Sunday dawned overcast and cold. Phoenix decided to work on his social aspiration for a change, and invited Max over. After a play session with the soccer ball, they joked around and watched the clouds for a while, then joked some more.
Upstairs, Bennie was yelling at Marnie for the house being in the state it was (although she never stops cleaning!!). I’m sure the whole neighborhood heard the argument, and poor Marnie barely stood up for herself. Bennie then stormed out of the house, while Marnie turned to rage cleaning, scrubbing at stains that were never going to go away.
Benji had, somehow, gotten a hold of a project box for building a bridge, and decided to spend the day working on it. He’d already completed his make-up homework, and hoped dearly that, in the last week and a half of school, he could pull his grade up to at least passing. (Clearly the twins aren’t helping with the cleaning situation…)
Downstairs, Max and Phoenix chatted on. Phoenix found out that the type of humor Max liked was the mean kind, because he was Evil…. and so they alternated playing pranks on each other, and both ended up laughing until they cried.
Colin had come over to visit with Jaz, and they were playing chess. Colin, unfortunately, wasn’t having the best of times at home with all the arguing, and having heard the argument between Bennie and Marnie hadn’t helped his mood. After a heart-to-heart where Colin spilled his soul about his parents still being on the warpath, and how it felt like they were purposely ripping the family apart, Jaz finally managed to get him to cheer up a bit.
While they were outside playing, Elsa stopped by, and her good cheer was infectious. Soon all three were laughing, and it didn’t matter who was winning the chess game anymore.
Upstairs, Benji had finished his bridge. Or, at least it was still standing. For the moment. He hid it under the science table to hopefully protect it until the morning.
Marnie was taking out her bad mood on the twins, and had cleaned up all the messes they had made during the morning. Myles came home from scouts and complained that the shower and toilet were broken… which didn’t help Marnie’s mood, but she still sighed and got right to work.
Elsewhere in the neighborhood, Phoenix was close to having his first ever best friend. Max and he played pirates for a while, and joked around some more. The fun abruptly stopped, however, when they saw Bennie heading home in the growing darkness with an oddly shaped box. He did NOT look like his mood had improved, and Phoenix decided heading straight to dinner and bed might be the best thing to do in the circumstances.
Marnie had found something else to fix, Myles was taking his bath, and the twins were yawning hugely by the time Bennie got upstairs. He completely ignored everyone, and headed for the living room.
Strangely enough, the living room was completely empty of people, so nobody was there to see him pull a battered guitar out of the oddly shaped box. They heard the racket it made when he started trying to play it, however, and the whole household collectively cringed. Nobody knew where Bennie had gotten this “treasure”, and only Bennie knew that spending the money on the guitar would mean he couldn’t pay the bills in the morning. He hoped, however, to make up the money by getting that skill point in guitar for a (hopeful) promotion, because he dreaded opening the store in the morning. Perhaps he could make up the difference with dumpster diving again. It had worked last week, after all….
Marnie made a late dinner for the twins, and – while waiting for the bathroom to be free – Jaz decided to work on some (unnecessary) extra credit. It wasn’t like she wasn’t holding down straight A’s still. It never occurred to her that increasing her grade might annoy her classmates.
In other notes, I think I've decided to set the aging for non-related or important NPCs to "on" with the following age spans: 30 days for babies, 90 days for toddlers, and 120 days for all the other age states. It's very roughly the same age spans as I'll be using for my sims and any others flagged as important. I realized that I have no intention of manually aging every single sim in every single town... the thought of taking over to decide when everyone ages up that way was terrifying. I don't have that much time in a day! I will probably take the time to choose the families that will be flagged as "important" tomorrow or the next day, and then will be able to turn on NPC aging.
@IllusoryThrall I have the world aging on Long and aging on for unplayed households and aging off for played households. I mark them played or unplayed depending on my plans for them.
May - Day 21:"Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future."
Notes
After calling in to take a vacation day from work, Essa crawled into bed for a long nap.
While she slept, Josh practiced spells after he too called to take a vacation day. He was very close to the next Spellcaster level, Master. At that level, he'd be able to learn the Dedeadify spell. Transportalate was important for access to the Lab and their safety. But wouldn't do much good if the Mother killed Essa. To Josh, this spell was even more essential to learn.
Frank stood nearby recharging himself in preparation for an enhancement Josh would do for him after he was fully energized.
Essa woke up from her nap and went in the kitchen to grab a bite to eat. While washing her dish, she got a fright when vines snaked up through the drain and wrapped around her hand. She let out a yelp, but not loud enough for Josh to hear or he would've come running to the rescue. He had told her this might happen.
(GAH! Disgusting! At least I wasn't in the shower.)
She took care of the vines, and went upstairs to do more chemical equations research.
Josh upgraded Frank for his newest enhancement. It took awhile and he was getting a little bored doing it, so he had some fun challenging himself to try different ways to do the upgrade.
He later joined Essa in her office to study the next set of tomes. He'd finally reached the Master level. Only one more to go and he'd be a Virtuoso and know every spell and potion that Essa did. She still had way more experience and perks though. He would never be as powerful as she, even if he tried. Spellcasting was in her blood since her Father was a Sage. Even though he found it very handy and fun, this was only temporary for himself.
Tomorrow they would travel back to the Lab to look for the experimental vaccines. Essa wanted to take a look at the additional untried formulas to see if she could decipher them better now. They kept the file folder of formulas locked up in Essa's charmed magic chest in the basement. Josh joined her to write up some notes and observations from yesterday's encounter with the Mother plant. The two also discussed their plan to defeat her.
"There's one thing we haven't talked about yet. You realize we can't fight that plant by ourselves, right? We need to think about who to ask to help us."
"You're right and I've been thinking about it myself. There's one person I think would be perfect. He's got super strength, he's fast and---" "You're talking about Damon, aren't you?"
"Yeah, I mean, think about it, he owe---"
"Seriously Essa? DAMON!? Why would you even think I'd agree to him? I don't trust that freakin' vampire as far as I can throw him!"
"See this fist? I plan to smash it into his face the next time I see him."
"I wish you wouldn't, but...I understand. He owes me, big time though. He owes us! He'd do it without a second thought. I think agreeing to fight that Mother plant would help him prove that he's changed and truly regrets what he did to me. He could lose his life, again, and he has Molly and a Son now to protect." "But how can I trust him, how can you ask me to?"
"He was so ashamed and remorseful for what he did, he took his own life Josh, because of me, and I saved him, brought him back to life. I trust him and I'm hoping you'll give him a chance to gain your trust. He needs this Josh, to help redeem himself."
"Please? For me?" "...."
"Josh?" "Alright, fine, for you." *sigh* "Gawd, why do I let you talk me into these things?"
"Because you love me, remember?" "Yeah, he's lucky I do...But if he so much as looks at you for longer than I think is necessary, he gets the fist! Agreed?"
"Agreed."
"Alright, that's one, we should ask at least one more and I have an idea about that one as well." "Of course you do."
"What about Melody? You like her. We've become good friends in such a short time and she's a Spellcaster, just like us! Wouldn't hurt to have one more that knows how to transportalate, just in case you and I...uh, can't do it ourselves." "Okay, now you're talking! She'd be perfect! And she lives right in town too, that's a plus." "Do you think she'd do it?"
"I have no idea, but it wouldn't hurt to ask, right?" "Right."
"Okay, I think we have a rough plan now. Let's just hope those vaccines are there and one of them works."
"Gawd, I hope so. Otherwise, we'll have to experiment and try to make one ourselves. I know more than I did, but, I don't know if it's enough." "It'll have to be if it comes to that. There's just one more thing, we need to do tonight, then I think we should get some sleep."
"What?"
Josh got up from his chair, walked over and held out his hand for Essa to take. He pulled her up and out of the chair straight into his arms.
"This."
Essa went straight to bed while Josh checked on Frank's enhancement and took a shower before joining her.
(Damon! If he does anything to jeopardize Essa's life...)
(I'll kill him!)
(This is your one chance Vamp, don't screw it up.)
.. Oh no.. morning after Wolfgang doesn't even remember telling Sakura he loves her! Uh.. oh... I feel so bad for Sakura. What an awful situation to be put in. You get hope, only to have it completely dashed.
Part of the reason I picked Jaz as a character is to explore the resilience of the human spirit. That bad things can happen, and you can still be a good person afterwards. Some days for Jaz are definitely going to be harder than others, but I have faith everything will turn out well in the end! I'm still amazed that every single day I can look at the pictures, and Jaz's story just flows from the keyboard. Somehow all (ok, most) of the random things that happen just fit together perfectly and work with the story "framework" I have put together. I'm sure I'm going to come to days that it just doesn't work, and I'll have to make adjustments, but it certainly hasn't happened yet. In fact, most of the random things that happened have given me more ideas to add to Jaz's story!
Oh, Essa.. now you both are infected. Was it worth it?? I am so jealous of your screenshot taking skills! They're always so perfect!! I especially love the panoramic ones. The picture of the house all in green was especially nice.
Big grats on Serial Romantic. That aspiration can be such a pain. I'm glad they can settle down and enjoy family now! You are completely right about the wrong-ness of Benji laughing at his sister's folly at using the hall pass all in one class, especially when he never bothered to tell her not to! I cringed so much writing that, but it's totally something he would do. Having friends that are standing on her side now is so good for Jaz. She needs the support!
I'm glad you're having fun with this challenge! Your storytelling has gotten so much better from when I first met you, even on a day that you think you're doing terrible at it. I'm sure you'll figure out a reason for the teen to move out by the time it's supposed to happen! Oh, and I completely feel the comment about more than two sims at a venue being chaotic. I feel so frazzled somedays just trying to take care of all the Malones' at home. Taking them all to any place at once would be terrible! Thank you for the compliment on my writing skills. I don't think I'm all that good at it, but it's nice to hear when someone thinks so, anyway. When I was WAY younger, I wanted to be a writer and I took a lot of creative writing courses. Sometimes I wonder where I'd be if I had stuck to that path! (Oh, and as for your question on when the doctor appointment is for Jaz, I have it set for the 23rd. So, just a couple days until then.)
I LOVE Ruby. It's so much fun to watch her growing up. Have you put any thought into letting her be the heir and continuing the challenge after the year is over? (Shameless plug to have someone else crazy enough to possibly continue this... LOL.) Oh goodness, Pickle being scared of the popcorn popper cracked me up. The poor pupper looked so upset! I'm so glad that Jules and Emmett are finally having some good days and sappy moments. Even if Pickle doesn't fully approve of all the smooching that doesn't involve him.
... I got two more pages read! Yay! Hopefully I'll have more time tomorrow. If not, I should have time on my "day off" on Sunday to fully catch up... Remind me not to get this far behind again! Yikes!
I love how everyones life seems to go on in your update (before the wedding one). And how all the Aliens found a new passion among the humans. Poor Anna...
What a wedding. O.o Bryon looks good in blue (Btw, sorry for all the times I called him Byron - I always think of Lord Byron with his name, so I guess it'll happen again ) The carriage is so cute... I wish you all the patience I have for pulling off this wedding with so many people and the lag
"Glorified waffle iron"??? XD I'm scared what Roxanne could do if she wanted to. Hope Rubanoid can bring them to their senses soon... I'm curious how you pull this storyline together with Roxanne completing her Aspiration. But perhaps it is actually good for their marriage if Rubanoid is the one saving them, not her all the time? (Flashback to "I created you and if I want to I can reverse that process without problems..." - she needs to accept him as equal, or their marriage will suffer)
Even more kids??? XD I really want some of their reproductive energy! I guess it's good that you and Mia are going to be out of there soon - big families are tiring! What do these portraits do?
I'm glad I was abe to help you bounce some ideas around, just as @Skeilah and @Hermitgirl helped me
So many questions, no anwers... A dead old dude in their garden??? I love the gardener's face! Hope the situation with that plant isn't, quite literally, going to "blow up in their face"!
