Autumn with the Ravelos

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A couple days after my birthday, right in the thick of autumn, my dad pulled me aside and asked me if I had my homework done.

“Well…no. It’s Friday. I have all weekend…”

“Get it done,” he said. “I’m going to need your help this weekend. Major project. MAJOR. And I can’t have you running off to mess around with your homework. OK?”

Ravelo Family

I knew what he meant. I tend to take my time with schoolwork, because I enjoy it. (Weird, I know.) So…I kind of neglect my chores around the house. And I knew dad wanted to start building the shed for his llama farm this weekend, and he’d need my help.

“But aren’t we going to Jasper Farms today?”

“Yes. But when we get home…you tackle that homework. No monkeying around. Got it?”

I nodded obediently, but inside I was irritated. My dad has a way of making me feel about two inches high sometimes. I thought about running for a quick shot of espresso, but everyone was already loading into the Bug for our family outing.

We set out for Jasper Farms, on the other side of Weatherby. I don’t know how we all fit into the Bug – it sort of defies the laws of physics — but we managed it. I ground my teeth the whole way there because I was ticked off at Dad, but by the time we piled out of the car, I was feeling a bit adventurous. It was fall, and it was pumpkin pickin’ time, and I wanted to see the llamas.

Ravelo Family

While the rest of the family checked out the store, Melly and I raced each other to the llama pen. She skipped like the wind; I sprinted in a rather uncool fashion.

Ravelo Family

I slowed down so I wouldn’t leave her in the dust. When we reached the fence, this shaggy old llama wandered up to us.

Ravelo Family

“Will he bite?” asked Melly.

“No…you just have to let him sniff your hand a bit first. And don’t make any sudden movements.”

Ravelo Family

“But what if he thinks my hand smells like food and he tries to chomp on it?”

“He won’t wanna eat your stinky old hand. Besides, Dad says petting a llama brings you good luck.”

“Like how?”

Ravelo Family

“Well, if you have good luck, you’ll get straight A’s all the time. And the boys at school won’t tug on your hair. And you get to eat cake for breakfast.”

Melly’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

“Yeah. You just have to be gentle. Here, you try.”

Melly lifted her hand slowly upwards and let the llama sniff it. Once she was convinced the llama wasn’t going to make lunch of her, she stroked the underside of its muzzle.

Ravelo Family

“It’s so soft! So…can I eat cake for breakfast now?”

I shrugged. “Sure.”

Ravelo Family

We got some more good luck from the llamas before heading off to the pumpkin patch. It was time to find our jack-o-lantern-to-be.

(continued on Page 3)

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35 thoughts on “Autumn with the Ravelos”

  1. Oh wow! A Ravelo update! I love the trip to the Pumpkin Patch ::sigh:: brings back memories…How’d you get your Sims to pet the Llama and interact like that? I’m so curious lol. And how cute! A doggie! What breed is he? And Longfellow is such a perfect name to go with Tennyson lol :) Great update!

  2. Oh, another Ravelo update! I love it! The pumpkin patch visit and the corn maze were awesome. I loved how Tennyson became a moody teenager with his dad but still a doting if odd older brother with his sister. But, I must admit, for a moment there I thought his dad had lost it. But, a dog! That’s awesome! Longfellow is such a cutie I can’t wait to see more of him, though I suppose we won’t until Tennyson finishes college. Oh, and can I ask, since you have Pets, does my name hack work fine still? Just curious. Can’t wait for the next update!

  3. Great update! I love the pumpkin patch! Did you create whole farm yourself or download it?

    I was off to Target tonight to buy Pets, too. I think I spent hours trying to figure out how to get a beagle named Dakota to stop peeing on the floor, arrrgggghhh. But the Sims’ pups are very cute.

  4. Wow! What a spectacular update, Jen. It really took me back to the pumpkin farm that I used to visit when I was little. I loved the fall clothes, the store, the pumpkin patch, & the corn maze. The llama scene was great. For a moment I actually thought I was going to see some real llama-petting action! That must of been a bear to orchestrate. Also, the clouds look fantastic on the outside shots.

    It’s great to see the Ravelos again. They’re all so pretty! :-)I can’t wait to see what kind of trouble Longfellow will get into. I hope he gets cured of his permanent Zs. I’m holding off on getting Pets until I have an entire day to mess around with it. If I bought it now my house wouldn’t get cleaned until Christmas and my husband would be forced to eat Spaghettios every day for dinner.

  5. Cool! I’m not last! Oh it is so good to visit with the Ravelos again! Tennyson grew up very nicely, and so did Melly, what a sweet Ravelo girl. The fall pictures are AMAZING, I don’t know where you find all this stuff, and your building and decorating are always a feast for the eyes. Longfellow is precious! How cool that the Ravelos have a dog now! I can’t wait to see what adventures that will bring them. Perhaps he wasn’t glitched – and he’s just ‘sleepwalking’ LOL This was a truly beautiful episode, and Tennyson is a little prince. I think he and Longfellow will have great adventures together.

    p.s. I miss the Burrs!!!! Please send them my regards ;)

  6. Aw, Longfellow is so cute! lol at the last picture. ;) The pumpkin patch and maze are so cool. Did you make the lot? I always love Ravelo updates and seeing what’s going on in their house. :D

  7. Wow, that’s AWESOME! I totally did not see the dog coming! I literally gasped out loud when Longfellow entered the picture. I love that last picture, made me laugh. Aw, I think that’s so great that the Ravelo’s have a dog now! Keep us updated on how that goes!

