Simon has completed the scouting path, having now earned all his badges. That trait tends to come in handy, so good for him.
He turns back to music (his aspiration is Musical Genius). He needs to write songs but I couldn't get the option to come up anywhere. I wondered if it was because he's been training piano and it wasn't available there, so he started on guitar. It turns out that you just have to be level 8 in any given instrument skill, which he wasn't quite at yet in piano, so guitar is just a bonus, I guess. Rowan and Eleanor dropped everything to come listen, so at least they're getting something out of this.
Eleanor: "Oh great, it started raining. I can't drink this!"
Why?
Eleanor: "It's wet now!"
It's literally liquid, so...
Eleanor: "I know! Disgusting, right? Oh well, better leave it here to rot since there's no available places nearby to clean it up."
I can't even.
Celeste decided that Simon sounded entirely too good, so she picked up a violin for the first time since childhood to "help." Thanks, Celeste.
Since Stella grew up, Astra has been pretty lonely up in the nursery. I'm not particularly bothered that anybody but Simon gets any skills, because the only goal now is SURVIVE this generation, so she's pretty free to do whatever. She has taken to ambushing anyone that comes for the clay that's normally sitting on this table and forcing them to give her social interaction. I feel really good about the parenting job we're doing here.
Simon, Jason, and Rowan are doing . . . something . . . in the basement. I dunno. Freewill is being followed for the most part, except for Simon, who still has to work hard.
Simon: "Aw! No fair!"
Life isn't fair for the heir. Put that on a t-shirt.
Finally, it's the triplets' birthday. If it wasn't for Rafael's contributions to the family, we would be done with kids now. But that isn't the way it is, so no sense daydreaming. Rowan was here for the candles being blown out but he had to make a dramatic exit to readjust his position, I guess.
Triplets: *sparkles intensify*
Ah, there's Rowan. Please don't shoot him down, Eleanor.
Eleanor: "A bat? In my kitchen? If that wasn't literally my son, I'd be very upset."
Wow, so someone needs a makeover.
Alison: "It's all three of us, isn't it?"
Yes, but you get special bonus "needs makeover" points for wearing a full face of MAC makeup.
Here's our triplets in their final form. Very cute! Alison is pretty much all Eleanor, but the boys take after their father, Eleanor's boyfriend Owen. Logan looks so much like him because of the blond hair.
Alison is now a Bodybuilder, and she is a slob and a goofball. Man, I would not want to share a gym with her, but she looks really cute in her sporty and silly outfits. Logan wants to be a Renaissance Sim, and he is cheerful and a bro. He's got a very laidback "the Dude but cute" style. And Jason desires a Soulmate, and is also cheerful and a bro. He's got the skater chic thing going on.
Altogether, I think they're really cool-looking sims. Like maybe Alison would hang out with me, but I don't think the boys would. Like I said, too cool.
Simon: "I'm cool too, you know!"
What he is actually is tasty, at least according to Rowan. Rowan keeps two frogs in his inventory for a periodic supply of plasma packs made from their offspring (that's not morbid at all), but when he needs to feed, he always heads to Simon. After graciously asking permission, of course. We didn't raise a monster!
Heeeeeey! It's Nova. And here she is on a soon-to-be-snowy evening, the only one apparently supervising Astra as she plays outside on the playground. This freewill parenting thing is going great. A little help please, someone?Astra: "You a pirate, Roro."
Rowan: "You bet I am, Astra. Arrrrrr."
God, he's too cute. I can't handle it.
I don't think it's a secret that Rowan is my favorite of this generation, and I so wish he could be the one having kids in this generation. He'd make an absolutely fantastic father.
He also autonomously repairs things our ghosts break. WHY isn't this kid heir?
Simon: *pouting*
You're great too, Simon, and I'm sure I'll like you better once I don't have six other kids diverting my attention, but you're no rainbow sherbet vampire, y'know.
Simon: "A fair point."
Speaking of ghosts, it looks like one of the possible guilty parties tonight is Laurel, who stops by for breakfast with Eleanor and Stella, the latter of whom is making her first appearance this chapter. Stella is a highly successful C student, and as a lazy sim, she can think of no higher honor than to only occasionally be caught doing something other than napping. Fascinating, right?
But now we get a chance to see what the other half-sister is like as a kid. It's finally Astra's birthday.
Eleanor, giggling nervously: "No more toddlers for a while, right? I don't know if I can take it."Andres: "Worry not, my granddaughter. I will not be chosen to gestate as I am completely alien, and your mother Celeste is past her fertile years. Permitting that you watch your choices, we ought to be spared toddlers for some years hence."
Eleanor: "Oh thank God."
Astra: "It is my day of birth, and I require your attention."
We'll take a look at Astra in a minute...