I had to laugh so hard too when I saw that house and compared it to your thumbnail photo! Removing the gnomes (or selling them) is a good idea. I wanted Greg to start collecting them and Sarah to be annoyed by it, since the Gnomes really liked him, and her not at all
And yes, that Park outing was 'not' a good idea. I thought it would be possible as you had Marnie take everyone to the park several updates ago, but... No.
I'm scared for Jaz and the family now. Phoenix and Max Villareal does NOT sound like a good combo... At least Jaz has some friends of her own!
I actually have no premades in this save, but if I want a specific family for a special storyline, I can always grab them from the gallery.
If you look into the "schedule" spoiler in my posts, I have put what aging scheme I came up with. I'll let everyone except the challenge Sim age naturally with an aging scheme roughly similar to the challenge Sim's one - Not everyone is born on a 1st, and I want then to continue aging "naturally", so I think that for me without a pretty Google Doc this is the best option. And for friends and other people in the household, I try to visit them every few days either in the updates or "offscreen". When I do, I'll usually check how much longer they have until their next birthday and adjust that if neccesary, so I don't have to age them down and makeover them. This way, I don't think I will get problems because someone I needed as a kid is a teen already or something.
Aww, thank you for the compliment on my storytelling! That's so nice of you!
I actually have a pretty good plan by now, @Skeilah and @Hermitgirl helped me with it (I assume you have seen the giant ramble post?) I can only give the compliment back, and in fact, I think you're a lot better than me! I admire the most how you manage to develop everyone's character and focus on all their lives despite the growing cast of characters instead of ignoring everyone else and only focusing on Jaz.
I'm kind of really glad that at least we two are going to comtinue until after New Year's Eve, me because my year isn't up until next June (and I might even continue with an heir after that), and you because you are planning to do it for a longer time period right from the beginning.
May - Day 20: What is that explosion?? O.o
It'S ok that you don't always update right away, in fact, I even copied your idea yesterday. We all know that RL comes first, and I think it's admirable how long you are doing this already. *hugs*
Beautiful Skiing photos... I'll really have to buy that pack one day
Congrats for almost maxing Jules' Snowy Escape Skills! Poor Jules, seeing Lydias house
I really try to have a positive attitude about it. I was upset for a bit, but I have the next exam on Tuesday already, so I can't really afford to be heartbroken. And besides we all know that there's a good portion of luck in it, based on what topics we know better than others and what topics the questions are about. Now I know what to expect, so...
The call is from a mod, usually other kids call like that. I think the "Grim Reaper" part is a bug. If you select "let's do something", they will have some relationship gain and go into a rabbithole for a few hours - except that the rabbithole part usually doesn't work
Thank you for all the well-wishes and the support, really.
I really try to have a positive attitude about it. I was upset for a bit, but I have the next exam on Tuesday already, so I can't really afford to be heartbroken. And besides we all know that there's a good portion of luck in it, based on what topics we know better than others and what topics the questions are about. Now I know what to expect, so...
Oh gawd, the REALLY need to talk to each other. Can't the docttor roommate run into Sakura drinking some coffee in the morning and be shocked because she thinks Sakura's pregnant and drinking coffee anyway? So Sakura hears about the roommate & wolfgang thinking that she is pregnant???
Please tell me that this will end well for them, I won't be able to withstand that suspense otherwise...
*Updated my May 21st post above! I'll get started on comments and replies now! There's a lot I missed so might take awhile. Hope y'all have a great day/night ahead.
Gah! Remember when I did your challenge with Daphne Moon and how much it rained? Bummer! Anyway, Hi Essa!
Aww, Wolfgang is being so sweet! I love it, but it's sad too, considering... Oh man, he's reading a parenting guide! Who does that? The guy's amazingly compassionate. Congrats to Wolfgang for joining the Bot Savants. Darn! Too bad Bryon hadn't heard Wolfgang tell Sakura he loved her.
Mail forwarding, of course! Sheesh, I should've figured that. Ah, okay, good about Kyoshi's family not interfering. You scrapped a very romantic scene/scenes? O.O How dare you!?
Oh my! Look at the size of those bills! o.O Whoa! That first guy as a potential roommate was SO rude and fresh! Glad he didn't end up living there. The look on Wolfgang's face says it all! Fun memories of that Scout camp! Those chapters were so much fun to read! Got some wild roomies in da house yo! I've never tried having roommates, but I've heard they need lots of room for their stuff. At least one clear bedside table and if anything breaks, tub, sink, etc. They decide to leave for some reason. Unless that's been fixed?
Congrats to Jaz for getting straight As! Glad things are going well for her at home so far too. Happy for her getting to Level 9 in Mental. So nice to see Jaz out having fun at the park with her club friends! Until the thunderstorm hit! o.O Smart girl herding everyone inside.
Aww, thanks for saying that about my writing.
Nice that Jaz was able to cheer Colin up and that Elsa stopped by. Nice she's doing extra credit too! I think she's proud of herself and just wants to keep it up!
Thanks about my screenshots! I love taking landscapes! The colors are a bit weird now due to the mystery, but I still think it's pretty.
Very cute family pic around the tree all in their matching jammies! Of course Ruby immediately plays her new violin. Don't blame Jules for making that face! Gah! o.O And Emmett just grins through it all. LOL Love that blouse on Dell! Hello Lenny, looking very handsome for an elder. Good job remembering Sofia's a vegetarian! None of my Sims are for that very reason. I'd always forget. o.O GAH! Don't you dare give them any bad luck! LOL
Oh gosh, I had so much fun figuring out how they could woo hoo there! hehe Might have one more up my sleeve as well. Yep, if they ever go to the bar for whatever reason and Jules is working, I'll take a shot of her. Yeah, hence the reason I didn't show his face much, he was usually just standing there...smiling. Bummed me out, but not much I can do about it. Yeah, I knew she could be revived, so it's cool.
Looks like everyone had a great time in Mt. Komorebi. Cool that Jules was able to catch up with Kaori. I imagine seeing Lydia's place brought up a lot of conflicted memories for her. I love that pack! SE has a lot to offer. I plan for Essa and Josh to go back again at some point too.
Thanks for the wishes for rest, obviously I got a good night's sleep.
Thank you about my writing. They're not possessed anymore. They just got the temporary possession that normally happens when Sims open that door. But they don't know that.
Beautiful wedding! Congratulations to them and you! Bummer about the dress and hairstyle. She still looked beautiful though. And yes, Greg is handsome in his suit too.
The explosion wasn't real, I photoshopped it in the screenshot. I pretended it was at the Lab.
Congrats to Bryon for completing the Tech Guru aspiration! Good Lord! Look at Bryon's arms! o.O He's so buff now. Wow! Oh nice! Love how you had Bryon transportalate Kristine to school. Congrats to Jess and Johnny for adopting India! Very cool! Cute how the toddlers are all just eyeing each other. hehe Yay! So happy for Julian having a girlfriend now, Sofia! Oh nice, now Gabbie and Gage stop by! Pfft, good luck with that Anna. Unless he's Bi, he's not into girls. Who wants a guy like him anyway? I guess it's true what they say, there's someone for everyone. hehe The extra pics are so cute! Pumpkin looks like she's thinking, 'Ah! Put me down, put me down!"
Whoa! Horses, a carriage, gazebo, etc. What a great looking venue for their wedding! I hope everything goes as planned, it'll be so memorable for you!
Oh dear, Roxanne and Lenny even when not possessed are still under the Mother's control? o.O Not good for Rubanoid. Meanwhile Rubanoid is out there doing all the leg work for Roxanne. Wow, what a loyal Hubby! I hope Roxanne appreciates him once this is all over.
Ohhhh, acting! Okay, explains why I've never seen that animation! Ohh, okay, The Mummy. I've seen that movie a few times. Wish I'd remembered that. Oh well. Oh yeah, they thoroughly enjoyed themselves. hehe
Haha! So funny how Malcom thinks Greg is there for him! Huh, well now, I guess whoever that guy was, dear old Dad didn't want Melody to have to suffer his ghost on the lot. He's such a good Dad to his Pumpkin! Ooo, so Melody is a SIB now, cool! Bummer Malcom didn't get promoted though. Nice to see Wolfgang again. Are he and Malcom friends now?
Okay, think I'm all caught up! Yay! \o/ We're visiting our Son and Grandkids tonight, so might be back late. For that reason, I may post just a daily pic for today a bit later. Need to feed my kitties and get some Zzzzs soon. Have a good one everybody!
@miss_eulenauge the portraits change to vampires and then back to normal sims. I can't remember if they were part of the Vampires pack or the Spooky pack.
It was Ruby's first day of school. Emmett had left for work already, and Jules was in the kitchen making Ruby's favorite breakfast - pancakes.
Ruby wandered glumly into the kitchen as Jules finished cooking up a stack. "Hey, kiddo, what's wrong? Aren't you excited for your first day?"
"Not really. I'd just rather stay here with you," Ruby admitted.
"Nah, staying here is going to be so boring. You'll have tons of fun at school. Your friends Theo and Kristine will be there too!"
This seemed to cheer Ruby up, and she ate her pancakes with a small smile on her face. Jules asked Ruby how she wanted to her to do her hair, so as she finished eating, Jules pulled her hair into two buns.
"You're gonna have a great day," Jules reassured her, bending down to pull her into a tight hug. She felt her throat tighten a bit, but didn't let Ruby see the emotion on her face. She couldn't believe how big her baby girl was getting. "Now let's put on your shoes and then I'll get a picture of you."
"Mommmmmmm, no pictures, ugh!!!" But Jules totally got her picture
Growing up so fast...
Meanwhile, Jules had the day to herself. She started by expanding her garden. At the beginning of this challenge, I had her initially harvest all the plants she grew, but that's just too much work these days so I bought several seed packets instead.
Jules decided to get out of the house for a bit and take Pickle with her, despite the rain. Poor Pickle, he doesn't like the rain.
I like to have Jules fish at least once in each world, so here we go
While she fished, her mind wandered, and she found herself thinking about Lydia once again. She hadn't spoken to her since they parted ways so long ago, despite the fact that Lydia had left Jules her address. At one point, she had meant to write, but as Ruby had grown older and increasingly needy, her life had become so busy that it became an afterthought. Then there had been the grind of getting her university degree, starting her new job, and then all this madness here in Strangerville. And now, of course, she had Emmett. Would it even have been appropriate for her to still be in contact with Lydia? Perhaps it was all for the best. Always best to let old flames stay in the past. She wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to think about Lydia without a small twinge of fondness in her heart though, no matter how happy and in love she was with Emmett.
By now, Pickle had clearly had enough and decided to take matters into his own hands and take himself home
There's so many photos today so I thought I'd put these ones under a spoiler just to break it up a bit. Not even sure how I got so many photos for today, I feel like nothing happened
He did a big shake in the entryway.
And then proceeded to nap on the porch swing until everyone returned home.
Ruby came home from school in good spirits. She had a project to complete, and Jules and Emmett both decided to assist her.
Jules: "You guys can read the instructions, I'm just gonna play with this clay."
But playing with clay is clearly more fun!
"So how was your first day?" Jules asked as they worked.
"It was actually pretty fun!" Ruby told her. "Kristine and I came up with a game for us to play at recess - we tried to kiss as many boys as we could. Kristine won though." Ruby said with a shrug.
Jules exchanged a look with Emmett. She was not ready to start having these conversations yet. "Perhaps you should suggest tag or another game tomorrow," Emmett interjected helpfully. Jules decided she wouldn't bring it up again unless it became an issue.
Totally got this pop up while Ruby was at school I chose the middle option, no need to cause a big fuss over it. Still made me chuckle though.
At last, they managed to finish the school project. Even Pickle came in to inspect the final product.
