Culpepper Pals: Winter 2: Ember

[beanstalk_sims]

So I haven't updated since...November? Maybe? But I work in retail and was really busy over Christmas, and then I spent pretty much all of January exclusively playing Stardew Valley. So I have been sitting on this update for a while! I played it when Snowy Escape first came out!!



Index / Boolprop




Last time, Elsie and Morgyn had a very busy season completing aspirations! Morgyn earned two promotions and completed two aspirations, Elsie completed her aspiration and decided her next goal involved expanding their family. The couple are hoping for their descendants are powerful spellcasters. Elsie found out she was expecting on Harvestfest, and little Caroline was born hours before the end of the season.






We rejoin the family to find everyone hanging out in the bathroom.

Totally normal.




Seriously. They probably would have spent all morning hanging out there if I hadn't made them do something else.

You see, at this point I had just installed Snowy Escape. And who better to send on a snowy vacation than a family with a toddler to sled with?






So the Embers are off to a rental in Mt. Komorebi for several days! They'll be celebrating Winterfest here as well.




Elsie and Caroline waste no time at all, grabbing a sled and hitting the slopes the moment I unpause the game.

And Morgyn?






Morgyn is off seeking thrills.




Snowboarding didn't go so well. This wouldn't put Morgyn off though, definitely not their last visit to the slopes.




...and then the family straight back to hanging out in bathrooms.






The rental house is super cosy! Is there a better place to spend winter?

The afternoon is spent inside, having some lunch and then putting Caroline down for a nap.




With Caroline asleep, Elsie and Morgyn did something totally responsible - left her snoozing while they went for a hike.

Elsie has her broom if she needed to get back quickly for Caroline. Definitely not irresponsible parenting.










I think Elsie and Morgyn were glad to have a couple of hours to themselves.

Meanwhile I took far too many pictures of their hike :D




Basically, I really enjoying playing these guys on vacation.








The morning was spent doing ordinary family things, before heading out to play in the snow.

Gosh, they're just so cute.




It looks like Elsie and Morgyn are sharing the childcare duties - Elsie was with Caroline all day yesterday, and never got a chance to hit the slopes.

Will she be better at it than Morgyn?




She didn't fall down at all, and will probably brag about it to Morgyn later.




Morgyn, meanwhile, is on sledding duty with Caroline.




<3






Well, what else do you do when you're on holiday?






Caroline woke up in the middle of the night from a bad dream, which naturally meant the whole family had to get up.






The following day was also spent mainly inside, because I had to work on Caroline's toddler skills.

So a whole day of the holiday passed by without much happening.






And then it was Winterfest, for the final time!

And another grand breakfast. I might tweak the seasons again next time round so I don't have to play the holidays so often. Three Winterfests in one rotation still feels like a lot.








Still, I think the Ember family enjoyed themselves, even without a tree and plenty of gifts. It was quite nice to do things a little differently from the other families.




"We've been sledding with Caroline all week, we have to do it at least once together."

"Oh, I completely agree."






Winterfest ended, and they all really enjoyed themselves. And I enjoyed playing it <3




It was back to reality the following morning, though. Glimmerbrook looks so gloomy in comparison!




Morgyn's already back at work, too, so Elsie and Caroline are home alone all day.




So cute <3




Because Caroline spent most of her toddler years goofing around in the snow with her family, she was really behind on her skills. So I ended up using techniques from this post in order to speed run the skills a little bit.

I've been playing TS4 for years, and yet didn't know the best ways to skill up a toddler?? Anyway, it really helped me get Caroline to where she should be in terms of skills.






It's not quite the same as sledding, is it?




Well, it turns out those toddler skilling techniques are really good, because instead of just gaining most of them, Caroline is going to be a Top Notch Toddler - the first one in the Culpepper Pals!




She's so skilled, she even had a night off - her last night as a toddler.

They grow up so fast!






Morning comes, and it's the final day of the rotation - and Caroline's birthday!

Who wants cake for breakfast?




Little Caroline grew up with the Green Fiend trait. She's also a spellcaster, but that's not surprising given who her parents are. I'm pretty sure I picked the Whiz Kid aspiration, although I'm not 100% sure.

she had red glowing eyes until I changed her look on the dresser?? They were gone when the game loaded back up after. I have no idea what happened.




Caroline growing up meant she needed a proper bedroom, so the house got an extension and a second storey.

I'm not great at building, but I kind of love their house <3






The day passed uneventfully, although I did learn that sims can cheat at chess! Morgyn apparently needs to in order to beat Caroline.




The sunsets on the final final day of the year, and it's time to party!






Again, everyone just stood around the tv waiting for the clock to strike midnight. Which was really boring. I might not throw New Years parties next winter, but we'll see.

Anyway! It's finally Year 3!




So the Embers enjoyed a pretty cute, low-key season, which was a lot of fun to play.

*Hopefully* it doesn't take me too long to put the next update out, I've already played half of Spring 3. See you next time!!