new blog

I've started a new Sims blog: http://providencesims.blogspot.com/. It takes place in a new neighborhood, Providence, but I've included some of the characters from Arcadia (namely the Smiths and the Coopers). In many ways, playing and blogging about Arcadia was a warmup for me. Reading other people's blogs and writing my own made me think about my little Sims in a different way, and it made me want to create a more detailed town for them. I've spent a lot of time setting up Providence - building houses and community lots, and setting up a base hood university (thanks to the discussion at Lakeside Heights and MATY). Thanks for reading, and I hope you guys enjoy reading about the adventures in Providence.

hiatus

I thought I should explain why I haven't posted in a while. I've always wanted to create a college town, and after I read about how to create a base neighborhood university, I've started a new neighborhood, Providence. I've been spending a lot of time setting it up: making buildings and populating it with a bunch of Sims. I may stop this blog so I can start blogging about the other neighborhood. Right now that neighborhood is still in too much of a rudimentary phase, but hopefully soon I'll have almost everything set up. One of the problems with this blog that I'm hoping to correct is that there aren't enough characters and they're all related to each other. I've brought in a bunch of the premade characters into Providence: the Ottomas, Julien Cooke (who married Melissa Fancey),  Benjamin Long, Orlando Centowski, etc. It's already giving the neighborhood a lot more variety. I'm still deciding what to do with Arcadia and Providence, but since Providence is going really well, I think Arcadia might have reached the end.

not a cookie-baking grandmother

March 2043 - Jan Gaunt is 62, Cassiopeia is 14.

Jan isn't your typical cookie-baking grandmother. She has five grandchildren, but she doesn't spend very much time with them. Her sons love her, but they're scandalized by her choice of profession after she and their father divorced. She really doesn't care if they approve or not. After all of those years as a society wife, she loves having a career as a romance novelist. And even if they aren't fine literature, her novels sell very well.

twins, siblings, and cousins

September 2042 - Alex and Piper Smith are 31, Joey and Lizzie are 7, Alice and Charlie are 5 (Jacob Smith is 9, Elijah Smith is 5).

Alice and Charlie are starting kindergarten this year, and the house is empty for the first time in seven years.

loneliness of an only child

February 2042 - Arthur Cornwall is 63, Ellie Cornwall and Richie Gaunt are 34, Morgan Cornwall is 9 (Edward Gaunt is 36, Cassiopeia is 13, Regulus and Bellatrix are 10, Sirius is 7).

Morgan is part of the largest class at Arcadia Elementary School (4 students!), but that hasn't helped her make friends. She's a serious kid who prefers to spend her time at home with her family than playing with the other kids. As far as her parents can tell, her best friends are her parents, her grandfather, and their cat Nimue.

"I just don't understand it. She's such a wonderful kid, but she's always by herself. She never talks about the other kids at school or invites any to come over," Ellie tells Richie.

"She's just serious," Richie says. "It makes it hard for her to relate to other kids her age."

"You and I are both serious, and we had friends when we was her age," Ellie tells her husband.

"We had each other," he reminds her.

arrested development

November 2041 - Abhijeet Turner is 32, Whitney Riley is 31, Keiran Riley is 7.

Since Whitney works until evening at the CIA, Abhijeet has been watching Keiran after school until his mom comes home. He never thought he'd be a father, but he loves spending time with his son.

2041 census

Population: 55
Arcadia: 43
New Athens: 12

Babies: 2
Toddlers: 6
Children: 17
Teens: 1
Young Adults: 0
Adults: 20
Elders: 9


Even though there aren't any more children in this generation than in the last one, they are a lot more spread out in age - 12 years as opposed to 6. I'm hoping that this will make this generation less boring than their parents. I think the problem is that most of my Sims are happily married with children, but their children are too young to have much drama. I may have to start adding Random Events to make my neighborhood more interesting and dramatic. How do people handle Random Events in their neighborhood? Does anyone have any advice on how to include them?

kindergarten days

June 2041 - Alex and Piper Smith are 29, Joey and Lizzie are 5, Alice and Charlie are 3.

Most people wouldn't think that having twin toddlers is easy, but compared to having two sets of twins under five, it's a breeze.

teen angst

April 2041 - George Gaunt is 62, Edward and Kaylynn Gaunt are 35, Cassiopeia is 12, Bellatrix and Regulus are 9, Sirius is 6.

Cassiopeia is sure that Arcadia is the most boring place ever. She's twelve this year, and in the seventh grade at Arcadia High School, and she still doesn't have anything better to gossip about than her little brother Sirius!

"He's such a baby," she tells her mother.

Her mother just sighs. "You should be nice to your brother," she says automatically. She knows it won't do any good.

every boy needs a dog

February 2041 - John and Abby Smith are 34, Jacob is 7, Elijah is 3.

Jacob starts begging his parents for a dog a little before his seventh birthday.

John and Abby are a little reluctant to get a dog, but they have a hard time saying no to Jacob. He's such a good kid; he gets good grades, and he plays well with his little brother. Plus John's family always had dogs, so he knows how to take care of one.