And Ruby, despite there being several dry places to sit indoors, decided to do her homework on the porch, while it was still raining (and came inside with an uncomfortable moodlet about being wet, why are our sims so dumb sometimes lol?) And yes, their hot tub was delivered! More fun with that later...
"Mom, can I play on the computer?"
"Only if you play educational games!"
I guess we could totally learn the simlish alphabet from watching this typing game haha...
Whoops...
Jules repaired the computer, since her handiness skill is much higher, while Emmett put Ruby to bed.
And then, finally, they had a moment to themselves.
"You know what we could do in here?" Emmett said with a raised eyebrow.
"Come and catch me first."
(Emmett's fun bar was suuuuuper low so this fixed it instantly )
---
Also since @Ellupelluellu jokingly asked in a comment a bit ago - no, Jules is not pregnant I do have risky woohoo enabled in my game, but I lowered the chances and also have a few other preventative measures in place so the chances of Jules having an oopsie baby are very slim, but not impossible
Glad you found a way to making aging work for you and your save! So are you trying to do as much skilling and aspiration achievement for the entire family as you can? So ambitious! Marnie and Bennie make me sad - I wonder if they will ever be happy and not tense together. Maybe when all 6 of their kids move out I like that one of the twins is making a mess right near the school project - makes it seem like maybe he swiped the paint from Benji and is making a mess with that. The problem I always have with mess making is where are they even getting these mess making materials from randomly? Hahaa, love little evil Max Villareal. Such an interesting character. Glad Phoenix can keep up with his mean sense of humor. So nice that Jaz is bonding with Colin and Elsa more. Could one of them perhaps be a romantic interest for her in the future? I'm a sucker for childhood friends becoming lovers haha.
Thanks for your comments about Ruby too! I'm very attached to her too - she was quite unplanned but a lovely little surprise to my game so far. I haven't thought a ton about continuing this challenge next year (though I think that I'd probably post less if I did - maybe a few times a week instead of daily, I just don't think I can sustain daily posting for the long term - I just happen to be in a place in my life with a decent amount of free time right now, but that's likely to change soon) BUT, regardless, I think Ruby will be too old to be the heir by the time I finish. Since Jules was a teen mom, it just wouldn't make sense for Ruby to still be a teen by the time Jules is an elder. So if Emmett and Jules have kids eventually (which they probably will), one of their children will probably be a better heir as far as the timeline goes. But I do love Ruby a lot and wish it could be her though!
Nice to have them both take a day off - they needed that after their harrowing experience with the Mother plant for sure! And good that Josh warned Essa about the plants in the plumbing, since that would have been way worse to have no warning haha. Also funny that Josh was in a glitchy position while updating Frank and of course you found a clever little way to write it into the story lol. Nice team you'll have to fight Mother - as long as Josh can focus on defeating the Mother plant instead of sinking his fist into Damon's face I wonder what would happen if you used any spells on Mother before doing the final battle stuff, hmmm...
Since Lenny is all white, he didn't really change appearance as an elder haha. So he's one of the lucky dogs, aging quite handsomely haha. Oooh, one more creative woohoo idea, I'm excited to see what you have up your sleeve! I definitely enjoyed doing a day trip to Mt. Komorebi with them, it was fun to get out of the winter rain of Strangerville for a bit too. I figured I needed to acknowledge Lydia every now and then since she will become a part of the story again for the Forgotten Hollow month.
Snowy Escape is a fun pack, and I love that we can watch them ski, snowboard, and rock climb without it being a rabbit hole kind of deal. This pack and Island Living are just a lot of fun to explore since there's just a lot of unique and fun things to do with both of them, they feel so different from other packs. I would recommend both. It's hard to rank packs though since they all have fun things to offer.
Oh no, you fell victim toward the toddler sentiment grudges! Those are the worst I've heard. Hard to get rid of. I guess it makes for a unique relationship with his parents though, glad you can work with it though! Your bathroom pictures crack me up. My family seems to value privacy in the bathroom. I tried to have Jules use the toilet while Ruby was in the bathroom and she refused to go haha. Those pop ups from school always make me laugh too. Our kids get up to so much mischief in those rabbit holes sometimes. Excited to meet baby number 4 and eventually the challenge sim!
Maybe Ruby could be for another challenge when she's ready? It would be a shame to lose the character. She's just so adorable!
As for the kids and their friends in my challenge, I have plenty of plans for them. Especially Max and Phoenix. But we'll save that for later. (I even have plans for little Myles...) And I am trying to do some aspiration work for the other kids. Although, it depends on their character. Some would try to get their aspiration done more than others, I would think. And as for Marnie, she has lost all hope at this point in time, and is not in a place mentally to work on any aspirations. Bennie.. would love to be a Joke star, but he's pretty inept. I doubt he'll get very far, and his lazy nature makes it less likely to finish an aspiration. At this point, I'm so attached to every character in my challenge, I don't know what I'll do when they move out and on with their lives. ... I may have to figure out a way to continue to follow their exploits on a smaller scale. And as for possible romantic interests? Anything is possible. I haven't really started thinking about possible partners for Jaz.. but you just never know!
Reach the top of Drama Club (level 3/4) ((-must be teen to earn the last promotion))
Collect Decorative Eggs (holiday scheduled Spring Monday (May 30)
Improve Character Values (all 5 positive values)
Completed
Top-Notch Toddler
Completed Artistic Prodigy
Completed Rambunctious Scamp
Completed Social Butterfly
Completed Whiz Kid
Reached the top of the Scouts
Earned A in elementary school
Collected Voidcritter cards (20/20)
Collect Holiday Plushies (8/8)
And so begins the fourth week, the week of winter, and the last ten days Mia will have as a child. The only thing she has for this week is to work on her character traits.
For Jake, he needs something fun to do and when I clicked on the need to have him auto satisfy it, apparently his idea of fun is to polish the potty to perfection. Seriously.
Today is the twins’ birthday so while they don’t need a birthday cake, Skye is going to make a birthday breakfast feast.
Last cuddles as infants and it is time to welcome them as toddlers.
Rey is the blondie and Rex has the black hair. I love how Rey has blonde hair and dark eyes while Rex has dark hair and blue eyes. Great combination of their genetics.
While the twins have now become toddlers, it is not time for Eli to become a child. This means there will be three toddlers in the house for a week, and Skye is pregnant again.
It is only lunch time, but the twins are not yet on a normal schedule, so they are put to bed and will hopefully adjust quickly.
Eli is sent on walkabout to get him out of the house. He found his way home on his own.
The pumpkins that Jake and Skye carved for Spooky Day. That was just yesterday so they haven’t gotten all rotten yet. Mia is volunteering all day today, so she isn’t home to have her picture taken.
When Mia gets home from her day of volunteering, she has Empathy in range along with Responsible. Jake spends time with her on Manners and Conflict Resolution before they call it quits and head to bed.
Jake takes a moment to tuck in all three toddlers, and that was his mistake.
Of course, the twins went to bed so early, they are ready to get up. Jake has put both of them back to bed twice, and now Rex is up with a nightmare. Jake puts him back to bed a third time and I call it a day before Rex can wake up and wake up the rest of the room.
I had these pictures ready to go. This is the rest of the months story outline.
So Rubanoid knows there is a military quarantine area nearby and heads there to do some testing with the vaccine. He tries it on a number of the men. He is approached by soldier that calls him an "Interloper!" and is babbling stuff about protecting the Mother. The guy jumps him and Rubanoid takes him down.
He heads home were Roxanne tries to wheedle her way out of the room. Complimenting him and being way more lovey-dovey than is in her nature. Lenny just looks off.. mad or tense. Rubanoid puts it together that they aren't right and decides to keep them locked up until he gets a working vaccine.
He makes the vaccine that and cures them after a fight with Lenny. I was playing around with getting Icabod involved here also either him breaking in or something. Mostly indicating in the story that the Mother can tell them(the infected) things and she wants that Robot dead, since he can't be controlled. He is the big threat to her and she tells her children (the infected) that.
Either way though Rubanoid manages to cure Roxanne and Lenny and is the hero, wins the respect and admiration of his woman and they go down to face the Mother maybe fighting a few more children on the way. Again the cast of characters could have been different but Roxanne and Rubanoid would go down there with someone.
They win with of course and the town goes back to normal...
Then I was planning on showing more of the bizzare juice on the shelves or plants in peoples yard for one of those ending gotcha's. Where it's not really over. Mostly because I like Strangerville and like endings like that. If Icabod hadn't been defeated earlier maybe him getting reinfected or something. You know how those endings go!
Okay. I want to let you all know what's happening with me. I had some news today about a family member with cancer. I'm going to have to be really involved with their care (I'm a nurse) and it's going to be stressful for many reasons, mostly because we don't have the best relationship and they are very hard to deal with. I'm also going to have to change my lifestyle around this financially too which will be a real strain. I'll be planning for and taking on a lot.
I went through this with my Dad basically for a bunch of years after Sims 4 released although that was different in that there were better feelings there and he was so easygoing.
The Sims was a great way to unwind then so I'm sure that won't change. I will still be playing and posting when I feel like it but not on a schedule or daily. So I'm going to drop out of the challenge. I'll come in and comment now and then and try to follow your stories sometimes. If I play Roxanne I might drop a picture now and then. I was thinking about trying to finishing up the month but I better just cut it as I know it can be a source of stress and guilt if I'm behind... but worse a way for me to procrastinate things I need to do. That's just my nature and I know it. I don't think that's good for me right now.
Under the spoiler is a recap of how I wanted the month to play out... it gets weaker toward the end as I'm not that good at planning ahead and just let the pictures that I can take sometimes dictate how things go. I was enjoying this month story wise, but I was looking forward to next month with no story also.
Being a part of this has been great. I'll be around when I can, maybe even this weekend as it's Monday when I have to start running.
Haha yes the creepy old dude is gone, not going to haunt there either Wolfie's wife is a sim by @RedDestiny92 , but for some reason her first name gets the censor bot to fill it with hearts (just like the real mom of Caliente sister, whos first name gets the censor bot hearts too)
-- I loved all the snowy pics, they certainly had a fun day up there I can see why walking next to Lydia's house is a bit difficult for Jules.
-- I love Ruby's hair And that fishing pic, lovely outfit
Haha, yes I use a mod what makes them at their towels for some time after shower, but in case Melody, I forgot that cause of other mod, if she uses the toilet after that shower, she will not go back to that towel, she will be naked
--Looks like Jaz had nice time at the park
-- I'm glad Elsa managed to make Jaz and Colin laugh
About the old dude He is an NPC sim, what comes from a mod we aren't allowed to discuss in here. Anyway, I have that said NPC blocked from settings, but I once took my mods out for testing a lot, and forgot to put the settings files back when I started to play again, so he spawned Now he is finally gone, and like the caption from Greg/Grimm "someone who should of not been here from the first place"
-- Oh, Grimm has parents? and needs to clean his room? Okay , nro 4 is there, next will be the sim
Haha , yes there is some other funny animations from acting Well , I understand Malcolm's fear, after all Greg DID come for him last time And oh yes, I do not want to see that dude again, ghost or not Melody Was at class when I noticed him first time, and I aged him up to elder right there with MCCC, then I didn't see him for a long time until now Yes , Malcolm and Wolfgang are friends, yes
-- Oh, Damon... please act well... pleaaaseeee????? Thank you for thinking Melody, I hope she agrees
-- Day 22 pic, GORGEOUS!!!
@Hermitgirl , I am so sorry what has happened. I know personally that is not easy, and I understand you cannot continue posting daily anymore, or at all. Sims indeed should be the place to escape to, not cause of more stress. All the best to you
My love, my love, my fearless love, I will not say goodbye..
Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..
You really are in a good groove with being efficient at playing family life. Sometimes I wonder how good at that I'd be if I didn't try to plan so much stuff and stage so many screenshots, haha. The twins are so cute too!
