LIFE is Good 2008: The Year We Grew Up

A Gentle Shift Into Something Bigger

We moved the conference to Vancouver, Washington, settling into the Red Lion on the Quay. The hotel sat right on the Columbia River, with big windows and a pirate‑themed restaurant that was charmingly tacky and endlessly entertaining for kids. The whole place felt playful and expansive, ready to hold the energy we were bringing.

The move wasn’t just about needing more rooms. It was about recognizing that the conference had outgrown its small‑town roots. We needed a location that was easier for more families to reach, with enough space for hallway conversations, spontaneous gatherings, and parallel sessions. The Red Lion offered all of that, and it came with a view.

We also expanded the schedule. In 2007, the conference ran Friday through Sunday. In 2008, we added Thursday and wrapped up with a picnic in the park on Monday. That extra time gave families room to settle in, breathe, and connect more deeply.

Who Showed Up in 2008

One of the clearest signs of growth came from the people who arrived.

In 2007, most families were from Oregon, Washington, and Northern California. In 2008, the reach widened dramatically. Families traveled from Georgia, Michigan, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, and even the United Kingdom and Costa Rica. We also welcomed a huge wave of families from British Columbia and Alberta.

It was the first time I realized that LiG wasn’t just a regional gathering anymore. People were willing to travel long distances to be part of this community. So much for me naming it the LIFE is Good NW Unschooling Conference.

We also saw more large families, more teens and older kids, more multi‑generational groups, a noticeable increase in sparkly and neurodivergent kids, and a surge of local families from Vancouver and the Portland metro area. The move clearly made the conference more accessible, and the expanded programming made it more appealing.

Programming That Reflected Our Evolution

In 2007, the schedule was simple and sweet: a few core presentations, a pajama party, a teen panel, a handful of funshops, and a closing dance. In 2008, everything deepened.

Presentations

In 2008, the presentations expanded in both scope and depth. We added sessions on late readers, self‑motivation, peaceful partnerships, stress relief for fathers, and the inner work of unschooling, but it wasn’t just the topics that made them meaningful. These talks were grounded in real stories, lived experience, and the messy, beautiful process of learning to trust our kids and ourselves. Parents explored everything from math anxiety to navigating teens at loose ends, from reframing “needs” to shifting long‑held perspectives. The rooms were full, the conversations were honest, and people walked out feeling seen, supported, and changed in ways that stayed with them long after the weekend ended. These weren’t just informative. They were connective, clarifying, and often transformative.

Circle Chats

In 2008, circle chats became a central feature of the conference. With more space available, we were finally able to dedicate an entire room just for these conversations. No more rearranging chairs in the main presentation room or trying to talk while people mingled and drifted through the back. This time, the door could close, giving parents the privacy and freedom to share openly. Inside that room, people gathered to talk about spirituality, birth, community conflict, chronic pain, sparkly kids, doubts, and teens at loose ends. These chats were often where the real magic happened.

Funshops

Funshops multiplied. In 2007, they were a delightful bonus. In 2008, they became a defining part of the conference, inclusive, hands‑on, and designed to delight and engage people of all ages. With more rooms available, families offered an incredible range of hands‑on experiences: Artist Trading Cards, Altered Clothing, Pipe Cleaner Creations, American Sign Language, Body Art and Face Painting, Animal Origami, Nintendo DS meetups, Dungeons & Dragons, and even Halo 2 Tips and Superjumps happening in a suite. Kids skateboarded in the parking lot, traded ATCs, painted, crafted, gamed, and invented their own fun. The variety reflected exactly what unschooling looks like in real life — people sharing what they love, and others joining in because it sparks something inside them.

New 2008 Highlights and Traditions

The Sunday Night Concert

2008 was also the first year we hosted a Sunday night concert, and the fabulous Amy Steinberg was our very first performer. She filled the room with her warmth, humor, and soul. Her song Exactly was already an unschooling favorite, and hearing it live, surrounded by people who sang along with every word, felt like a collective exhale.

The Games Room

With more rooms available, we introduced a dedicated Games Room stocked with toys, board games, card games, and the wildly popular Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) setup. Kids and teens spent hours in there, dancing, laughing, and forming friendships that lasted long after the weekend ended.

The Computer Gaming Room

We also added a computer gaming room, and games like World of Warcraft  and The Sims were definitely popular. Kids who might not have connected through crafts or chats found their people here.

The Fairy Godparent Game

The Fairy Godparent Game made its debut in 2008 and has continued ever since. It added a layer of sweetness and mystery to the weekend. Participants secretly did kind things for their assigned Fairy Godchild — leaving notes, small gifts, handmade signs, or little surprises in their mailbox. Some revealed themselves at the end of the weekend. Others stayed anonymous forever.

It brought a little magic into the hallways, and you could feel it.

The Vendor Hallway and the UN-Fair

This was one of the biggest and most joyful changes in 2008.

We had real vendors that year, local businesses, unschooling‑friendly shops, and community makers. The hallway outside the main conference room buzzed with activity.

But the real magic came from the kids.

2008 was the year the UNtrepreneurial Fair was born.

Kids brought handmade jewelry, art, duct tape creations, knitted items, painted rocks, origami, and all sorts of imaginative treasures. They were so enthusiastic and proud that the tables quickly filled up. Then the hallway filled up. Then the whole thing spilled into the hotel lobby.

It was joyful chaos.
It was community in motion.
It was unschooling at its best.

The Year I Learned I Needed a Team

In 2007, I tried to do everything myself. Thankfully, a few very observant and incredibly helpful people stepped up to help keep things moving along, but there was definitely no plan in place beforehand.

By 2008, I knew we needed a real volunteer team. And the community showed up. Families offered to help — some for one shift, some for several. Teens volunteered. Parents volunteered. People from all over the country volunteered.

The conference had grown too much to keep relying on last‑minute help and crossed fingers. We needed people at the registration table, help with the silent auction and raffle, and folks who could guide families and keep the flow going.

This was the year I learned that running a conference takes a village, and thankfully, we had one.



Looking Back

2008 wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t slick or buttoned down. It was organic and free‑flowing, the kind of weekend that felt more like a family reunion than a conference.

And the joy, it was anything but quiet. It was loud, celebratory, and wonderfully unruly. The whole weekend felt like a family reunion, the kind where people squeal when they see each other, hug too tightly, and forget that hotel walls are thin. More than once, we had to remind each other to keep it down, which only made us laugh harder.

That joy came from connection. From recognition. From the feeling of being surrounded by people who understood your choices, your kids, your values, and your heart.

We didn’t just grow in size. We grew in depth, in confidence, in joy, and in connection.

And we laid the foundation for everything that came after.



Join Us for the Final Chapter

As we look back on where it all began, we are also preparing to close this beautiful circle. I would love for you to join us for the final chapter of the LIFE is Good story at this year’s conference, a celebration of community, connection, and nearly two decades of learning in freedom.