Drew's birthday is the day after Kailena's. He eats his toddler gruel for the last time.
Jennifer enjoys baking and decorating his cake.
Grandpa Victor arrives and finds Alek Victor and enjoys rocking the little one.
A few of the kids get a tour of the underground rooms and the dragon nest with Adam and Dedric before Drew's birthday.
Marshall invites Victor over to his cottage and begins interviewing him for the upcoming new series of books on Vampires. Victor is able to give him first hand knowledge of how things were in the world since he was turned. He gives the facts, but also includes the emotions of the people at the time. Victor also recommends that Marshall interview Rafe as he is one of the oldest natural vampires known and of course has extensive literature and history books in his collection.
Drew has his birthday party early in the day since part of his birthday wish is to go to the new fun park in town. He ages up and appears to be a cute blend of both his parents.
They arrive at the new park which is designed to resemble a castle and the kids excitedly chatter about what they want to do first. There is even a nursery where the babies can be safely left with a responsible sitter and the toddlers have a play area.
There are so many fun things to do. Everyone scatters and enjoys themselves.
Jennifer brought Drew's cake with her and arranged to have it in the dining hall. The family and friends enjoyed the cake and toasted Drew who decided he should have his party every year someplace like this.
After enjoying the cake it is time to ride the coaster. Birthday boy Drew goes first with Marshall.
"This is going to be so much fun Dad!" Drew remarks as they turn the first corner.
"Dad, that is a long way down! Are we going to fly out. There is no seat belt to keep us inside!"
"AaEeIi AAEEii AaEeIi" Drew yells as they plunge through the plums of water that are covering whatever lies below them. Marshall tries to reassure him but Drew is shouting too loud to hear him.
Kailena and her Dad are next. Adam takes his hands off the bars and raises them in the air. "Dad! Are you out of your mind! You better hold on tight!" Adam just grins as they take they plummet down the waterfall.
"Daaaaaaaad," shouts Kailena!
"We didn't die! Are all roller coasters like this?"
"They are all a little different in how they are designed."
Dylan and his Dad are next. They both hold the bars and Victor watches Dylan's face as it turns green. "I think I ate too much cake!"
"oh, that's better now."
"I'm soaking wet. How about you?
"Yep, me too Dad!"
Drew gets his nerve up and takes his hands off the bar for the loop.
Kailena decides if her Dad can take his hands off so can she.
Victor takes his hands off the bar but Dylan holds on so tight his hands turn white, but his face is green again.
The tunnel of fire is next and Drew laughs at the giant spiders on the walls. "They are not real," he tells his Dad. He notices one is moving closer and closer to their cart. "Are they real Dad," he nervously questions Marshall?
"I sure hope not! Those spiders are humongous!"
"Dad those flames are real. It is very hot in here. Wolves are very flammable! It's a good thing we got soaked from the water part."
"It sure is! Adam grins at Kailena who is still looking worried.
Dylan is very worried going into the flames. "Dad, I'm a witch so the flames won't kill me, but you are a vampire. You better keep your hands and big shoulders in the cart."
Drew's ride is over. "Dad can we please go again. That was so much fun!"
"It's your birthday so of course. Do you want me to text your Mom and see if she wants to ride with you?"
"Oh yes, Mom will love it!"
Kailena claps when her ride is over. "That was so much fun Dad. Can we go again too."
"Sure, but let's see if Jillian, Josef, Lexie and Lucas want a turn first."
Dylan gets off and promptly throws up. "Dad, I don't have to ride again do I? I think I ate too much cake."
Victor cleans up the mess. "No, I think we should go get some dry clothes and find your Mom. She can help you with your tummy ache. Jillian and Josef can ride with Lucas and Lexie and you and I will go play basketball."
Dylan hugs his Dad. "Thanks for going with me. Maybe next time I won't eat before riding a roller coaster."
Victor picks out some clothing for Dylan and himself and they go to the changing room to check the fit.
"My clothes fit Dad."
"Apparently the shop only sells shorts. That does not seem very proper." Victor peers at his image in the mirror not really liking what he sees.
He puts on the only black shirt the store has. He looks down at the little green alien on the front of the tank style shirt and sighs heavily. Dylan looks over at him and whispers, "Dad, do you think I'm going to have big muscles like yours when I'm grown up?"
"When you are a little older we can start a training program for muscles, but you are too young right now."
"Everything has to wait til I'm older Dad! I get tired of hearing that!"
Victor chuckles at his disgruntled son. "Let's go find your Mom and see if she can settle your stomach and perhaps turn this outfit into something proper, or dry my wet clothing with her magic."
Gardenia uses her magic to ease her son's nausea. She cannot take her eyes of her hunky husband in his shorts and tank though.
"I'm sorry Victor, my magic will not change the clothes nor dry your wet things. Besides, you look very hot in the shorts and tank and I think we should keep this outfit." She bats her eyes flirting with him.
Victor loves her flirting despite how uncomfortable he feels in the shorts. "Hold that thought honey. I promised Dylan I would play basketball with him."
Those are the cutest toddlers anywhere! *code purple* sorry bekkasan, I just stole Drew! couldn't be helped! He is the loveliest toddler I have ever seen!
why is the yukky gruel always mud colored? poor things!
A dragons nest! look at all the eggs!
Drew is beautiful! like his Dad. ( I can't remember which is his Mom, they are all so pretty!) but his dad is Wonderful! Gadfrey such a face should be outlawed!
You made the the roller coaster ride so exciting! Now I want a turn!
wow Victors arm muscles are massive!
I love how they love the ride and want to go again! These kids are the greatest!
yes change of clothes and basket ball will be better! poor kid! I hate to barf, it makes me sick! ---I love the look Victor has, next to the cash register! ---->scratch that, in the changing room!
I would wish for that as well! it is a Great place to have a party!
@bekkasan Always nice to read about the Ballans.
Happy Birthday Drew! 🎉
"Toddler gruel"
Victor rocking Alek.
I bet the kids thought the Dragon's Nest was the coolest thing!
