Saturday 11 August 2012

The world is big

Round 34: May 2039 (Autumn)
last update/next update

Dominic Lachance is 29 and Leslie is 28.
(Jonas is 61, Tatiana is 56, Rebecca is 30, Nathan is 29, Chloe and Zane are 28 and Audrey and Jack are 27)
Narrated by Dominic Lachance

Lately, Leslie has been talking about getting her Master’s degree in education sometime in the future.

She’s only had a full time teaching position for about a year but I can’t say I was too surprised that she wanted to take this step.

Leslie just loves to learn and I was sort of expecting she’d want to do some further study one day. If she ever wants to become principal or start teaching at the university level, she’ll absolutely have to have her Master’s. Whether or not she decides to ever do that, she feels more study is a good career move for her.

Leslie is worried about the money though. It’d be about $8000 in tuition fees all up, over two years.

I think we should just take out a loan and go for it. Well recoup any losses with the better pay she’ll get down the road.

Leslie’s not quite ready to do that; she’d rather save a bit for a couple of years and see how we are down the track.

I still think we’d be fine if she wanted to start now but she wants to wait. She’s still getting used to a full-time teaching load and isn’t ready to add yet another thing to her plate anyway.

I forget that sometimes. I skipped college and went straight into working, so I’ve been in the workforce for more than 10 years now.

It’s hard work but I love it. I can see myself in mechanics for a good while yet.

It can be difficult being a superior to guys who aren’t much younger than me though. Sometimes they get an attitude about taking orders from me.

Someone has to keep this place running. Seeing I’ve been here the longest now, that’s my job.

The guys at the shop aren’t exactly my buddies but that’s okay. I know I’m a fair boss and that I do a good job and that’s enough for me.

Leslie and I have enough to do outside of work without adding extra socialising into the mix anyway.

Mum and Dad still do a family get together once a week. It’s become extra important to Mum since Grandpa died, so we always make sure we find the time for it.

Not having any family around, Leslie really appreciates how readily my family accepted her into the fold.

Lately, most of the talk has been about my sister Audrey’s upcoming wedding.

Audrey and Jack are getting married next April and they’re planning to hold the whole thing at their house.

Mum loves that idea. She and Dad got married on our family farm 30 years ago this year, so she sees it like it’s all coming full circle.

I have to say, I’m really looking forward to the wedding. I’m happy for Audrey and Jack, of course, but I also love a good excuse for a family gathering.

There are a couple of weddings that we’ll be attending in the near future, though Nathan and Rebecca still haven’t set a date for theirs.

I get the feeling Nathan especially is fairly keen to make a decision but at the moment, they don’t have much cash to spend on it.

If money is an issue, First Grace Church, where Leslie and I got married, is not too expensive, considering you get everything you could possibly need for the price.

Chloe and Zane got married at the same place. It’s still not exactly cheap but compared to some of the other places we looked at, it was a bargain.

First Grace could work out pretty well for Nathan and Rebecca, though it still might be a while before they get everything organised.

After dinner, Zane and Chloe announced that they’re going to be having a baby. Chloe is now 8 weeks along!

They told us they'd started trying the Christmas before last, so it’s been almost a year and a half for them now.

That seems like a long time when you’re really keen, so I’m happy they’ll finally have their baby. They’ll be great parents.

The only downside right now is Chloe’s morning sickness, which is really all-day sickness. She and Zane ended up having to leave a little early because Chloe was feeling so ill.

As keen as I am to start our family, at least there are a couple of advantages to not having kids yet.

Once we’ve got a little one in the house, there won’t be any more sleep-ins past 9am on a Sunday.

And with a baby, Leslie and I probably won’t have nearly as much quiet time together as we do now.

We’re probably going to miss that most of all but we’re both ready to start our family, at long last.

I’ve been ready since before we even got married but Leslie took a little longer to come around to it. Last year though, she told me she wanted to start trying.

I was thrilled and we started almost immediately.

We’ve been trying ever since and this month, we finally got a positive pregnancy test!

We made an appointment with Dr. Moretti the next day, just to confirm the pregnancy and find out everything we needed to know.

It’s overwhelming and we’re both a bit nervous about it all but it’s also very exciting.

And Dr. Moretti seems like a really wonderful OB, so we left feeling like Leslie and our baby were in good hands.

So far, only Mum and Dad know and predictably, they were thrilled with the news.

It’ll be their first grandchild, so this is something totally new for our family.

For everyone else, we’ll wait until we get to the 12 week mark before we share our news. We can’t wait to be parents!

Extra:I'm pretty happy with this little garage Pru made for Maisie as part of the June Project at N99. It fits right into my dingy area of Exeter. I also have another awesome garage by Starr (yet to be installed - still going slow on my CC at the moment!), which I'm planning on putting into Sullivan. Or maybe I'll use it to replace my tinkering club at my uni. The lots were far too awesome for me to choose between!

