Odyssey: Sound of Music, Chapter 6

Grace is still waiting on her bubbles and she ropes Howl into playing dolls with her.  He is looking his baby girl that is growing up.  She won’t be a toddler much longer.

More feels.  I am just watching, the hugs are all Grace.

Marilyn is loving on Coco.

While Teresa and Howl are at work, everyone at home takes a nap.  Even Grace.  She was trying to go to bed but it is still mid-afternoon, and I am hoping that delaying her bedtime will help her either sleep through the night, or have her birthday before she goes to bed.  There is something I hadn’t thought of at this point, but will think about shortly that will effect the timing a little bit – naming that Grace needs the bed Jake and Marilyn are currently using so delaying her birthday for a little while is better.

Marilyn masters cooking.  That makes cooking, gardening, and flower arranging as her three skills that have been mastered.

After her nap, Grace wakes up feeling like dancing.  Toddlers don’t need radios, they have music inside of them.

When Howl comes home, she is glad to see him and he is glad to see her.  He holds her for awhile then takes her to the potty before putting her to bed.  He is exhausted – she can have her birthday in the morning.  She isn’t as tired as everyone else but it is bedtime according to the clock.

And time is up.  Jake has reached the end of his life.  He completed two aspirations, mastered three skills, reached the top of the Botanist career, and was a wonderful father and grandfather.  He will be missed.

RIP Jake Harrison

Howl gives Grace a comforting hug, but their grief is just beginning.

I expected Marilyn and Jake to go close together, but Marilyn didn’t waste any time.  She was going to give Coco a hug and didn’t get the chance.

Marilyn completed one aspiration – she was §54,000 short completing the second one.  She mastered three skills, reached the top of the Flower Arranging career, and was a terrific mother and grandmother.  She did a great job getting this challenge started.

RIP Marilyn Odyssey-Harrison

And, just like that, the first generation is gone.

Even in their grief there are things that need to be done.  Grace is very hungry and needs to eat.

And she needs to have her birthday so Teresa is making her a birthday cake.

Grim took a few moments out of his busy calendar to take out the trash.

Howl is also taking out the trash.  There are way too many neat sims in this challenge.

When the cake is ready, Teresa helps her blow out her candles.

Grace Ghibli is another Neat sim with the Whiz Kid aspiration.

Grace takes Jake and Marilyn’s bed, which is given a blue makeover after the picture is taken.  She needs to get some sleep because Jake and Marilyn passed during the night, but she cries all night long.  No one had parenting high enough to hug her grief away either.

Teresa needs to do something fun but until she or Howl have something other than sad as their mood, neither one is willing to woohoo for fun.  Everyone is home today as a regular day off from work or school so they will be doing whatever they are willing as they work through the grief. and sadness.  There will be a lot of crying.  Teresa is painting sad paintings.

While Teresa is painting and Howl is writing a new song, Grace invites Elsa over.  She was hoping Elsa had grown up also, but nope – Elsa is still little.

Grace is too sad to play with a toddler.  And she has to pee.

Teresa paints a masterpiece, and no comment about the imagery of this picture.

Grace finally agrees to play dolls with Elsa.  It is the only thing she will do with her.  She is too sad to even talk with her.  She was able to find out Elsa is Silly but then after that she has no options except Go Away.

It has been rough but they are making it through.

Teresa is helping Grace with her aspiration by playing several games of chess.

Howl is beginning to learn gardening so he can help with the harvesting.  They will keep the garden for as long as possible as a source of income.

Grace is the only one that is still holding on to a mourning moodlet.  Teresa and Howl have worked through theirs already.

Coco has gone into heat again, and it is about time to consider letting her have a mate so that she can satisfy the urge for kittens.  Maybe.

Howl is still working on the second song.  Writing songs takes for.ever.and.a.day.  But as soon as he finishes the second, he begins the third because he has to complete four total.

While Howl is working on his songs, Teresa works in the garden.  She has to return to work today but has the time to take care of the plants first.

Grace heads off to her first day of school with a full day of mourning still to go.  She also has not done her homework because she was trying to wait until she could do it while focused but never was able to get into the right mood, and then ran out of time.

Deciding to get Coco a playmate and mate-mate, Howl calls up the adoption service and invites them to bring over a male cat.

He adopts Louis, and this is going to be interesting.  Louis is Talkative, Mischievous, and Spoiled.  That means he is going to do things and he is not going to be trainable.  In other words, he is going to be a pain in the ass.  But he is so cute.

Louis is named after Louis Pasteur, a French chemist and microbiologist

Howl encourages Louis to get to know Coco and they are right on that.

Afterwards they play, and that is the most active Coco has ever been.

With the notice that Coco is expecting kittens, Louis looks pretty please with himself.

Howl has mastered the guitar, which doesn’t unlock anything but he will need for his aspiration if he can ever finish writing the four songs.  I forget this is just the third tier and he still has to get to the fourth.

He takes a break when Grace gets home from school to help her with her homework so that she will be focused.  She only has a C so she can only complete her homework once today.

Teresa comes home with a promotion to level 8, closer and closer to unlocking radios.

Everyone scatters to their activities for the evening – Grace is working on the mental skill.

Teresa is level logic while Howl is working on writing his third song still.

Louis is getting familiar with the house and Coco is lazing around as usual, or more so since she is carrying a litter now.

Because Louis is spoiled, lecturing him won’t work.  They will have to be careful about leaving food out because Louis will get into it.  He will also be the cat that they can’t keep off of the counters and table.

Howl finishes his third song and begins his fourth (and final) song.  And then he leaves for work.

Coco gives birth to a single female kitten, named Mata Ghibli.  Thankfully, Coco gave birth to Mata downstairs and not upstairs since they are home alone at the moment.  Mata is Affectionate, Friendly, and Mischievous.  At least she isn’t Spoiled.

Mata is named after Mata Hari, a Dutch exotic dancer, executed as spy

Grace is able to do her homework while focused with the three cats sleeping nearby.  Not sure I would have been so focused with a kitten sleeping that close.

Teresa takes care of the garden and gets everything harvested, sold, and tended before heading upstairs to work on some paintings.  She is determined to complete the Fabulously Wealthy aspiration, which shouldn’t be a problem since she and Howl aren’t even Adults yet.

Howl has a good day at work and comes home with a promotion – he is now a Serious Musician, level 6.  Howl has to make a choice though.  He needs piano for his next promotion but he needs to complete the song on guitar for his aspiration.

Damn straight, he is going to finish the song first.

Simmers!

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