Is there a secret to this? I feel like I am constantly scanning the yards but feel that I should have more by now? If I missed some window at the beginning of the game is it worthless to keep looking for them in the yards (I have 5 games going).

no they eventually appear again

there no secret you just have to be persitant. i've been playing VF for a while and i not even close to geting all the collectibles it hard but it's worth it in the end so keep collecting them you will get there in the end

It will take several generations of a family before you collect everything. Keep your eyes open.

I read that bugs tend to come out at night & when it rains, does that help?

I got my last 2 bugs for 1 of my families in the 17th generation. I am also running 5 families but 3 of them are on pause because it got to be too much to keep up with all of them.

Mods that make the collectibles "pop-out" help alot. Here is an old post listing a few.

Thanks everyone! Has anyone ever sold thier collectables to the guy who shows up at the door?

I know I personally always take the greedy route and say "No! Mine!" lol. That's mostly just because I haven't finished all the collections and I want to at least finish them before doing anything rash like selling them all.

Me too Krystal! Good to know I'm not alone!

I have 93 trophies, one family... and I don't want to start a new one till I get them all. Problem is I don't play the game enough

Which trophies are you missing? If 1 of them is completing a collection, then once you complete it 4 trophies will be granted, 1 by 1 immediately. It was really exciting when it happened to me.

Hal just collected the very last bug! Now all 4 of that families collections are complete.

Now they're just waiting on an oven fire and a Perfect Match.

I am on my first genertaion, and I have 37/48 collections found.
11/12 of the pieces for the picture
12/12 of the coins for the coin collection
10/12 for the nuts and twigs collection
4/12 of the bug collection

Are the bugs hardest to get??

For me the bugs are the hardest to get. I find them when it rains, but I keep finding the same ones over and over, not new ones!

Any hints about finding more bugs?

Wow, you've done great in your collections!!! I'd say "Yes" the bug collection is the hardest to complete. In one of my families all they need is the purple fly and they've been waiting forever for it! Bugs...

I now have 41/48 collections found.
12/12 of the pieces for the picture
12/12 of the coins for the coin collection
12/12 for the nuts and twigs collection
5/12 of the bug collection

Even when it rains, the bugs never come! It is kind of frustrating...

I have 0 collectibles in two families (just started) and I think 20 in my other two.

I eventually got all the bugs by only looking when it was raining and I bought rain potions every chance I got.