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With LDS General Conference fast-approaching, it’s time to think about ways to keep the family interested! Veronica has created a packet for teens to get them listening more and sleeping less during the talks.

Hey everyone, it’s Veronica! I’m so excited to be here RIGHT before LDS General Conference! What is General Conference? Mariel always explains things best, so click here to learn more. (She’s the best, isn’t she?) 🙂 General Conference is April 2-3 and as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we love it because it gives us hope, we are reminded of some AWESOME things and we are strengthened in ways that are hard to explain. But, when we are strengthened…our families are strengthened as well. For me personally, I always feel empowered to get up the next day and to be better, to try harder and to be the best person I can be. It especially makes me want to be a better mom and wife, which only strengthens my family! It’s the BEST!! If you would love to take a peek at this General Conference that we love so much, you can click here.

We have some fun traditions that we do for General Conference. The little kids still feel like General Conference is a huge celebration. They know they get special treats and that it’s a weekend that is unlike any other. But, as our kids have gotten older, it seems to sometimes lose its charm in some ways. 🙂 Anyone else relate to this?

I am currently the Young Women’s President (over the teenage girls at church), and after talking to our amazing girls, I came up with a way to put a fun little spark into General Conference for them. I thought I’d share this idea with you this month. You can use it for the youth at church or for your older kids in your own home.

One of the hardest parts of General Conference for teens is paying attention. Somehow, when a teenager sits in a comfy position, listening to beautiful music and comforting voices, they tend to sleep. Go figure. 🙂 This packet is not your typical General Conference packet. It’s intended to keep them focused, with some fun rewards at the end.

Click to download your General Conference Packet!

How does it work? Well, you’ve got a couple of different fun options.

Option 1: Make it a fun competition. I know. I know. The word “competition” seems strange when you link it to General Conference, but it works!! And they pay attention! They are so eager and excited to turn in their conference packets. It’s been surprising to see how many actually do everything in the packet. For the youth at church, we add up the points and the one with the most points wins the reward. But, there is also a smaller reward for everyone who completed their packets.

Option 2: Everyone wins!! At home, I have enough teenagers to still make it a competition, but I’ve decided that ANY of them that complete the packet will get the same reward.

…Let me say this. We sit as a family and watch General Conference. It’s what we do. But, sometimes I’m a firm believer in extra fun incentives for teenagers. Why? Simply because I think they’re awesome. And they deserve it. Basically, I’m not above a little bribery every now and again.

I made the packet harder for a reason. Mainly because if I was going to do a fun treat, I wanted them to earn it. 🙂 Need ideas for treats? For the young women at church, I typically put a fun basket together. I do a variety of things in there. Just little fun items and treats that I find on sale. Usually the Target $1 section is my favorite. I put aside money in my budget each year to cover these baskets because I love that the young women are actually INTENTLY listening to General Conference to earn them.

For teens at home, you could do a variety of things. It will depend on whether you make it a competition or if you are going to give everyone the same reward.

REWARD IDEAS:

A fun date with mom (or young women leader if doing this for church): Dinner, movie, manicures together, ice cream date, etc.

A fun date with dad: Dinner, movie, ice cream date, pedicures…:)…dads love those…some just don’t know they do.

Amazon gift card

I-tunes gift card

A fun bath or manicure kit

Car detailing kit

New Sunday dress

Sleepover with friends

Fun day with friends

…the list could go on and on…

For me personally, for my own teens, I love the date ideas because we both win!!

I love General Conference. But, I also love teenagers. I want to end my post this month by sharing some brief thoughts about both. Sometimes, it’s challenging to be parents to teenagers. But, I think it’s important to remember that it’s harder to be a teenager. Because I love the gospel of Jesus Christ so much, it makes me want THEM to love it as much. But, sometimes they just aren’t in that place. I believe General Conference is packed with power that can change and improve our lives, but also the lives of our children. Especially our teenagers. But, it’s hard to sit for that long. It’s hard to pay attention. Hopefully, this packet will help arm you with some extra incentive to help them listen. I know they will be strengthened and empowered to keep doing good in this world as they listen. Even if they don’t fill out the complete packet, I would encourage you to recognize them and find a way to reward them for their efforts. Teenagers are amazing in so many ways. And they need to know that we feel that way about them.

I hope everyone enjoys General Conference. We still have time to prepare for it. I did a post for a fun Family Home Evening a while back that will help you do just that. I’m a firm believer in preparing for it so we can get the most out of it! You can find it here. Have a great month and I hope you enjoy every minute of General Conference!!

Here are some more General Conference posts on the blog:

General Conference Family Night – A Great Way to Get Prepared

20 General Conference Activities for Kids

Visiting Teaching Printable – From October 2014 General Conference