Notes:

  • Title is from The World Is Big by The Webb Brothers.
  • I don't know if Leslie will ever be a candidate for principal, as Finn isn't much older than her and he's probably more suited to the position. But who knows? I'll let her do her Master's anyway, as I think it's somewhat in character. And she won't be able to complete her LTW without it.
  • I really wish I'd remembered to install either Pru or Starr's lot before I started playing. Dominic's work scenes were all shot at the tinkering club at the uni, which is kind of lacklustre.
  • Baby! I've got three pregnant women now, after none at all last year. Sarah is due in October, Chloe in January and Leslie in February. :D I usually have a gender preference but I have no idea with Dominic and Leslie. I'm just excited them to finally make some babies, lol!

22 comments:

  1. Yay! I was so hoping a baby would be on the cards very soon for these two. I can't believe they have been married for 4 years! I thought it was more like 2. Haha.
    I love the scenes shot at the garage. I can't imagine too many people getting annoyed at Dominic but I guess when your boss isn't too much older than you it could get annoying...
    I am so excited for all the new babies but these two especially! I think I picture them with a boy most but saying that I could totally imagine them with a girl too. I guess we'll just have to wait and see!

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    1. Well, not quite four years! It'll be four years for them in November, so the baby will come not long after their anniversary. Time has flown though, hasn't it?

      The garage scenes were fun and unfortunately for Dominic, I didn't stage those scenes with his co-worker. That guy (whose name is Sullivan, funnily enough!) just seemed to hate Dominic, lol. I just decided to let them interact, see what happened and write around that.

      I'm excited about all the babies too but this one is somehow the most exciting for me too. I've watched Dominic grow up and lose his first love with Tessa and then find love again with Leslie and now he's going to be a daddy. It makes me smile!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  2. Yay, happy baby news! This coulple is so sweet and cute together. Dominic is doing a great job at work with his rowdy crew and being so young. I can imagine the heartache the crew would try to give him :)

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    1. I think Dominic and Leslie will be just that little bit sweeter when two finally become three. ;)

      Dominic does his best at work. I can see him being the type to not be too bothered by not being all buddy buddy with everyone at the garage. He's happy with the circle of friends he already has anyway and it makes it easier to keep boundaries between boss and underlings. ;)

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  3. The shots from the "work" place are great, they look quite real to me! And a garage would naturally be sort of lacklustre, so to speak, wouldn't it :-)

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    1. Ha, well, that's true. But there's lacklustre in a realistic way and lacklustre in a way that suggests the creator (ie., me) didn't bother to look at any actual pictures of a garage and just slapped some stuff down!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  4. Yay! Finally a baby! Tatiana is going to spoil that baby rotten! I dont have an opinion on what they have ether, maybe leaning more towards a boy for me. The garage scenes were fun and starr and pru made great lots, I put them both in too.

    I'm glad Leslie is waiting for her masters, even though she might not have the chance to be principal, you really just don't know! ROS could take Finn out. Not that I hope for that! I like Finn, just no guarantees. So what career level do you stop your teachers at? I have Oliver joining the teaching ranks, and want to do masters for principal like you, and wondered where you freeze your teachers.

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    1. Oh, I think this child will be able to get anything he/she desires, with Tatiana around! Especially if it's still a couple of years before Audrey and Jack have a baby. Being the only grandchild always guarantees major spoiling!

      Yes, that's true about Finn, although I also hope it's not! Leslie is just the studious type though and I think she'd enjoy studying anyway, even without the possibility of principal being dangled in front of her.

      I thought I froze my teachers right before they get to High School Principal, which is why I wrote Julia in as needing to get her Master's. I've actually got it noted down that I freeze them right before they get to University Guest Lecturer. I'm going to change it to what I thought it was though. Pretty much the only reason a primary/secondary teacher would get their Master's, at least where I am, is if they had aspirations to become a principal one day. So I'm going to go ahead and make it the same in my game.

      I have a feeling High School Principal and University Guest Lecturer might be reversed with the EA version of this career. I use Pru's replacement, so if you don't, you may want to rethink!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  5. Awww, how exciting! I'm so glad these two are starting their family. I want to see what their children will look like, lol!

    Hmmm... I wonder who would end up being principal. It's definitely a good idea for her to go for her masters, anyway. At least then she's still in the running!

    Lots of weddings and babies coming up. I'm sure you're excited!

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Seeing what Dominic and Leslie's kids will look like accounts for at least part of the excitement for me! The Lachance have traditionally made pretty gorgeous kids.

      At the moment, Finn is definitely the front runner. He's the ambitious type who would want to be principal. I don't see Leslie as quite as ambitious, though I can see her doing a Master's just for the sake of knowledge. But she's also not closing off any doors by doing it, so that's a good thing too.

