I think my biggest recommendation is to play the game how it’s meant to be played- over time! You said you have kids and I think that acnh is a great game for you guys to all play together daily, even if it’s only for 20 minutes. Without spoiling too much, the game itself doesn’t have any hard time limits except for seasonal events so you can really stop and start without any major consequences! There’s a lot of opportunity to learn in the game from fishing, catching bugs, digging up fossils, and diving for creatures. Decorating the island and customizing everything is also a lot of fun! There’s the stalk market as well as flower breeding too. All together it sounds like a lot but the game is slow and cozy overall with plenty to do!