Round 1 - The Strickland Homestead

Left to right:  Ruby, Martin, Joslyn, Sacha. Dogs Skippy, Prince and LuLu

Who are the Stricklands?  These are the ancestors of a founding family of Prosperity Falls, five generations removed.  The founding family:

Left to right:  Landell, Placeholder Carla, Chevy and Shauntasia

If you so desire to remind you who they are:  The Stricklands, week 1

The Stricklands are still on the same lot, the same house they started out in all those years ago.  The lot is a tiny one; therefore the only direction they can expand is UP.  For being a founding family, they are poor.  But rich in numbers of family members.

What is going on now, in the Strickland legacy?  Let's go over what was going on the last time this lot appeared in the Prosperity Falls blog on September 8, 2008.  (Gad really???  Ten years ago???)  Decota and Sacha Strickland headed off to Uni, leaving Martin and Joslyn without any kids at home.  Joslyn became Education Minister, and now is in Gaming. She was also abducted.  Sacha was dating Briah Bostic, and Decotah was dating Ketrina McClelland.  While on a date to the Roller Rink with Ketrina, Decotah had is pocket picked by the PickPocket and had to walk home since he could not hire a cab.  A family pet passed on but new puppies were born quickly after.

Back then....

 Martin

Knowledge - Become Chief of Staff

Martin is the youngest of the ten children Chevy and Kirstee had.  His custom hair was no longer available, so he redid his do.  Apparently he thinks it looks hilarious on him. He is currently a Mad Scientist and will not pursue the Chief of Staff position.

Yep, I nabbed this family tree pic from the old files on backup.  Self explanatory.  Oh yes.  Martin and Joslyn only had two kids.

Joslyn

Fortune - Own 5 Top Level Businesses  (nope)

ASimWen could just never cozy up to Joslyn.  Hmmm...

She is from the snow leopard family, the Capeharts.  Her and Martin's son Sacha, exhibits the snow leopard skintone.

Week One

Opening the lot, the time is 11:46 on a Monday.  Hm. ASimWen always stops the lot shortly after  7 am on Monday morning.  Then I remembered.  I had tried to play this lot years ago on the old laptop, and it would not play.  Paintings had disappeard off the walls and there were other things going wacky.  That is the day I decided the hood was no longer playable and put it away for good.  Until now.  Apparently I was able to save it at 11:46.

Sacha is there, having returned after graduating University.  He was off to work as a SWAT Leader.  His LTW is to become a Captain Hero, like his grandma Kirstee.  His fiancee Ruby Strickland is there as well.  I know, I know, same last name.  But apparently far enough apart in the family tree the game allowed the engagement.  Ruby is a Pop Sim and wants to be a Hall of Famer.  Currently unemployed.

Well it didn't matter about Martin's hair anyway.  He and Joslyn aged right on up.  Good for them!

Popularity - Become Hall of Famer

Ruby Strickland is the future Matriarch of the Strickland Homestead.  Her linage:

Her parents are Cara and Kolton Strickland.  Her grandmother is Uni YA Camryn, and her father is Fraiser Strickland.  Wait a minute.  Fraiser was one of Chevy and Kirstee's kids.  From this very Homestead.  Let's double check Sacha's lineage:

Sacha Strickland

His father is Martin, son of Kirstee and Chevy. Chevy and Kirstee are Ruby's great-grand-parents. Wait.  This hurts my head.  Let me do a chart.

The interesting thing here is Fraiser and Martin are brothers.  Fraiser is the second born out of 10, and Martin is the tenth born out of 10.  So much time had elapsed between Martin and Fraiser, that there was time to play a whole generation (Kolton) before Sacha gained control of the Strickland homestead.  Martin didn't even know Fraiser.  Thus, this put the relations between Ruby and Sacha far enough apart the game did not recognize they were related and allowed the engagement.    In reality, Sacha and Ruby are 2nd cousins.  I think?  You genealogists out there can put a label on that.  I am not sure.

This is a good thing...the Strickland Homestead has successfully stayed in the Strickland Family, 100%.  This is the kind of fun things to find out when playing a long lived neighborhood in TS2.

Anyway, to get on with it..

Being unemployed (at first) Ruby spent time watching sports to get her hobby interest up to 100%.  Then she grew tired of watching it and switched to blogging about it.  In no time she was up to 100% and gained the hobby plaque.  She checked the job ads every day but Athletics did not come up.

To please his fortune wife Joslyn, Martin began training the the dogs in their jobs.  All three of them were only half way up the corporate doggie ladder.

Ruby grew tired of sitting around the house and watching TV.  She noticed the career reward for Adventure was not in the Strickland house so she took this job.  Being a Pop Sim, she longed to see her Uni friends, and began planning party in celebration of getting the new job.  A Pop Sim seizes every opportunity to party!

Sacha reached TOC, he was now a Captain Hero like his grandma Kirstee.  New LTW?  To become Mayor.  Looks like he will be running against Trudy Bostic.

Congrats Martin...Lulu has learned to play dead.

Joslyn also reached TOC in the Gaming field.  Everyone seemed to be moving along except Ruby.  Martin was having great success training the dogs, and Sacha and Joslyn became job successful.

The day of the party Sacha and Ruby went fishing at the city park, to make it a day for Ruby.  They then played a rousing game of darts.  It was so much fun.

Left to right:  Ruby, Decota Strickland, Sacha, Elijah Strickland, Samuel McClelland, Brax Robbins

The hour of the party finally arrived.  People began arriving whilst Ruby was still on the phone ordering pizza.

Left to right:  Mary Strickland, Martin, Sacha, Ruby, Samuel McClelland, Gertrude Capehart

Martin was glad to see so many young people in the house again.  He helped himself to pizza.