    The pumpkin patch scenes were so family-ish that I felt all warm and fuzzy inside. Especially the market, they reminded me of a place I went to. I love all the custom content of Halloween you have. You have a different way of telling all your Legacy stories! That’s just so cool. :D

    Anyways, so how’s the Burr’s? Can we have a Burr’s update soon? :P

  8. Hey guys, thanks for the comments. I’m glad it evoked memories of autumns past! heh. Funnily enough, I’ve never been to a pumpkin patch or gone through a corn maze — but I’ve always wanted to. So I’m living vicariously through the Ravelos. ;-) But I should really just get off my hiney and do it. Anyway, I did build this lot myself, but I couldn’t have done it without some amazing custom content — namely, the Llamazing Garden Statue (which is based on the holiday pack reindeer — that’s why Sims can pet it…and get shocked by it! haha), SimAddict99’s harvestable corn and pumpkins (which are based on Echo’s Harvestable Crops), Windkeeper’s pumpkins on TSR (the pumpkin that the Ravelo kids picked), and bunches of other stuff. I’ll add a list of credits to the end of the update, but if you’re curious about anything in particular, feel free to ask!

    And I’ll probably do a Burr update this weekend — it’s a bit slow going with them at the moment because of the interminable college years. I just have a hard time getting through them. But I’m determined! I want to see Gen 4 sometime SOON.

    Bitsy, I haven’t played the ‘hood where I have the name hack since I installed Pets, but I’ll most likely play them tonight or tomorrow. I’ll let you know if the hack is still working! I hope it is — I am so in love with that hack! :-D

    Thanks again, guys! Happy Fall!

  9. OMG how cool – Jen, what I loved most in this update was your kitchen, it is SO beautiful! MY kitchens just always look dull…. I really think I should get pets, too… but first of all I need to just go on playing, haven’t started the game in quite a while yet. Did you try postcrossing yet? Just received a card from a family in Wisconsin, who was going to a corn-maze themselves that day ;). It’s fun!
    Well, I’m off, visiting my boyfriend tonight and then gone until Friday because I’m in Bangkok, wooohoo ;)!
    Kisses!

  10. Ravelo update. Very nice. :D The autumn scenes are wonderful. Loved Tennyson telling Melly about the perfect pumpkin size. And the Ravelos have a dog, yay! Longfellow is adorable, even if he does have Z’s floating out of his head all the time. Did you make him yourself in CAP? Great update as usual, Jen. :D

  11. I enjoyed the outing to the pumpkin patch so much! It brought back fun memories. *sigh* I love this time of year. And it was so great to see the Ravelos again. I’ve been greatly enjoying the Burrs too, but it’s nice to visit “old” friends as well. Thanks, Jen! :)

  12. The Sims 2: Pets!!!! omg. i love how u tied that in with the update. and thank you SO much for sharing more about the ravelos with us. i just adore that family! and very tricky you are…not telling us about that until the last page. ah. i just love this wonderful blog.

  13. Yeah the Ravelos are back, I really missed them. I love how you do seasonal chapters. Melly is gorgeous just like her mom and aunties. I have a question about the dog what breed is he and can you upload him somewhere like the exchange.

  14. Awesome update as usual! :D I’m very amused at how teen-like you actually got Tennyson, moody and trying ever so hard to be hipper than thou. Is his sister going to goth out when she hits the teenage years?
    Yay Burrs! =D Anddddd — how’s the new neighborhood going?
    Longfellow is too cute for words. He’s right smack in my ‘favorite dog’ category, all big and sweet and bear-like.

  15. Wow, those have got to be the prettiest pictures I’ve ever seen you take! They are so colorful and robust and just…perfect! And the dog is so cute! I loved this update, it wasn’t rushed. It was a nicely detailed glimpse into Ravelo life. This generation sure is different! I love the relationship between Tennyson and his sister. Great job, I love it! I hope my Pets doesn’t go all glitchy on me. Yep that’s right, I got it yesterday! Oh well, off to mess around with the game some more!

  16. That’s quite a recipe, there. Llama + petting = cake!
    I need to try that sometime. I’ve never pet a llama– no petting zoos at all, really– and I don’t eat cake for breakfast!

    I really liked that poker picture, too. They looked kind of like “‘eyy. Join us for a game?”

    The picture where he’s saying “rule of thumb”… that gesture is just perfect. XD It looks like he’s spacing out two of his little sister’s heads!

