Day 7, Sunday, 6:40 PM
Uncle Elvis is making catfish for dinner again. This is not good. I just got a weird haircut, and the absolute last thing I need right now is another attack of the killer pimples. I look dorky enough without them, thank you very much. On the other hand, the catfish does smell tasty…
Rico and I just got into a fight outside. I’m trying to calm myself down by writing about my day, even though I’d rather sock him a good one. Not that I’m a violent person. In fact, I’m very anti-violence. But my brother makes me want to punch things sometimes. “Things” in this case being “his face”. Grrr!
Take a deep breath, Fran. Count to 10.
There, I’m better now. Let’s talk about my day, shall we? I’m sure you’re all dying to hear all about it. (Sorry, the recent encounter with my brother has brought out my sarcasm in full force. Maybe I’d better count to 10 again…)
The day started with some weirdness at breakfast. First off, when I entered the kitchen, Dad was feeding the baby. Yep, you read that right. Dad. The guy who didn’t even show up for his daughter’s birth last night. But there he was, holding her and feeding her as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Sandy,” my Dad was saying, “tell them the good news.” He put down the baby’s bottle and wandered back towards the table with a big smile on his face.
I sat down as all eyes focused on Mom. She beamed back at us, and it struck me how pretty she looked this morning. I wondered what Dad had said to make her forgive him so quickly. He probably just offered to give her a back massage.
“I have a new job,” she announced. “Starting tomorrow. I’ll be tuning pianos.”
We all made little murmuring noises of approval, except for Elvis. He looked worried. With my mom’s next words, I realized why.
“While I’m working,” she said, “your dad is going to stay home and take care of the baby.”
In a slight panic, I looked at dad. He was still grinning.
It didn’t make sense at all. I mean, I love my Dad, but I think we can all agree that he’s loony tunes. Who would put the welfare of a newborn baby in his hands? He bought a telescope when he was supposed to buy a crib, for crying out loud. What’s he going to do next? Sell the baby to buy a pick-up truck?
“But Mom –” I piped up.
She just talked right over me, as cheerful as ever. He must have given her a really good back massage.
“This means we’ll have some money again,” she said, her eyes twinkling. I could almost see visions of a new kitchen dancing above her head.
Rico cheered. “Yes! Does that mean I don’t have to work at the nursing home?”
“No,” Mom said firmly. “I won’t be making THAT much money.” Rico’s face fell. (Ha. Take that, Rico!) “You’ll all still need to chip in however you can. But things won’t be as tight around here, thank goodness.”
Even though I was still nervous about the whole Dad-babysitting-Weezy thing, this gave me an idea. If we were going to have more money shortly, maybe Mom would let me get a haircut and buy some new clothes for my job. I had to look professional for that ambassador lady, right?
A little later on I proposed the idea to Mom. I was playing with cute little Weezy, and she was watching to make sure I didn’t drop her or anything.
“Well,” she said, “if you help your brothers rake the leaves, I’ll give you…50 Simoleons.”
I almost dropped Weezy.
“Really?”
“Really.”
“But I gotta rake leaves with Rico?”
“Yes.”
“How much is he getting?”
“Zip. Zero.”
I mulled it over for about two seconds. “OK! I’ll do it. Wow. Fifty bucks. Thanks, Mom!”
What can I say? It sounded like a lot of money at the time.
(continued on Page 2)
Darn, nothing more about the mystery of Joel and his family. I still have a slight notion that the baby might be Elvis’, but I am probably wrong. Heh, I’m lame. :)
I love Fran, she’s utterly awesome. (I laughed my head off at the thing about “wahoo” and “woohoo”). But I miss her hat, even if the new hair is kind of cool.
I wish someone would buy me a present that big…bah. But I suppose I’ll let Bernie have it this once…I really want to find out what happens next! :D
Hi. aww Wezzy is so cute in that baby outfit I wish that baby sims can have a bunch of their own clothes like all the other sim age groups.
um Marico must have given Sandy a really good back “massage” *wink wink nudge nudge* if she agreed to let him look after little Wezzy on his own!. wait a minute have I missed something here coz why can’t Elvis look after her?.
I will look forward to part 2
See ya
YAY!!! This is the first update in sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo long!!! Grr….why did you have to leave us hanging?! But, hey, great job!
