The Dueling Veronaville Dynasties (All is right with the world, Updated 01/27)

[Joria]

I love the open modern look to your house!  Also, looks like you really had fun in SanM!  I love this Midsummer Night's Dream story.

[NexttoNormal]

Summerdream Scene I cont. (Week 1)
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Bottom: Who would have realized that working in business was so stressful? The Capps always made it seem easy. I tried visiting clubs to de-stress a bit.
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There was mixed success. Turns out me and hookahs don't mix.
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But dance clubs are much more my scene. I ended up befriending members of the Spin Masters, and they seen like a great time. I'll definitely have to hang with them again in the future.
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I also asked my friend Akira if he wanted to move in. I was having a really hard time with finances so having another source of income would be really helpful. And honestly, growing up with my party animal family, it felt weird being completely alone in my house.
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We became really close after moving in together, and not in the romantic sense. I dunno, he's a really great person and it was nice to have a friend to help me out.
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It'd be a lie to say that there wasn't any chemistry however. Eespecially at the romance festival.
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Personally I blame the Sakura tea...not that I'm complaining.
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We shared a kiss
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And took some dumb selfies. I'm not sure I'd say we're dating but we definitely have a thing now.

I didn't want Bottom to rush into relationships and building a family as sort of a contrast to the others. Akira and Bottom kind of happened on accident, I didn't push for them to get together but they had a lot of natural chemistry and their friendship happened farily organically. I won't promise that they'll stay together, but I'd be happy if they did. Bottom is level 3 in business and Akira is level 2 in the tech guru career.

[Joria]

Personally I think they make a charming couple.  Did you enjoy the Romance Festival?

[FrancescaFiori]

Yay! I like the taking-it-slow approach. It's nice to be friends first. Glad the Romance Festival could give them a little nudge, though. Akira is cute!

[MarianT]

With the Munches and the triplets, Desdemona won't need to hire any employees for her store. I'm glad to see that Akira is getting some love -- he does have the jealous trait, though.

[NexttoNormal]

Monty Scene II (week 2)
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Beatrice: Paolo and I loved being new parents. Even though my pregnancy wasn't the easiest Petruchio was such a calm baby. He rarely cried and always seemed happy to be held and cared for by us.
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Unfortunately babyhood doesn't last forever, and it seemed like our little man was a child before we knew it. Unlike me and Paolo, Petruchio seems to be on the lazy side. He definitely has an interest in art though, which I'm happy to encourage.
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We had some money to spare since we'd both gotten promoted, so our spoiled boy got a drawing table
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Violin
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And a toy chest.
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Around that time Paolo and I decided we wanted to have another baby. Paolo was an only child so he never got to experience having siblings, and we decided it'd be better to give Petruchio the chance to have a brother or sister. Paolo seemed very happy with the news. We decided to wait a little while to tell Petruchio though.
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Pretty soon it was little man's first day of school. Paolo and I aren't really the type to get too emotional but this was a special occasion, and it was hard to see him go off to school.
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Petruchio definitely seemed to take school seriously, which is something I can't say I did as a kid. He never had to be asked to do his homework, we're hoping that this will last while he's a teenager!
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When we did tell Petruchio about my pregnancy he seemed really excited and curious. I think he'll enjoy being a big brother.
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This pregnancy was definitely easier than my first. I still got tired more easily but I was actually feeling well-enough to have visitors and work on things for my job. Desdemona stopped by to check in so we chatted for a while, I was shocked to hear that she had somehow managed to have triplets! I don't think there's ever been a multiple birth in her family, and I don't know with her husband's family. She ended up repeating how she was jealous that I still looked so good while pregnant and she thought she looked awful after her kids were born.
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Baby 2 decided to make their appearance the next day (thanks for ruining mommy and daddy's date to the park). You'd think that Paolo wouldn't be so nervous watching the birth since we've gone through it before but here he was...panicking.
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Labor was much faster this time and soon enough our new baby boy Lucentio was born. He was so precious, and I knew right away my two boys would be best of friends.
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Petruchio seemed to love his new baby brother, coming to his crib whenever he started to fuss. Lucentio was much more fussy, but thankfully we all quickly adapted to it.
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Sadly it felt like Lucentio's infancy was even shorter, and in the blink of an eye my baby boy was a child.
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One thing we realized once the boys we're older is how convenient the park near us was. They could just walk over after school and come home before it got too late. Lucentio seemed to enjoy the monkey bars a lot.
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While Petruchio had more fun meeting the other kids and making friends.
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Meanwhile, Paolo and I decided the time was right to make things official. We had a private wedding near our house, and even though we were basically already married it still was nice to have official proof of it.

Welcome Lucentio to the family! Paolo was actually the one who rolled a want for a new baby, and since Beatrice has a family aspiration there wasn't any issue to convince her. Beatrice and Paolo are both at level 5 in their respective careers, and Petruchio is an A student in elementary school. Beatrice is getting close to completing her aspiration and maxing the traditional cooking skill, and Petruchio has almost completed the Artistic Prodigy aspiration and maxed the child creativity skill. I haven't decided yet if I'll have Lucentio complete his aspiration (Rambunctious Scam) since he's a spare, I suppose if I have downtime while playing I will.