Marshall's book is going to be AWESOME! Thanks to Victor.
(Yes, we must see Rafe again. )
Such beautiful blue eyes Drew has and he's a cutie.
A fun park inside a "Castle?" Rock on! Looks like they are all having a blast! (Adam and Marshall bull riding. )
----
Oooh, father and son are trying out the roller coaster.
"AaEeIi AAEEii AaEeIi" Drew yells as they plunge through the plums of water that are covering whatever lies below them.
^Ha ha! That was great!
I'm with Kailena! Those folks that raise their arms in the air while on roller coasters are NUTS imo!
These pictures are great!
OMGosh I DEFINITELY wouldn't raise my hands up going around the loop! Holy moley!
(But I will say Victor looks hot there doing it. )
That was cute, Drew double checking with his dad to make sure that the spiders weren't actually real.
I didn't know there was a tunnel of fire! Man I need to play around with this stuff more.
The two kiddos are up for round two huh? Except poor Dylan. I think that would've been me...
Victor is such a sweetheart.
"Apparently the shop only sells shorts. That does not seem very proper." Victor peers at his image in the mirror not really liking what he sees.
^Oh but we're all liking what we see Victor.
"Everything has to wait til I'm older Dad! I get tired of hearing that!"
^We all felt the same Dylan. (I see his Star Wars shirt. Nice!)
Man wouldn't it be great if magic like that were real?
"I'm sorry Victor, my magic will not change the clothes nor dry your wet things. Besides, you look very hot in the shorts and tank and I think we should keep this outfit." She bats her eyes flirting with him.
^Mmm hmm! *Sigh*
What a fun read! I look forward to more as always.
@DivaDoodle hehe, thanks so much for your comments!
I love my babies and toddlers too. Drew is definitely adorable! Thanks so much!
Yes, the gruel is gross and even when parents fix baby food it looks gross too!
Jennifer is Drew's Mom.
I had a lot of fun writing the roller coaster update and so many fun pictures I didn't use since it would have made the update incredibly longer and my page load so much slower than it already does! Sigh.
@emorrill I thank you for your comments!
I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was fun getting back to Drew's birthday and finishing it up.
I peeked at Drew in CAS and I think he is going to be cuter than his Dad! Is that possible? Oh yes!
The coaster is fun and the tunnel of fire was made by the creator of that venue with fog emitter codes.
Poor Dylan kept insisting it was the cake! lol
Yes, I definitely like what I see. Poor Victor is so proper he just doesn't realize how much we enjoy it when he isn't fully dressed!!
@bekkasan : two updates in a row!
(Should visit the forums more often it seems! )
Drew´s birthday, he is a handsome young man now! And he now he mustn´t eat this stirred vomit the toddlers have to eat anymore!
Aww, Victor rocking the baby! I love men who care for kids, especially when they are so muscular like Victor is!
And he even helps Marshall with his books! Good that they stay a few days in Dragon Valley. I really hope that Rafe finds the time to visit Dragon Valley for the book!!!!!
So some of the kids will get their own dragons? I really want to know which dragon fits their personality.
Nice fun park, a very good location for a birthday party, I like the dining room/throne room.
Great conversations between the kids and their dads at the rolloercoaster, especially Dylan´s when he gets green: "I ate too much cake!" Sooo funny!!! I love the different reactions of the kids to the dangers of the ride. Kailena is so brave, she really is the daughter of her father! The kids do care for their fathers!
"Wolves are flammable" I really had to laugh about that!
"Dad, I'm a witch so the flames won't kill me, but you are a vampire. You better keep your hands and big shoulders in the cart" hehehe, yes, his dad is, hach, so handsome with his broad shoulders! Hm!!! Poor Dylan throwing up! So sweet that he lets the others go first on the roller coaster!
Victor doesn´t like what he sees in the mirror? How can he? I really like to what I see! More of that, please!!!!
Oh Dylan, this sentence, that you have to get older, is one every child hears so often and it is so unfair, right? I can feel with you!!
Yeah, of course Gardenia, you can´t change Victor´s clothes, I get it! If I were her I wouldn´t have changed him, either!
Great update, more of it soon!!!!!
@AlexaKry Thanks so much for your comments! I was hoping you would find these updates!
Victor still wishes for more kids with Gardenia but I think the current ones will have to grow up first! I have it blocked so they can't have any on their own or they would!
I miss Rafe and the Barnacle Bay family so I may visit them in the very near future. I think poor Shea is still preggers!
The teens will get them during summer most likely. Jennifer and Wisteria still need a dragon too.
I had fun writing the roller coaster comments. I took so many pictures and still have tons of pictures with the other kids. I take way too many when playing and don't use most of them.
hehe, Victor is just way too proper to like revealing clothing, except on his beautiful wife.
You totally get Gardenia. She is a very powerful witch, she could change it if she really wanted. She didn't want to change them!
I'm working this afternoon but I still hope to find some time to play before I have to go out. I want to get things to the point I can have the teens visiting for the summer soon. That means the Ballan's will go home though. It is a little laggy with them visiting but totally worth a little lag. Adam needs to get the remains to the Fairy realm too. I have a list of things that need to be accomplished in that save. So much to do and so little time!
The family enjoyed the visit to the Castle theme park to celebrate Drew's birthday. It was late in the evening when they finally returned home. Drew's new big boy bedroom had been completed a few days before. He marveled at the new things in his room but fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
Marshall watches him sleeping and is amazed at how the time has flown. His first born is now a boy. Just about the same age as he was when his parents were killed. He prays to the fates that Drew will never experience that profound sadness at such a young age. He covers him up and turns out the lights. He plays and snuggles with little Lara who is not quite ready to settle in for the night.
Over in the main house, Adam rocks Alek while Alice convinces an excited Kailena it is past time to go to sleep. She starts reading one of Kailena's favorite stories and her lids flutter and she is asleep quickly.
The next few days are busy ones for everyone. The Ballan children explore Dragon Valley with Kailena and Drew tagging along. Josef and Jillian invite Bran and Briana to go with them. Having grown up in Dragon Valley Bran and Briana are able to show them places that are not on the tourist maps. Victor and Gardenia enjoy spoiling Alek and Lara as well as Fillian and Willow.
