Twenty Years Earlier (update, Oct 18)

[MarianT]

 TWENTY YEARS EARLIER

Chapter 1 -- Invasion

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     Her name was Belinda Milam, and she liked everything to be perfect. Perhaps that explained why her seven suitemates from college had each wanted her to be her maid-of-honor. Belinda could be counted upon to adjust the lace on a train just so, to turn the bouquet so that the white roses and baby's breath showed to best advantage.
     Belinda herself hadn't married yet -- she was waiting to find the right person, she told everyone. In truth, though, she doubted that she would ever marry. Husbands tended to want children, and Belinda just didn't like children. Her observation was that they were messy and noisy. If she ever felt the need for companionship, she might get a cat someday. But so far, she was quite content to live alone in her small castle at Fledermaus Bend in Forgotten Hollow.
     In due course, her suitemates each had a child, and each asked her to be a guardian if something ever happened. "You're so responsible, I know you'd take good care of little Gavin" (or Travis or Mitchell), Belinda was told. And "I'm not sure Summer" (or Zoe or Liberty) "would get the attention she needs if she went to someone who already had a child." Belinda always said yes, because how can you say no to someone who suffered through chem lab and term papers and blind dates with you?
     One spring, Sim State's alumni group sponsored a trip to Twikki Island, and they all signed up for it. Unfortunately, Belinda had to cancel at the last minute with a case of the flu. A week later she was relieved that she had canceled when she saw on the news that a tour bus on Twikki Island had been captured by rebels. Belinda wondered if any of her friends had been on the bus, and when a couple of days went by without her hearing from any of them she began to worry.
     The news from Twikki Island only got worse -- the rebels had taken over the government, and no one knew what had happened to the hostages. While she was watching the news, the phone rang.
     "Is this Belinda Milam?"
     "Yes," she said.
     "I'm Arnold Farquar, the lawyer for the Lees, the Huntingtons, and the rest of your friends. We'll be bringing the children over tomorrow."
     "The children?"
     "Yes, you did agree to be their guardian, didn't you?"
     Belinda gasped. "Does this mean -- "
     "Your friends seem to be safe, but negotiations haven't started yet. In the meantime, someone has to look after the children."
     "Yes, of course," said Belinda.
     After the lawyer hung up, Belinda realized she should have asked how many children there were. Surely, some of them would go stay with their grandparents or an aunt or something. The lawyer had said children -- which could be as little as two or as many as seven. It was probably best to assume there would be seven, although she didn't know how she would cope with seven. Surely, it wouldn't be that many. And surely it would only be two or three days -- a week at the most -- before her friends were allowed to come home.

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     Early the next morning -- really early, before the sun had fully risen -- Belinda was horrified to see four black SUVs pull up in front of her house. "The neighbors will think the Mafia are gathering here," she thought with a hysterical giggle. Not that it mattered what the neighbors thought -- they were all vampires and besides, they had probably gone to bed. That was why she'd been able to afford Hever Castle (designed by MultiUgly) -- it had been going cheap because of the neighborhood.

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     A man emerged from one of the SUVs, carrying something that looked like some sort of playground equipment, and Belinda felt relieved. If a couple of the other cars held similarly large bits of furniture then obviously they couldn't be carrying toddlers as well.

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     But they were. Six toddlers invaded the living room, and the man who had dropped off the playground stuff showed up at the front door carrying the seventh. "Here's a cashier's check for $70,000," he said, "and let me know if you need more, although you shouldn't for a few years, by which time your friends will have been freed, we hope. That's Gavin Richards, Summer Holiday, Travis Scott, Zoe Patel, Mitchell Kalani, J Huntington III behind the couch, and I'm holding Liberty Lee. I'm Arnold Farquar, by the way, the trust administrator. I recommend that you use some of the money to hire a nanny and a maid. And maybe a butler, too, if you have room."
     "Thank you," said Belinda, "but --"
     "There's name tags in all their clothing, not that it matters much if you get them mixed up." Arnold was halfway to the car.
     "But --" Before Belinda could voice an objection, he was in the lead car, and they were all driving away.

[HelenP]

Ooh, a new MarianT story, and it looks like starting as a 7 toddler challenge  .  Love the twist with the toddlers, now I'm curious to know if you took the in-game adults and aged them down or whether you created them from scratch.