Also, some comparison pictures of the boys.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

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Petruchio is on top, Lucentio is on the bottom.

The boys look very similar, and at first I thought they looked more like Beatrice than Paolo. They definitely favor her in hair and eye color, and Petruchio has the same complexion. But I think they actually will look more like Paolo.

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Young Paolo
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Young Beatrice.

You'll notice that they both have similar facial proportions to Paolo as well as his eye shape. I think Lucentio is a more even mix of their parents, but Petruchio is basically Paolo Jr.

[chetanhaobijam]

Great update. Beatrice's family is doing great. Good luck to them. And the boys look great. Waiting to see them grow up. Looking forward for next update.

[oshizu]

I noticed you changed your avatar. Chihiro (Spirited Away) for the win!

How strange that Paolo didn't panic during the first childbirth, only the second one.
Thank you very much for the comparison shots--I was dying to see close-up shots of the boys and it was fun seeing their parents as children, too!

[Joria]

Petruchio and Lucentio are absolutely adorable.  You are really moving right along with this story.  I never used Paolo as a spouse so it's interesting to me to see him in a major role.

[NexttoNormal]

@MarianT I know, it'll be great to not have to hire anyone for Desdemona's store, it'll save so much money. After a couple more promotions and the triplets age up I plan on having them all move to the store. As for Akira and Bottom, I've never actually played a jealous sim (I tend to randomize traits and just never got it) so it'll be an interesting challenge.

@Joria I really liked the romance festival, I think it's my favorite of the San Myshuno festivals. I thought I'd prefer GeekCon since I'm a cosplayer and avid Con-goer, but the Romance Festival reminded me a lot of the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington DC which was one of my favorite events when I lived in that area.
I actually really like Paolo, this is my second time using him as a spouse/partner for one of my sims (I also used him as a Baby Daddy in a 100 Babies attempt but that doesn't really count ) I dunno, he's kind of charming and I like that he isn't necessarily just a party animal he also reminds me a lot of Romeo Monty haha. He has really good genetics too, his daughter from my 100 Babies Challenge is a character in my other story and she's gorgeous. I can't wait to see how the boys look when they're older, they'll be total babes for sure.

@oshizu Yes! I love Spirited Away and all of Miyazaki's films. I grew up watching them so they always have a special place in my heart, I'm hopefully going to see the 15th Anniversary Screening of Spirited Away in December (and will probably cry tears of joy).
And of course, I plan on doing comparison shots of all the kids and their parents as they get older. I may also recreate some other Veronaville peeps so I can do comparisons to other family members in the future. Petruchio in particular reminds me of Beatrice's twin Benedick so it'd be kind of fun to see how similar they are.

@FrancescaFiori I agree, I'm glad I took it slow with Bottom and Akira. My sims tend to move pretty quick in their relationships, but I felt like Bottom wouldn't really fit well with that since she's more career-focused. And Akira is a cutie, he's the first San Myshuno sim I've played since I purchased the game. I'll probably incorporate more into the story later on.
Also with the whole Gunther having triplets I'll have to test that out. I used him as a baby daddy once and that resulted in a single birth, but maybe his kid in that save got the super fertility.

There probably won't be an update for a couple days, I'm currently visiting family for Thanksgiving and have two papers due this week. I can still respond to replies on this topic as well as messages though.

[EchoLegacy]

I'm loving this story! Petruchio and Lucentio are little heartbreakers! Can't wait to see where this goes~

[NexttoNormal]

Capp Scene II (week 2)
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Desdemona: They say that you should treasure your children's babyhood but I just wish that I'd been able to enjoy them more. Beatrice told me one baby can be stressful enough, but three at once seemed nearly impossible. As soon as one was done being taken care of another would start crying. At least they would all sleep through the night.
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Thankfully it wasn't long before they were all children. The girls look very similar, the biggest difference is Lavinia has her grandmother's hair color and Tamora has Gunther's. Titus seemed like the odd one out, he has more of my features and inherited green eyes from my side.
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And with the triplets all grown up, we could now move to my store! The bottom level had the store area and two public bathrooms as well as our kitchen/dining area and Mila's bedroom. Upstairs were Lucas and Wolfgang's room, the triplet's room, and mine and Gunther's room as well as another bathroom and a living room. I was really happy with it, it still had plenty of privacy even though we were technicaly living at my store.
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Gunther, Mila and I all would work the store when we weren't at our jobs.
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It could be very overwhelming at times though...
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The kids all tended to stay upstairs playing with their toys or on Wolfgang's gaming device. Even though technically Lucas and Wolfgang are their uncles they're very close with my children.
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Titus in particular seemed to have an affinity for the violin. Several of my family members like my cousin Tybalt are interested in music performance, so it was nice to see the passion had continued.
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And despite how busy we were Gunther and I would always make time for each other.
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Then to cap off a successful week Mila offered to take pictures of my children and I. I'll be sure to hang these up back at our main house.

