an arts and crafts area, a movie room and a special place for the babies---all these can be found in the Children's Play Area at the Expo! Both you and the children will have loads of fun as you fellowship with other parents, meet new friends, and re-kindle old relationships. This is something you and your children can look forward to every year.

#5 Make the Expo Saturday Service a Fun time for the Children

If your child is over 4 years old and will be in the Saturday evening church service with you, bring something special that they can color or read. Something that they can keep them occupied if they get fidgety. They will want to remember the Expo as fun time.

#4 Pied Pipers

Enjoy Pied Pipers show. These gregarious volunteers from around the church will inspire your children with high-energy performances while teaching valuable life lessons. This is something your children and you can look forward to every year.

#3 Great America

Buy tickets to Great America/BBQ at a discounted rate at our Conference. You can enjoy the BBQ, fellowship with other families, the rides, etc. This will be a lot of fun for you and your children. You can even make this a family tradition and something to look forward ever year!

#2 Stay in the Hotel

My family loves to stay in the hotel. We can go to the pool, our children can have sleepovers in our room with one or two their friends who are coming to the Conference, we can watch a movie, order room service, etc. It's just so much fun for our family. It's like having a mini-vacation!

#1 Fellowship

It's great to see so many disciples in one place and even to see friends from other counties. Our family loves to set up lunches and dinners with our friends, to re-kindle our friendship, to update each other about our lives and family. Our family feels very encouraged and we look forward to seeing our friends every year. We enjoy a taste of heaven on earth and always walk away with more faith.