Do You Game!

Alright, I have to admit, I rarely play video games. Not so much because I don't want to, more because if I start, I won't stop and then who will feed and take care of the children.

I did, however, buy my husband a Wii for Christmas. It is, of course, carefully hidden from the children and is only taken out after the sun has gone down and they are sleeping peacefully in their beds. Once that has been accomplished then the fun begins. Nightly, I find my husband killing zombies, bowling, boxing, or playing tennis.

Before we bought the Wii we were completely out of the gaming loop. For us gaming meant "Ring Around the Rosies" and "Hide and Seek". Fortunately, when I went to purchase the game system I had the perfect person to turn to for a quick "fill in" on the most popular and best games out there.. my big sis.

She is oh so cool and has a job that millions of zit faced adolescents would kill for, she writes video game reviews for MSNBC. That's right, she spends her days playing video games and then giving the rest of us the low-down so that we don't waste our cash on lame games.

So if you do game, and you want to read some reliable reviews check her column out online.

A little note from my sis:

Those of you interested in independent and casual games might be interested. Check it out at:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24862411/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24862861/

From my column and the associated Top 5 list, I highly recommend "Samorost 2" (if you like point-and-click adventure games). I believe "World of Goo" is well worth the $20 bucks (you get the first chapter now and the entire game as soon as it launches) and "Audiosurf" is also worth the $10. I also found "Coil" (free) to be awesomely odd.

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A final note: My sister is a fellow mom of an amazing one year old little boy. Way to make a living from home ehh... Ah livin the life.

Your advice is actually wanted!

As you all know, I launched True North at the beginning of this year. And what an exciting year this has been. The Central Oregon parenting community has really embraced our new publication and we are so pleased. Now we want to give local parents the opportunity to share their knowledge with eachother. See below!

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We know that some of the best parenting advice comes from parents. That’s right! There’s no one better to turn to in difficult times than those who are on the actual front lines learning how to hold it together during the difficult phases all children (an parents) go through. Here is your opportunity to share some of the solutions you have come up with, with the rest of our community. Read the questions below and if you have some words of wisdom, advice, or personal stories you’d like to share, send them to info@truenorthparnting.com and write “If you ask me…” in the subject line:

How do you ease your children out of summer and back into the school routine? Do you have tips on the first day of preschool? Kindergarten? First grade? How about Jr. High and High school? We’d love to hear what works for your family and keep the kids from groaning as school days grow near.

How do you keep the love alive? Let’s face it, with kids, jobs, chores, and all the daily stresses that go along with raising a family…well it can be a little challenging to keep the flame a burnin’ in a relationship. Do you have favorite places you get out to? What do you do when the funds are tight or you can’t find a sitter? Whatever you do, on the cheap, expensive and chic, we’d like to know!

Please note that while all submitted e-mails may be published in both the True North print and online publications, publication is not guaranteed.