Let's start the first week with the Broke family by looking at the story Maxis have prepared for them. Here is Brandi as a little girl with her mother, who is no other than Betty Newbie - remember Bob and Betty from the original tutorial that came with our very first Sims game?
In the next picture, Brandi is obivously in a bar, and Skip is proposing.
Brandi and Skip are as besotted with each other as are Brandi's parents, Bob and Betty. You can tell that they were living in a different house from their current one.
Is this supposed to be Dustin celebrating his birthday, or Beau?
And another little Broke is about to join the family! Since there is only one boy in the picture, I assume it is Dustin, and the baby Brandi is about to give birth to must be Beau.
That's where the Maxis-made story ends, and this is the modest house with the weird, tiny, ladder-less pool at the back. Brandi, Dustin and little Beau live here - but Skip is no more. Maxis says: "Brandi was left to raise two boys alone following her husband's suspicious pool ladder accident. With Dustin acting out, can Brandi teach young Beau to make the right choices in life?"
There is little money in the family, a mere 929 Simoleons on their account. The house can seriously do with a makeover, and much money can be freed from selling unnecessarily expensive (and ugly) furniture - as well as the pool.
A little later, the house looks much better - and Brandi still has about 6,500 Simoleons left (thank you, IKEA!). She will be careful, though, since she is certainly not going to get a job, and also wants Dustin to quit his after-school job in the criminal career. The largest room becomes the boys' room, while Brandi moves into the small bedroom, just big enough for a double bed and a clothes rack. The bathroom is improved somewhat, and the open plan kitchen/dining/living area gets a larger table and more chairs.
We know more than Brandi does on this Monday morning, don't we!
While Dustin is at school, Brandi teaches Beau to walk. His Maxis-written bio says: "Beau finds it hard to escape his genetic destiny, but maybe with his mother's help he can beat the odds." Whatever his genetic destiny is supposed to be, we'll find out what his aspiration and lifetime want are when he grows up. Brandi's bio reads: "Friendly by nature, Brandi has often been accused of being overly so. She enjoys grape juice and crumpling tin foil." (Some folks at Maxis have a weird sense of humour!) Anyway, she is a Family Sim and dreams of having six grandchildren... eventually.
At 1:00 pm, the school bus drops off Dustin... and his girlfriend Angela Pleasant. Their relationship is set to pink hearts from the start of the game. For Dustin, Maxis have made up this bio: "Dustin's rebellious nature gets him into trouble. But deep down, he wishes people would tell him what to do." His aspiration is Fortune, and he wants to max out all seven skills.
First, though, he looks after his little brother, and he is very good at that. His Mum had to lay down for a while - her pregnancy is now obvious, and the morning's work (household and Beau) have exhausted her.
Dustin does the washing up without being told - he really is a much kinder boy than what his bio makes him out to be.
When Brandi wakes up, he asks her to help him with his homework. (The after-school job in the criminal career was quit, by the way.)
And he is over the moon when little Beau says "Du-ddin" for the first time!
Very early on Tuesday morning, Brandi wakes up in desperate need of food...
...and fun. In fact, all her needs are sinking so fast, I wonder whether she'll have twins like she did when I played her in New Maximiliania.>
After some more hours of sleep, she manages to do a few household tasks - she knows how hard Dustin works to hold everything together at school and at home, and really does not want everything to rest on his young shoulders. As she takes out the trash and is about to collect the bills, she notices someone has left a parcel on her doorstep. Of course it is Mr. Humble's gift of a computer, but she hides it away so that she can give it to Dustin as a Christmas present.
Speaking of Dustin, after school he needs fun more than anything, and since he also wants to max out his skills AND earn some money, an easel is set up for him.
Later, he gives his little brother a badly needed bath.
Mortimer Goth walks by, and usually, I would send someone out to greet him - but Dustin is busy, Brandi is asleep, and Beau is only a toddler.
Not for much longer, though! He grows up that same afternoon, with his Mum proudly looking on (and Dustin still diligently painting away).