So sorry to hear that news. I totally understand - real life has to come first, and playing sims and keeping up with a challenge should never be stressful. It is a great way to escape the stress of real life though and wind down, as you said, so if you do end up playing Roxanne every now and then and end up being able to catch a screenshot here and there, I know I'd love seeing what you're up to in your game. Take care of yourself though, and my thoughts will be with you and your family as you all deal with this.
I enjoyed your plans for the rest of the month too. Love that Rubanoid would have been the hero - that's straight out a sci movie, all the humans getting brain washed but the sentient machine comes and saves them all! I like that you would have had a twist with the infection not really being gone either. I love endings like that too.
I am so sorry to hear that a family member has been diagnosed with cancer and that you will be caring for them. It is also sad to learn that you will be leaving the challenge, but I do understand that priorities change when there are real life issues that you have to deal with. I, myself, have had to deal (from a distance) with my Mom being in the hospital since the beginning of April (they are in Canada and I am in the southern US), and right now the border is closed, and my Dad being home alone and not being able to visit my Mom in the hospital either. It's been tough. I wanted to say that reading your stories and just your comments on your screenshots and also your comments on my story have been so great. I always got a kick out of Roxanne's adventures and her "eclectic" friends. I will really miss your story and your comments on my sad Sakura story. Just know that Sakura will have a happy ending. And, of course, Roxanne will still be in my story, too. I wish you well in the very hard task that you have ahead of you, and it has been such a pleasure to get to know you. I wish you nothing but the best, and hope that you will come by from time to time to read these scribblings that we try to do and see what Roxanne might be up to in other stories Take care of yourself *hugs*
I really want to finish this month as planned, especially as it is easier to not put as much effort into the story since it does't involve Kiddo 5 yet. But after that I'll have to figure out a way to halve the amount of time I spend on this, or I won't be able to continue this in the long run. Perhaps I'll try playing & posting the morning of one SimDay on one day and the afternoon on the next as soon as the next month hits?
As for the update, before you question any of these actions - I let the Sims use their autonomy a big portion of the day, and I have to say, it's fun to see what they're up to!
Since for the next 5 days we'll have a birthday every update, I won't disable my mods every single time to upload them after the birthday. If any of you want the updated household, please leave a comment, but yeah.
last Update | Overview post&rules Update 18- Bridgeview
Sarah's Diary
This is (not) exactly the sight a mom wants to see at 5am in the morning... *Sigh* I could have really used more sleep!
At least I was able to get back to bed.
Then, Sophia headed outside to play before school. Her brother actually loves the outdoors, yet he spends his time sleeping, while she plays in the back yard... Well, we all are unique, and wonderful exactly how we are.
Then, I got up and Miles played a bit.
And Greg went for a morning jog together with his sandwich...? I'll really have to make an appointment with the doctor one of these days.
I entertained Miles a bit while making a salad for lunch. And I didn't even drop anything!
Mark and his Science class. That's the second time he did that! Has he a problem with the teacher, or what's up there?
Playing, aand... Potty picture!
I wish Miles could talk well enough already to tell us how he feels. I wonder what's going on inside his head, to make him not feel as comfortable with us as the older kids!
More creepy texts for Sophia... O.o Thank goodness she now knows not to react! (I think this is bugged. Kids should call, not ghosts and Grim!)
Um, Greg...? If you're having the TV on, how about you pay attention to it and then switch it back off? For the sake of our bills?
I'm so proud of them, they were doing their homework diligently every single day, and they got rewarded for it in today's report card: As for both!
Um... Yeah... Granny gave me a bee box for a belated Harvestfest present! I'm excited, and hope they won't bother the kids. I put it on the other side of the fence but still... I got bored, so yeah. We'll see if this was a bad idea.
Who is this person? Out with you! I hate the townies invading them since last update! Anyone know a fix? Like, the right trespassing settings for the front door?
And Sophia asked for a new toy. Luckily I had just gotten a bonus payment, so we had the spare 20$.
In the evening, I went into labor... just as I was repairing the sink. Fun, fun, fun!
Meanwhile, Greg and Mark were apparently holding a little dance party.
I'm excited to welcome Connor Britton into our family. Don't worry Kiddo, Momma hasn't gone crazy - she just looks like it
By the way, thank you so much to @permanentrose for telling me about her baby replacement skin. I love it!
Then, I decided to go for an evening jog to clear my head after the birth. Gotta love Sims realism: Who needs recuperation time after giving birth? Nope - Let's go for a jog in the snow at 11pm!
Same procedure as every day: Nightly potty break!
thankfully, Greg got up to change the nappy at 3am... I was just so tired! No wonder after your jog... Well, you can talk about that with Greg yourself.
The next 5 days roughly, we'll see an outing to the park and a whole load of birthdays. And after that, we can slowly start working towards a challenge Sim! I'm really excited for both of these.
Schedule
I am planning to play for 14 months, starting on the 1st of June with the Main Sim's toddler birthday. In May I will set up the rest of the family and play the Main Sim's baby stage. After that: 2 weeks as a toddler, 1 1/2 months as a child, 3 months as a teen, 3 months as a Young Adult, 3 months as an Adult and 3 months as an Elder for the Main Sim.
For all others, I will use these MCC settings, starting on 1st of June, so it roughly works. (Combined, the Teen, YA, Adult and Elder stages are exactly 365 days right now).
Pregnany: 5 days
Baby: 7 days
Toddler: 14 days
Child: 45 days
Teen: 90 days
Young Adult: 93 days
Adult: 92 days
Elder: 90 days
This might change when I get a feeling for the challenge. I will possibly extend this for a next Gen, or extend the YA and Adult stages, if I get Brindleton Bay and subsequent other worlds. And if I manage to stick around that long.
I will start playing in Bridgeview (Newcrest) with a big family and the Baby No. 5 as main sim. I will move neighborhood each month, alternating the worlds. This starts as soon as the Main Sim turns teen.
I want to work on roughly two aspirations per month with my Main Sim, or, better said, on about 3 goal sets of the "Master Simmer" challenge to try and get all achievements - mainly because with my current packs there are 38 goal sets - 3,1666 per month. (See Rules).
I think with normal play, I'll never get there! But with so much time to stretch out the skilling, it might work. And it will definitely keep me from getting bored.
Characters
--Gallery (Sims and houses): Hashtag #onemonthoneworldoneyear, Name "One Sim - Fam. Britton". My gallery name is Noctuara.
Parents: Sarah and Greg Britton. They live on the 20x15 "Comfy Cubby" in Bridgeview, Newcrest.
Kids: Sophia & Mark (Twins)
Greg Britton - Greg is a young adult who has a strong interest in Gaming and Computers and is quite a Geek. Unfortunately, he also is a bit slobby and mean. Due to his history, he is a bit troubled, has Bad Manners, is Irresponsible, Argumentative and Insensitive. But he can be nice as well... if he tries his best... (and I help him by x-ing out all his autonomous mean&mischievous interactions from the Parenthood traits) He was working in business, but hated it. So he enrolled for a Programming course and is now a freelance programmer listed with an agency. On the side, he participates in Novice Tournaments.
Sarah Britton - Sarah on the other hand wants to be the best parent possible, even though she is a Young Adult herself. She is very neat, good and loves being with her family. She found a job as Freelancer Artist to try and keep the two of them afloat.
Sophia Britton - The firstborn, and the twin of Mark. She is a child now. She continues to be very independent and to prefer doing things alone, preferably developing her mental skills.
Mark Britton - The secondborn and the twin of Sophia. He is a child now too. He hasn't lost his toddler charm, and likes being outdoors, where he has a lot of space to run around and play.
Miles Britton - The thirdborn. He is a toddler loving to entertain his entire family with jokes and cute giggles.
others:
Gary Whelan, a friend of Greg from high school. Lives on "Oak Alcove", 20x15, Bridgeview. He is a Bro, Geek and Active. He works as a Game developer.
Fam. Aldrich, the neighbours and friends of Sarah. They live on the 30x20 "Fernpark" in Bridgeview. Elderly Pamela lives here with her Grandchildren after both parents died in a plague at young years. Pamela loves to Garden, cook at spend time with her Grandchildren. And if she had the time (and I the money), she'd love to learn to knit. Readhed Alexia, already a Young Adult, is the image of her mother. She loves to paint, channeling all her emotions on the canvas. She feels heavily responsible for her younger siblings, Tessa and Joey (twins). Tessa loves to make crafts like her big Sister and is very creative, while Joey has a lot of Energy and is very much into sports.
@Hermitgirl I'm so sorry to hear about that. I completely understand that Sims can be great to unwind, but in these circumstances the demands of a challenge aren't what you need. I'd love seeing you here once in a while if it's good for you - because that is what the focus now. I hope you'll still be able to take care of yourself, and I'll be thinking of you. *hugs*
@permanentrose Married couples seem to be comfortable together in the bathroom, and toddlers don't disturb anybody. But for children and parents... I don't know why they won't complain in this household honestly!
I like the realism you're adding of giving Sarah and Greg some stress acne - if that's what you intended with that haha. It's funny how energized sims are right after they give birth and then bounce back right away. Jules started doing push ups right after giving birth to Ruby Glad the baby skin worked out for you! I like the CC onesie you have too - I wish the Nifty Knitting pack gave the option to make onesies in that style for babies, with no leg covering, but they only have ones that cover the legs. I guess that's what CC is for though haha
@Hermitgirl Oh dear! I'm so sorry you got such bad news. Cancer is never good. I will miss your story for sure, and if things turn out differently (i.e. you end up with more time than you expected) I'm sure I'm not the only one who will say we would welcome you back to the challenge immediately! My very best well-wishes to your relative.. and to you. Care of someone who is ill is never fun, and I hope that you can avoid getting too stressed over it. I also hope for your sake that they realize the good you are doing for them and are easier to deal with than they usually are, but I know that's rarely the case. You will be in my thoughts! Feel free to stop back and say hi at any time!
Monday. Just another crazy day in the Malone household. Marnie is getting pretty good at cooking now, and keeps trying tricks that involve fire. (…Which never fails to worry me. It would not be good to lose a parent in this family.. I need all the help I can get!)
Jaz woke up in a good mood, with nothing that needed doing before school, so she spent some time with her younger brother, Braydon. He’s the only one of the twins who still has skills to learn, as both have been very good at finishing up things mostly on their own.
In the darkness outside, I spy a ticked off toddler on the warpath. Brett woke up in a bad mood, and plans to take it out on Phoenix.
For the heck of it, I follow along, and laugh at the horrified response Phoenix gives to getting chewed out by a pint size “monster”
After everyone goes to school, the twins have been fed, and I’m busy with Bennie, Marnie starts in with cleaning everything she can. Starting with Braydon, who needed a bath in a big way.
What is Bennie up to? .. Dumpster Diving. He was in no mood to open the store, and being over 1000 short for bills (AGAIN!) was something he certainly wasn’t going to admit to anyone. He was also scheduled to work this evening, so getting the bills paid as soon as possible was paramount in his mind.
Luckily, before it was time for him to go to work, he had managed to find enough to sell .. and had covered the bills. This time. He had no idea what would happen next week. There was definitely some thinking to do…. because this whole get-rich-quick scheme with the store was clearly not going to happen. He could not keep going like this, especially when he was hoping to actually get some decent microphone time at the club in the future. Scrambling for dumpster trash every week to pay bills was NOT Bennie’s idea of fun, and he was, quite frankly, tired of it.
Oblivious to the thoughts in her husband’s mind, Marnie chugged on with her day. When the kids got home from school, Myles was practically in her pocket as usual, and they got one time of getting his homework done focused easily. Then, with an eye towards finishing up some scouting badges he hadn’t had time to work on yet, he started gifting his stock of frogs. He was horrified when his precious pets were met with mixed feelings. In fact, he was pretty sure Marnie had let the one he gave her go into the weeds beside the store. When he went to rescue it, though, it was no where to be found. Depressed about the loss of his frogs, he went to go work on his Mental skill on the science table, only to find out it was being used.