As all vacations must end so must this visit. The morning of departure dawned with an eerie crimson sky so reminiscent of the sky back home in Midnight Hollow. It seems to be beckoning the Ballan family home. Adam has talked to Alice and the others about having Josef and Jillian stay for the summer and everyone agreed it would be a wonderful idea. Hopefully, Victor and Gardenia will agree.
Alice, Gardenia and Wisteria enjoy sitting in the play yard chatting as the toddlers play with the block table.
Adam talks to Victor about the summer plans with the teens. He explains the self-defense course to prepare the teens before they go to uni. "Grandfather Aagda and Uncle Finnian are allowing Prince Kaifindar to visit during the summer to learn the defensive arts. They are sending another cousin who wants to study at university along with Kaifindar. Briana and Bran will be attending."
"Dad, would you and Mom consider allowing Josef and Jillian to attend? I know you can teach them and have likely already started, but Alice and I miss everyone so much. Alice will enjoy spending time together before they complete high school and go off to university. We've developed a schedule of classes, so it will really be like summer school but we hope to make if fun as well so maybe they won't notice that."
Adam whips out his planner and shows Victor the class schedule he has set up and hopes to individualize it for each teen based on their other interests. "Alice and Wisteria will teach arts. Wisteria will teach them about safe plants and dangerous ones to avoid. They will all take turns working in the greenhouse. Alice will teach basic alchemy since none of them are witches. Dedric and I will teach any science related studies, and Marshall and Jennifer will teach any writing and communication skills they might be interested in. We will all work with them on self-defense and athletics. They will also acquire some essential cooking skills. We can all work on that, except for Marshall. He still can't boil water."
Victor is really intrigued with the classes they have planned. "You've put a lot of thought into this."
"We will only have 6 weeks so must make the best use of the time and still let them have some time to goof off. I think between the 6 of us we can make certain they are well supervised. They are all good kids."
"I'll talk to Gardenia, but I'm persuaded she will agree this will be excellent for Josef and Jillian to learn in a setting with other teens. They have missed you and Alice as well and being here for the summer will be good for all of you."
Adam hugs his Dad.
Dedric has one more potion to discover and he is not trying to be antisocial but he is anxious to learn that last potion.
Dedric needs a little bit more practice.
Drew gathers the other kids around him. He is very imaginative like his Dad and loves making up stories. "We are going to be explorers in outer space and just landed on this planet that has two suns and a fiery red sky. I'd like to be the captain. Who are y'all going to be?"
Lucas, who wants to be a scientist some day, calls out, "I'll be the ships science officer and second in command."
"I want to be the ships engineer." Lexie loves fixing things.
"I'll be the pilot of the space ship." Kailena chooses knowing she is brave like her Dad.
Dylan thinks a moment and decides. "I'll be in charge of security." Dylan is a witch vampire hybrid and therefore very handy to have around in a tough situation.
Shadow joins in the fun too as the kids line up and leave the ship to explore the red sun planet.
Dedric takes a shower and decides he is better off cooking food than trying to cook another potion. Oh! I sure hope Dedric doesn't burn his hands. He forgot the spatula for turning the fish! It looks like he is using fairy magic and turning them that way.
Lexie finds a giant alien about to eat a small humanoid like creature and using her photon weapon she is able to rescue the humanoid.
Meanwhile, Alice, Jennifer, Marshall and Gardenia go upstairs to see how Alice's potion will work. Alice tosses the potion at Jennifer's feet, and a faint purple cloud envelops her. She is startled from having the potion tossed at her but otherwise feels invigorated. Everyone asks how she feels. "I feel completely normal, perhaps a bit more energetic."
Marshall hugs her in relief that nothing bad happened to her. He remembers a few of Alice's early experiments when she first started learning alchemy and her spells.
Gardenia explains to Jennifer about practicing her genie abilities and she will become stronger and able to do more. Jennifer concentrates and tries the spell that Gardenia informs her is ordinarily the easiest. Jennifer is a exceptionally fast learner and quickly produces an entire apple pie.
The family enjoys one last meal together before the Ballan's must start their way back to Midnight Hollow.
It takes a couple of days travel with the children as they must rest between teleportations that are long distance. They finally arrive in Midnight Hollow at dusk and Victor's Hungarian Horntail can be seen dropping down on the roof of the house as he bugles a welcome home to the family.
@bekkasan oh how Nice to read here again! I missed this family!
aw sweet children!
omg that red sky! wow!
lol poor Marshall can't boil water! they had to say it aloud! lol
Are the sparkles on Gorgeous Victor because of his LTW? (if you don't want the sparkles, what I do is to remove that LTW then add immune to heat. it works the same way to protect our vampires.)
omg I adore the kids and their game! What great imaginations they have! more more more!💕💕💕
wow I wish I could make a pie that fast!
OMG that dragon of Victor's is amazing!
Such a good fun update bekkasan! It was so enjoyable to read it! I'm going to read it again in the morning, it's late and I want to read it with a fresh brain! This will make me have sweet dreams tonight! I'm so glad you played and posted!
@bekkasan More of the Ballan family! Yay!
I've missed Marshall. He's such a good dad.
Drew's big boy bedroom looks great!
Sounds like they all had tons of the fun together in DV.
As all vacations must end so must this visit. The morning of departure dawned with an eerie crimson sky so reminiscent of the sky back home in Midnight Hollow. It seems to be beckoning the Ballan family home.
^Love the way you wrote this.
I bet Josef and Jillian would love to stay during the Summer!
Awesome Summer School plan Alex put together there. It's a win win!
...They will also acquire some essential cooking skills. We can all work on that, except for Marshall. He still can't boil water."
^Ha ha! Poor Marshall...
Yay Victor approves! (I didn't doubt he would. )
Poor Dedric...he'll discover that potion soon. I just know it!
OMGosh how CUTE with the kids imagining being on a starship! It sounded like Star Trek to me. Awwww and they got all dressed up!!! Adorable!!!
