The Baby Boomer Challenge

[Metropolis Man]

Awwwwww...WTG Metro. 

Ha ha. Thanks.  Although as I think more about this challenge, I think there may be a limitation/flaw in the scoring system: Pam probably got the maximum number of points possible. I may be able to match her — it's way to early to tell. But, without another scoring component there could be multiple ties. Without Fertility Treatments at the beginning most players are going to have a single baby. Then the next batch would probably be triplets with the Fertility Treatments. So, that puts the household at 6 meaning the next batch of babies would probably default to twins since there's a max of 8 in the household.

Then there's going to be a LOOONG waiting period until the youngest are old enough to move out and slots can be filled again with new babies. I guess what I'm getting at here is if many of us follow the same strategy, then scores would be very similar.

[kat]

Ok, looks like I am a bit late here, but I will give the challenge a go! It's my first attempt at a challenge, but I have done the big family lifetime wish before, and found that fun but hectic!
wish me luck! :-)

[Metropolis Man]

I sent my 2nd attempt at the Carbonara's to the trash can tonight. Now, before everyone laughs their butts off and calls me a quitter — I am NOT quitting this challenge. I want to win it. That's my problem — I'm so competitive and the whole parenting side of the game was completely new to me that I made some truly drastic mistakes. Babysitting. Holy crap, that's a godsend and I never took advantage of it for the first 10 days. So, stupid. Making sure the kids were very happy when aging up so I could choose traits — didn't do it. And on and on. House lay out was a problem too and I didn't plan properly for expansion, so there was lots of pathfinding problems. So, long story short — third times the charm, and I'm diving back in tomorrow. I love the challenge and never thought I'd say that, but I just have to start again and do it right. Honestly I consider the next one my 2nd attempt considering my first couple never even had the first baby.

I'm a quick learner, Pam. Watch out. 

[Pam]

I rather thought I got the maximum number of points, too.  It will be interesting to see how you finish up, Metro.  Keep us posted!

[Metropolis Man]

I rather thought I got the maximum number of points, too.  It will be interesting to see how you finish up, Metro.  Keep us posted!

You know I will. Hindsight is always 20/20, Pam, but if you and Carl ever redo this challenge then add a 2nd scoring component — one with a variable score. That way, if several players do end up with the maximum score for the kids, then there's something else that can break a tie. Make it family oriented, like something tied to wishes completed from your Young Adults that eventually get the boot.

[Cel_sims3]

So I have a quick question. How about aging sims before their time? Like with Birthday Cakes. Is that considered cheating? Otherwise, I'm on my way to having six young adults and she's not even a full adult yet...

Mod:
(Oh, and btw, I'm Chanelle, I'm new here. I've been playing since sims 1 came out forever ago and am a rabid fan. I never knew there were sims boards..)

[kat]

ok my parents are called Mork & Mindy Green  Mork is on the medicine career track and aiming for top surgeon...the mum is helping out by painting masterpieces and selling them - a great way for her to earn money on the side.
So far, they have 1 child, twin toddlers, and twin babies! ALL GIRLS!!!! (what are the odds?? and please don't say 50/50!)
The only problem I am coming up with is the fact that the mum and dad are often so darn tired that they don't want to woohoo (heck, I know the feeling!), which is slowing up the production rate a wee bit...

[Metropolis Man]

So I have a quick question. How about aging sims before their time? Like with Birthday Cakes. Is that considered cheating? Otherwise, I'm on my way to having six young adults and she's not even a full adult yet...

(Second QQ: What about life fruit? You know it gives us extra time in life, right? I don't know what's cheating anymore, I've cheated regularly too often..)
(Oh, and btw, I'm Chanelle, I'm new here. I've been playing since sims 1 came out forever ago and am a rabid fan. I never knew there were sims boards..)

Both of your suggestions can hardly be considered cheating given these are in-game features. Plus, they are not explicitly forbidden in the rules. Now, are they sneaky exploits you've discovered to give yourself an advantage? Of course!  But, I say, well done to that. Only problem is — now everyone knows (I don't think I'll pursue the Life Fruit trick though — too much more work with Gardening).

[Cel_sims3]

well, Darn that I told you all but I'll have to play this right...TY

[Carl]

That was an idea we didn't really think of... these challenges have to evolve sometimes like everything else. A good spot, but honestly perpetuating mom's life with life fruit and aging sims up prematurely seems a bit outside the scope of the challenge. It's not a cheat per se, however it really would serve to devalue the challenge. Better to let them age naturally and avoid making mom immortal.