Sorry that nothing terribly exciting happened in this update, I've been busy like I said before. Last week I was visiting family and this week I've been having relationship issues...so yeah. This week was also a lot of grinding for the Capps, I've been trying to get them all to level up in their skills and careers. I actually think the Capps are the farthest along in their goals at this point. Desdemona and Mila are both level 5 in their careers, Gunther and Wolfgang are both level 3, and Wolfgang and Lucas both have A's. Additionally, Desdemona is just three milestones away from completing her aspiration and Titus has almost completed his childhood aspiration. Both now have portraits (the photographs), and I've unlocked my first business perk! The store is currently worth around $55,000, so it won't be too much longer before the store is completed.

And without further ado, some comparisons between the triplets and their parents.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

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From top to bottom: Titus, Tamora, and Lavinia.

The girls look incredibly similar, and they both bear a strong resemblance to Gunther. I'm not sure they're completely identical though, I think Tamora's eyes are larger and Lavinia has more pinched lips. Both parents have grey eyes so it's hard to say who's color they got specifically. Titus on the other hand is kind of the odd one out, he looks more like Desdemona but isn't a dead-ringer for her, and his green eyes are a bit of a mystery (I'd like to pretend that he just inherited that from the Capps, since several of them have green eyes).
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Young Gunther
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Young Desdemona.

It's hard to say which of the girls looks more like Gunther, but I think it's Lavinia despite the darker hair.

[oshizu]

All five of the childhood portraits are adorable!!! I'm going to be a jerk and say that Gunther's is the cutest, hehe.

You say that nothing terribly exciting happened in this update, but I beg to differ!
We got to see the triplets age up from bassinet burritos to children who are now attending school and working on their aspirations.

You also introduced us to Desdemona's new store, where the adults have already started working. Also, I love the photo of Desdemona in her gown that Mila took!
I also love the shot of the girls in their matching party (formal?) outfits! All three children have such big eyes!
Seriously, I cannot decide which household I like best, so I'll cheer for all three!

[FrancescaFiori]

I love all the portraits! I agree with oshizu, it's sspecially fun to see Gunther as a child. I love the outfit you chose for him. It's perfect!

The store looks charming, and the upstairs apartment seems nice and cozy. They seem like a big, happy family.

[NexttoNormal]

Summerdream Scene II (week 2)

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Bottom: Akira and I had definitely settled into a nice routine. Both of us are very career-focused people, so we never had an issue getting into work or spending the day doing stuff for our jobs.
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Of course, we still managed to find time for ourselves. We'd go downtown and check out any festivals or events going on or visit a karaoke bar.
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And yes, I am pregnant in this picture.
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Pregnancy didn't slow me down at all. We still went to festivals and I was able to do my job with no issue. Beatrice told me how her first pregnancy was tough, she was always tired or uncomfortable. I didn't really have any issues like that.
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She was completely right about labor being horrible though. It sucked. And of course I decided to have a home birth for some reason. Note to self, do not let me make rash decisions like this in the future, I regret not getting an epidural.
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But thankfully it didn't last forever, and pretty soon I was holding my baby girl Thasia in my arms. She was so precious, I just wish Akira had been home for the birth.
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He definitely made up for it later. Thasia was a very fussy baby and he would always be the one to wake up in the middle of the night to feed her or change her.
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In the blink of an eye my baby was a child, off and doing her own thing. She definitely seemed to be a lot like me when I was her age, always playing and talking.
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To celebrate her birthday we all went to the Spice Festival, and all made the huge mistake of eating spicy curry.
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At least it was vegetarian..?
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Thasia seemed much more interested in playing with the sparklers. Hopefully we don't have a pyro in the family.
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Living next to a playground seemed like a dream come true for my baby. I wasn't too worried about her getting into trouble, but it was still nice knowing she wouldn't have to travel far to play.
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She ended up meeting two of Desdemona's kids, I guess they prefer the park near us.
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She and Titus seemed to be fast friends, but I can't say the same for her and Tamora. Hopefully this is just childhood rivalries and they'll grow out of it soon, I'm sure Desdemona wouldn't appreciate another feud.

I always feel like the Summerdream's have the least amount of stuff going on haha! Part of it is the amount of grinding I have to do while playing them, and both Akira and Bottom are working most of the day during the week. Bottom is level 5 in business (I haven't settled on a branch for her yet), and Akira is level 4 in the tech career. Thasia aged up on a Friday evening so she hasn't been to school yet but she's a little over halfway done with the Social Butterfly aspiration, she also is at level 5 social skill. And I'm not entirely sure yet if she'll stay friends with Titus as they get older, only time will tell.

Obligatory Parental Comparisons

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

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Thasia

I'm pretty sure bottom underwent mitosis or somehow asexually reproduced to have Thasia, I really can't see any resemblance between her and Akira.

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Young Akira
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Young Bottom

Thasia has Bottom's hair, eye, and skin color. The only possible thing from Akira might be her cheekbones, she seems to have a thinner face than her mother.