Ha ha, disappearing spatula glitch?
Lexie finds a giant alien about to eat a small humanoid like creature and using her photon weapon she is able to rescue the humanoid.
^Nice! Super cute.
Glad the potion didn't do any harm to Jennifer. 👍
LOVE this capture!
So sad that Ballan's have to return home... Fun family times like these always go by too fast...
The dragon wishing them a welcome home. Love it!
Wonderful update and I look forward to the next part.
@DivaDoodle So glad to see your comments and that you are happy to see an update from them.
I really enjoyed playing them for a few days.
yes, poor Marshall is teased mercilessly about his lack of culinary refinement which is worse now he is a werewolf. He will eat anything raw! ugh!!
I don't mind the sparkles. I like that he looks different. He is not affected by the sun as he has that reward. I do have the no sparkles mod but rarely use it. I also have the no wings mod for fairies but I rarely use it. More tempted with that one as the wings do get in the way of pictures when you have lots of fairies.
I think it would be fun to have a save that was nothing but kids playing around and having fun in the game. I think Drew and Kailena are going to miss their buddies and will want Fillian and Willow to age quickly!
I can make pie fast. I just say "Granny Smiths" and poof I have crumb apple pie! lol
Severinka makes awesome cc! I love her stuff!
@emorrill So happy to see you were able to read and comment on the update.
I knew you would be happy to see Marshall again.
Awww, thanks for the compliment on the writing!
Jennifer is really happy to have her inner genie finally come out. Her quick cooking will be helpful when things are busy with the teens during the summer.
Dedric is determined to learn that last potion. I found him at the chemistry set later after dinner while setting up the travel back to MH.
I wish I could have the whole family in one world but it is just too laggy for more than a few days. Plus, I want to reset graphics to high in this save.
Might be awhile for the next part since I'm having the travel issue! I may end up packing them all in porter file and restarting. I have my saved Midnight Hollow from the last time I had to do this in 2017. That is the primary world so they would all need to start from it and move out.
@bekkasan
Lovely that you keep this up from back in 2017.
Glad you got some trees in opening post – very helpful - And I do remember the last few post from December
Brilliant red sky picture. Great storyline and pictures – as you see from my question not entirely able to grasp everything. Damnation they throw those spells at each other – not knowing what will happen – she might have ended up as a toad
You say “Over in the main house” – is this home one huge lot, with several separate houses. Or is this all a vacation situation: I guess they talk about going home – As you can tell a bit confused about where we are.
OK later I understood that the Ballan have to “go home”. Might be Adams family home.?
Another, I could not find out is, why you call it “Adam's Quest”
NB: Love that girl with blue ends on her blond hair (several updates back)
@bekkasan oh I know what you mean so many of my pics are obscured by the fairy wings, but they are just so lovely and I love the sound they make, I don't think I could ever mod them out!
That actually was the first time I ever really noticed the sparkles on Victor, He is just so handsome! Ah, do they only appear outside then?
A save of just kids! wow! I would love to see it maybe one day I might try a house of just kids, lol. I remember a million years ago, when I didn't even know the normal residents of Sunset Valley a little girl lived all alone in a house! Her Mom had moved into a full house to be with her boyfriend! It was so weird, but I was thinking back then, how could I make a house of just kids, and gather up all these friends from school who didn't have a home and had to deliver newspapers.
Yes sweet Drew and Kailena will miss their friends, but can they wait 100 years for Watcher to age up Willow and Fillian? hehehe
LOL poor Marshall he is too cute to be teased! He probably makes sushi, sashimi and steak tartare when no one is looking!
@tamijo Thanks so much for reading and taking time to comment. I appreciate it so much.
Thanks! They are my longest running family and I would hate to give them up. I do take breaks, but always get back to them.
lol, Alice was not very diligent as a teen learning her spells and made some luckily fixable mistakes. She is much better at it now, but was glad her Mom (Gardenia is a very powerful witch) was there if anything went wrong with the genie potion.
Yes, it is one large lot with the main house that Alice and Adam live in, but the main floor is shared by all. Several smaller homes are on the lot so each family can still be independent. The small houses don't have kitchens though. They have to cook at the main house. Adam spent his early years with a were clan who lived communally. He was the outsider in that clan. He wants his friends and family close to him and I decided on this approach rather than separate homes for them.
Victor's family live in Midnight Hollow. Adam met Alice as a teen when he arrived in Midnight Hollow and was basically adopted by the family. It was later found that he and Alice were soulmates and destined to be together.
I started the Adam's Quest title when he and Alice, Marshall and Jennifer, and Dedric left Midnight Hollow to find out about Adam's parentage. The quest will officially end when he returns his mothers remains to the Fairy Kingdom. That will actually happen once I get a travel glitch solved next time I have some time and patience to deal with it, and probably will have to chat with igazor on nraas if I can't solve it myself.
@DivaDoodle Yes, the sparkles only appear outside. I do love the looks and sound of the wings too.
Omg, the Mom didn't take the little girl with her! I'm surprised the game allowed that. I bet you saved her though!
lol, you know me too well. Fillian should age in a couple of game days once I start back with them. Willow is a bit longer.
hehe, raw fishies! That would be Marshall's style. When he went with Adam and they fished he would eat his fish raw sometimes if he was in wolf form. Gross!
@Tamijo Adam got it. I had it hidden from him as part of the quest. He just has to take it to the Fairy Realm so she can lie next to her husband on the castle grounds.
@Silverofdreams30 Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it. I've got a travel glitch which I hope I can solve this weekend and then I will try to start alternating play between the two saves again.
@bekkasan : starting to comment again with my favourite family! (Alfi and Max in @DivaDoodle ´s play are close)
I love to read about Victor (and his family)!
I´m so sorry about your problems with them travelling back, I hope you´ll solve your glitch! I can so relate to that problems, I have them, too, once in a while!
What a gorgeous sunrise! Wow! the kids playing of being explorers in outer space. LOL about the "giant alien eating a small humanoid like creature" what a great imagination of the kids!
