The Cooke-Dreamer Household: Update 20.01.2014

For the previous week at this household, click here.

This house came into our games with the "Mansion" stuff pack, if I am not very much mistaken. I don't particularly like it from the outside, but the garden is nice and I really like how I have furnished and decorated it to suit the needs of the large Cooke-Dreamer household.

We have just accompanied Cedric Cooke through his first week after graduation, and now we have a look at who else is part of the family and still living here:

Dirk Dreamer, still active as Education Minister and single father to two half-Alien daughters...

...Deirdre, Dirk's firstborn...

...little Dora in her crib...

...Dirk's Dad and the girls' granddad, Darren Dreamer...

...his wife Cleo, nee Shikibu...

...and last but not least, Patricia and Julien Cooke. Patricia's maiden name is Wan.

All five adults are on Permanent Platinum, and I only control them to ensure the children's wellbeing, as well as seeing that the bills are paid and passing New Maximilianians are greeted.
      

It is Monday, and no problem that Dirk works full-time, because there is always someone around to look after little Dora.

I love it how Darren looks at his sleeping granddaughter there!
       

An Education Minister should first and foremost make sure that his own children have a good education, at home and at school, and Dirk knows how important playtime with his daughers is.
       

On Tuesday, we find Julien and Patricia in the family living room together. These two are a three-bolt-couple and spend nearly every waking moment in each other's company.
       

Dora is happy to have the attention of both her Dad and her Granddad.
      

Because there is plenty of money in the household, and the elders do not need to waste their energy doing household and garden work more than necessary, the help of experts is enlisted: a repair man, gardener and exterminator arrive all at the same time, followed minutes later by the cleaner.
       

But in spite of having the professionals do the work, Dirk and his Dad make sure the bug infestation is really dealt with thoroughly. Julien just watches the gardener, hoping she will know what she's doing, what with so many more or less exotic plants in their park-like garden.
       

When Deirdre comes home from school today, Meike Riley gets off the bus with her.
      

The girls enjoy a game of cops and robbers upstairs in Julien and Patricia's bedroom.
       

Cloe, who still works as a Criminal Mastermind regardless of her age (67), brings home Silvia Ottomas (nee Singles) with her.
       

Technically, it is early Wednesday morning, but you know that this does not count for elderly Sims; they have their very own sleeping pattern. For the first time this week, someone actually cooks a meal.
       

Everyone was really hungry, but they all waited for Darren to prepare something nice :-)
      

Darren cleans the en-suite bathroom he shares with his wife.
       

Upstairs, Dirk plays the guitar.
       

Cleo and Darren love each other just as much as Julien and Patricia, although they have "only" two bolts for each other.
       

Today, Cameron Capp comes home from school with Deirdre.
       

Someone took Dora downstairs to the kitchen to give her a bottle from the fridge, and since she can't get up the stairs without help and nobody put her in her crib, she sleeps in the pet bed.
       

A few hours into Thursday, just after she has woken up, Dora grows up into a child.
       

And nearly at the same time, her big sister Deirdre turns into a teenager.
(Somehow, this did not happen at 6.00 pm the previous day, because both girls were asleep then.)
The lot decides for her aspiration to be Pleasure, and I was glad to see her lifetime want of becoming Game Designer, and not the dreaded "50 first dates" one!
       

Deirdre's class mate Pablo Picaso accompanies her home this afternoon.
       

Cleo meets and greets Trisha Traveller.
       

Two hours after Deirdre and Pablo, the school bus stops in front of the house again, and Dora gets off together with Meike Riley.
       

Dora and Deirdre play in the garden.

A typical family scene at the Cooke-Dreamer household.
      

On Friday, Patricia greets Pleasant Servo, who recently married into the Capp family.
      

And Dora greets her Dad with a big hug when he returns from the office. No matter how often I have already seen it in my game, I still love this!
       

Deirdre now wears one of the outfits her "uncle" Julien has made for her (he has the Golden Sewing Badge and is, technically speaking, not her uncle).
       

He now makes another outfit for Dora to wear when she gets older.
       

Two days since their last proper meal (when Darren cooked pork chops), Patricia prepares stuffed rainbow trout for dinner.
       

Sadly, she leaves it in the oven just a little too long.
      

It is Saturday, 2.00 am, when Julien and Patricia are in their en-suite bathroom.
       

At this totally unusual time, out of the blue, Mr. Reaper and his Hula Girls appear. Julien was 75, his wife is now 74.
       

Poor Patricia!
       

Good job Cleo, who has been her best friend for longer than she can remember, is there for her.
       

Dirk reassures his younger daughter that uncle Julien is fine where he is now, and that she need not worry.
       

It is Saturday morning, and the sisters have breakfast together.
       

Dirk has to go to work today, but he has allowed Dora to invite her friends over for a playdate. Just as he leaves to catch his car pool, Deirdre is playing the piano, and Dirk is really proud of her.
       

Stephen and Meike Riley arrive shortly afterwards, upon Dora's invitation.
       

All three head upstairs to play with the teleprompter. I love it when the kids laugh at each other's silly stuff, such as burping into the microphone :-)
       

Later, to my surprise, Stephen decides he wants some tea and helps himself from the tea table set up in the living room.
       

But eventually, he sits down with their hosts for grilled cheese sandwiches Deirdre made. The children talk about what they want to do when they're grown up.
       

On this sunny Saturday afternoon, Darren thinks he better tackle the garden work himself, since the gardener will only be back some time next week.
      

Inside, Dora and Meike watch a movie; Stephen went home after the grilled cheese. He probably did not want to watch something "girly".
       

After the movie, the girls go back upstairs and play a game of Mary Mack. It took them a while, but they are finally friends.
       

As you can see :-)
       

Meanwhile, Darren notices a hooded figure among the shrubs in the garden.

He was 82/83, when he was sent on his last voyage by the Grim Reaper.
       

His family is very sad.
       

Dirk (who slept in his father's bed on his own accord) is most affected. His Dad meant the world to him; he can't even remember his mother, who died before they moved to New Maximiliania.
       

Patricia still misses her husband Julien, too. She rings Cedric, whom she always treated like her own flesh and blood, although she is not his biological mother, and asks him to move back in with the family.
Cedric does not have to think twice - this move puts an end to all his financial restrictions, and will allow him to fully focus on his career at the hospital.
       

The bedroom on the upper floor that used to be Patrica's and Julien's is adapted to Cedric's taste. Sadly, all his personal items (a photo taken at the photo booth, his uni diploma and career rewards object) have all been lost during the move - even though I made sure to stick them in his inventory when I finished playing his week.
       

Cedric's first act after having made sure that his room is set up the way he wants it is to study cleaning, so that he can hope for a promotion next week.
      

Cleo's colleague Cornel Capp returns from work with her that night.
       

Now it is Sunday, the last day of the week, and the last picture for this post. I did not tell Deirdre to join her Dad and her little sister when Dirk started to read to Dora, but I really liked it when she did that.

This is a household I really like to play; I was quite fond of Darren and Julien and it was a bit sad to see them go, but they had a long and very good life in New Maximiliania.
It won't be long before I'll play here again, when the letter D will be the next on my alphabetical list.