I like the implementation of children. Gives some nice flavour to the game. Something to fight for, Children means a precious helpless good you have to protect instead of just some building/stone.
Although childs traits based on parents is good, It is too passive to my liking with no control over it. For example your blacksmith get a child, but you really want a farmer.
I was thinging about a system with 3 ‘tiers’, inspired by the system for knights in the middle ages:
toddler stage:
he is just toddling. He inherits traits from his parents.
upbringing stage:
Allows to give “toys” to children, made by carpenter or blacksmith or someone else.
For example a small tree for a kid to take care of, and gives traits for woodcutting.
A tiny farm which gives farming traits.
Wooden sticks to fight rabbits for soldier traits.
little shovel for building sand castles which gives mining traits.
magical ball for magic professions.
page/squire stage:
Gets assigned to a profession as a sort of servant and helps with simple tasks. For example getting iron bars for the blacksmith, helps carrying woodblocks for carpenter at slow pace. Brings the grain to the mill at slow pace and so on, with the reward of traits.
auto-assign to the profession related to the toy it was given in the upbringing stage or helps dad/mom if none was given.
After this stage it is a full-grown man/woman.