I can´t wait to read about the teens in their summer camp. Although I´m very sorry for them that they have a fully planned schedule, it doesn´t look like so much fun than the adults think.
(sorry for the short comment, I still have to take it easy a little)
@AlexaKry I'm happy to see you! I hope things are better for you!
Don't worry about short comments. I'm just happy to see you and hope you will feel like updating your story soon.
I'm glad you found this update on one of your favorite families!
I have not tried in last week or so, perhaps this weekend if I have time I will work on fixing the travel issue.
They will have some free time. Enough that I am sure they will get into a bit of mischief!
@bekkasan : Thank you for yor warm welcome back!
I really hope the teens will get a lot of free time to get into trouble! Furthermore I want to see how the lovebirds will get along!
Yes, the Ballan´s are my favourite family next to my own (now it is said! ) so I´m always happy to see an update of them.
I´m sorry that I let you make wait for another update of my family story, I wasn´t able to play untill a few days ago and I still can´t sit or hold the mouse long enough to get the right pictures of Travis´childhood and how he and Haldir came together. Their story is worked out in my brain, I "just" have to write it down, unfortunately the disease crawled up into my hands as well, so I can hardly hold anything. So I can´t think of writing on their story. So you have to wait a bit longer, hopefully the new medicine I got two days ago is as good as it seems so I can write some text from time to time.
But I´m already able to read, so I hope you´ll be able to post a new update here or at your Mary´s story!
Comments
Midnight Hollow, The Ballan Family
Adam's Quest
Drew's birthday is the day after Kailena's. He eats his toddler gruel for the last time.
Jennifer enjoys baking and decorating his cake.
Grandpa Victor arrives and finds Alek Victor and enjoys rocking the little one.
A few of the kids get a tour of the underground rooms and the dragon nest with Adam and Dedric before Drew's birthday.
Marshall invites Victor over to his cottage and begins interviewing him for the upcoming new series of books on Vampires. Victor is able to give him first hand knowledge of how things were in the world since he was turned. He gives the facts, but also includes the emotions of the people at the time. Victor also recommends that Marshall interview Rafe as he is one of the oldest natural vampires known and of course has extensive literature and history books in his collection.
Drew has his birthday party early in the day since part of his birthday wish is to go to the new fun park in town. He ages up and appears to be a cute blend of both his parents.
They arrive at the new park which is designed to resemble a castle and the kids excitedly chatter about what they want to do first. There is even a nursery where the babies can be safely left with a responsible sitter and the toddlers have a play area.
There are so many fun things to do. Everyone scatters and enjoys themselves.
Jennifer brought Drew's cake with her and arranged to have it in the dining hall. The family and friends enjoyed the cake and toasted Drew who decided he should have his party every year someplace like this.
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
Adam's Quest
After enjoying the cake it is time to ride the coaster. Birthday boy Drew goes first with Marshall.
"This is going to be so much fun Dad!" Drew remarks as they turn the first corner.
"Dad, that is a long way down! Are we going to fly out. There is no seat belt to keep us inside!"
"AaEeIi AAEEii AaEeIi" Drew yells as they plunge through the plums of water that are covering whatever lies below them. Marshall tries to reassure him but Drew is shouting too loud to hear him.
Kailena and her Dad are next. Adam takes his hands off the bars and raises them in the air. "Dad! Are you out of your mind! You better hold on tight!" Adam just grins as they take they plummet down the waterfall.
"Daaaaaaaad," shouts Kailena!
"We didn't die! Are all roller coasters like this?"
"They are all a little different in how they are designed."
Dylan and his Dad are next. They both hold the bars and Victor watches Dylan's face as it turns green. "I think I ate too much cake!"
"oh, that's better now."
"I'm soaking wet. How about you?
"Yep, me too Dad!"
Drew gets his nerve up and takes his hands off the bar for the loop.
Kailena decides if her Dad can take his hands off so can she.
Victor takes his hands off the bar but Dylan holds on so tight his hands turn white, but his face is green again.
The tunnel of fire is next and Drew laughs at the giant spiders on the walls. "They are not real," he tells his Dad. He notices one is moving closer and closer to their cart. "Are they real Dad," he nervously questions Marshall?
"I sure hope not! Those spiders are humongous!"
"Dad those flames are real. It is very hot in here. Wolves are very flammable! It's a good thing we got soaked from the water part."
"It sure is! Adam grins at Kailena who is still looking worried.
Dylan is very worried going into the flames. "Dad, I'm a witch so the flames won't kill me, but you are a vampire. You better keep your hands and big shoulders in the cart."
Drew's ride is over. "Dad can we please go again. That was so much fun!"
"It's your birthday so of course. Do you want me to text your Mom and see if she wants to ride with you?"
"Oh yes, Mom will love it!"
Kailena claps when her ride is over. "That was so much fun Dad. Can we go again too."
"Sure, but let's see if Jillian, Josef, Lexie and Lucas want a turn first."
Dylan gets off and promptly throws up. "Dad, I don't have to ride again do I? I think I ate too much cake."
Victor cleans up the mess. "No, I think we should go get some dry clothes and find your Mom. She can help you with your tummy ache. Jillian and Josef can ride with Lucas and Lexie and you and I will go play basketball."
Dylan hugs his Dad. "Thanks for going with me. Maybe next time I won't eat before riding a roller coaster."
Victor picks out some clothing for Dylan and himself and they go to the changing room to check the fit.
"My clothes fit Dad."
"Apparently the shop only sells shorts. That does not seem very proper." Victor peers at his image in the mirror not really liking what he sees.
He puts on the only black shirt the store has. He looks down at the little green alien on the front of the tank style shirt and sighs heavily. Dylan looks over at him and whispers, "Dad, do you think I'm going to have big muscles like yours when I'm grown up?"
"When you are a little older we can start a training program for muscles, but you are too young right now."
"Everything has to wait til I'm older Dad! I get tired of hearing that!"
Victor chuckles at his disgruntled son. "Let's go find your Mom and see if she can settle your stomach and perhaps turn this outfit into something proper, or dry my wet clothing with her magic."
