Every Homeschooling Mom Needs a Great Homeschool Convention

This post was sponsored by Great Homeschool Conventions and I’m so excited to share my experience with you.

Last spring, my children and I were privileged to attend a homeschool convention in Cincinnati, Ohio and I was reminded once again why I love attending a homeschool convention each year. All of us were incredibly blessed by our experience at the Great Homeschool Convention.

Sometimes, in between years, my husband will say – why do you want to go to another homeschool convention? And the answer is – so many reasons including time away from home, time to look at curriculum I’ve been wanting, time to be refreshed by great speakers and music, time with other like-minded parents who don’t look at me like I have two heads, time with my family on a special trip, and, well, the vendor hall. #allthethings homeschooling in one big shopping room!

At Great Homeschool Conventions the Vendor Halls are HUGE

I’ve never seen so many homeschool vendors and fun vendors filling up a vendor hall before. It was such a blessing to be able to stroll the aisles looking at all of the curricula available and all of the supplements available.

I got to hold in my hands many of the homeschool products we were considering for 2017/2018 school year. Since looking at homeschool curriculum in person is virtually impossible any other way, I think this is an incredibly valuable service on the part of the convention organizers and the many publishers who spend massive hours traveling and hauling and away from family to attend these events. I also got to hug quite a number of my favorite publishers in person!

Besides curriculum, we found some true gems for fiction reading and got to talk directly to the authors themselves and get our books signed. Anna even found a much-needed personal weighted blanket that was *perfect.* Truly, in thirteen years of homeschooling this was the biggest vendor hall I’d ever seen.

Great Homeschool Conventions Cincinnati 2017 Vendor Hall _ Side ONE

Great Homeschool Conventions Cincinnati 2017 Vendor Hall _ Side TWO

At Great Homeschool Conventions the Speakers are Amazing

My children and I attended separate workshops and I loved finding workshops that spoke exactly to the needs I have in my homeschool. One of the workshops that was a hands-down favorite was Sarah McKenzie from Read Aloud Revival. She did a fabulous job and renewed my love for reading aloud to my kids.

The selection of workshops available each and every hour during the Great Homeschool Convention in Cincinnati was amazing. I had to choose carefully when to miss workshops to go shopping. The good thing is, you can find all the audios for sale at the convention for whatever you miss.

At Great Homeschool Conventions the Teen Track is Powerful

I took my four oldest kids to Cincinnati with me this year and all four of them were able to attend the teen track, including my eleven-year-old son. This gave me great peace of mind because that meant my 18-year-old and 16-year-old could be in charge and yet all four kids (18, 16, 14, and 11) would be receiving faith-strengthening messages from the speakers over and over again.

Each of them had a blast at convention this year, from the speakers, to the vendor hall (fidget spinners anyone?), to the special events. In fact, they are already asking when we get to go again.

Did I mention some of our favorite curriculum publishers were there?

At Great Homeschool Conventions the Special Events are Incredible

We got to attend each and every special even at GHC this year, and wow. Andrew Peterson blew our socks off with his concert. The former mob boss Michael Franzese kept us at the edge of our seats and had a powerful testimony. I think his speech is what each of us remembers as most impactful.

The comedians made us laugh out loud over and over and over. What a blessing and encouragement to hear these men and women speak, sing, and perform for us. These times were extra special to us because we were all together.

For my family and I, attending a homeschool convention of this caliber is one of our favorite memories for the year. We were able to get away from the bustle at home to relax and be inspired and rejuvenated by the speakers and concerts in Cincinnati. It was a wonderful and useful experience we will never forget and plan to repeat.

If you’ve never attended a homeschool convention *with* your kids, I highly recommend it. We spent so many evening hours talking about what each person was taking away from the speakers they heard and just experiencing God move in our lives through each event.

We talked all the way home about all the things we loved!