Thursday 13 May 2010

Walking to do

Round 26: Winter 2024
last update/next update

Araminta Romilly is 61, Henry is 59 and Elspeth is 10.
(Trent Kirby is 54, Megan is 52, Ione Moretti is 28 and Finn Romilly and Victoria Kirby are both 23)

Narrated by Araminta Romilly

So out of nowhere this year, Elspeth decided Josh Royce-Nihill was her best friend.

You'd think mere proximity would have made them buddies; they started kindergarten together and have been in the same class ever since. But they never bothered with each other before. I figured they just didn't get along. Elspeth can be a little trying!

Elspeth has been a bit of a loner in the past but she's really coming into her own this year and I'm so happy to see it. Josh is over most afternoons.

She's become a little social butterfly. We're going to have to get Elspeth her own phone soon or completely forget about being able to call anyone ourselves. She's got the receiver glued to her ear.

Her grades started to slip a tiny bit at the beginning of this year.

It didn't take long to figure out why. Up until the end of last year, Matilda used to watch Elspeth after school but now that she's at college, Elspeth is on her own until 4pm, when Henry gets home. That hour used to be spent doing homework but left to her own devices, Elspeth plays video games instead.

It's amazing what confiscating the Playstation for a few weeks can do! Her grades went right back up and she's much better about doing her homework now.

The other day, Finn called to invite us out to dinner with Victoria's parents. Of course, we'll take any opportunity to see Finn so we dropped Elspeth off with Ione and headed out to Exeter.

Elspeth loves going to see her sister, so she didn't even mind missing out on the dinner.

Henry and I both really like Trent but we're never sure what to make of Megan.

She just seems so uptight sometimes, though she's like that with her own family too so perhaps we shouldn't take it personally.

Anyway, we were really more excited to hear Finn and Victoria's news than we were worried about Megan. We were pretty sure it was going to be good news, so we weren't nervous - just excited. No one gathers their family around for a nice meal to reveal bad news!

Finn and Victoria made us wait until our food came before they made their announcement but finally they told us - they're engaged!

The rings probably should have given it away but we weren't looking for them. Finn asked Victoria just a few days ago and they wanted to tell us all together.

Henry and I were just thrilled to hear that! They haven't started planning much yet but they're looking at getting married the summer after next, so they have plenty of time.

I know Finn has had some problems with Victoria's mother - he's not sure she likes him too much - so I was watching Megan closely for her reaction. Surprisingly though, she seemed quite happy about the news. She even suggested the wedding be held at their farm. It's a beautiful place and it would save them some money.

That's the kind of offer Finn would normally refuse - he looks at that sort of thing as charity, which he has trouble accepting. But he's looking at it as a peace offering from Megan, so he agreed to it. Victoria loved the idea too - her parents and grandparents both got married on the same farm, so it has sentimental value for her.

After dinner, we had some champagne brought over and Trent made a toast to Finn and Victoria.

I'm so glad the dinner went well. Hopefully this is a step in the right direction for our families. We're going to be the one family now, officially, so it would be nice if we could all get along!

We couldn't believe it when Megan hugged Finn goodbye at the end of the night! I'm feeling really optimistic about this now but I hope it's not unfounded.

When we we got back to Sullivan, we headed straight over to Ione's to pick up Elspeth. Finn gave us the go-ahead to tell his sisters, so we'd planned on telling them straight away.

Ione was excited, just like we were when we heard. I guess some would say Finn and Victoria are very young to be taking this step, but we've sort of all been waiting for this since they graduated! We wouldn't have been surprised if they'd got married while they were still in college.

Elspeth wasn't as interested in the news as we thought she would be. Maybe she's growing out of that sort of thing. She couldn't wait for Ione's wedding!

I think she must have just been too tired to care because the next day, the wedding was all she'd talk about!

Elspeth is a little disappointed she won't be in the bridal party this time - Victoria's sisters will be her bridesmaids. But she's already talking about getting a new dress for the occasion, which is something I'm going to have to start thinking about for myself!

