Did you find your saved game files in the C:\Documents and Settings\Your User Name\My Documents\LDW\Virtual Villagers - The Lost Children folder? If you did.. a trick I used once when my game went wonky/missing my village:

copy the saved game files to a safe location.

Uninstall and then re-install the game from your .exe (I save all mine from all my games ... goes back to my dial-up days) ;-).

Start the game but don't create any new villages.. just quit ASAP.

Then move the saved game files back into the C:\Documents and Settings\Your User Name\My Documents\LDW\Virtual Villagers - The Lost Children folder.

Start the game up again.

Hopefully your village(s) will be back.

My game came from Big Fish and when I do the re-install it doesn't require the unlock code (except for the very first install, of course).

~misty