Weezy is so mega-cute. But it is a bit of a worry dad taking care of her. Poor little mite. Luckily Uncle Elvis is hanging around to make sure nothing too bad happens.
The poor hat :(.
Another awesome update as per usual Jen… I really love this family… they have such a fun dynamic.
Wow, looking at the places that Fran went to…Riverblossom Hills (did I get that right?) looks like a really developed neighborhood. I’ll miss Fran’s hat, but her new hairdo is nice. And I hope that the ambassador lady isn’t too strict on Fran. I also like how Fran got $50 for the leaves and Rico didn’t get any, haha. For some reason, while reading the Gardening Club stuff, I thought that Elvis was going to become a plant person later on when he uses too much pesticide. :P Great update, as always! I can’t wait to see Part 2.
Ah Jen, you always remind me of why I like simming so much. I can’t believe the mom is going to work post-baby and that good for nothing dad is going to stay at home…. I like Francesca’s new hair – but I understand why she misses her hat. The gardening club certainly takes their job seriously…. LOL. Uncle Elvis is beginning to grow on me. He’s not such a bad guy. And darn you for leaving us hanging! :D
What a fun update – loved how you set up RBH’s shopping area – very good!
Weezy – that name always reminds me of the Jeffersons :D
Glee update! Huh. Is the hairdresser and the clerk NPCs (with makeovers) or Sims you made from scratch, Jenba? They’re both very purty, I especially like the clerk’s nose. :D
And poor Fran, no more hat! At least she got a proper haircut and didn’t end up with a burnt scalp and chopped up bits like the failed makeovers give. @.o
I’m currently working on setting my neighbourhood up once more. Chewing through all my options, trying to pick good archetypes to be the founding Sims. Hey, do you still have that Malcolm Landgraab skin I sent to you a while back? I wasn’t too happy about the way my second version of him looked, but I don’t have the original anymore, so. :o
Excellent work as always, miss Jenba ma’am! I like it. *bounces* Will there really be another update soon? =)) @set me=Greedy_McPants!
I love it! AS the rest said… Weezy is adorable. Fran makes me laugh… the story is hilarious. Thanks for the update. Look forward to the next one!
I don’t know what to say that hasn’t already /been/ said so I’ll repeat it :D whyyyyyyyy did you leave us hanging?!?! whyyyyyy did Sandra let Mauricio (sp??) give her a massage? why did they /talk/ to plants… etc.
~~~!@$%^*()_^#@!@$%~~~crazy sims…;D couldn’t help myself sorry…
Tammy, re: Sandra and massage, I’d assume the answer is.. Because he’s her husband? XD I’m a bit more baffled that he apparently did good enough that she both forgave him *and* is letting him watch the baby. Talking to plants really is good for them! Especially in the Sims Seasons, a good long conversation with a plant can take them from wilted to fantastic. :D
Hey, Hey, HEY!!! Wait, wait, WAIT! What was the fight with her brother about? What other stop does she need to make?! You can’t leave it THERE! GAH! And the whole situation with her DAD watching Weezy … EEK!
I have become addicted to checking your blog but I think I’m worried about the social worker coming to take Weezy. Maybe a nanny as a back-up might be a good thing :p
wow i love this update i tought it was funny when franchesca said ‘whats he gonna do next? sell the baby for a pick-up truck?’ lol!! wezzy’s soooooo cute!!! xxx
Very cute update. I actually like Fran’s new haircut. I think it’s pretty! And wow, that was a huge box for such a little gnome!
Oooh, what a very “mod” hairstyle! It looks good on her.
You seem to have nipped the update bug in the butt and found something you’re enjoying again–which is great! It shows in the writing. :)
Great, as usual! Just wondering, what took so long on this update? And are you still working on Shady Bluff??
Jen! Where’s part II? Did you die at work? Whee. Good stuff, enjoyable. Did you deliberately pick the hair to make her look like Dark Helmet?
Hey guys, thanks for the comments! I didn’t meant to leave you hanging like that…I just ended up taking too many pics for this update and decided to split it up. So the pics for Part II are all ready to go…it’s just the writing part that isn’t done yet. It should be up within a week.
To answer some questions –
Pandora Moon – Elvis can’t look after Weezy because he’s busy taking care of the house and yard. But I’m sure he’ll keep an eye on Mauricio and the baby as well!