[MarianT]

I took the in-game Sims and aged them down. Also, I'm playing on long, so it's not quite the 7 toddler challenge. I can't remember if nannies are allowed in that or not.

[oshizu]

Like HelenP, I'm very excited about your new story!
I must confess that, at first, I'd guessed that your bachelorette Belinda might turn into a a notorious cat lady when the Pets expansion released, lol.

What a wonderful idea to depict growing-of-age stories for the BFFs and Roomies households!
I can't wait to get a better look at all of their cute little faces!

Just FYI, TheSimsSupply (who created this challenge on his Youtube channel) hired a nanny.

Looking forward to the next update!

[MarianT]

Chapter 2 -- Chaos

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     During the next few days Belinda was generally too tired, hungry, and even grungy to remember much. She did hire a nanny -- Anya Datta -- but the nanny could deal with only one child at a time.  Everyone else seemed to be Belinda's responsibility.

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     Belinda never got a moment's peace. When she wasn't changing diapers...

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...she was fixing meals...

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...or scolding someone for playing in the toilet.

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Even when they all went to bed, someone would wake up hungry -- sometimes before Belinda could go to bed herself.

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And long before Belinda was ready to get up, they would emerge from the nursery, ready to start the day all over again.

     The lawyer had promised to call just as soon as there was word about the hostages. Belinda's phone remained silent. She knew it was still working, though, because she started calling the lawyer every few hours to see if there was any news.

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     After her 5th call, Arnold Farquar told her to relax.
     "I can't relax," said Belinda. "I have three children who have to be fed right now, and they don't like being put in the high chair."
     "Well, put the food somewhere they can reach it, and let them feed themselves," he suggested.
     It wasn't terribly sanitary, but Belinda put a plate of food on the floor, and sure enough Summer and Mitchell got some.
     "Actually, I suppose the floor is pretty clean," she said. "It's been scrubbed often enough from their messes."
     "Didn't you hire a nanny?"
     "Yes, but half the time she just stands there while I rush around like a madwoman."
     "You need to go away and let her do her job," Arnold Farquar said.
     "Are you sure?" asked Belinda.
     "Yes. Take a couple of the children to the park with you and let her take care of the others."

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     The next morning, Belinda took Travis and Liberty. It was wonderful. Travis got some of the attention he'd been starved for.

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Liberty managed to have fun -- and so did Belinda.

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     She met Lily Feng, who had interests similar to the ones that she'd had before the onslaught of the toddlers. Lily and her husband lived in a penthouse in San Myshuno and didn't have any children. "You don't know how lucky you are," Belinda told her.

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     Before leaving, she discovered that there were some potty chairs in the park's bathroom. Belinda had a brilliant idea -- she'd bring the children here for potty training rather than try to accomplish that at home. "And once they've been trained, they won't need to have their diapers changed every ten minutes, and they won't need quite so many baths," she thought.
     When she returned home, she discovered that everyone was in pretty good shape: no one was starved for food or attention; no one was in desperate need of a bath or a hug or a potty chair. Anya did seem in a hurry to go home, though.

[oshizu]

It's so much fun trying to figure out which toddler is who!

Belinda doesn't need to do the cooking if she doesn't want to. She can hire a caterer, who will drop by and whip up 6-7 dishes. I usually hire a vegetarian caterer.
I've been trying to figure out where Belinda's living. From the brick walls, I'm guessing Windenburg somewhere?

This story is a great narrative strategy for playing around with and showcasing the Toddler Stuff Pack!

[MarianT]

It's so much fun trying to figure out which toddler is who!

Belinda doesn't need to do the cooking if she doesn't want to. She can hire a caterer, who will drop by and whip up 6-7 dishes. I usually hire a vegetarian caterer.
I've been trying to figure out where Belinda's living. From the brick walls, I'm guessing Windenburg somewhere?

This story is a great narrative strategy for playing around with and showcasing the Toddler Stuff Pack!

I downloaded the house from the Gallery -- it's Hever Castle by MultiUgly, as I mentioned in Chapter 1. Also they're in Forgotten Hollow on the Fledermaus Bend lot.

[MarianT]

Chapter 3 -- Bad News

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     Arnold Farquar surveyed the ground. No question that this was Miss Milam's house, but he found it disturbing that she allowed the children to play in the street.

