Which clearly shows me…I have time to game. Why am I always complaining I never have time to game? I put in 45 hours into this in a little over a month…

5. Pokemon Pokopia - completed on April 19 2026.

I’m glad I finally rolled credits on this game. And I’m glad I pushed through to see the credits and how the story plays out. Bittersweet.

Also, for someone who constantly complained about pokopia, I did end up logging 45 (or more) hours.

Seeing my son’s reaction to all the crazy wonder effects was the best. And the final bowser showdown was really fun. I imagine it would be a lot harder if I wasn’t a Yoshi. However the joy on my son’s face when he landed the final blow…worth all the Yoshis in the mushroom kingdom

4. Super Mario Wonder - playing this with my son was WONDER-ful…once I accepted the chaos of two players on screen. It helped once I also just became a Yoshi rather than trying to grit through as a Mario or anyone else that can get hurt by enemies 😂

For some reason it feels like such a hump to open up #pokopia I had planned to just get through the story, but every time I try to boot it up it just feels like a chore 🫣

What Does It Even Mean to Be a Mom Gamer? Gaming after bedtime, guilt about joy, and the identity shift nobody really talks about.

I wrote a little thing about being a "mom gamer"...then was too scared to post it because it felt dumb to even use a label...but then I realized... I AM a "mom gamer".

joanaponder.com/blog/mom-gam...

Once Upon a Jester was so funny! I can't wait to play Bonnie Bear!

I Think I Need Closed Loops Now I broke my no-buy challenge for Pokopia. It stresses me out. Dragon Quest doesn't. I think I've changed.

#Pokopia is cute. Pokopia stresses me out.

joanaponder.com/blog/pokopia/

TIL you can organize them… wait can you? really really??

You work so fast!

It was so special to now be the mom, handing the DS back and forth between me and my son.
I really enjoyed playing through this so many years later. The level design was really good, and as much as Wonder is so wonder-ful, there's just something about a more streamlined Mario experience.

3. New Super Mario Bros (DS) - completed on February 28 2026 with my son ❤️

What a special moment honestly. This game reminds me of when I was six years old, playing NES with my mom and brother, handing the controller back and forth.

@pewpewbang.bsky.social not @sarahpodz.bsky.social saying “then you’re like walking people. What you’re just doing this for your health? Embarrassing”
While I am doing my daily walk…as a 40 year old mom...with no dog 😂 yall were coming for me with this episode 🤣🤣🤣

Yay! My favourite podcast is back!
I feel like y'all really captured the female experience in this episode. Kelsey's fear of everyone kicking her out of Pew Pew Bang is so real!

Screenshot of a web app called Backlog Explorer showing a game library grid. A left sidebar includes Home, Dashboard, Library, Explore, Profile, and Add Game. The main area displays filters (status, platform, genre, mood, year completed, title sort) and alphabet navigation. Visible game covers include My Time at Portia, Moonstone Island, Monster Sanctuary, Monster Hunter Stories 2, Monster Hunter Rise, Minecraft, and Minami Lane. A banner at the top says ‘CSV import completed.'

Gosh I'm really liking seeing the full cover art for the games! So glad I finally made that change 😅

This piece made me remember that time in my life, and how the 3DS was really an important part of me having something that was still truly me/mine regardless of whatever relationship I was in.

Thank you for writing this. I remember hiding my 3ds back when I was in an abusive relationship because I didn’t want my partner to break it in rage (he had already broken my MacBook screen 😵).

Everything I dislike about games, like grinding, talking to every npc...I don't mind doing any of that in DQ. I feel like it respects my time even though I'm grinding? Even though I'm talking to every NPC? Even though I'm exploring every nook and cranny? How does it do that?

I cant stop thinking about #dragonquest y'all.
DQ11s was my first. I'm still playing the post game, but there's something about the post game that I'm not super duper about. So I also picked up DQ5 on my 3DS. And oh my gosh...why is it so good?

enjoyed hearing your thoughts on the demo on the podcast. As a new DQ fan, and currently obsessing over all things DQ, I've been really enjoying catching up with all the DQFM episodes :)

I'm looking forward to playing them!

Yes! Oh my gosh. Act 2 was 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
I love it so much.
Dragon quest 11 is my first dragon quest game and the first rpg I actually finished. And now I’m obsessed with dragon quest

Screenshot showing Backlog Explorer Library page with game cards showing the game title, platforms, genres, progress, and status badges. Games shown are Short Hike, Abzu, Animal Crossing New Horizons

Screenshot showing Backlog Explorer Library page with game cards showing the game title, platforms, genres, progress, and status badges when the user hovers over the card. Games shown are Short Hike, Abzu, Animal Crossing New Horizons.

Made some UI changes to Backlog Explorer...It now shows the full game art and then the information on hover...what do we think?

I hate to be that person, but dang I hope this comes to Switch one day 😅

a video game screen shows a princess and a plant with the number 0000703 on it ALT: a video game screen shows a princess and a plant with the number 0000703 on it

random gaming memory...
playing Super Princess Peach in the SVA elevator on my way to a photo critique class

Yay! One of my favourite blogs is back from holidays!

You inspire me to keep taking my walks outside. It doesn’t get anywhere near as cold here in the south of France as it does where you are, so if you can brave it…surely I can too 😅

Oh no!

Haha! Yes! I feel this 😅

This game made me think about how I take notes and why I take notes. Because so many of my notes in the in game notebook made 0 sense to me all these months later 😂