Jaz swore he could use it in a few minutes, though, so they chatted amiably for a while. He wasn’t about to tell his sister about his frog failure, because, quite honestly, she was a girl.. and girls don’t like frogs. (Or so his friends had told him.)
Jaz finished up with the science table on a high note, and with a grin, she left Myles to work on his own experiments, and grabbed the phone to call Colin, Elsa, and Miki with the good news that she had finished her aspiration. She couldn’t afford a party line call, however, so each one had to be called separately.
Bennie also arrived home with a triumphant smile on his face. The purchase of the guitar had paid off, and he ended up getting a full time gig at the lounge. He wasn’t a headliner… yet. But he would be. You just watch. He didn’t bother telling any of his family about the promotion, because apparently he didn’t feel they needed to know that any more than they needed to know about the financial crisis he was still in. Even with the promotion bonus, there was no way he was going to be able to pay the bills next week.
Elsewhere in the neighborhood, Phoenix met up with Max, and the two of them chatted in the rain for a couple hours. Sure it was cold.. but there were plans that had to be made.
You see, they had become Partners in Crime…. which meant they had to start planning pranks. The first prank planned was to stuff some geeks into lockers – and there was a ton of things they had to work out before tomorrow so the plan could go off without either of them getting into trouble for it.
After a while (and definitely past his bedtime), Phoenix had his first best friend. He and Max swore an oath to stay friends forever, no matter what. With a grin on his face, Phoenix headed home and went straight to bed – luckily without getting caught. Things couldn’t go better for him right now… and tomorrow… was going to be EPIC!!
Part of the reason he hadn’t gotten caught being out past curfew was because both Bennie and Marnie were busy. Bennie was practicing on his guitar (to everyone’s horror)… and Marnie was busy talking in serious tones to Jaz. Phoenix clearly didn’t care what his sister had done this time, and shrugged, sneaking past them to his bed.
Jaz hadn’t done anything wrong.. this time. But she was being kept home from school the next day, whether she liked it or not. Tomorrow, apparently was her doctor’s appointment, and she was trying not to worry. She had no idea what might happen at a doctor’s appointment, because the last one she had been to had been before she could remember. She thought about asking Marnie what might happen to her, but Marnie seemed to be in a “mood” and Jaz (wisely) kept her mouth shut. Trying not to worry, she crawled into bed and attempted to sleep… but even with all the good things that had happened that day, sleep was a long time coming for poor Jaz.
First of all, I'm sorry to see you go @Hermitgirl. I loved having you here and I hope to see you here sometimes with Roxanne. I'm curious what adventures she'll get herself into in my own game, and I'll be sure to post them. Take care, and hopefully see you soon
(Randi) “Let me fix your belt.”
(Bryon) “Mom... Really?”
(Randi) “Yes. You need to look perfect today. It’s your wedding!”
(Bryon) "... Fine."
*knock knock*
(Kristine) “Can I come in? I have my dress on!”
(Randi) “You can come in.”
(Randi) “Ah, don’t you look adorable!”
(Bryon) “You do look gorgeous, Kristine. Don’t steal my show, okay?”
(Kristine) “Hehehe... I could never...”
(Kristine) "I mean, you look way too handsome for me to steal the show."
(Randi) "He does, doesn't he?'
(Bryon) "Kristine, mom! Stop it. I'm getting shy..."
(Patrick, from downstairs) “The carriage is ready!!”
The three of us walked outside, and yes, there was Patrick with the carriage. He’s good with horses, so he’s the ‘driver’ today.
(Patrick) “Hop in! We have a wedding to attend!”
(Extra: Elsa went to sleep over at Mabel’s place, so that’s why she’s not here now)
As we drove to the wedding venue, I got more and more nervous... But suddenly there was no more time to be nervous anymore, because we had arrived. Ruby, Alex and Audrey (flower kids) were already waiting for us, and from afar I could see the guests already sitting in their chairs.
Kristine joined the kids as the fourth flower kid. Now it's perfect!!
(Randi) “Okay kids. It’s time for you to shine!”
The four perfectly lined up as they’ve been practicing.
(Randi) “Are you ready?”
(Bryon) “I’m ready.”
(Randi) "Let's go then."
(Bryon) "You're way to enthusiastic, mom."
(Randi) "I am, but I don't care!"
It was amazing to see the kids having so much fun in front of us.
Mom and I walked on the aisle together.
And there he was. Naoki.
(Bryon) “You’re looking good.”
(Naoki) “I can definitely say the same about you.”
(Pastor) “Before we exchange the rings, someone liked to give a little speech. Randi Barber, please come forward.”
Of course, my mom is the one with a speech, and it looked like this speech was never going to end. She talked about how we finally met each other way too late, about the funny moments we had together, and so on...
(Randi) “With that, I’m going to stop babbling around so that we can start the actual ceremony!”
Mom leaves the scene, and the Pastor starts talking.
(Pastor) “We’ll start with the vows. Naoki Saito. Do you take Bryon Ellison to be your husband? Do you promise to be true to him in good and in bad, in sickness and in health? Will you love and honour him all the days of your life?”
(Naoki) “Yes, I do.”
(Pastor) “Bryon Ellison. Do you take Naoki Saito to be your husband? Do you promise to be true to him in good and in bad, in sickness and in health? Will you love and honour him all the days of your life?”
(Bryon) “Yes, I do.”
(Pastor) “Therefor, it is my pleasure to now pronounce you partners for life. You may kiss each other.”
And so, we were officially married... But the day didn’t just stop here though. We also had a large photoshoot. Here are some of the best pictures: (I only did pictures for Naoki and Bryon but let's pretend they did pictures with the entire family)
In the meanwhile, the kids had some free time. Here we have Alex and Audrey, trying to sit on this stone.
(Audrey) "I can do myself!!"
(Alex) "I not helping!"
In the end, I just had to use this pose again
These two kids weren't planning on staying dry...
(Kristine) "Ready? On three! One, two-"
(Ruby) "THREE!!"
Well, as long as Bryon, Naoki, Jules or Emmett don't see them... They should be fine. Right?
(Kristine) "Wouldn't it be fun if we added some soap in here?!"
(Ruby) "Ohhhh Kristine! Yes!"
(Kristine) "We did a good job."
These two are SO mischievous!!! Anyways, it makes for nice pics.
This ends the first part of the wedding. Tomorrow: dinner and party! Woopwoop!
YAY!!! I've been waiting all day to see all these photos and they are great. All your hard work for this wedding has paid off so far, you have some truly memorable photos that I already know will end up on the walls of their home. Randi is so sweet, helping Bryon get ready, and Kristine is so sweet and mature too - until she gets together with Ruby, that is, and then they cause all sorts of trouble. Best friends forever. Also there's Rose, Carrie, and Beatrix in your daily shot! I knew they were coming of course but it's still so fun to see them. The twins are so cute too. Great poses too!
It's fun to see all the plans you have for this family - Jaz's family really is so fleshed out. I hope the doctor's appointment goes well for Jaz! Are you going to stage scene that and download a doctor's office lot, or just reference what happens there?
And to answer your comment about Ruby - to be honest, I've never really played challenges before. This is really the only challenge I've ever committed to, so I'm not sure if I'd use Ruby for something else. Depending on if she has kids by the end of this year, which is somewhat likely, since I definitely want her to be YA by the time Jules is an elder, then maybe I could even fast track one of her kids to be a teen and be ready to be challenge heir, and then Ruby could be really involved in the challenge still that way. For now though, since I have so many months to play Ruby along side Jules, she does kind of feel like my challenge sim as well, so I am happy I'm getting to use her so much at least in this capacity. Even if one of her younger siblings would be the heir, I'd still find a way to include her
Comments
Upstairs, Bennie was yelling at Marnie for the house being in the state it was (although she never stops cleaning!!). I’m sure the whole neighborhood heard the argument, and poor Marnie barely stood up for herself. Bennie then stormed out of the house, while Marnie turned to rage cleaning, scrubbing at stains that were never going to go away.
Benji had, somehow, gotten a hold of a project box for building a bridge, and decided to spend the day working on it. He’d already completed his make-up homework, and hoped dearly that, in the last week and a half of school, he could pull his grade up to at least passing. (Clearly the twins aren’t helping with the cleaning situation…)
Downstairs, Max and Phoenix chatted on. Phoenix found out that the type of humor Max liked was the mean kind, because he was Evil…. and so they alternated playing pranks on each other, and both ended up laughing until they cried.
Colin had come over to visit with Jaz, and they were playing chess. Colin, unfortunately, wasn’t having the best of times at home with all the arguing, and having heard the argument between Bennie and Marnie hadn’t helped his mood. After a heart-to-heart where Colin spilled his soul about his parents still being on the warpath, and how it felt like they were purposely ripping the family apart, Jaz finally managed to get him to cheer up a bit.
While they were outside playing, Elsa stopped by, and her good cheer was infectious. Soon all three were laughing, and it didn’t matter who was winning the chess game anymore.
Upstairs, Benji had finished his bridge. Or, at least it was still standing. For the moment. He hid it under the science table to hopefully protect it until the morning.
Marnie was taking out her bad mood on the twins, and had cleaned up all the messes they had made during the morning. Myles came home from scouts and complained that the shower and toilet were broken… which didn’t help Marnie’s mood, but she still sighed and got right to work.
Elsewhere in the neighborhood, Phoenix was close to having his first ever best friend. Max and he played pirates for a while, and joked around some more. The fun abruptly stopped, however, when they saw Bennie heading home in the growing darkness with an oddly shaped box. He did NOT look like his mood had improved, and Phoenix decided heading straight to dinner and bed might be the best thing to do in the circumstances.
Marnie had found something else to fix, Myles was taking his bath, and the twins were yawning hugely by the time Bennie got upstairs. He completely ignored everyone, and headed for the living room.
Strangely enough, the living room was completely empty of people, so nobody was there to see him pull a battered guitar out of the oddly shaped box. They heard the racket it made when he started trying to play it, however, and the whole household collectively cringed. Nobody knew where Bennie had gotten this “treasure”, and only Bennie knew that spending the money on the guitar would mean he couldn’t pay the bills in the morning. He hoped, however, to make up the money by getting that skill point in guitar for a (hopeful) promotion, because he dreaded opening the store in the morning. Perhaps he could make up the difference with dumpster diving again. It had worked last week, after all….
Marnie made a late dinner for the twins, and – while waiting for the bathroom to be free – Jaz decided to work on some (unnecessary) extra credit. It wasn’t like she wasn’t holding down straight A’s still. It never occurred to her that increasing her grade might annoy her classmates.
In other notes, I think I've decided to set the aging for non-related or important NPCs to "on" with the following age spans: 30 days for babies, 90 days for toddlers, and 120 days for all the other age states. It's very roughly the same age spans as I'll be using for my sims and any others flagged as important. I realized that I have no intention of manually aging every single sim in every single town... the thought of taking over to decide when everyone ages up that way was terrifying. I don't have that much time in a day!
I now stream the Sims 4 on Twitch!
My Discord Server - A place to discuss my challenges, or the Sims in general
Notes
After calling in to take a vacation day from work, Essa crawled into bed for a long nap.
While she slept, Josh practiced spells after he too called to take a vacation day. He was very close to the next Spellcaster level, Master. At that level, he'd be able to learn the Dedeadify spell. Transportalate was important for access to the Lab and their safety. But wouldn't do much good if the Mother killed Essa. To Josh, this spell was even more essential to learn.
Frank stood nearby recharging himself in preparation for an enhancement Josh would do for him after he was fully energized.
