Fun For All at the Chicago Toy and Game Fair

The Chicago Toy and Game Fair is coming to Navy Pier from November 19-20. Many parents have already figured out that the huge toy and game show is a place to find the newest toys and games. The show features games that aren’t even available yet in stores. “We started having dinner and playing games together once a week and the habit is pretty well ingrained," says Caren Ex, a working psychotherapist in Chicago with a teenage son who visits the toy fair.

“This is something all parents strive to do with their teenagers,” says Gina Manola who is not only in charge of the Chicago Toy and Game show but a game inventor as well. The Toy and Game Fair has competitions for young inventors, cartoon characters dressed in costume and a lot of other fun attractions. I played with my own kids at the show last year and the large rocking horse ride and the Hasbro ‘My Little Pony’ area were two of my kids’ favorites. We left with a few games that I still haven’t seen on the stores shelves and to this day they are family favorites.

The thing I never really thought about was the time, effort and creativity it takes to take an idea and get just the right amount of marketing to make it big. “My son always helped me, so it was as if we were doing a lot of it together,” says Ms. Manola, who invented Notable Novelists. The Chicago Toy and Game Fair is America’s largest toy and game fair open to the public. Be sure to check out the website to learn more about the Star Wars breakfast and other special events you won’t want to miss.

Tagged as: entertainment, family, children, The Chicago Toy and Game fair and Navy Pier

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Christine Garcia is founder and president of Plan It PR, a public relations and marketing firm. She dishes tips and survival stories in “Play Dates and Power Lunches.” Ms. Garcia started working public relations after a long career in broadcast journalism, which included work as a television anchor, reporter and producer.