Because it is also Eleanor's adult birthday! With eleven sims in the house, a lot of birthdays overlap. Happy birthday, Eleanor! You've done a great job with a very stressful gen. Make a wish!
A couple minutes too late . . .
Stella: "Yay! Happy birthday! What, I just woke up from a nap."
But you've been standing here this whole time.
Stella: "You don't have to lie down to nap if you're brain-dead enough, silly."
A few minutes after that. . .
Astra: "Yes, happiest of natal days! Rotating this thing that goes 'clack-clack-clack' symbolizes my feelings of celebration."
You alien spawn are going to be the death of me.
Here's Astra. She's super cute and very different from Stella, actually. I thought I didn't like her small eyes at first, but she grew on me as I made her over. She's actually a really different-looking alien, and I like that. She's absolutely adorable, in fact. She is a Recycle Disciple (uh . . . ok) and I didn't write down her childhood aspiration because I actually don't care!
Astra: "My first act of recycling shall be to adopt the speech patterns of my forebearer, Andres."
He's not actually blood-related to you.
Astra: "Nonetheless, he was one of the few whose locution I heard in my lonely infancy, and so I shall henceforth speak thusly."
Great.
Well, Eleanor. Did you make your wish?
Eleanor: "I did, actually. Now that we don't need car seats anymore, I want to take everyone to Selvadorada and expose them to a bit of mommy/sissy's avocation."
Your funeral, but sure, let's hop that plane.
And so all of the kids were escorted by Eleanor to Selvadorada. We stayed in a different place this time, since the last one left Eleanor with too many memories of being tricked and abandoned by Rowan's lothario dad, Orlando. Plus we needed a place with eight beds, and there's only one of those.
Speaking of Rowan, he immediately ran inside to light a fire. Turns out he's a bit of a firebug, and this will be only the first of many. Let's hope he doesn't burn Selvadorada down before we get to explore it.
And on that note, we hopped over to the market. Eleanor has a lot of supplies cached still, but it doesn't hurt to look for new ones. The kids are all on freewill to explore while we're here. Astra grabs some local cuisine.
Astra: "The heat in my oral cavity is a new sensation. I do believe I shall appreciate this fare."
Huh, she's a fan of the spicy food instantly. I didn't think that was possible, but good for her.
The triplets try to chat but get attacked by bugs. This will be a theme for this trip. Apparently our kiddos have some of that sweet blood.
Inside, Simon and Rowan try to enjoy the Latin music station, but Stella is interrupting their listening with an endless stream of chatter. If she's not asleep, she's talking. The girl only has two speeds.
There's a fireplace, so of course Rowan finds it.
Rowan: "I'm warming Selvadorada one fire at at time!"
It's . . . literally an equatorial jungle?
Rowan: "Yah, but it's winter."
That just means it's going to rain on you guys constantly.
Rowan: "Well, at least the fire will dry up the rain."
That's not how . . . you know what, never mind. Have fun.
Eleanor: "I'm so glad the kids get to experience this. This place is just as magical as I remember! I love it here, and I've been waiting forever to bring them and let them see why. Now, off to the ruins."
The kids wait nearby while Eleanor goes at the first gate with the machete. As the one with all the skills and lore, she's the best one to do the exploring needed to get us to ruins. As it rains constantly (now and pretty much throughout the rest of the trip), I got a chance to discover that I did not assign umbrellas to Stella or Astra, so that's just peachy, since I can't get into build mode and umbrellas apparently aren't available at the market or kiosks. Anyway, I see six kids. Where did Simon get off to?
Simon: "Oh, just enjoying the local fauna. Totally unrelated, I never want to use the bathroom here again."
Eleanor made it through and we start exploring the jungle. It's a lot easier to do when you can fly as a bat.
Rowan: "Guys, guys, guys! Hurry up! Doesn't this rain feel marvelous on your wings?"
With some severe stragglers, everyone makes it across the rope bridge eventually.
Ironically, Rowan is then attacked by bats. Lol.
Eleanor, meanwhile, manages to secure herself a blessing.
Eleanor: "Ah, this place is so wonderful! Just magical and beautiful."
Logan: "Not for the people without all the supplies in their inventories, Mom. Ow! Another one got me."Eleanor: "Now, now, Logan. Quiet down. We're trying to appreciate the falls."
Logan: "Ouch!!"
I do really love the scenery here more than anywhere else in the game. It's very ~~**aesthetic**~~.
While making their way to the next gate, Jason is attacked by bees too. Actually, could someone check on Logan and make sure he isn't having an anaphylactic reaction?
And more bees find Astra. As for Stella, perhaps she's walking so slowly that they don't realize she's a living target.
Stella: "I heard that, and I'll address it at the next checkpoint when I reach it . . . in five years."
While Eleanor explores each gate, the kids are left a little bored.
Rowan: "OMG lady, we have the same ducky umbrella. That's amazing! Wow! Such style. I love your look."