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     He walked around the house and encountered two of her charges, Mitchell Kalani and Zoe Patel. They were playing in back, obviously quite unsupervised.

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     Arnold went back to the front of the house and knocked on the door. "Come in!" a woman shouted. It was not the most courteous form of welcome, but he decided not to quibble.

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     He found Belinda in what had once been the study.
     "Mr. Farquar!" she exclaimed. "Do let me thank you for the dollhouse -- the children have been enjoying it very much."
     "You're welcome," he said. "Are you aware that two of them are outside without any adults around?"
     "No, but it wouldn't surprise me," she said. "Their nanny hasn't arrived yet."
     "And when I arrived, it was quite obvious that they'd been making messes in the street."
     "Yes, I know," said Belinda. "The maid was adamant that street sweeping wasn't in his job description, and I just haven't had time to clean them up."
     "That's not the point," fumed Arnold. "The children really should not be allowed to play in the street."
     "I believe they made the messes the day you dropped them off -- when they were still under your care," said Belinda. "They haven't been in the street since."
     "Yes, well, see that it doesn't happen again."
     "I've been in touch with a contractor about fencing in the back yard," said Belinda. "Has there been any news about their parents?"
     "Yes, that's why I came over. They're all still alive," he added hastily, at Belinda's look of alarm, "but the Twikki Revolutionary Council has rescinded their hostage status. They are now prisoners of the state, indefinitely."
     "Indefinitely?"
     "Presumably until there's a counter-coup," said Arnold. "They are going to be allowed to receive mail, though -- letters only, no packages."
     "Why are they no longer hostages?" Belinda asked.
     "No one was willing to pay the 140 million simoleons demanded for their release," he said.
     "I don't suppose the children's trust fund --?"
     "Nowhere near that amount of money," said Arnold. "So if you could have the letters ready sometime tomorrow, I'll send someone to pick them up. Leave the envelopes unsealed, and don't write anything that might be construed as code."
     "Letters?" Belinda said blankly.
     "Your friends probably want to know how the children are doing."
     "Yes, of course," said Belinda. "I'll send some pictures, too."
    "Excellent idea," said Arnold. "There's nothing quite so innocent as a photograph of a toddler."
     "The government is still trying to get them released, I hope."
     "Sshh," said Arnold. "It's all top secret."

[MarianT]

Chapter 4 -- First Letters

     When am I going to have time to write letters? Belinda wondered. And she didn't like the sound of "indefinitely" at all.

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     While Anya put everyone down for a nap, Belinda composed her thoughts. Unfortunately Miss Manners didn't provide a suitable template for a letter written to someone in prison by a person who was a friend and a caretaker of the prisoner's child.  After some thought, Belinda decided she would write the same first paragraph to everyone:

Dear ___,
     I was shocked, nay horrified, when I learned that you had been taken captive. I sincerely hope that you are being treated well and given plenty to eat. The sooner you can return home, the better.

     It probably was best not to say more. Reviling the Twikki Revolutionary Council might be emotionally satisfying, but it would probably annoy her friends' jailers. She spread out the seven pictures she'd taken, and started on the individual paragraphs. She couldn't write the same one to each of her friends; undoubtedly they would compare notes.

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     Mitchell is the most well-behaved child I've ever met. If he's not sure what to do, he'll just sit quietly until an idea comes to him. Or until Zoe gives him a hug -- they're great friends.

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     Zoe is friends with everyone. She loves to talk -- and run! I wish you could see how fast she's moving in this picture.

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     J has his own ideas about doing things. He was quick to pick up on the idea of potty training, but still needs to work on practice so he won't get upset about making a mess.

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     Gavin really misses his mommy and daddy. He keeps waking up in the middle of the night to ask when you're coming home, but calms down after a few hugs.

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     Liberty loves to tell jokes and is nearly always giggling. She's made quite a bit of progress on talking.

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     Travis is very bright -- he loves to explore and ask questions.

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     Summer is always in motion. She loves bath time, and will take off before you put her clothes on if you're not careful.

