Doing the Funky Chicken on Funky Barn 3D (Review)

I'm a roll this week with video games. This time I've been playing Ubisoft's Funky Barn 3D for the Nintendo 3DS console. First I tried to pawn the game off on my husband, but he'd rather play sports and action games. Once I pried the Nintendo 3DS out of his grubby hands, I started my own farm.

Farmer Kim's Cajun Farm. Sounds a bit hilly billy but I did grow up in rural Louisiana. I started my farm with chickens. Those chickens were demanding too. They wanted a water and food trough. Then they had the nerve to ask for a fence, some plants and a chicken coop! I think chickens are the gateway farm animals. After I raised my little chicks into hens and sold their eggs, I wanted more farm animals.

After I got the hang of raising chickens, the Funky Barn stork brought me some sheep. Well, a little lamb, but they grew up to be big, fluffy sheep. By then, my daughter joined in on my farming shenanigans. She got a kick out of our sheep shearing. We bought a Shear-O-Matic to help out. We dropped our cute little sheep into the machine to do all the work for us. Once the little sheep was naked, the Shear-)-Matic spit it out. Sophia giggled every time.

Here she is collecting apples from our tree. Very intense work!

Together we worked on our farm: collecting eggs, shaking apples off the tree, and shearing sheep. Now we have cows! The cute little cows get fat when they need to be milked. Sophia and I are having a good time with Cajun Farm. Just be careful you get your chickens what they need or else, well, let's just say may Silkie the chicken rest in peace.

As you can see, Sophia and I have become invested in our little farm. She's already asked when we can play together again.

I did find the game's interface awkward at first. You use the bottom touchpad to move around but all the action happens in the top screen. So your touch screen looks kid of like a view from a night vision camera. Once I got the hang of it, it was really fun. I'd rather have a bigger view of my farm on both screens than this interface though.Since Sophia is under 7, we only played the game in 2D. Nintendo recommends the 3D setting for ages 7 and up. Funky Barn 3D is for the Nintendo 3DS system and retails for $30.

Thank you to Ubisoft for sponsoring this blog post. Please click here to learn more about Ubisoft. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are my own. #UbiChamps

Speaking Vietnamese at the Bus Stop

Don't tell my mom, but I've been really bad about speaking Vietnamese to the kids recently. That's why I'm sending them to stay with my parents for a few weeks this summer. The best kind of language immersion. And it's free. Lately, I've been speaking a combo of Vietnamese and English to the kids.

Last week, while Jaxson and I waited at the bus stop for his sister to get home from school, I said something to him about strawberries. In Vietnamese. A few minutes later, one of the teenage boys sitting near us asked if we were Vietnamese. I'm always surprised when people correctly identify my ethnic background. I've been mistaken for Chinese most.

After I confirmed it, he flashed a smile and declared, "I'm Vietnamese too." He overheard me talking to my toddler. Yes, he spoke Vietnamese too.

Shocked wouldn't be the right word to describe my reaction. More like happily surprised. This teen had dark brown skin and black hair with tight, tiny curls. At first glance, he looked African American to me. I'm not sure if he had been at the bus stop before, but it was the first time I noticed him.  This teenager was proud of his heritage and wasn't afraid to ask about ours. He seem liked a good kid: polite and well adjusted.

My brief interaction with him made me smile on the inside. It made me hopeful for my kids' future. I want more dark skinned kids walking around speaking Vietnamese. I want them to surprise the people around them so others will rethink their assumptions about skin color.

Just by being who they are, this teenage boy and my kids are changing the status quo.

Photo by ckphotography via Creative Commons

Horse Haven: My Virtual Horse Ranch (Review)

As a little girl, I wanted a house full of pets. My mother, on the other hand, vetoed every indoor pet except fish. That's because they were my dad's fish. My sister and I owned pet gerbils and hamsters, even a dog. I never dreamed about owning a horse. My 6 year old dreams of horses and unicorns. She draws them frequently, in many variations of pink.

While we can't create a pink horse or a unicorn, my daughter and I have been raising our own horses in the Facebook game Horse Haven. In Ubisoft's game, we raise and breed our cute virtual ponies. When they're old enough, we can even visit other towns and compete. My horse Rosie needs to eat, drink, and be groomed. See my cute little horse family above?

Like most games I've played on Facebook, Horse Haven is pretty easy to play. The first time I played the game, a tutorial walked me through basic steps like feeding and caring for the horses. I learned how to buy a carrot patch so I could feed my horses treats. Once Rosie was old enough, I was able to breed her. Now Sophia has her own little foal, Llavendar (don't ask). Besides taking care of my horses, I can improve my ranch by clearing trees and weeds and adding different buildings like additional stables or a riding pen.