Gardenia uses her magic to ease her son's nausea. She cannot take her eyes of her hunky husband in his shorts and tank though.
"I'm sorry Victor, my magic will not change the clothes nor dry your wet things. Besides, you look very hot in the shorts and tank and I think we should keep this outfit." She bats her eyes flirting with him.
Victor loves her flirting despite how uncomfortable he feels in the shorts. "Hold that thought honey. I promised Dylan I would play basketball with him."
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
Those are the cutest toddlers anywhere! *code purple* sorry bekkasan, I just stole Drew! couldn't be helped! He is the loveliest toddler I have ever seen!
why is the yukky gruel always mud colored? poor things!
A dragons nest! look at all the eggs!
Drew is beautiful! like his Dad. ( I can't remember which is his Mom, they are all so pretty!) but his dad is Wonderful!
You made the the roller coaster ride so exciting! Now I want a turn!
wow Victors arm muscles are massive!
I love how they love the ride and want to go again! These kids are the greatest!
yes change of clothes and basket ball will be better! poor kid! I hate to barf, it makes me sick! ---I love the look Victor has, next to the cash register! ---->scratch that, in the changing room!
I would wish for that as well! it is a Great place to have a party!
Lovely sims and Fun Fun update!
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Happy Birthday Drew! 🎉
"Toddler gruel"
Victor rocking Alek.
I bet the kids thought the Dragon's Nest was the coolest thing!
Marshall's book is going to be AWESOME! Thanks to Victor.
(Yes, we must see Rafe again.
Such beautiful blue eyes Drew has and he's a cutie.
A fun park inside a "Castle?" Rock on!
----
Oooh, father and son are trying out the roller coaster.
I'm with Kailena! Those folks that raise their arms in the air while on roller coasters are NUTS imo!
These pictures are great!
OMGosh I DEFINITELY wouldn't raise my hands up going around the loop! Holy moley!
(But I will say Victor looks hot there doing it.
That was cute, Drew double checking with his dad to make sure that the spiders weren't actually real.
I didn't know there was a tunnel of fire! Man I need to play around with this stuff more.
The two kiddos are up for round two huh?
Victor is such a sweetheart.
Man wouldn't it be great if magic like that were real? ^Mmm hmm!
*Sigh*
What a fun read! I look forward to more as always.
I love my babies and toddlers too. Drew is definitely adorable! Thanks so much!
Yes, the gruel is gross and even when parents fix baby food it looks gross too!
Jennifer is Drew's Mom.
I had a lot of fun writing the roller coaster update and so many fun pictures I didn't use since it would have made the update incredibly longer and my page load so much slower than it already does! Sigh.
@emorrill I thank you for your comments!
I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was fun getting back to Drew's birthday and finishing it up.
I peeked at Drew in CAS and I think he is going to be cuter than his Dad! Is that possible? Oh yes!
The coaster is fun and the tunnel of fire was made by the creator of that venue with fog emitter codes.
Poor Dylan kept insisting it was the cake! lol
Yes, I definitely like what I see. Poor Victor is so proper he just doesn't realize how much we enjoy it when he isn't fully dressed!!
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
(Should visit the forums more often it seems!
Drew´s birthday, he is a handsome young man now! And he now he mustn´t eat this stirred vomit the toddlers have to eat anymore!
Aww, Victor rocking the baby! I love men who care for kids, especially when they are so muscular like Victor is!
And he even helps Marshall with his books! Good that they stay a few days in Dragon Valley. I really hope that Rafe finds the time to visit Dragon Valley for the book!!!!!
So some of the kids will get their own dragons? I really want to know which dragon fits their personality.
Nice fun park, a very good location for a birthday party, I like the dining room/throne room.
Great conversations between the kids and their dads at the rolloercoaster, especially Dylan´s when he gets green: "I ate too much cake!" Sooo funny!!! I love the different reactions of the kids to the dangers of the ride. Kailena is so brave, she really is the daughter of her father! The kids do care for their fathers!
"Wolves are flammable" I really had to laugh about that!
"Dad, I'm a witch so the flames won't kill me, but you are a vampire. You better keep your hands and big shoulders in the cart" hehehe, yes, his dad is, hach, so handsome with his broad shoulders! Hm!!! Poor Dylan throwing up! So sweet that he lets the others go first on the roller coaster!
Victor doesn´t like what he sees in the mirror? How can he? I really like to what I see! More of that, please!!!!
Oh Dylan, this sentence, that you have to get older, is one every child hears so often and it is so unfair, right? I can feel with you!!
Yeah, of course Gardenia, you can´t change Victor´s clothes, I get it!
Great update, more of it soon!!!!!
https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/953447/streuner-a-cat-s-tale
@AlexaKry Thanks so much for your comments! I was hoping you would find these updates!
Victor still wishes for more kids with Gardenia but I think the current ones will have to grow up first! I have it blocked so they can't have any on their own or they would!
I miss Rafe and the Barnacle Bay family so I may visit them in the very near future.
The teens will get them during summer most likely. Jennifer and Wisteria still need a dragon too.
I had fun writing the roller coaster comments. I took so many pictures and still have tons of pictures with the other kids. I take way too many when playing and don't use most of them.
hehe, Victor is just way too proper to like revealing clothing, except on his beautiful wife.
You totally get Gardenia.
I'm working this afternoon but I still hope to find some time to play before I have to go out. I want to get things to the point I can have the teens visiting for the summer soon. That means the Ballan's will go home though.
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
Midnight Hollow, The Ballan Family
Adam's Quest
The family enjoyed the visit to the Castle theme park to celebrate Drew's birthday. It was late in the evening when they finally returned home. Drew's new big boy bedroom had been completed a few days before. He marveled at the new things in his room but fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
Marshall watches him sleeping and is amazed at how the time has flown. His first born is now a boy. Just about the same age as he was when his parents were killed. He prays to the fates that Drew will never experience that profound sadness at such a young age. He covers him up and turns out the lights. He plays and snuggles with little Lara who is not quite ready to settle in for the night.