    Ooh, Longfellow looks cute. But, don’t worry- the permanent-Z thing happens to some of my Sims sometimes, too! And at least he’s not leaking (water spurts out of him like a broken shower). :D
    He looks kind of funny, like he’s sleepwalking and causing mischief. Then when someone scolds him for it, he just goes “b-b-bbb-but I was SLEEPWALKING! ;__;”

    I really like those trees that were in Family Fun Stuff. Too bad, though– I’m slow to get EPs, and molasses-slow to get SPs. (And by “molasses-slow”, I mean “not getting them at all.” ^^; )

    I really liked the dialogue in this one. It just seemed so… normal! Well, not normal-normal, but realistic! Yeah, that’s the word for it.
    Yay, Ravelos! :D (Yay for most of the families you write about, actually. No booing ’round here, ma’am!)

  17. Ooooh, wonderful farm, Jen! Having been to an actual llama/alpaca farm (my dad loves them), it was really believable. And getting spit on by a llama? Totally not good luck for me–eugh!

    And the dog taking a pee on the chair, ahaha! That’s SOME project Tennyson has ahead of him! Much more involved than mere homework. :D

    I really like the overall ‘feeling’ of fall in all the pictures. I love fall. Too bad it passes by so quickly. Great update!

  18. Hiiiiiiii! you guys! WOW! that was one one killer update, I always wonder how you do it Jen, you must have superpowers! I have seen so many sims to sites and none of them even compare to yours, LOL. I love Melly’s hair! where did you get it? it’s so cute! and Jasper farms is soooooo cool. I absolutely love longfellow (creative name) he’s too cool! Marvelous update!

    Im out!

  19. YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS A RAVELO UPDATE! THIS TOTALLY ROCKS!!!!!!!

    I love Tennyson, and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE Melessee;s hair!!

  20. OMG!!!!!!!!!!!! thank you sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo mugh for putting up a ravelo update!I missed the good ole’ ravelo stories!I love the legacy stories! Keep em’ comin’!

  22. Ooh! I know the answer!
    Melly’s hair is from XMSims, which has fantastic hair meshes. Seriously! 40 pages of hairstyles, and I dare you to go through them all and not find even one that you like. (My personal favorites are page 34, page 26, and page 28.)
    Sometimes their recolors are a little iffy, but going through Mod the Sims 2 and the Insiminator forums should find you more than enough lovely recolors. ^^b

  25. OMG!!! I loved this update! It was so cool to see the llama farm and pumpkin patch! Tenny and Melly are super cute together, and I just love how he showed her how to pet llamas and pick a pumpkin! Too cute! And Longfellow…what a handsome doggy! I just got pets yesterday and have been playing a popularity sim that owns a chihuahua! Hehehe I’ll post pics soon! Loved it Jen, great update!

  26. wow amazing story im only 12 and i’ve been reading your story 4 years and i absoblutely love your Ravelo stories.where did you get there clothes and hair. XOxo nyhima(Shelly1178)=p ~happy simming~

  28. The story was GREAT! I was a bit clueless in the beginning but after a while I found myself getting really into it. I loved the scenery. The pumkins, the llamas, the corn, the fruit baskets, the clouds. The dog surprise was on of the best for me. I hope you make another one really soon.

    Score: 8/10 (8 out of 10)

  29. Wow that was such a great story! I’ve been reading your blog for a few months and I finally decided to leave a reply. I LOVED the ending with the dog! It was like something out of a movie lol. I’m not getting Business or pets because my computer is so slow lol. I might be making a sims 2 blog later on but I’m not sure yet. I love all the extra items and clothes you download! Great update!

  30. That was awesome! What is Tennyson’s aspiration? Knowledge? Cause that’s what he sounds like! I can’t wait for more!

  31. wow u got sims 2 pets well i got it 2 seen as it’s my b’day today but i got it on ps2 cos theres only 1gb left on my laptop though i might be allowed a new computer 4 xmas.gr8 update now what about keala?

  33. Hey everyone, thanks so much for all of the feedback. To answer a few questions:

    Eva M – I haven’t tried postcrossing yet, but how cool that you got one from a family in Wisconsin!

    Audrey – Yep, I made Longfellow in CAP, but he wasn’t complicated — he’s basically a St. Bernard with “Wolf” coloring (one of the premade color templates). I might have changed his face shape a little but not much else. I was overwhelmed by all of the different options!

    Laura – Longfellow is a St. Bernard. I’ll see if I can upload him to the exchange!

    Kay – Hm, do you think Melly should goth out? :-D The new ‘hood is going swell…might be able to post the intro very soon here.

    Blu – You didn’t ask a question, but thanks for making me laugh. :-D

    Abby – I downloaded Melly’s hair from XMSims. Oh wait…Blu already answered your question. Never mind then. :-) Thanks, Blu!

    shelly1178 – Melly’s hair is from XMSims (link above). Her outfit is by nicwear from The Sims Resource. Tennyson’s outfit is from SimSquirts. I think everyone else is pretty much wearing Maxis or stuff from All About Style.

    Marcie – Bingo! You win a prize! Tennyson’s aspiration is indeed Knowledge.

    Kitty – Happy Birthday! Congrats on getting Pets. You asked about Kaela – she’s in Simmywood but may make an appearance later on. And nope, I haven’t downloaded any teeth. Those are Maxis originals.

  34. Yes, make Melly a goth! XD I don’t recall that you’ve done a goth teen before(? swiss cheese memory here) so it’d be fun to see.