As to scoring, I feel if people do manage to max out mom as a baby factory, and make as many babies as is possible, they have certainly mastered it. If 12 is literally the most possible, that's ok. Not everyone will reach that. People like these challenges sometimes less for scoring and more for giving them direction in an open-ended game.

[Cel_sims3]

You know, I was just getting to that point in my game. Immortality is no fun and The Challenge is downright boring when you just age kids right out of the house. I'll have to restart Mr. and Mrs. Deck and see what I get from there.

[Metropolis Man]

I'll have to restart Mr. and Mrs. Deck and see what I get from there.

Yeah because you already had been doing the birthday cake trick, right?

[Cel_sims3]

Yup. She has eight kids and has eight days until she's a full adult. It's a little too easy, ya know? no actual challenge

[Metropolis Man]

That's amazing. Almost like the real life Duggars!   Well, good thing you spoke up to give Carl a chance to weigh in on the idea. Good luck with Round Two.

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EDIT: I played some this morning with the Carbonaras #3. Things are going SOOOO much better this time around. I've got my finger on the pulse in all areas of the game and am leaving absolutely nothing unattended. Greta's first pregnancy went incredibly well. I knew about what time the delivery should happen, but forgot to take the actual labor into consideration. That's nearly 2 sim hours in itself, so she didn't get to eat her meal. Plus, I wanted her in the living room so her favorite music could be playing, but she ended up having the twins in the bathroom. Yes, twins. I guess that's one way to beat Pam's 12 is to have the first delivery turn out to be twins.

This time around it's looking like Gordon is going to be surrounded with way too much estrogen — just like me in real life! So, in keeping with the g-theme we're going with Gabrielle (Artistic, Virtuoso) and Ginny (Couch Potato, Genius).

The 2 cribs are taking up the entire front room and the dining room table/chairs and the couch used for watching TV are all in the front yard. It looks pretty hilarious. But, I was waiting for Gordon to finish his shift at the base at 3PM to have that money for my remodeling project. Oh, he was about a millimeter away from getting a promotion. So close. But, the Carbonaras have around 3k simoleans in the Household Funds, so adding on the nursery should not be an issue.

Getting caught up in the moment of Greta delivering twins I almost forgot about cashing in her Lifetime Happiness points (and Gordon's) with Fertility Treatments. Luckily I did remember and when Gordon walked in the door Greta was relaxing on the bed and asking him to Try For Baby — 6 hours after delivering twins! She's a machine. So, it's looking like the 2nd round of babies will come around 4PM on Saturday of Week 1. Stay tuned.....

[Cel_sims3]

It's not too bad yet. I have Lee and Chanelle Deck (Named after my husband and my self. They even look like us, that was fun.) They live in a modest two bedroom abode. Chanelle is quickly learning the cooking skill and will be working on the gardening skill after that. Chanelle wants little more than to read and have kids. Lee is in the business career. He's already gotten his first promotion just two days after starting. He's a real go getter. Life is apparently good for them.

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Edit:
Friday of week one: Lee has been promoted twice and Chanelle gave birth to twin boys, Lee Jr. and Kyle. She took care of the initial feeding and her Lee got home from work. After giving Chanelle the fertility treatment, they promptly worked like rabbits and Chanelle is working on the next babies (please be triplets..) To cut off the impending stress I've been working hard to make sure I get all the babies needs taken care of before they cry so mommy doesn't have to take care of crying twins.

[on a side note as a newly wed wife, I'm really really hoping that this isn't how my marriage will go. Because in the real world, there are no household limits...eek]

[Metropolis Man]

To cut off the impending stress I've been working hard to make sure I get all the babies needs taken care of before they cry so mommy doesn't have to take care of crying twins.

That's a great tip and something I had planned on as a general strategy this time around.....prevention. I'm hoping to completely eliminate the need for a Babysitter this time. Keep those babies happy and don't let them bottom out with their needs. And as much of a perfectionist as I am, I absolutely cannot believe I did not consider a Toddler's mood level when trying to teach the initial skills. Why wouldn't they gain those skills quicker just as older sims do if they are happy? Lots of micromanagement, but it should be worth it.

Nice job getting the twins, Chanelle!   

[Cel_sims3]

Nice job getting the twins, Chanelle!   

Thanks, You know a tip I got from my friend was that if you watch kids shows or listen to kids music during the pregnancies, they tend to have more babies. Oh, and have you tried giving your younger sims teddy bears in their inventories to sleep with? It gives them a better mood. Oh, and duckies for all sims baths, they get happy moodlets..