Essa woke up from her nap and went in the kitchen to grab a bite to eat. While washing her dish, she got a fright when vines snaked up through the drain and wrapped around her hand. She let out a yelp, but not loud enough for Josh to hear or he would've come running to the rescue. He had told her this might happen.
(GAH! Disgusting! At least I wasn't in the shower.)
She took care of the vines, and went upstairs to do more chemical equations research.
Josh upgraded Frank for his newest enhancement. It took awhile and he was getting a little bored doing it, so he had some fun challenging himself to try different ways to do the upgrade.
He later joined Essa in her office to study the next set of tomes. He'd finally reached the Master level. Only one more to go and he'd be a Virtuoso and know every spell and potion that Essa did. She still had way more experience and perks though. He would never be as powerful as she, even if he tried. Spellcasting was in her blood since her Father was a Sage. Even though he found it very handy and fun, this was only temporary for himself.
Tomorrow they would travel back to the Lab to look for the experimental vaccines. Essa wanted to take a look at the additional untried formulas to see if she could decipher them better now. They kept the file folder of formulas locked up in Essa's charmed magic chest in the basement. Josh joined her to write up some notes and observations from yesterday's encounter with the Mother plant. The two also discussed their plan to defeat her.
"There's one thing we haven't talked about yet. You realize we can't fight that plant by ourselves, right? We need to think about who to ask to help us."
"You're right and I've been thinking about it myself. There's one person I think would be perfect. He's got super strength, he's fast and---"
"You're talking about Damon, aren't you?"
"Yeah, I mean, think about it, he owe---"
"Seriously Essa? DAMON!? Why would you even think I'd agree to him? I don't trust that freakin' vampire as far as I can throw him!"
"See this fist? I plan to smash it into his face the next time I see him."
"I wish you wouldn't, but...I understand. He owes me, big time though. He owes us! He'd do it without a second thought. I think agreeing to fight that Mother plant would help him prove that he's changed and truly regrets what he did to me. He could lose his life, again, and he has Molly and a Son now to protect."
"But how can I trust him, how can you ask me to?"
"He was so ashamed and remorseful for what he did, he took his own life Josh, because of me, and I saved him, brought him back to life. I trust him and I'm hoping you'll give him a chance to gain your trust. He needs this Josh, to help redeem himself."
"Please? For me?"
"...."
"Josh?"
"Alright, fine, for you." *sigh* "Gawd, why do I let you talk me into these things?"
"Because you love me, remember?"
"Yeah, he's lucky I do...But if he so much as looks at you for longer than I think is necessary, he gets the fist! Agreed?"
"Agreed."
"Alright, that's one, we should ask at least one more and I have an idea about that one as well."
"Of course you do."
"What about Melody? You like her. We've become good friends in such a short time and she's a Spellcaster, just like us! Wouldn't hurt to have one more that knows how to transportalate, just in case you and I...uh, can't do it ourselves."
"Okay, now you're talking! She'd be perfect! And she lives right in town too, that's a plus."
"Do you think she'd do it?"
"I have no idea, but it wouldn't hurt to ask, right?"
"Right."
"Okay, I think we have a rough plan now. Let's just hope those vaccines are there and one of them works."
"Gawd, I hope so. Otherwise, we'll have to experiment and try to make one ourselves. I know more than I did, but, I don't know if it's enough."
"It'll have to be if it comes to that. There's just one more thing, we need to do tonight, then I think we should get some sleep."
"What?"
Josh got up from his chair, walked over and held out his hand for Essa to take. He pulled her up and out of the chair straight into his arms.
"This."
Essa went straight to bed while Josh checked on Frank's enhancement and took a shower before joining her.
(Damon! If he does anything to jeopardize Essa's life...)
(I'll kill him!)
(This is your one chance Vamp, don't screw it up.)
@SoulGal7
@Hermitgirl
@Karababy52
@LegacySims2017
@Skeilah
@miss_eulenauge
@sassytxbrat
@Ellupelluellu
@permanentrose
... I got two more pages read! Yay! Hopefully I'll have more time tomorrow. If not, I should have time on my "day off" on Sunday to fully catch up... Remind me not to get this far behind again! Yikes!
I now stream the Sims 4 on Twitch!
My Discord Server - A place to discuss my challenges, or the Sims in general
@Skeilah
What a wedding. O.o Bryon looks good in blue (Btw, sorry for all the times I called him Byron - I always think of Lord Byron with his name, so I guess it'll happen again
@Hermitgirl
@sassytxbrat
I'm glad I was abe to help you bounce some ideas around, just as @Skeilah and @Hermitgirl helped me
@Ellupelluellu
@IllusoryThrall
And yes, that Park outing was 'not' a good idea. I thought it would be possible as you had Marnie take everyone to the park several updates ago, but... No.
I'm scared for Jaz and the family now. Phoenix and Max Villareal does NOT sound like a good combo... At least Jaz has some friends of her own!
I actually have no premades in this save, but if I want a specific family for a special storyline, I can always grab them from the gallery.
If you look into the "schedule" spoiler in my posts, I have put what aging scheme I came up with. I'll let everyone except the challenge Sim age naturally with an aging scheme roughly similar to the challenge Sim's one - Not everyone is born on a 1st, and I want then to continue aging "naturally", so I think that for me without a pretty Google Doc this is the best option. And for friends and other people in the household, I try to visit them every few days either in the updates or "offscreen". When I do, I'll usually check how much longer they have until their next birthday and adjust that if neccesary, so I don't have to age them down and makeover them. This way, I don't think I will get problems because someone I needed as a kid is a teen already or something.
Aww, thank you for the compliment on my storytelling! That's so nice of you!
I actually have a pretty good plan by now, @Skeilah and @Hermitgirl helped me with it (I assume you have seen the giant ramble post?) I can only give the compliment back, and in fact, I think you're a lot better than me!
I'm kind of really glad that at least we two are going to comtinue until after New Year's Eve, me because my year isn't up until next June (and I might even continue with an heir after that), and you because you are planning to do it for a longer time period right from the beginning.
@Karababy52
It'S ok that you don't always update right away, in fact, I even copied your idea yesterday. We all know that RL comes first, and I think it's admirable how long you are doing this already. *hugs*
@LegacySims2017
@permanentrose
Congrats for almost maxing Jules' Snowy Escape Skills! Poor Jules, seeing Lydias house
I really try to have a positive attitude about it. I was upset for a bit, but I have the next exam on Tuesday already, so I can't really afford to be heartbroken. And besides we all know that there's a good portion of luck in it, based on what topics we know better than others and what topics the questions are about. Now I know what to expect, so...
The call is from a mod, usually other kids call like that. I think the "Grim Reaper" part is a bug. If you select "let's do something", they will have some relationship gain and go into a rabbithole for a few hours - except that the rabbithole part usually doesn't work
@SoulGal7
I really try to have a positive attitude about it. I was upset for a bit, but I have the next exam on Tuesday already, so I can't really afford to be heartbroken. And besides we all know that there's a good portion of luck in it, based on what topics we know better than others and what topics the questions are about. Now I know what to expect, so...
Oh gawd, the REALLY need to talk to each other. Can't the docttor roommate run into Sakura drinking some coffee in the morning and be shocked because she thinks Sakura's pregnant and drinking coffee anyway? So Sakura hears about the roommate & wolfgang thinking that she is pregnant???
Please tell me that this will end well for them, I won't be able to withstand that suspense otherwise...
time zone: Berlin, Germany - EA Gallery ID: Noctuara
time zone: Berlin, Germany - EA Gallery ID: Noctuara
Aww, Wolfgang is being so sweet! I love it, but it's sad too, considering... Oh man, he's reading a parenting guide! Who does that? The guy's amazingly compassionate. Congrats to Wolfgang for joining the Bot Savants. Darn! Too bad Bryon hadn't heard Wolfgang tell Sakura he loved her.
Mail forwarding, of course! Sheesh, I should've figured that.
Oh my! Look at the size of those bills! o.O Whoa! That first guy as a potential roommate was SO rude and fresh! Glad he didn't end up living there. The look on Wolfgang's face says it all!
@IllusoryThrall
Aww, thanks for saying that about my writing.
Nice that Jaz was able to cheer Colin up and that Elsa stopped by. Nice she's doing extra credit too! I think she's proud of herself and just wants to keep it up!
Thanks about my screenshots! I love taking landscapes! The colors are a bit weird now due to the mystery, but I still think it's pretty.
@permanentrose
Oh gosh, I had so much fun figuring out how they could woo hoo there! hehe Might have one more up my sleeve as well.
Looks like everyone had a great time in Mt. Komorebi. Cool that Jules was able to catch up with Kaori. I imagine seeing Lydia's place brought up a lot of conflicted memories for her. I love that pack! SE has a lot to offer. I plan for Essa and Josh to go back again at some point too.
Thanks for the wishes for rest, obviously I got a good night's sleep.
@miss_eulenauge
Beautiful wedding! Congratulations to them and you! Bummer about the dress and hairstyle. She still looked beautiful though. And yes, Greg is handsome in his suit too.
The explosion wasn't real, I photoshopped it in the screenshot. I pretended it was at the Lab.
@Skeilah
Whoa! Horses, a carriage, gazebo, etc. What a great looking venue for their wedding! I hope everything goes as planned, it'll be so memorable for you!
@Hermitgirl
@Ellupelluellu
Haha! So funny how Malcom thinks Greg is there for him! Huh, well now, I guess whoever that guy was, dear old Dad didn't want Melody to have to suffer his ghost on the lot. He's such a good Dad to his Pumpkin!
Okay, think I'm all caught up! Yay! \o/ We're visiting our Son and Grandkids tonight, so might be back late. For that reason, I may post just a daily pic for today a bit later. Need to feed my kitties and get some Zzzzs soon. Have a good one everybody!
Notes
No story for this post today. I will continue the story in my next post.
Notes:
Ruby wandered glumly into the kitchen as Jules finished cooking up a stack. "Hey, kiddo, what's wrong? Aren't you excited for your first day?"
"Not really. I'd just rather stay here with you," Ruby admitted.
"Nah, staying here is going to be so boring. You'll have tons of fun at school. Your friends Theo and Kristine will be there too!"
This seemed to cheer Ruby up, and she ate her pancakes with a small smile on her face. Jules asked Ruby how she wanted to her to do her hair, so as she finished eating, Jules pulled her hair into two buns.
"You're gonna have a great day," Jules reassured her, bending down to pull her into a tight hug. She felt her throat tighten a bit, but didn't let Ruby see the emotion on her face. She couldn't believe how big her baby girl was getting. "Now let's put on your shoes and then I'll get a picture of you."
"Mommmmmmm, no pictures, ugh!!!" But Jules totally got her picture
Meanwhile, Jules had the day to herself. She started by expanding her garden. At the beginning of this challenge, I had her initially harvest all the plants she grew, but that's just too much work these days so I bought several seed packets instead.
Jules decided to get out of the house for a bit and take Pickle with her, despite the rain. Poor Pickle, he doesn't like the rain.
I like to have Jules fish at least once in each world, so here we go
While she fished, her mind wandered, and she found herself thinking about Lydia once again. She hadn't spoken to her since they parted ways so long ago, despite the fact that Lydia had left Jules her address. At one point, she had meant to write, but as Ruby had grown older and increasingly needy, her life had become so busy that it became an afterthought. Then there had been the grind of getting her university degree, starting her new job, and then all this madness here in Strangerville. And now, of course, she had Emmett. Would it even have been appropriate for her to still be in contact with Lydia? Perhaps it was all for the best. Always best to let old flames stay in the past. She wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to think about Lydia without a small twinge of fondness in her heart though, no matter how happy and in love she was with Emmett.
By now, Pickle had clearly had enough and decided to take matters into his own hands and take himself home
He did a big shake in the entryway.