That's the gist of the Horse Haven. It doesn't require a lot of thinking to care for the horses. When the horses are thirsty, I just lead them to the water trough. The reverse side of the game's ease is that it can become repetitive. Those horses are demanding!  I should be happy that I don't have to clean up horse manure. The game does offer quests such as building a compost bin or clearing 10 trees off your ranch. Because this is a Facebook game, you're encouraged to invite your friends to play so you gift items to each other.

I'm not fond of Facebook games that want me to invite my friends to join me. I guess I'm missing the point of Facebook games, since it's a social networking site. However if my friends are already playing, then I don't mind adding them. I haven't added any friends to Horse Haven yet, and I'm enjoying the game on its own.


Edited to add: Now that I've added some friends to my game, it's even more fun. I can request help and build more things! It's nice to visit their ranch and see their horses too.

Since my daughter loves her virtual horses, I foresee some mommy daughter time playing Horse Haven. It's perfect for us to play during her little brother's naps. Not too complicated but still plenty to do with our ranch.

Thank you to Ubisoft for sponsoring this blog post. Please click here to learn more about Ubisoft. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are my own. #UbiChamps


Screenshots are from my own ranch, Applecheeks.

Remembering To Leave the Convention Hall

Look! I made a point to leave the Venetian, where the Asian American Marketing Summit was held, and get some sunlight. Oh and some sun. Here's a fountain that was somewhere in front of the Venetian. I was being a bad tourist and didn't pay too much attention.

The skies were beautiful during my trip there! I didn't even mind the heat so much since there was so little humidity.

Instead of Work-Life Balance, Find Your Rhythm

Photo by DigitalNative via Creative Commons

It’s no secret I’m a night owl. I’m usually up past midnight. I know it’s late when my west coast friends show up in my Twitter feed. I look forward to each evening, when the kids are finally snoring, limbs askew in bed and while my husband is in transit home. This time is just for me. There’s no kid asking me to pour them another glass of milk or read the same book for the fifth time that day.

Either I grab my favorite diet soda or pour a steaming cup of coffee from my French press before heading to my desk. It’s time to work. I tweet with friends. I blog. I write book reviews. My husband makes it home and we spend a bit of time together while he eats dinner. Then more tweeting, emails, and blogging.

Working from home, in the wee hours of the night, allows me to stay home with my kids. My husband does breakfast and school bus in the morning so I get to sleep in until 8AM. Then my day starts again.

My non-blogging friends, upon hearing what I do, comment, “How do you get it all done?”

It’s easy. I don’t sleep, is my usual joke. My toddler is going to wake up several times a night, so why not make my sleep deprivation useful, right? I do sneak in a 20 minute nap with Jaxson sometimes.

I might not get enough sleep, but my work makes me happy. I enjoy what I do. I’m not perfect at balancing all aspects of work and family (see my vacation from motherhood post). I truly don’t believe work-life balance exists. We can’t each aspect of our lives equal attention all the time. I know I can’t. I do know that if I can’t just be Mom. I have to be me. In order to be me, I have to pursue my dreams and goals. 

Photo by dicktay2000 via Creative Commons

About a month ago, I read an interview with Marissa Meyer, VP at Google, about work-life balance. Like me, she eschews work-life balance. To avoid burnout, we must find our rhythm and keep resentment at bay.  Her belief is when we resent our work, we cannot do our best. Everyone has that one thing that they must have in order to be happy and we must protect it. Something that makes the other sacrifices worth it.

I think this is true in not just my work, but my family time. Recently it's been making Saturdays family time. I only do Passion Parties scheduled for after bedtime and usually no more than twice a month. I'm up late Sunday through Thursday but I mostly unplug the rest of the week. I might check my emails over the weekend but don't answer them. When I check my Facebook or Twitter feed, it's to socialize and not work.

My social media work really makes me happy. I love my work. Not everyone is luckily enough to love their work. So instead of stressing over the elusive work-life balance, I'm focusing on what keeps me going. My family time is sacred. Friday nights on the couch with my husband watching television or bad natural disaster movies.

It's still a struggle find and stick to my rhythm. I have help from my partner in crime: my husband. With a toddler, as soon as we settle into a routine, he changes it. Or when I travel for work. Next month I'll be gone for 5 days for Book Expo America. Every Sunday I look at my calendar and plan out my work week. Then go with the flow. 

Thank goodness for coffee. And appletinis.

This post is inspired by the novel Julia's Child by Sarah Pinneo. Worried about what her kids eat, Julia Bailey starts a prepared organic toddler meals business. With names like Gentil Lentil, can Julia balance work and family and still save the world? 

Join From Left to Write on May 24 as we discussJulia's Child. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes. This post contains affiliate links.