Over in the main house, Adam rocks Alek while Alice convinces an excited Kailena it is past time to go to sleep. She starts reading one of Kailena's favorite stories and her lids flutter and she is asleep quickly.
The next few days are busy ones for everyone. The Ballan children explore Dragon Valley with Kailena and Drew tagging along. Josef and Jillian invite Bran and Briana to go with them. Having grown up in Dragon Valley Bran and Briana are able to show them places that are not on the tourist maps. Victor and Gardenia enjoy spoiling Alek and Lara as well as Fillian and Willow.
As all vacations must end so must this visit. The morning of departure dawned with an eerie crimson sky so reminiscent of the sky back home in Midnight Hollow. It seems to be beckoning the Ballan family home. Adam has talked to Alice and the others about having Josef and Jillian stay for the summer and everyone agreed it would be a wonderful idea. Hopefully, Victor and Gardenia will agree.
Alice, Gardenia and Wisteria enjoy sitting in the play yard chatting as the toddlers play with the block table.
Adam talks to Victor about the summer plans with the teens. He explains the self-defense course to prepare the teens before they go to uni. "Grandfather Aagda and Uncle Finnian are allowing Prince Kaifindar to visit during the summer to learn the defensive arts. They are sending another cousin who wants to study at university along with Kaifindar. Briana and Bran will be attending."
"Dad, would you and Mom consider allowing Josef and Jillian to attend? I know you can teach them and have likely already started, but Alice and I miss everyone so much. Alice will enjoy spending time together before they complete high school and go off to university. We've developed a schedule of classes, so it will really be like summer school but we hope to make if fun as well so maybe they won't notice that."
Adam whips out his planner and shows Victor the class schedule he has set up and hopes to individualize it for each teen based on their other interests. "Alice and Wisteria will teach arts. Wisteria will teach them about safe plants and dangerous ones to avoid. They will all take turns working in the greenhouse. Alice will teach basic alchemy since none of them are witches. Dedric and I will teach any science related studies, and Marshall and Jennifer will teach any writing and communication skills they might be interested in. We will all work with them on self-defense and athletics. They will also acquire some essential cooking skills. We can all work on that, except for Marshall. He still can't boil water."
Victor is really intrigued with the classes they have planned. "You've put a lot of thought into this."
"We will only have 6 weeks so must make the best use of the time and still let them have some time to goof off. I think between the 6 of us we can make certain they are well supervised. They are all good kids."
"I'll talk to Gardenia, but I'm persuaded she will agree this will be excellent for Josef and Jillian to learn in a setting with other teens. They have missed you and Alice as well and being here for the summer will be good for all of you."
Adam hugs his Dad.
Dedric has one more potion to discover and he is not trying to be antisocial but he is anxious to learn that last potion.
Dedric needs a little bit more practice.
Drew gathers the other kids around him. He is very imaginative like his Dad and loves making up stories. "We are going to be explorers in outer space and just landed on this planet that has two suns and a fiery red sky. I'd like to be the captain. Who are y'all going to be?"
Lucas, who wants to be a scientist some day, calls out, "I'll be the ships science officer and second in command."
"I want to be the ships engineer." Lexie loves fixing things.
"I'll be the pilot of the space ship." Kailena chooses knowing she is brave like her Dad.
Dylan thinks a moment and decides. "I'll be in charge of security." Dylan is a witch vampire hybrid and therefore very handy to have around in a tough situation.
Shadow joins in the fun too as the kids line up and leave the ship to explore the red sun planet.
Dedric takes a shower and decides he is better off cooking food than trying to cook another potion. Oh! I sure hope Dedric doesn't burn his hands. He forgot the spatula for turning the fish! It looks like he is using fairy magic and turning them that way.
Lexie finds a giant alien about to eat a small humanoid like creature and using her photon weapon she is able to rescue the humanoid.
Meanwhile, Alice, Jennifer, Marshall and Gardenia go upstairs to see how Alice's potion will work. Alice tosses the potion at Jennifer's feet, and a faint purple cloud envelops her. She is startled from having the potion tossed at her but otherwise feels invigorated. Everyone asks how she feels. "I feel completely normal, perhaps a bit more energetic."
Marshall hugs her in relief that nothing bad happened to her. He remembers a few of Alice's early experiments when she first started learning alchemy and her spells.
Gardenia explains to Jennifer about practicing her genie abilities and she will become stronger and able to do more. Jennifer concentrates and tries the spell that Gardenia informs her is ordinarily the easiest. Jennifer is a exceptionally fast learner and quickly produces an entire apple pie.
The family enjoys one last meal together before the Ballan's must start their way back to Midnight Hollow.
It takes a couple of days travel with the children as they must rest between teleportations that are long distance. They finally arrive in Midnight Hollow at dusk and Victor's Hungarian Horntail can be seen dropping down on the roof of the house as he bugles a welcome home to the family.
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
@bekkasan oh how Nice to read here again!
aw sweet children!
omg that red sky! wow!
lol poor Marshall can't boil water! they had to say it aloud! lol
Are the sparkles on Gorgeous Victor because of his LTW? (if you don't want the sparkles, what I do is to remove that LTW then add immune to heat. it works the same way to protect our vampires.)
omg I adore the kids and their game! What great imaginations they have! more more more!💕💕💕
wow I wish I could make a pie that fast!
OMG that dragon of Victor's is amazing!
Such a good fun update bekkasan! It was so enjoyable to read it! I'm going to read it again in the morning, it's late and I want to read it with a fresh brain!
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I've missed Marshall.
Drew's big boy bedroom looks great!
Sounds like they all had tons of the fun together in DV.
I bet Josef and Jillian would love to stay during the Summer!
Awesome Summer School plan Alex put together there.
Yay Victor approves!
Poor Dedric...he'll discover that potion soon. I just know it!
OMGosh how CUTE with the kids imagining being on a starship!
Ha ha, disappearing spatula glitch?
Glad the potion didn't do any harm to Jennifer. 👍
LOVE this capture!