And then proceeded to nap on the porch swing until everyone returned home.
Ruby came home from school in good spirits. She had a project to complete, and Jules and Emmett both decided to assist her.
Jules: "You guys can read the instructions, I'm just gonna play with this clay."
But playing with clay is clearly more fun!
"So how was your first day?" Jules asked as they worked.
"It was actually pretty fun!" Ruby told her. "Kristine and I came up with a game for us to play at recess - we tried to kiss as many boys as we could. Kristine won though." Ruby said with a shrug.
Jules exchanged a look with Emmett. She was not ready to start having these conversations yet. "Perhaps you should suggest tag or another game tomorrow," Emmett interjected helpfully. Jules decided she wouldn't bring it up again unless it became an issue.
At last, they managed to finish the school project. Even Pickle came in to inspect the final product.
And Ruby, despite there being several dry places to sit indoors, decided to do her homework on the porch, while it was still raining (and came inside with an uncomfortable moodlet about being wet, why are our sims so dumb sometimes lol?) And yes, their hot tub was delivered! More fun with that later...
"Mom, can I play on the computer?"
"Only if you play educational games!"
I guess we could totally learn the simlish alphabet from watching this typing game haha...
Whoops...
Jules repaired the computer, since her handiness skill is much higher, while Emmett put Ruby to bed.
And then, finally, they had a moment to themselves.
"You know what we could do in here?" Emmett said with a raised eyebrow.
"Come and catch me first."
(Emmett's fun bar was suuuuuper low so this fixed it instantly
---
Also since @Ellupelluellu jokingly asked in a comment a bit ago - no, Jules is not pregnant
Thanks for your comments about Ruby too! I'm very attached to her too - she was quite unplanned but a lovely little surprise to my game so far. I haven't thought a ton about continuing this challenge next year (though I think that I'd probably post less if I did - maybe a few times a week instead of daily, I just don't think I can sustain daily posting for the long term - I just happen to be in a place in my life with a decent amount of free time right now, but that's likely to change soon) BUT, regardless, I think Ruby will be too old to be the heir by the time I finish. Since Jules was a teen mom, it just wouldn't make sense for Ruby to still be a teen by the time Jules is an elder. So if Emmett and Jules have kids eventually (which they probably will), one of their children will probably be a better heir as far as the timeline goes. But I do love Ruby a lot and wish it could be her though!
@Karababy52
Since Lenny is all white, he didn't really change appearance as an elder haha. So he's one of the lucky dogs, aging quite handsomely haha. Oooh, one more creative woohoo idea, I'm excited to see what you have up your sleeve! I definitely enjoyed doing a day trip to Mt. Komorebi with them, it was fun to get out of the winter rain of Strangerville for a bit too. I figured I needed to acknowledge Lydia every now and then since she will become a part of the story again for the Forgotten Hollow month.
@miss_eulenauge
Oh no, you fell victim toward the toddler sentiment grudges! Those are the worst I've heard. Hard to get rid of. I guess it makes for a unique relationship with his parents though, glad you can work with it though! Your bathroom pictures crack me up. My family seems to value privacy in the bathroom. I tried to have Jules use the toilet while Ruby was in the bathroom and she refused to go haha. Those pop ups from school always make me laugh too. Our kids get up to so much mischief in those rabbit holes sometimes. Excited to meet baby number 4 and eventually the challenge sim!
As for the kids and their friends in my challenge, I have plenty of plans for them. Especially Max and Phoenix.
I now stream the Sims 4 on Twitch!
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May 22
Week 4 Sunday
- Reach the top of Drama Club (level 3/4) ((-must be teen to earn the last promotion))
- Collect Decorative Eggs (holiday scheduled Spring Monday (May 30)
- Improve Character Values (all 5 positive values)
Completed- Top-Notch Toddler
- Completed Artistic Prodigy
- Completed Rambunctious Scamp
- Completed Social Butterfly
- Completed Whiz Kid
- Reached the top of the Scouts
- Earned A in elementary school
- Collected Voidcritter cards (20/20)
- Collect Holiday Plushies (8/8)
And so begins the fourth week, the week of winter, and the last ten days Mia will have as a child. The only thing she has for this week is to work on her character traits.For Jake, he needs something fun to do and when I clicked on the need to have him auto satisfy it, apparently his idea of fun is to polish the potty to perfection. Seriously.
Today is the twins’ birthday so while they don’t need a birthday cake, Skye is going to make a birthday breakfast feast.
Last cuddles as infants and it is time to welcome them as toddlers.
Rey is the blondie and Rex has the black hair. I love how Rey has blonde hair and dark eyes while Rex has dark hair and blue eyes. Great combination of their genetics.
While the twins have now become toddlers, it is not time for Eli to become a child. This means there will be three toddlers in the house for a week, and Skye is pregnant again.
It is only lunch time, but the twins are not yet on a normal schedule, so they are put to bed and will hopefully adjust quickly.
Eli is sent on walkabout to get him out of the house. He found his way home on his own.
The pumpkins that Jake and Skye carved for Spooky Day. That was just yesterday so they haven’t gotten all rotten yet. Mia is volunteering all day today, so she isn’t home to have her picture taken.
When Mia gets home from her day of volunteering, she has Empathy in range along with Responsible. Jake spends time with her on Manners and Conflict Resolution before they call it quits and head to bed.
Jake takes a moment to tuck in all three toddlers, and that was his mistake.
Of course, the twins went to bed so early, they are ready to get up. Jake has put both of them back to bed twice, and now Rex is up with a nightmare. Jake puts him back to bed a third time and I call it a day before Rex can wake up and wake up the rest of the room.
I had these pictures ready to go. This is the rest of the months story outline.
So Rubanoid knows there is a military quarantine area nearby and heads there to do some testing with the vaccine. He tries it on a number of the men. He is approached by soldier that calls him an "Interloper!" and is babbling stuff about protecting the Mother. The guy jumps him and Rubanoid takes him down.
He heads home were Roxanne tries to wheedle her way out of the room. Complimenting him and being way more lovey-dovey than is in her nature. Lenny just looks off.. mad or tense. Rubanoid puts it together that they aren't right and decides to keep them locked up until he gets a working vaccine.
He makes the vaccine that and cures them after a fight with Lenny. I was playing around with getting Icabod involved here also either him breaking in or something. Mostly indicating in the story that the Mother can tell them(the infected) things and she wants that Robot dead, since he can't be controlled. He is the big threat to her and she tells her children (the infected) that.
Either way though Rubanoid manages to cure Roxanne and Lenny and is the hero, wins the respect and admiration of his woman and they go down to face the Mother maybe fighting a few more children on the way. Again the cast of characters could have been different but Roxanne and Rubanoid would go down there with someone.
They win with of course and the town goes back to normal...
Then I was planning on showing more of the bizzare juice on the shelves or plants in peoples yard for one of those ending gotcha's. Where it's not really over. Mostly because I like Strangerville and like endings like that. If Icabod hadn't been defeated earlier maybe him getting reinfected or something. You know how those endings go!
Okay. I want to let you all know what's happening with me. I had some news today about a family member with cancer. I'm going to have to be really involved with their care (I'm a nurse) and it's going to be stressful for many reasons, mostly because we don't have the best relationship and they are very hard to deal with. I'm also going to have to change my lifestyle around this financially too which will be a real strain. I'll be planning for and taking on a lot.
I went through this with my Dad basically for a bunch of years after Sims 4 released although that was different in that there were better feelings there and he was so easygoing.
The Sims was a great way to unwind then so I'm sure that won't change. I will still be playing and posting when I feel like it but not on a schedule or daily. So I'm going to drop out of the challenge. I'll come in and comment now and then and try to follow your stories sometimes. If I play Roxanne I might drop a picture now and then. I was thinking about trying to finishing up the month but I better just cut it as I know it can be a source of stress and guilt if I'm behind... but worse a way for me to procrastinate things I need to do. That's just my nature and I know it. I don't think that's good for me right now.
Under the spoiler is a recap of how I wanted the month to play out... it gets weaker toward the end as I'm not that good at planning ahead and just let the pictures that I can take sometimes dictate how things go. I was enjoying this month story wise, but I was looking forward to next month with no story also.
Being a part of this has been great. I'll be around when I can, maybe even this weekend as it's Monday when I have to start running.
-- I loved all the snowy pics, they certainly had a fun day up there
-- I love Ruby's hair
@IllusoryThrall ,
--Looks like Jaz had nice time at the park
-- I'm glad Elsa managed to make Jaz and Colin laugh
@miss_eulenauge ,
-- Oh, Grimm has parents? and needs to clean his room?
@Karababy52 ,
-- Oh, Damon... please act well... pleaaaseeee????? Thank you for thinking Melody, I hope she agrees
-- Day 22 pic, GORGEOUS!!!
@Hermitgirl , I am so sorry what has happened. I know personally that is not easy, and I understand you cannot continue posting daily anymore, or at all. Sims indeed should be the place to escape to, not cause of more stress. All the best to you
Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..
@Hermitgirl
I enjoyed your plans for the rest of the month too. Love that Rubanoid would have been the hero - that's straight out a sci movie, all the humans getting brain washed but the sentient machine comes and saves them all! I like that you would have had a twist with the infection not really being gone either. I love endings like that too.
As for the update, before you question any of these actions - I let the Sims use their autonomy a big portion of the day, and I have to say, it's fun to see what they're up to!
Since for the next 5 days we'll have a birthday every update, I won't disable my mods every single time to upload them after the birthday. If any of you want the updated household, please leave a comment, but yeah.
last Update | Overview post&rules
Update 18- Bridgeview
Sarah's Diary
This is (not) exactly the sight a mom wants to see at 5am in the morning... *Sigh* I could have really used more sleep!
At least I was able to get back to bed.
Then, Sophia headed outside to play before school. Her brother actually loves the outdoors, yet he spends his time sleeping, while she plays in the back yard... Well, we all are unique, and wonderful exactly how we are.
Then, I got up and Miles played a bit.
And Greg went for a morning jog together with his sandwich...? I'll really have to make an appointment with the doctor one of these days.
I entertained Miles a bit while making a salad for lunch. And I didn't even drop anything!
Mark and his Science class. That's the second time he did that! Has he a problem with the teacher, or what's up there?
Playing, aand... Potty picture!
I wish Miles could talk well enough already to tell us how he feels. I wonder what's going on inside his head, to make him not feel as comfortable with us as the older kids!
More creepy texts for Sophia... O.o Thank goodness she now knows not to react! (I think this is bugged. Kids should call, not ghosts and Grim!)
Um, Greg...? If you're having the TV on, how about you pay attention to it and then switch it back off? For the sake of our bills?
I'm so proud of them, they were doing their homework diligently every single day, and they got rewarded for it in today's report card: As for both!
Um... Yeah... Granny gave me a bee box for a belated Harvestfest present! I'm excited, and hope they won't bother the kids. I put it on the other side of the fence but still... I got bored, so yeah. We'll see if this was a bad idea.
Who is this person? Out with you! I hate the townies invading them since last update! Anyone know a fix? Like, the right trespassing settings for the front door?
And Sophia asked for a new toy. Luckily I had just gotten a bonus payment, so we had the spare 20$.
In the evening, I went into labor... just as I was repairing the sink. Fun, fun, fun!
Meanwhile, Greg and Mark were apparently holding a little dance party.
I'm excited to welcome Connor Britton into our family.
By the way, thank you so much to @permanentrose for telling me about her baby replacement skin. I love it!
Then, I decided to go for an evening jog to clear my head after the birth. Gotta love Sims realism: Who needs recuperation time after giving birth? Nope - Let's go for a jog in the snow at 11pm!
Same procedure as every day: Nightly potty break!
thankfully, Greg got up to change the nappy at 3am... I was just so tired! No wonder after your jog... Well, you can talk about that with Greg yourself.
