Category Archives: Kids and Gaming

In Praise of the Quiet Ones

Posted on December 4, 2013 by ayvalentine

A decent amount of my identity is as the mother of geeklings (a bit like the mother of dragons, but with less fire. Usually.). I’ve realized, though, that if you primarily know me online, you might think that I only … Continue reading →

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Gender Discrimination in Geek Culture

Posted on November 14, 2013 by ayvalentine

This is an article my daughter (who just turned 13!) wrote for her school newspaper. It was published before a boy tried to tell her that girls don’t play Minecraft, so it doesn’t include her impassioned argument on that topic. … Continue reading →

Posted in Games, Guest posts, Kids and Gaming, Uncategorized | 17 Comments

A Tale of Two Cons

Posted on September 11, 2013 by ayvalentine

This summer marked an evolution for our gaming family—we took the kids to two game conventions, Origins Game Fair and DEXCON. And this was the first year we brought the kids but not my mom (she came to Origins with … Continue reading →

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“All Ages” Isn’t Necessarily “Kid Friendly”

Posted on September 5, 2013 by ayvalentine

When we were at DexCon, the kids and I got to play a board game in development called Game of Thorns. It combined the themes of hobbits, gardening, and Game of Thrones to see who would be ruler of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Conventions, Kids and Gaming, Parenthood | 2 Comments

Roomier Character Sheet for Little Wizards

Posted on September 1, 2013 by ayvalentine

When Richard Rogers was getting ready to play Little Wizards with his 7 year old, they found the character sheet provided in the book to be a bit cramped. So Kelly Vanda designed this gorgeous landscape character sheet with lots … Continue reading →

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The Quest for Characters Like Me

Posted on January 9, 2013 by ayvalentine

I’ve recently read a lot of articles, tweets, and so on about girls not finding female characters in games, movies, etc. I have a geeky daughter, and I’m painfully aware of how common this is. And while she’s not necessarily … Continue reading →

Posted in Games, Kids and Gaming, Parenthood | 6 Comments

#1reasontobe

Posted on November 29, 2012 by ayvalentine

I don’t feel like I’m any kind of hero for sticking it out to become a woman working fulltime editing RPGs. It’s pretty much a dream come true, and I’ve never been more accepted and respected. As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, … Continue reading →

Posted in Conventions, Editing, Freelancing Life, Games, Kids and Gaming, Parenthood | 5 Comments

Kids – the Future of Gaming

Posted on July 12, 2012 by ayvalentine

As we start taking our kids to gaming conventions, I’m keeping notes on the practical things that we’re learning (see my previous posts). However, I realized a much more important and somewhat more philosophical thing this year: Engaging kids is … Continue reading →

Posted in Conventions, Games, Kids and Gaming, Parenthood | 2 Comments

Kids, Moms, and Cons – the Sequel

Posted on July 3, 2012 by ayvalentine

We took the geeklings and my mom to Origins Game Fair with us again this year. We brought them briefly last year (their first con ever!) and overall had a good time. This year we had to take them out … Continue reading →

Posted in Conventions, Games, Kids and Gaming, Parenthood | 7 Comments

Happy Valentine’s Day

Posted on February 14, 2012 by ayvalentine

In our house, every day is Valentine’s Day—or whatever other joke you want to make. On a practical level, for our family Valentine’s Day is mostly a kid holiday, full of crafts and candy. So to celebrate our namesake day, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Kids and Gaming, Parenthood, Uncategorized | Leave a comment