So sad that Ballan's have to return home...
The dragon wishing them a welcome home. Love it!
Wonderful update and I look forward to the next part.
@DivaDoodle So glad to see your comments and that you are happy to see an update from them.
I really enjoyed playing them for a few days.
yes, poor Marshall is teased mercilessly about his lack of culinary refinement which is worse now he is a werewolf. He will eat anything raw! ugh!!
I don't mind the sparkles. I like that he looks different. He is not affected by the sun as he has that reward. I do have the no sparkles mod but rarely use it. I also have the no wings mod for fairies but I rarely use it.
I think it would be fun to have a save that was nothing but kids playing around and having fun in the game.
I can make pie fast. I just say "Granny Smiths" and poof I have crumb apple pie! lol
Severinka makes awesome cc! I love her stuff!
@emorrill So happy to see you were able to read and comment on the update.
I knew you would be happy to see Marshall again.
Awww, thanks for the compliment on the writing!
Jennifer is really happy to have her inner genie finally come out. Her quick cooking will be helpful when things are busy with the teens during the summer.
Dedric is determined to learn that last potion. I found him at the chemistry set later after dinner while setting up the travel back to MH.
I wish I could have the whole family in one world but it is just too laggy for more than a few days. Plus, I want to reset graphics to high in this save.
Might be awhile for the next part since I'm having the travel issue!
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
Lovely that you keep this up from back in 2017.
Glad you got some trees in opening post – very helpful - And I do remember the last few post from December
Brilliant red sky picture. Great storyline and pictures – as you see from my question not entirely able to grasp everything. Damnation they throw those spells at each other – not knowing what will happen
You say “Over in the main house” – is this home one huge lot, with several separate houses. Or is this all a vacation situation: I guess they talk about going home – As you can tell a bit confused about where we are.
OK later I understood that the Ballan have to “go home”. Might be Adams family home.?
Another, I could not find out is, why you call it “Adam's Quest”
NB: Love that girl with blue ends on her blond hair (several updates back)
@bekkasan oh I know what you mean so many of my pics are obscured by the fairy wings, but they are just so lovely and I love the sound they make, I don't think I could ever mod them out!
That actually was the first time I ever really noticed the sparkles on Victor, He is just so handsome! Ah, do they only appear outside then?
A save of just kids! wow! I would love to see it
Yes sweet Drew and Kailena will miss their friends, but can they wait 100 years for Watcher to age up Willow and Fillian?
LOL poor Marshall he is too cute to be teased!
lol Granny Smith's
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@tamijo Thanks so much for reading and taking time to comment. I appreciate it so much.
Thanks! They are my longest running family and I would hate to give them up. I do take breaks, but always get back to them.
lol, Alice was not very diligent as a teen learning her spells and made some luckily fixable mistakes.
Yes, it is one large lot with the main house that Alice and Adam live in, but the main floor is shared by all. Several smaller homes are on the lot so each family can still be independent. The small houses don't have kitchens though. They have to cook at the main house. Adam spent his early years with a were clan who lived communally. He was the outsider in that clan. He wants his friends and family close to him and I decided on this approach rather than separate homes for them.
Victor's family live in Midnight Hollow. Adam met Alice as a teen when he arrived in Midnight Hollow and was basically adopted by the family. It was later found that he and Alice were soulmates and destined to be together.
I started the Adam's Quest title when he and Alice, Marshall and Jennifer, and Dedric left Midnight Hollow to find out about Adam's parentage. The quest will officially end when he returns his mothers remains to the Fairy Kingdom. That will actually happen once I get a travel glitch solved next time I have some time and patience to deal with it, and probably will have to chat with igazor on nraas if I can't solve it myself.
@DivaDoodle Yes, the sparkles only appear outside. I do love the looks and sound of the wings too.
Omg, the Mom didn't take the little girl with her! I'm surprised the game allowed that.
lol, you know me too well. Fillian should age in a couple of game days once I start back with them. Willow is a bit longer.
hehe, raw fishies! That would be Marshall's style. When he went with Adam and they fished he would eat his fish raw sometimes if he was in wolf form. Gross!
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
Guess you already know this cheat, but just in case
Nraas/MasterController/Sims/Basic/Find Grave
that last shot is amazing too.
@Tamijo Adam got it. I had it hidden from him as part of the quest. He just has to take it to the Fairy Realm so she can lie next to her husband on the castle grounds.
@Silverofdreams30 Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it. I've got a travel glitch which I hope I can solve this weekend and then I will try to start alternating play between the two saves again.
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
I love to read about Victor (and his family)!
I´m so sorry about your problems with them travelling back, I hope you´ll solve your glitch! I can so relate to that problems, I have them, too, once in a while!
What a gorgeous sunrise! Wow!
I can´t wait to read about the teens in their summer camp. Although I´m very sorry for them that they have a fully planned schedule, it doesn´t look like so much fun than the adults think.
(sorry for the short comment, I still have to take it easy a little)
https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/953447/streuner-a-cat-s-tale
@AlexaKry I'm happy to see you!
Don't worry about short comments. I'm just happy to see you and hope you will feel like updating your story soon.
I'm glad you found this update on one of your favorite families!
I have not tried in last week or so, perhaps this weekend if I have time I will work on fixing the travel issue.
They will have some free time. Enough that I am sure they will get into a bit of mischief!
The Cowboy and the Mermaid
I really hope the teens will get a lot of free time to get into trouble! Furthermore I want to see how the lovebirds will get along!
Yes, the Ballan´s are my favourite family next to my own (now it is said!
I´m sorry that I let you make wait for another update of my family story, I wasn´t able to play untill a few days ago and I still can´t sit or hold the mouse long enough to get the right pictures of Travis´childhood and how he and Haldir came together. Their story is worked out in my brain, I "just" have to write it down, unfortunately the disease crawled up into my hands as well, so I can hardly hold anything. So I can´t think of writing on their story.
But I´m already able to read, so I hope you´ll be able to post a new update here or at your Mary´s story!
https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/953447/streuner-a-cat-s-tale