     Belinda added a last sentence to each: I just love him/her. She/he's so cute/adorable/precious/sweet. She ran out of appropriate adjectives and hoped that their doting parents wouldn't notice. She double-checked to make sure that each picture was matched with each child's letter and then stuffed her letters into the envelopes.
     Noises from upstairs told her that naptime was ending. And I didn't get my nap, she thought sadly. Maybe she would catch a few z's on a park bench; if the homeless people found them comfortable enough to sleep on, maybe she would, too.

[FrancescaFiori]

This is such a great idea. I haven't seen one of these done since the Parenthood pack came out and I'm sure it changes things significantly. Especially with all the mess-making toddlers love to do now!

I feel ya, Belinda. There are times when a park bench looks pretty darn enticing to me, too!

[KTK10]

This is such a wonderful idea, and the concept of the story is great. I'm really enjoying it.. and I just feel so sorry for Belinda.. I am exhausted running after one child let alone 7!

[MarianT]

@FrancescaFiori, @KTK10, I certainly wouldn't recommend trying a 1 adult to 7 toddlers ratio in real life! Even with the Sims, I have to rest after about 15 minutes of playing.

Chapter 5 -- Improvements

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     Arnold Farquar came over to pick up the letters himself. "There's some food on the table," Belinda called.

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     "I'm upstairs, giving Mitchell a bath. I'll be down in a minute."

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     "Check out the backyard while you wait," she added. Arnold went to look out the back window. The stone wall looked as if it would be an effective barrier for toddlers.

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     "I'm glad you put a railing on the stairs," he called up to Belinda. And then he winced. His manners were becoming as casual as her own.

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     "You brought us another toy," she said, joining him in what had once been the study. "You shouldn't have -- we'll run out of room, although I do thank you. The children will love playing with this when we get it put together.

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     "But I am curious as to why you picked out a skeleton bear for them."
     Arnold sighed apologetically. "I'm afraid I didn't check thoroughly enough. I called the toy store and asked them to send a large stuffed animal to your address. They asked me, 'Bat or bear?' and I just said 'bear' without thinking. But I guess the Forgotten Hollow address made them think you were a vampire or something."
     "It's all right," Belinda assured him. "The children don't mind. He's big and cuddly, which is the main thing.
     "Incidentally, I have some extra pictures of them, if you want to add them to the letters."
     "Sure," said Arnold.

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     "Here's Summer...

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Travis...

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Liberty...

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There's J in a rare moment of playing with the dollhouse.

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That's Gavin hugging Zoe.

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She loves hugging, as you can see.

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And here's Mitchell in his puppy-dog hoody. He's so cute in that."
     "Thanks," said Arnold.
     "Do you think when the Twikki Revolutionary Council sees that they're the parents of very young children, they might let them go?"
     "I wouldn't count on it," said Arnold. "Revolutionary Councils tend not to be sentimentally inclined. But I'm hoping they'll allow the parents to write back, at least."
     "Yes, that would be nice," said Belinda.
     Leaving the house, Arnold wondered if he should have told Belinda that the SimCIA were planning a mission to extract her friends. It was probably better not to get her hopes up, though. Or to cause her to worry. If the mission failed, there might be reprisals.

[oshizu]

I love this story! I'm enjoying how Arnold grows closer to us as a character and the little ways that he shows his consideration for Belinda, especially since he outwardly appears rather stodgy.

The snapshots for the parents are also such a fantastic pretext for entertaining us with screenshots of the toddlers.
Might I request a close-up of J? I would like a better look at his toddler face....

A question: How did you decide on their toddler traits? Did you choose one each of the 8 traits or did they each get one that approximates one of their three default traits?

[MarianT]

@oshizu, they each have different traits, based on either their adult traits or aspirations. Zoe's aspiration is Friend of the World, so she got charmer; J got independent because he's noncommittal; Summer is active, so she got wild; Travis is a geek, so he got inquisitive. Mitchell got angelic because of his lazy trait -- I've noticed that angelic toddlers are more likely to just stand around. That left me with fussy, clingy, and silly. I didn't want the fussy trait, so Gavin got clingy because of his bro trait, and Liberty got silly because of her clumsy trait.

[FrancescaFiori]

Love all the pictures! Of course little Zoe is a hugger. No surprise there!

Also love the lawyer's softening of manners and his embarrassment over the skeleton bear. He's a great character and I love it when he shows up to comment on the chaos.