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AURORA - For Peter and Laura Kaseman, juggling is a family affair.

The Madison, Wis., couple met at a juggling festival 11 years ago.

"It's a good mental exercise," Peter Kaseman said. "You have to be focused but not think too much."

The couple shared their skills with other jugglers Sunday at the Up For Grabs Jugglefest at the Fox Valley Park District's Prisco Community Center.

The festival was sponsored by the Up For Grabs Juggling Club, which meets at the Prisco Center. This was the group's fourth juggling festival.

Club President Todd Claxton of Hinckley said juggling was not as hard as people thought. He teaches juggling classes at the Prisco Center.

"If a person can throw a ball and catch it in the same hand, they can learn how to juggle," Claxton said.

However, it is not something they can learn by reading a book.

"Juggling is a visual thing," Claxton said. "It is hard to learn by written instructions. You show them how to throw from right to left."

He encourages family members to sign up for classes together.

"It is more fun to learn and practice with someone else," Claxton said.

Doug Sayers, 18, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, started juggling when he was 8 years old.

He can now juggle as many as nine balls at one time.

"I like the challenge of it," Sayers said. "I hope to turn it into a career."

He was practicing with his friend and fellow juggler Bruce Bailey of Chicago.

Bailey has been juggling for 10 years.

"This was something I could do for fun by myself," Bailey said. "I like the challenge of trying to get better all the time."