The next 5 days roughly, we'll see an outing to the park and a whole load of birthdays. And after that, we can slowly start working towards a challenge Sim! I'm really excited for both of these.
Schedule
For all others, I will use these MCC settings, starting on 1st of June, so it roughly works. (Combined, the Teen, YA, Adult and Elder stages are exactly 365 days right now).
- Pregnany: 5 days
- Baby: 7 days
- Toddler: 14 days
- Child: 45 days
- Teen: 90 days
- Young Adult: 93 days
- Adult: 92 days
- Elder: 90 days
This might change when I get a feeling for the challenge. I will possibly extend this for a next Gen, or extend the YA and Adult stages, if I get Brindleton Bay and subsequent other worlds. And if I manage to stick around that long.I will start playing in Bridgeview (Newcrest) with a big family and the Baby No. 5 as main sim. I will move neighborhood each month, alternating the worlds. This starts as soon as the Main Sim turns teen.
I want to work on roughly two aspirations per month with my Main Sim, or, better said, on about 3 goal sets of the "Master Simmer" challenge to try and get all achievements - mainly because with my current packs there are 38 goal sets - 3,1666 per month. (See Rules).
I think with normal play, I'll never get there! But with so much time to stretch out the skilling, it might work. And it will definitely keep me from getting bored.
Characters
Parents: Sarah and Greg Britton. They live on the 20x15 "Comfy Cubby" in Bridgeview, Newcrest.
Kids: Sophia & Mark (Twins)
- Greg Britton - Greg is a young adult who has a strong interest in Gaming and Computers and is quite a Geek. Unfortunately, he also is a bit slobby and mean. Due to his history, he is a bit troubled, has Bad Manners, is Irresponsible, Argumentative and Insensitive. But he can be nice as well... if he tries his best... (and I help him by x-ing out all his autonomous mean&mischievous interactions from the Parenthood traits) He was working in business, but hated it. So he enrolled for a Programming course and is now a freelance programmer listed with an agency. On the side, he participates in Novice Tournaments.
- Sarah Britton - Sarah on the other hand wants to be the best parent possible, even though she is a Young Adult herself. She is very neat, good and loves being with her family. She found a job as Freelancer Artist to try and keep the two of them afloat.
- Sophia Britton - The firstborn, and the twin of Mark. She is a child now. She continues to be very independent and to prefer doing things alone, preferably developing her mental skills.
- Mark Britton - The secondborn and the twin of Sophia. He is a child now too. He hasn't lost his toddler charm, and likes being outdoors, where he has a lot of space to run around and play.
- Miles Britton - The thirdborn. He is a toddler loving to entertain his entire family with jokes and cute giggles.
others:time zone: Berlin, Germany - EA Gallery ID: Noctuara
@permanentrose Married couples seem to be comfortable together in the bathroom, and toddlers don't disturb anybody. But for children and parents... I don't know why they won't complain in this household honestly!
time zone: Berlin, Germany - EA Gallery ID: Noctuara
I now stream the Sims 4 on Twitch!
My Discord Server - A place to discuss my challenges, or the Sims in general
Jaz woke up in a good mood, with nothing that needed doing before school, so she spent some time with her younger brother, Braydon. He’s the only one of the twins who still has skills to learn, as both have been very good at finishing up things mostly on their own.
In the darkness outside, I spy a ticked off toddler on the warpath. Brett woke up in a bad mood, and plans to take it out on Phoenix.
For the heck of it, I follow along, and laugh at the horrified response Phoenix gives to getting chewed out by a pint size “monster”
After everyone goes to school, the twins have been fed, and I’m busy with Bennie, Marnie starts in with cleaning everything she can. Starting with Braydon, who needed a bath in a big way.
What is Bennie up to? .. Dumpster Diving. He was in no mood to open the store, and being over 1000 short for bills (AGAIN!) was something he certainly wasn’t going to admit to anyone. He was also scheduled to work this evening, so getting the bills paid as soon as possible was paramount in his mind.
Luckily, before it was time for him to go to work, he had managed to find enough to sell .. and had covered the bills. This time. He had no idea what would happen next week. There was definitely some thinking to do…. because this whole get-rich-quick scheme with the store was clearly not going to happen. He could not keep going like this, especially when he was hoping to actually get some decent microphone time at the club in the future. Scrambling for dumpster trash every week to pay bills was NOT Bennie’s idea of fun, and he was, quite frankly, tired of it.
Oblivious to the thoughts in her husband’s mind, Marnie chugged on with her day. When the kids got home from school, Myles was practically in her pocket as usual, and they got one time of getting his homework done focused easily. Then, with an eye towards finishing up some scouting badges he hadn’t had time to work on yet, he started gifting his stock of frogs. He was horrified when his precious pets were met with mixed feelings. In fact, he was pretty sure Marnie had let the one he gave her go into the weeds beside the store. When he went to rescue it, though, it was no where to be found. Depressed about the loss of his frogs, he went to go work on his Mental skill on the science table, only to find out it was being used.
Jaz swore he could use it in a few minutes, though, so they chatted amiably for a while. He wasn’t about to tell his sister about his frog failure, because, quite honestly, she was a girl.. and girls don’t like frogs. (Or so his friends had told him.)
Jaz finished up with the science table on a high note, and with a grin, she left Myles to work on his own experiments, and grabbed the phone to call Colin, Elsa, and Miki with the good news that she had finished her aspiration. She couldn’t afford a party line call, however, so each one had to be called separately.
Bennie also arrived home with a triumphant smile on his face. The purchase of the guitar had paid off, and he ended up getting a full time gig at the lounge. He wasn’t a headliner… yet. But he would be. You just watch. He didn’t bother telling any of his family about the promotion, because apparently he didn’t feel they needed to know that any more than they needed to know about the financial crisis he was still in. Even with the promotion bonus, there was no way he was going to be able to pay the bills next week.
Elsewhere in the neighborhood, Phoenix met up with Max, and the two of them chatted in the rain for a couple hours. Sure it was cold.. but there were plans that had to be made.
You see, they had become Partners in Crime…. which meant they had to start planning pranks. The first prank planned was to stuff some geeks into lockers – and there was a ton of things they had to work out before tomorrow so the plan could go off without either of them getting into trouble for it.
After a while (and definitely past his bedtime), Phoenix had his first best friend. He and Max swore an oath to stay friends forever, no matter what. With a grin on his face, Phoenix headed home and went straight to bed – luckily without getting caught. Things couldn’t go better for him right now… and tomorrow… was going to be EPIC!!
Part of the reason he hadn’t gotten caught being out past curfew was because both Bennie and Marnie were busy. Bennie was practicing on his guitar (to everyone’s horror)… and Marnie was busy talking in serious tones to Jaz. Phoenix clearly didn’t care what his sister had done this time, and shrugged, sneaking past them to his bed.
Jaz hadn’t done anything wrong.. this time. But she was being kept home from school the next day, whether she liked it or not. Tomorrow, apparently was her doctor’s appointment, and she was trying not to worry. She had no idea what might happen at a doctor’s appointment, because the last one she had been to had been before she could remember. She thought about asking Marnie what might happen to her, but Marnie seemed to be in a “mood” and Jaz (wisely) kept her mouth shut. Trying not to worry, she crawled into bed and attempted to sleep… but even with all the good things that had happened that day, sleep was a long time coming for poor Jaz.
I now stream the Sims 4 on Twitch!
My Discord Server - A place to discuss my challenges, or the Sims in general
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Link to blogpost
Bryons Diary
(Randi) “Let me fix your belt.”
(Bryon) “Mom... Really?”
(Randi) “Yes. You need to look perfect today. It’s your wedding!”
(Bryon) "... Fine."
*knock knock*
(Kristine) “Can I come in? I have my dress on!”
(Randi) “You can come in.”
(Randi) “Ah, don’t you look adorable!”
(Bryon) “You do look gorgeous, Kristine. Don’t steal my show, okay?”
(Kristine) “Hehehe... I could never...”
(Kristine) "I mean, you look way too handsome for me to steal the show."
(Randi) "He does, doesn't he?'
(Bryon) "Kristine, mom! Stop it. I'm getting shy..."
(Patrick, from downstairs) “The carriage is ready!!”
The three of us walked outside, and yes, there was Patrick with the carriage. He’s good with horses, so he’s the ‘driver’ today.
(Patrick) “Hop in! We have a wedding to attend!”
(Extra: Elsa went to sleep over at Mabel’s place, so that’s why she’s not here now)
As we drove to the wedding venue, I got more and more nervous... But suddenly there was no more time to be nervous anymore, because we had arrived. Ruby, Alex and Audrey (flower kids) were already waiting for us, and from afar I could see the guests already sitting in their chairs.
Kristine joined the kids as the fourth flower kid. Now it's perfect!!
(Randi) “Okay kids. It’s time for you to shine!”
The four perfectly lined up as they’ve been practicing.
(Randi) “Are you ready?”
(Bryon) “I’m ready.”
(Randi) "Let's go then."
(Bryon) "You're way to enthusiastic, mom."
(Randi) "I am, but I don't care!"
It was amazing to see the kids having so much fun in front of us.
Mom and I walked on the aisle together.
And there he was. Naoki.
(Bryon) “You’re looking good.”
(Naoki) “I can definitely say the same about you.”
(Pastor) “Before we exchange the rings, someone liked to give a little speech. Randi Barber, please come forward.”
Of course, my mom is the one with a speech, and it looked like this speech was never going to end. She talked about how we finally met each other way too late, about the funny moments we had together, and so on...
(Randi) “With that, I’m going to stop babbling around so that we can start the actual ceremony!”
Mom leaves the scene, and the Pastor starts talking.
(Pastor) “We’ll start with the vows. Naoki Saito. Do you take Bryon Ellison to be your husband? Do you promise to be true to him in good and in bad, in sickness and in health? Will you love and honour him all the days of your life?”
(Naoki) “Yes, I do.”
(Pastor) “Bryon Ellison. Do you take Naoki Saito to be your husband? Do you promise to be true to him in good and in bad, in sickness and in health? Will you love and honour him all the days of your life?”
(Bryon) “Yes, I do.”
(Pastor) “Therefor, it is my pleasure to now pronounce you partners for life. You may kiss each other.”
And so, we were officially married... But the day didn’t just stop here though. We also had a large photoshoot. Here are some of the best pictures:
(I only did pictures for Naoki and Bryon but let's pretend they did pictures with the entire family)
In the meanwhile, the kids had some free time. Here we have Alex and Audrey, trying to sit on this stone.
(Audrey) "I can do myself!!"
(Alex) "I not helping!"
In the end, I just had to use this pose again
These two kids weren't planning on staying dry...
(Kristine) "Ready? On three! One, two-"
(Ruby) "THREE!!"
Well, as long as Bryon, Naoki, Jules or Emmett don't see them... They should be fine. Right?
(Kristine) "Wouldn't it be fun if we added some soap in here?!"
(Ruby) "Ohhhh Kristine! Yes!"
(Kristine) "We did a good job."
These two are SO mischievous!!! Anyways, it makes for nice pics.
This ends the first part of the wedding. Tomorrow: dinner and party! Woopwoop!
@IllusoryThrall
And to answer your comment about Ruby - to be honest, I've never really played challenges before. This is really the only challenge I've ever committed to, so I'm not sure if I'd use Ruby for something else. Depending on if she has kids by the end of this year, which is somewhat likely, since I definitely want her to be YA by the time Jules is an elder, then maybe I could even fast track one of her kids to be a teen and be ready to be challenge heir, and then Ruby could be really involved in the challenge still that way. For now though, since I have so many months to play Ruby along side Jules, she does kind of feel like my challenge sim as well, so I am happy I'm getting to use her so much at least in this capacity. Even if one of her younger siblings would be the heir, I'd still find a way to include her