Thousands of kids, parents, grandparents and care givers joined together at the first-ever Sandbox Party Convention held Aug. 26 at the Breslin Center in East Lansing to showcase the importance of early childhood issues in the 2010 elections.  

We talk about harnessing the energy of children - imagine what we could do if we directed half that energy into making children's issues a priority in this election!

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Virg Bernero spoke with reporters after addressing the crowd. GOP candidate Rick Snyder also shared his thoughts on early childhood issues.

Author and Detroit Free Press Columnist Rochelle Riley fired up the crowd.

Zippidity 2 Dads and The Verve Pipe kept the kids on their feet and gettin' down!

Curious George was a huge hit with the kiddos!

One of the many awesome homemade signs brought by delegates

He had so much fun he needed a brief nap