Lady: "Uh, do you kids have an adult nearby?"
Simon: "Maybe, depends on the chance cards."
And now, a quick scene change courtesy of Segue the Lizard . . .
And we have finally made it to the temple with everyone in one piece (and only a few moodlet solvers consumed in order to be able to say that!).
Eleanor insists on Simon helping her explore the temple so that he can see why she has such a passion for it. Simon is generally eager to please, so he's happy to help.
Jason located the bar. (This is a very well-appointed temple.)
Rowan also appreciates the pool.
The kids gather at a stereo for dancing and chatting. Except . . . where is Jason?
Jason: "Ahhhhh! Not again! Get them off of me!"
The kids are trying very hard to not disturb the local wildlife, but it keeps disturbing them.
Well, some are more disturbed than others.
Simon: "Look, Mom! The treasure!"Eleanor: "Congrats, baby. Your first treasure chest! How does it feel?"
Simon: "Like I just got a mouthful of centuries-old dust blown in my face from opening the lid."
Eleanor: "Yes, that is what culture feels like."
Eleanor establishes a dig site (she has maxed archeology and Selvadoradan culture skills) for some of the kids to try. Others partake of more moodlet solver as exploring the temple is taking a while. Simon is in the back examining the skeleton trap, and Alison is just off-screen around a corner where I couldn't photograph her. I had to keep counting the kids because there are too many of them for me to keep track of just by sight, so based on *counts quickly* this, I think we're missing Astra. Anyone seen her?
Astra: "It is beneficial that this temple is devoid of other denizens, or else might I be in troublesome circumstances."Skeleton: "Did someone say, 'Good thing this temple is so safe?'"
I mean, more or less.
Skeleton: "That's my cue!"
Astra: "Thank the stars, good fellow traveler. I am a youngling without accompaniment, so it is fortunate that my location was visited by you with a dearth of witnesses in the immediate area."Skeleton: "Aw, shit, I can't eat this one. There's something wrong with it. I don't want no mad cow or whatever. Hey, kid, you want to see something neat?"
Astra: "Neat! Ahem, I mean . . . that is a fascinating hobby you display."
Alison: "You know, there is something a little off about this youngest aunt of ours."Simon: "Honestly, with everyone else's 'character traits' swirling around like a big quirky cloud, how can you tell?"
Astra: "This garbage receptacle package is, as the children speak, bae."
Alison: "Just a feeling."
Eleanor: "There! Cracked the code. I got it, kids!"Simon: "What is 'it'? What'd you find?"
Eleanor: "Uh, I've got so many things in my inventory that I actually can't really tell."
Simon: "Sigh . . . super. Can we go back to the lodge now?"
Eleanor: "Yes . . ."
Everyone: "Oh thank God."
Eleanor: ". . . for tonight. There's a big day tomorrow!"
*collective groaning*
Rowan meditates and everyone else sleeps. Except Eleanor, of course, because she has Never Weary, which is a horrible choice because it means she's always awake, doing stuff. My advice: no matter how much you want your sims to accomplish, do not underestimate the small break you get (and need, in my opinion) when they're unconscious.
Anyway, here she is, doing stuff, and--
What's that sound? Is that a fire? Oh crap!
Oh, never mind. It is a fire, but not a dangerous one.
Rowan: "So. Toasty. Why don't we have a fireplace?"
Gosh, I wonder.
Alison and Logan are up before the sun to watch SimTube videos.
Honestly, though, watching funny videos is pretty much Alison's love language.
Once everyone is up and the two bathrooms have been thoroughly visited, we corral everyone in the museum because there really isn't much else to do besides the jungle. It was . . . ok. Simon inscribed, "In 2020, the Gregory clan descended upon Selvadorada. There were no survivors," on the space for the name of the curator on the display case, so that's something. I really hope I forget all about that and discover it again someday, because that will be delightful.
Wait *counts on fingers* where's Rowan?
Aw, I can't be mad at him. This constant rain means that he's able to be out and about during the day, and he apparently finds it really fun.
Also fun: stealing the curator's computer.
Nancy Landgraab: "That's a funny-looking intern you have there, ma'am."
Curator: "Hmmph."
Anyway, I got bored of that real quick, so here we are back at the trailhead while Eleanor goes through a few gates so she can call the kids up to her location. We still want to find the river and the royal baths before we depart.
While everyone else reaches Eleanor rather quickly (very quickly, in Rowan's case), our resident slow slug takes her sweet time.
Stella: "If I jog, I might raise my heart rate, and that would interrupt the half-brain-dolphin-nap I've got going on right now."
After a little more exploration, we reached the river and some of the kids fished while the others milled around. In any given place, there's really only enough for two, maybe three, sims to participate in and everyone else ends up standing around. Eleanor gets attacked by spiders, but lucky for her, she has spray.