[Metropolis Man]

Thanks, You know a tip I got from my friend was that if you watch kids shows or listen to kids music during the pregnancies, they tend to have more babies. Oh, and have you tried giving your younger sims teddy bears in their inventories to sleep with? It gives them a better mood. Oh, and duckies for all sims baths, they get happy moodlets..

When I created Gordon and Greta I actually picked their favorite music as Kid's, so yeah, that sappy stuff is playing 24/7. The duckies tip is very well known. The Teddy Bear thing makes sense. I put them in the cribs, not in inventory. I'm pretty sure it still provides the moodlet.

[Cel_sims3]

When I created Gordon and Greta I actually picked their favorite music as Kid's, so yeah, that sappy stuff is playing 24/7. The duckies tip is very well known. The Teddy Bear thing makes sense. I put them in the cribs, not in inventory. I'm pretty sure it still provides the moodlet.

Of Course it is...it seems like I'm always the last to know stuff. Oh well, good luck to you.

[wildredchild]

Actually Metro, they only get the cuddle time moodlet if the bear is in their inventory and they go to sleep.  Works all the way up through the teen years.

[Metropolis Man]

Actually Metro, they only get the cuddle time moodlet if the bear is in their inventory and they go to sleep.  Works all the way up through the teen years.

That makes no sense as opposed to the bear being in the crib which is more like real life. Hmmmm....and my last session they didn't get the moodlet, but I experimented with putting the bear in Inventory after they had fallen asleep. So, next time I'll put the bear in Inventory before they fall asleep. But, I just don't like that at all. Seeing the bear in the crib is just a visual thing for me. But, it's probably a coding thing they had to do. If a bear just in the immediate area provided the moodlet, then one bear in one crib would probably give the moodlet to another baby in another crib. So, they had to go the Inventory route. It's still bizarre.

Greta is about 24 hours away from her 2nd delivery. I'm excited.

[Bhaskarath]

That makes no sense as opposed to the bear being in the crib which is more like real life. Hmmmm....and my last session they didn't get the moodlet, but I experimented with putting the bear in Inventory after they had fallen asleep. So, next time I'll put the bear in Inventory before they fall asleep. But, I just don't like that at all. Seeing the bear in the crib is just a visual thing for me. But, it's probably a coding thing they had to do. If a bear just in the immediate area provided the moodlet, then one bear in one crib would probably give the moodlet to another baby in another crib. So, they had to go the Inventory route. It's still bizarre.

Greta is about 24 hours away from her 2nd delivery. I'm excited.

The bear appears in the crib when the child is in there, so that visual is still there, it just means that when they are toddling around, they can plunk down and get their bear out. Children can have the moodlet as well, I think my Teenager got it too when I left a tatty old teddy in his inventory in another game.

I started this challenge a few hours ago and made the dreaded mistake of mass impregnation. Spencer and Sasha have 5 children (1 set of twin boys, 1 set of triplet girls), the twins turned into toddlers when their sisters were born and I kind of went and had Spence and Sash woohoo before bed and Sasha's on her way to another birth.

The twins were funny, Sasha rushed to hospital half way through cooking pancakes and set the kitchen on fire XD

[Cel_sims3]

I'm at the start of week two and I have three set of twins (two boys, two girls, then two boys again) I don't know how well I'll fair for getting more kids but right now I have six toddlers and two almost crazy parents. Can I just say that babysitter's are a life saver? That poor babysitter, I pay him once a day and he's there all day every day, most of the time with a look of panic on his face. Chanelle's garden is failing due to lack of time but Lee is on stage 6 of the business career so thankfully money isn't a problem. Space is another worry though. There's never enough of it. I have no idea where the first twin's beds will go when they turn into children. I'll have to wrangle up the money for an add on. This is the most insane game I've ever played! It's nice to have a challenge though....

[Metropolis Man]

I'm at the start of week two and I have three set of twins....

What day was your 3rd set born on?

[Pam]

I'm loving all the participation and comments!  You guys are cracking me up with your stories!  Keep 'em coming!

Newcomers might want to look at my walkthroughs for large families.  I've got one for the Surrounded by Family Lifetime Wish, plus the story of this challenge.  Here are the links:

http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/challenges/babyboomer.php

http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/lifetimewishes/surroundedbyfamily.php

I've tested the thing with kids music and television causing multiple births.  It happened with TV, but not with music for me.  Being proactive on their needs is definitely a good idea.  I always make sure they are full in all areas before putting them to bed.  It makes the parents more stressed at the moment because they're usually exhausted by this time, but it will pay off with better sleep that's not interrupted by a screaming child who wakes up too hungry.

In this picture:  the first incarnation of the nursery for the first six kids.




And in this picture:  the second incarnation with nicer furnishings for the second six kids.