For the first time, the small family have a meal together.
Now that Beau is not a toddler anymore, he can help around the house and garden, too. Wednesday is his first day at school, but before the bus arrives, he rakes the leaves behind the house.
With both boys at school and Brandi so very tired, she can't cope with the housework, and I have an idea: She can call the only two adults she knows - sisters Nina and Dina Caliente - and ask them to do a few jobs for her. To my disappointment, while they turn up very quickly, Brandi can't influence them - she does not have enough influence points.
But Dina is kind enough to do something for her friend nonetheless, and clears up a pile of trash without being asked.
The ladies then share a meal, and agree when Brandi tells them that her Dustin has been "as good as gold" lately, looking after his little brother and helping with the cleaning and so on.
In fact, it is he who teaches Beau how to do his homework when the boys are back from school that afternoon. Brandi is - surprise, surprise - once again fast asleep.
A little after 6:00 pm, Brandi's third child is born - another boy (not twins, fortunately!). He is named Bob after his late granddad Bob Newbie.
I want to give my little Bobby the best start in life I can, Brandi thinks. A stray dog has dug a hole in her front garden, and she digs a little deeper in the hope of finding something valuable. All the brings up, though, is a piece of rock.
Meanwhile, Dustin does the least pleasant job imaginable - unclog the toilet. But... he can gain mechanical skill AND save money at the same time by not calling the repair service.
Thursday starts rainy, but Brandi still goes about some gardening - now that she is not pregnant anymore and does not tire quite so easily, she can take advantage of the time when baby Bob is asleep.
And she has enough energy to play with him, too!
No mother can be prouder of her boys when first Dustin returns from school with an A+ report...
...and then Beau.
Dustin's class mate Melody Tinker has come along, too, and is invited to stay for dinner.
When Dustin comes home from school on Friday, he finds his Mum asleep on the settee. Poor Brandi - she really has been neglecting her own needs, like many young (and single!) mothers do. Also, her aspiration is very low; she has been rolling many romantic wishes, but there simply are neither the time nor the opportunity for her to meet a man.
Still, her boys give her much joy, and when Bob's toddler "years" start that same evening, she braces herself for what is not the easiest of times in the life of any parent.
Everyone is glad when the weekend is here! On Saturday morning, Dustin starts to teach little Bob to walk.
Beau interrupts his work in the garden and for a while, enjoys just being a kid.
Brandi wants to reward her sons and splashes out for a taxi to take them to Woodland Park, and a Nanny to stay with little Bob for a few hours.
She meets Mary-Sue Pleasant, the mother of her son's girlfriend, and the ladies get to know each other over the hot dogs Brandi grills.
The brothers have their first ever game of chess.
Nina Caliente is also here, and Brandi spends some time catching up with her friend.
Before it is time to head home, she manages to meet and greet Chester Gieke - one of the few single men living in Pleasantview. She seems to like him, but there is only one bolt between them, and I have not yet played Chester and so have no idea about his plans.
Dustin experiences that happy thrill again on Sunday morning, when his youngest brother manages to say "Daah-dinn" for the first time. Needless to say, everyone else is still asleep.
Finally, winter has set in, and the trees are bare. Brandi rakes the last leaves into a neat pile and disposes of it immediately.
Later, while Dustin is busy at the easel and the two younger boys are playing, Coral Oldie walks past and is greeted by Brandi.
Before the day is over, she has a short chat on the phone with Chester. No romantic wishes about him or anything; I am just trying to get a few friends together for the family.
Everyone did well against the odds here. The Brokes seem on a good path, with Dustin diligently working towards his lifetime want and Brandi looking after the younger ones as best as she can. Without Dustin's help she couldn't have managed, but she is now making more friends. Dustin really, really wants to get into private school, but I hesitate bringing the headmaster in - he might not approve of the very modest house. Is Brandi going to find love again? Will Dustin and Angela see each other more frequently? Are Beau and Bob going to grow up well? All this and more will be found out in due time :-)