Jason is not so fortunate.
Logan: "You'd think she'd share some of that mountain of supplies she's carrying around."
Rowan: "I heard her inventory is so un-navigable that the controller is afraid to look in it."
Jason: "Spider? SPIDER! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
A few hours later, we finally reach the last destination, the Royal Omiscan Baths. Everyone in the pool!
Simon: "Wow, guys, I think I've grown. My toes almost touch here."
Alison: "For your sake, I'm not going to address that."
Once again, there isn't much to do but take some pictures. Simon and Rowan, Best Buds 4 Lyfe, are interrupted by our resident loquacious sloth.
Alison seems a little confused about whether she wants to get wet or not. (Also, I love her swimwear so much. She's ridiculous, in the best possible way.)
Logan finds the easiest way to tell girls back home that he swam 50 laps in the pool.
Eleanor enjoys a little cloudgazing (emphasis on clouds, since we're apparently here in monsoon season). Jason was supposed to be cloudgazing too - I actually ordered all of them to because I thought it'd be a cool pic. However, apparently everyone has a 10-ft. personal bubble when lying down, so by the time I convinced everyone to obey my commands, the pic was very underwhelming.
Finally, Astra finds a way to have a good time, which is unconscionable. I am trying to bore you all out of your minds for your education. How dare you still have fun! All right, that ruined it. Everyone back to the lodge.
Jason, whispering: "We owe you one, Astra."
For the first time since they were both toddlers, Astra and Stella got some quality time together, and they really hit it off well. They were kinda sorta friendly acquaintances as toddlers despite Stella talking all the time, but they quickly made friends back here in the lodge.
Rowan spends his last night in Selvadorada enjoying the rain.
Simon needs some more responsibility after a bad chance card back home took him out of range, so Eleanor helps him with homework.
The triplets are dancing to try to earn enough skill points to do well in high school, and the alien girls join in with them for a while.
Eventually, after they got two points each and did their homework, I pooled all the school projects I could find and had the triplets and Simon (who still needed more responsibility) to work on them. Everyone is just having a really great time, I bet, but we're leaving tomorrow and there's not much of anything better to do.
While Rowan meditates darkly, Astra and Stella continue to cement their lifelong pact as unwanted half-sisters.
By becoming best friends, they are now irrevocably allied against anyone that would stand in their path. We should all be very afraid, I'm sure.
Wow, for once I hear the crackling of a fire and it's not in the fireplace.
Rowan: "Oh my God, oh my God! This one wasn't me, you guys. I didn't start this fire!"Simon: "Yes, Ro, we can see, since Jason is still on fire and I could put him out better if you weren't standing in the way.
I just want to point out there are leftovers in the fridge so this was totally unnecessary.
Finally, Simon and Eleanor put out the fire. Unexpectedly, this makes Eleanor flirty. Mmkay. We're not going to unpack that, I think.
Eleanor: "But I had a joke about my past Selvadorada experiences and getting hot all ready to go!"
We're definitely not going to unpack that.
The firefighter showed up after the fire was out, but the alien girls are still escaping, so I guess she could have helped by making sure the children made it to safety, but instead she just showed up, threw us a pointless notification, and took off . . . before I could have Logan talk to her for future spouse material. The nerve.
While Jason showers and others try to work off some tension, Simon reads a parenting book he bought from the bookcase.
Simon: "My mom is great but she's kinda hands-off for the most part, and my dad was never there for me. I want to make sure I do right by my children!"
That is precious.
Reading is pretty much all there is to do left (or chatting like our new alien alliance in the foreground here), so I think we've had just about enough Jungle Adventure fun for a while. Everyone back in the van, we're heading for the airport.
Rowan: "I don't say this lightly because I am definitely the one that had the most fun here, but thank goodness. It's about time."
And just like that, we're back to the middle of winter in Willow Creek, with everyone but Eleanor dressed terribly inappropriately. Inside, everyone!
And that brings us to the end of the chapter. Next chapter will see the end of Simon's teen years, and then I have some plans for dealing with all of my many spare and spare-adjacent children here. That'll be the third chapter I have planned (yes, I managed to get three ~100 pic chapters out of 500+ pics and I am ridiculously proud of myself for that). After that, we'll be all ready to see Simon begin his life as the generation 8 heir and start his family . . . with someone. Finding a spouse is definitely on the to-do list. ;)
Thanks for reading! I'll try to get the next chapter out fairly soon (like within a week - actually soon compared to what I usually mean when I say that) because I don't want to get this backlogged again. It's seriously demoralizing to have that many pics to deal with but this is a fun generation so I still wanted to make sure I got to share it! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. We have a lot of fun things planned in the next two chapters, so be sure to check back soon. While you're waiting, come hit me up at Boolprop. Thanks and bye!
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