Rachel – Yep, it’s Riverblossom Hills, the new Maxis neighborhood that came with Seasons. I made a little downtown area for it since it didn’t really have one.
Kay – The hairdresser and floral shop clerk are both CAS Sims that I made. And yes, I think I do still have Malcolm around here somewhere! I’ll send him to you. Don’t let me forget. :-D Happy to hear you’re working on your neighborhood! Whee!
Tammy – Heh, Kay gave some excellent answers to your questions. Thanks, Kay!
simlover – This update took so long because I got busy with real life stuff. Plus I’m just really slow with writing updates. It can take me up to 20 hours just to do one story (that includes building sets, creating any secondary characters, taking pics, editing pics, and writing the actual update), so it just depends on how much free time I have in a given week. It’s unpredictable, unfortunately! As for Shady Bluff, I’m so glad you like it, but I have to say I’m no longer working on it…I’m working on a new ‘hood instead. It’s slow-going, since I’m focusing on Fran right now, but you’ll definitely see it somewhere down the road.
Jonbo – I’m not dead yet!
50 MORE simoleans says she’s going to see Joel.
Very cute, loved the new sets.
Very humorous.
This is my favorite blog, I love Fran!
WAhoo. (heehee).
Great Update! But, where did Franchesca’s dad go? Was that ever established? :) Oh, and I got my very first plantsim! YAY! But how do you make them have babies (plantsim babies, not regular ones) I saw what Mandie said at Fortune Shores but when I clicked on the plantsim it only had the regular interactions…any suggestions?
That’s odd, Lucia. How many family members are there in the family the plantsim’s part of? Making a plant baby should be one of the standard interactions, assuming it’s an adult. And I think both genders are supposed to be able to do it too. :o
Wow Jen! Another great update as usual! It was nice to see a little bit more of the town that Franchesca lives in, a nice contrast to the home we have been seeing a lot of. :)
I have a few questions I want to ask you though! Since I am really intrigued/interested in some of the stuff you’ve shown.
– How did you get a gift box that big?! An overwrite? Or maybe you are a really good editor?
– Is that bottle fed to Weezy an overwrite as well?
– How did you manage to get that young lady from the gardening club to be a garden club manager person? I’m presuming she is a CAS sim though?
– Where did you get all those teen clothes from? They look GREAT! I have a hard time finding stuff to add to my game, because I try to choose stuff that blends with the Maxis things, and those look great!
Umm thats all I have to ask about for now LOL! I can’t wait to see more! :D
Hi, i’m new to your stories but not new to sims 2. I happened to stumble across this fabulous Francesca Diaries and you get me addicted! While i wait for this update i checked up your other stories and i love the Braytons, Ravelos and Annabel Island. You also get me crazy downloading all those nice dresses for my sims with the links you provided! Most of all reading your stories make me feel less miserable at work! And it renew my passion for sims 2!
Chapter 3: In the Trench, is up at my site. Nikki tries to quiet Catherine’s questions while her mother’s nerves are on edge.
Katie – Excellent guess, my friend. And hooray, you updated! I actually started reading it yesterday and got pulled away, but I’m going to finish it tonight.
Lucia – Fran still doesn’t know where her dad was the night the baby was born…and have you had any luck with Plantsim babies? What Kay said is correct, as far as I know…both genders should be able to make Plant Babies if you click on the plantsim…hmm.
Kay – You are so johnny-on-the-spot with answering questions. Thank you!
Teckno102 – The gift box in this update is from Paladin’s Place. I wanted to find one I could place in a pic, plus it looks big enough to hold a gnome (or three, haha). I had to do cheaty things to make it look like the sales clerk was holding it (she’s actually juggling, and the gift box is sitting on an invisible platform in front of her). The bottle for Weezy is a default replacement by bienchen83 at MTS2. And yes, the younger lady in the gardening club is a CAS Sim — she didn’t actually arrive with the other lady. I had to cheat a bit to make those pics. The teen clothes that Fran tries on are all from All About Style, one of my very favorite sites for Sim clothing. She has everything from Medieval to Victorian to modern, and her stuff is high-quality.
karen – Hi there! Welcome, and thanks so much for your feedback. I’m glad you’re enjoying my stories and having fun with your game!
Wonderful as usual, Jen. I agree with everyone else’s comments.