      I am super excited about all the weddings and babies! It's been too long since I've had either in my hood!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  6. Your families always have exciting news.This family has a lot to look forward to weddings and babies.I just want to clarify but is her mother about to retire and the other teacher, Finn, wants to become principal, too? Is it possible for Leslie to apply for the high school if a principal position becomes available there? This is if Finn becomes principal for the elementary school or would you rather a current high school teacher should become principal if Kendal should retire.

    I really the realism with not everyone attending college, but still able to live comfortably.I like that Dominic didn't attend college, but he's still the boss at the mechanic shop.

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    1. Lately, it's all been very exciting around here, though I can't promise there will always be this much excitement, at least of the weddings and babies variety!

      Tatiana (who is Leslie's mother-in-law; she's Dominic's mother) is several years away from retirement at the moment but she's in her 50s and it's an inevitability that she'll retire eventually. Leslie could apply for the high school position - I don't have any rules to stop her from doing so. But character wise, I don't think she'd be suited. I'd send Finn to the high school before I'd send Leslie. More than likely though, I won't send either. :)

      The pay in the auto mechanics career is not great at the start but at the level Dominic is at (Level 9), he and Leslie are able to live fairly well. They're doing okay for themselves, definitely.

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  7. I know I'm excited about Leslie and Dominic's baby. And it's nice that their baby and her best friend Chloe's will be the same age. Though that picture with the two of them made me laugh because it looks like Leslie's thinking, "Please don't throw up on me."
    I dunno, I don't think Leslie's cut out to be a principal at all. I feel like it would stress her out too much.
    I've seen how age can make a difference in the amount of respect someone gets at work. But as long as no one stages a mutiny, Dominic'll be fine.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. I was pretty happy with the way the timing worked out for Leslie and Chloe too. They'll be going through their pregnancies together, which is extra nice, given neither of them have any family in game (apart from their husbands).

      Leslie's definitely not my top pick for principal. That's Finn. I think he's made for it.

      I've noticed a difference in how my colleagues treat me now versus the way they did when I was fresh out of uni. If you get the job done, it shouldn't make a difference but unfortunately, it does. The guys Dominic is working with now will get over it, I think!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  8. I'm thrilled about the baby! And I've noticed, too, that with the auto mechanics career, the salary gets pretty decent on the higher levels so I'm glad they're able to benefit from that.

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    1. I'm pretty thrilled myself! I already have names picked out, lol!

      I think the pay scale for the auto mechanics career seems quite true to life. Low-ish at the beginning but by the sim has gained some decent experience, they're definitely earning a good living. I have two mechanic cousins and from what they say, it's relatively accurate.

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  9. Yay, more babies! I was wondering when they would announce their first addition, and I'm glad it's finally time! And it's nice that their baby will be about the same age as Cloe and Zane's.
    I'm really excited for all these new babies!

    The shots at Dominic's workplace look really nice! I keep telling myself I need to do those things a lot more, but when I start playing, I forget or I don't have enough time to take them down to a community lot :)

    It's nice that Lesley is looking into getting her master, you never know what might come around in the future.

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    1. It's so exciting, isn't it? It'll be a while before Baby Lachance has any cousins, so it'll be nice that Baby Hamilton will be around. :)

      I do know what you mean about community lots! Sometimes I don't feel like I have the energy for it and I do a lazy "no one leaves the house" update! I'm usually more satisfied with the update if I force myself to get over it and take them somewhere nice. :)

      Leslie will definitely be prepared, should there come a time in the future when she needs that Master's. ;)

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  10. *Squee*! So happy that we’ll be seeing a baby from these 2. I’m really excited to see what their babies will look like. Tatiana and Jonas made beautiful children and I’m sure their children will do the same.

    I really loved the scenes of Dominic at work. I forgot that he skipped college and has been working for so long. I’m glad that Leslie decided to go for her master’s. It’ll be good for her to have even if she likely won’t be candidate for the principal position. Finn has to retire sometime and she could be next in line after him if she wants it.

    So excited for all the weddings and babies you have in the near future! :)

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    1. It's exciting, isn't it? I think we'll see some super-gorgeous kids from these two. Leslie and Dominic's features aren't prominent enough to cause any freakshow looking kids, hopefully!

      I used to regret not pushing harder to get Dominic into college but I like it for him now. I see him as a really hard worker (and in fact, I just added that to his traits) who would be keen to get right into the work force and start climbing the career ladder. I think Leslie has the same quality but for what she wanted to do, she obviously needed a degree. They're a good match that way.

      Ha, me too! I'm probably more excited that anyone!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  11. Yay for Dominic and Leslie! I'm certain the Lachance's are ecstatic--Tatiana and Jonas are going to be grandparents!

    I'm also super excited about Audrey and Jack's wedding! :)

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    1. Tatiana and Jonas can't wait to meet their grandchild. The baby will be born by the time we next visit them, so you'll be able to see them enjoying their new role as grandparents.

      Oh, me too, believe me! I'm picking out stuff already and I even did a little mock invitation. It's really cute. :)

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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