Notes:
  • Title is from Walking To Do by Ted Leo and the Pharmacists. I don't really know what that video is! Grooveshark is down.
  • Finn and Victoria's wedding will be in Summer 2026. I'm going to have the wedding and the reception at the farm. I'll temporarily move them in just to get married and then plop them back in their apartment when they're done (Declan and Caitlin will act as placeholders). It worked pretty well with Lia and Gordon, so I'm not foreseeing any problems, fingers crossed! I've already got almost everything picked out for this one. :D
  • I was going to have Elspeth be a flower girl again and then I realised she'll be a teen by the time Finn and Victoria get married! Can't believe it - wasn't she just born yesterday? I'll just leave the bridesmaids as Claudia and Rebecca though, or else I'll have to find another groom's man for Finn, and I kind of just want to leave it at Jacob and Calvin.
  • Megan at the restaurant was all autonomous! I couldn't believe it when she hugged Finn. Unbelievable. But they became friends over dinner (finally!) so hopefully, they'll get along a little better from now on. I've noticed that Sims with diverging interests seem to be smarter at choosing conversation topics they'll agree on once they're friends, so we'll see how they go!

18 comments:

  1. I'm glad that they're finally making some headway with Megan, it's nice to see! I can't believe Elspeth will be a teen soon, I agree, it totally seems like yesterday! It's good to see that the Romily's are doing well too. Can't wait for the wedding and Elspeth's adorable teen-ness!

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  2. Oh yeah!! I'm unbelievably proud of Megan for hugging Finn, and becoming friends with him. What a good night for this family! engagement announcement, and acceptance from the soon to be inlaws!

    I like Araminta's POV on them all being one big family, that's pretty awesome. As for Elspeth, I'm looking forward to seeing her as a teen. It's going to be a long engagement for these two, isn't it painful for you? I have Morgan/Zeke slotted for fall 2013, they got engaged summer 2012. It's so freaking far away, and Victoria's is even farther! I'm looking forward to seeing it all designed, and how sweet on the farm being where her past family has gotten married. a sweet tradition.

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  3. Megan hugging was a shock, does she even hug her own daughters?

    I love Megan's hair, is that Xandher? Also, Victoria and Ione's outfits, is that Bunny from TSR?

    LOL! Yea, the rings would have given it away if you looked at thier hands :P

    Elspeth is going to be a cute teen, I always want to type her name as Elphaba from Wicked.

    The wedding is sure to be cute, can't wait to see it at the farm.

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  4. Thanks for reading, guys!

    Tessa, yes, hopefully, they'll all be ready to play happy families for real by the time the wedding comes around!

    Once Elspeth ages up, we should have a good idea what Finn would look like as a girl - they're very, very alike!

    Maisie, I was happy to see it too! It took Megan long enough!

    And yeah, Finn and Victoria's wedding definitely seems like a long time away! Steve and Olivia's is even further away though. I haven't got them slotted in until Spring 2026! But I've got lots to look forward to at least.

    I'll stick with this farm wedding tradition, I think. I'll probably have Claudia and Rebecca get married there too. That's dependent on who they end up with, I guess, but it's a nice idea.

    Apple Valley, Megan is actually quite affectionate with her husband and daughters but she isn't generally a huggy type of Sim. So it was unusual behaviour for her, definitely!

    I think Elspeth has the potential to be kind of a witch at times, so Elphaba might be more appropriate than it would appear!

    Megan's hair is a Raon mesh (a gappy one, unfortunately) but the recolours I use are by Rissa. Ione's outfit is indeed by Bunny at TSR. Victoria's outfit is actually a top and bottom. The top is by Under Your Skin but I can't figure out where the jeans are from. There was no info in the tool tip.

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  5. Megan + hugging Finn = AWESOME!
    Very shocked to see Megan coming around, but very glad that she is. Awwwww, Finn and Victoria are finally tying the knot! Can't say I didn't see this coming! I love Victoria's hair, it fits her perfectly

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  6. Mizzgin03, maybe it's the upcoming wedding that's causing Megan to try to accept Finn finally. I'm just glad she's taking some positive steps here.