Left to right:  Brax Robbins, Martin and his son Decota

Brax doesn't remember that his grandpa was the head of the Anotothian Mission on planet Earth.  He doesn't remember that he was in lineage to take over.  He was just a regular guy now.  Martin wasn't the fashion police or anything, trying to break it delicately to Decota to cover up his hairy belly with a tshirt.  Chicks don't care much for that look he had goin'.

As the roof raiser party wound down, Placeholder Carla came out to clean up.  Nice having a ghost that cleans.

Now that this party was over, it was time to start planning a new one.  A wedding party.

Whilst Ruby worked on wedding plans, Sacha decided the house needed a portrait of his dad.  This would also boost up his Arts and Crafts abilities, as he was wanting the hobby plaque.

Maxes out Creativity

Granny Kirstee is a scaring ghost!!!!

Not sure why Kirstee is scaring Joslyn so much. Even though Josie is not sleeping in Kirsee's bed she is very much a scaring target!  Chevy is a laid back ghost and does nothing but float around the lot. 

Thanks to Martin's great training, all the dogs trained up and attained TOC.  Go you Martin!  Now that the dogs were in the top of their field, Martin influenced Lulu and Skippy to try for puppies, and it worked.  Puppies were on the way!  Lulu has a grown pup there, Prince.  He will have to go off to the Animal Shelter.  Need the room in the house.  Not sure why ASimWen let the dog stay there in the first place.  ??? Oh well, it was 10 years ago since this lot was last played!  Who knows what I was thinking....

On Saturday, Ruby's desired job came up, the same day as her wedding party.  She immediately accepted the job offer and headed off to work even though she was two hours late. Would she be penalized some way for being late?

Nope.  Go you Ruby!  Now all the humans in this household were perm plat.  Would make it easier or boring to play.  I guess it all depends on your point of view!  New LTW?  To become a Celebrity Chef. 

In the mean while, Joslyn decided to write a book, working toward the film and literature hobby plaque.

She received a membership card to Desirable Discourse, the posh club for like minded Sims and sold a book right away.

Since his wife was going for a hobby distinction, Martin decided to do the same thing in Arts and Crafts.  He was well on his way.

The hour for the wedding finally arrived.  Sacha and Ruby were going to be married.

Ruby the party planner had mailed out the invitations days ago.  She and Sacha entered to wedding arch to say their vows before their family.  It was a wonderful ceremony.

Mr. and Mrs. Sacha Strickland

Ruby's parents - Cara and Kolton Strickland. 

Cara incidentally is the neighborhood sourpuss everyone peeks at through the telescope.  She also had an affair long ago with  Xuan Robbins which resulted in Xen Strickland.  As you can see, she looks angry now.  ASimWen thinks she just has an angry disposition.

Left to right:  Martin, Joslyn, Cara, Xen, Decota, Kolton 

She isn't even smiling seeing her daughter get married.

Enough of the sourpuss!  Yummo wedding cake!

Left to right:  Mary Strickland (Rubys sister), Decota Strickland, Kolton Strickland, Xen Strickland.  Strange guy.

Sacha thought it to be a smart idea to chat up his father in law.  Yak yak yak.

The wedding party was a roof raiser, and everyone left the party feeling like it was great.  Another Strickland wedding in the books.

And Week One is closed out with the arrival of PUPPIES!!!!!

Lucy Preston, Wyatt Logan and Garcia Flynn

They were immediately shipped off to Animal Control before anyone could become attached to them. Week One DONE.


Week Two

Since the doggo population in the house was now much less....

Yup.  There was a new Strickland on the way.  Thank you Risky Woo Hoo.

As Ruby was lounging her way through pregnancy, Martin and Joslyn met some goals.

Martin earned the Arts and crafts hobby plaque via painting,

And as she hurried out the door for work, Joslyn was notified she had won the Film and Literature hobby plaque via book writing.

And good ol' Sacha...back and forth to work every day, waiting on the birth of his son.

He has his dad's skintone, and is a blonde.  Hmmm...who is blonde in the family???  His name is Matt Smith Strickland.  Yup...ASimWen had Dr. Who on the television when this cutie was born.  Oh wait. Back in the day, a Capehart married Tosha Go.  Yup.  There's the blonde.

Wasn't long before a fire started.  Ruby was trying her hand at making spaghetti. 

Oh my.  Lulu's mate Skippy had a Grim party.  Lulu was devastated.  She cried and cried.  The only person who cried as long as her was Martin.  He worked so hard to train all the dogs up.  Now the only dog on the lot was Lulu.

Finally it was Matt Smith's birthday to toddler.  Ruby's parents Kolton and Cara came to the party.  Cara was still stone faced.  Not a smile cracked.

Such a cute little boy!

Sacha immediately started working Matt on his toddler skills, and skilled him up 100% including teaching him a nursery rhyme as well!  Go you, guys!

Ruby managed to have a nice conversation with her mother...Cara...who did manage to crack a smile when she didn't have to be looking at her husband Kolton.  What is up with Ruby's nose????  lol

Ruby influenced her dad to fix a few things around the house.  A toilet, the trash compactor and the piano all needed attention.  He was glad to oblige, then spent (literally) the next 24 Sim hours pounding those ivories.  Sacha finally had to ask him to leave.  But hey, Kolton contributed $300 in tips to the household funds.

And we end this round at the Strickland Homestead with Ruby contemplating life.  Like..how long will she have to lay there before play gets around to her house again?  Another 10 years??

Next is the Robbins Homestead!  The former alien family who wanted to take over the world.  Wonder how they have fared since the Mission was shut down.

Remember everyone, family comes first.

But keep on Simming!

~ASimWen