The Struggling Single Parent Challenge
In this challenge, you must start out with a young adult sim, and their toddler child. They may be related to other sims in the world, but they must live on their own.
They must start out with two part-time jobs, which they must keep until they reach max level in both. At that point they may take a full-time job, but it must follow the logical progression of a continuing career. Barista may take a full-time job in the Culinary Mixology branch. Fast Food = Culinary Chef branch, Manual Labor = Gardener either branch, Retail = Business Management Branch, and Babysitter = Entertainment Comedy branch.
They may not sell any of their harvestables or craftables until they reach level 10 of that skill, and if they wish to become self-employed, they also must reach level 10 of that skill before they do so. These rules may be gotten around only if your sim earns a college degree while working and raising the child, and then takes a career in a field that their degree is directly related to.
While your sim is working their part-times jobs they may use free day care, but if they advance to a full time job before their child ages up, they must then hire a nanny. They must also hire a nanny for their child until they age up to teen, unless they are able to work from home, or are otherwise self-employed (because who would leave their 6-12 year old home unattended all night while they work?)
You may use their starting funds to build a small cheap home, or even a micro home. Then, calculate the amount of Simoleons they would earn from both part-time jobs in a week, and then, use the money code to reduce their household funds to that amount. However, if you have less than that left, you may not add to it.
You may not move out of your starter home until you have unlocked the ability to take a full-time job, and saved up enough money to purchase a new home. Your sim may not marry or have a significant other move in until they have moved out of their starter home.
6/27/2020
I would like to mention something I have come across while playing this challenge myself.
If your sim has family members in the game, they will want to come over a lot, and even help out with housework with higher relationships. The toddler can also request baths and other things from them while they are there. I am allowing these interactions, because I feel it makes it more realistic. They, however, can not substitute for daycare or nanny, (unless for some reason the game assigns them as the nanny? Then it would be fine because you are paying them), because this is not allowed by the game itself. I don't want anyone to feel like they failed the challenge because NPC's or inactive household sims are cleaning your house for you =D.
I am also adding that you can use a mod or use the money code to add 100 simoleons to your household funds every week, as child support. I feel that is a realistic amount. If you do not want to add child support, to make it harder that is up to you, but I would say that more than 100 a week is too much. I hope you have fun with this!
7/6/2020 Another amendment (sorry I feel they are getting excessive at this point, but necessary). You may age your toddler or child up early, but only if they have maxed their skills for that life stage. With children, they must have also completed all childhood aspirations in order to age up early.