    I've been thinking Finn and Victoria would end up getting married since they were about 14 or 15. They just seem like the kind of couple who always knew that's where they were headed.

    Victoria is a little hard to find a hairstyle for but I think this one really suits her too. :)

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  7. Just as I was complaining about Megan in my comment on the previous post! She's finally coming around!

    I love that they're getting married at the farm. It's such a nice tradition.

    Elspeth is going to be a cute teenager. Henry will have to chase guys off from their property with a stick :P

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  8. Sari, it was quite the turn-around for Megan, wasn't it? She knows she didn't react well to Victoria's pregnancy and that she's never been good with Finn, so now that he's becoming family (officially - he already is, really), she's taking steps to mend that.

    I'm excited to do a farm wedding. I haven't done one since Trent and Megan and that was before I started doing my really fancy weddings.

    I think Henry and Araminta are probably in for a surprise with Elspeth! Ione was a pretty teen too but she was so shy they never had to worry much about her. She never went further than kissing. But Elspeth is quite outgoing, so Henry might need to keep a closer eye on her!

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  9. Megan has made me happy. She and Finn are getting along now. I just hope it stays that way for good!!!

    Looking forward to the wedding!

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  10. Riverdale, me too! Finn always tried so hard. It was making me sad that she never seemed to warm to him. So I've kind of got the warm fuzzies about this now. :)

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  11. Hey, I didn't realize toddlers could place hold.

    I love how Elspeth became a social butterfly this round, and overnight decided Josh was her best friend. It will be fun to see her become a teen.

    And of course, I am SO looking forward to Victoria and Finn's wedding, and having it at the farm will be so nice.

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  12. Francesca, well, I'm not positive they can. I know pets can though. I figure it'll be fine as long as I don't enter Finn and Victoria's apartment before I move them back in.

    It was interesting that Elspeth has never really cared much for other people before this round. But this round, she rolled the want to skill, then to make a friend, then another skill, then to make another friend. And she had wants for Josh as soon as I loaded.

    I'm glad everyone's excited about the wedding because I sure am! :D

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  13. Megan kills me. She is so the mother in law from hell, but it's nice that her and Finn became friends here considering he's going to be officially a part of the family.

    It's true, once sims are friends, it's almost like they're more forgiving on those diverging interesting. But until then it's an uphill battle.

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  14. Lunar, Megan is tough to get along with but I should have pegged onto that early on. If you go back to when she first met Trent, she was bitch-facing at Betsy (Trent's cousin) and she was quite cranky on their honeymoon. I thought it was because she was pregnant with twins, but looking back, I think it was just Megan!

    I guess that's sort of like real life. We're probably all a lot more tolerant about our friends talking about their interests than total strangers. So hopefully, Megan and Finn's relationship will be a little more smooth-sailing from here on in.

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  15. Awww, that was sweet of Megan. Though I'll have to say, I hope she doesn't get too squishy on us, because uptight Megan is always a fun addition to an update, lol! :)

    I'm eager to see Elspeth grow up too! She's going to be adorable!

    Oooh, good luck on the placeholding thing! That sounds tricky.

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  16. Laura, I don't think there's much danger of any further squishification of Megan. I wouldn't have it, lol!

    I keep thinking Elspeth is aging up this summer but then I remember that it's next summer and I get all impatient. But I've got Connor, Sophia, Camilla and Lila aging up this summer, so they'll tide me over.

    I'm thinking I should test out this placeholder thing before I do it with Declan and Caitlin. I don't want a visit from the social worker just because I insist on complicating things for myself!

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  17. Methinks Megan just wanted to be sure Finn was gonna put a ring on it!

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    Replies
    1. Very possibly! She may have come around to Finn eventually anyway but if he and Victoria hadn't got engaged, there would have been some serious prodding and nagging for them to do so!

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