This is the home of my Sims In Bloom Legacy Challenge-slash-supernatural soap opera, featuring current Gen 3 heir Lavender Gordon. The creative daughter of a busy vet and the local police chief, she's a skilled violinist who puts most of her focus, when she's not stuck with homework, on her successful Plopsy shop, LavaKnits. She dreams of a future working for herself and with her hands, and when it comes to love, she wants one thing: a best friend to share her life with.
Follow all posts chronologically backwards with the #sims in bloom tag to filter out reblogs and other rare goodies from me. I hyperfixate on one save file at a time and this wild ride is the result.
Most Recent Episodes
Gen 1 (Daisy) | Gen 2 (Buttercup) | Gen 3 (Lavender) - tbd
Extras | Family Tree (beware of possible spoilers or yet-to-update family info from time to time)
Sims In Bloom miniseries
Vet School Diaries - Gen 2 vet Heather Gordon mentors submitted sims for a fall season at Buttercup Vet School. (COMPLETE)
Higher Education - Gen 3 spare Ash Landgraab attends Foxbury Institute with his good friend, Nyon Specter, who finds himself face-to-face with the unethical Beakers. (COMPLETE)
Sims In Bloom: Generation 3 Pt. 47 (Chance Encounters and Close Calls)
Brea Hecking loved growing up in Brindleton Bay with her dads and their dogs - and her best friend, Lavender Gordon. But now that she'd finally graduated high school, Brea was ready to spread her wings.
Her dads, Brent and Brant, had busy jobs and couldn't leave the dogs, Axel and Wendy (their canon bulldog, Rosie, passed when Brea was a child). But the Heckings had lived down the street from the adventurous Gordons for decades and they knew the world could be dangerous, so they called someone they trusted with their daughter almost as much as themselves - Brea's beloved godmother, Hayley.
A mysterious spellcaster from a realm all her own, Hayley usually moved about in some disguise or another. Big hats, long coats - whatever it took to remain undetected by forces she dared not explain to her goddaughter. The less she knew about Hayley's life as a spellcaster, the better.
She could still keep her safe in this realm, and she always loved spending time with her. Hayley was at Brea's side as she transitioned, cheering her on to be her most authentic self and helping her shop for a whole new wardrobe.
Hayley had always been there for Brea, and now she'd help her explore the world in search of art, community, and a place to belong. And the first stop on their travels was Moonwood Mill, where Hayley could charge her magic from the top of the mountain.
Brea was more interested in making friends, so she left Hayley to her magic and found a stool at Grimtooth's open-air bar. Sitting down to order her favourite drink, a sweet and spicy, she could feel the eyes of a beautiful woman on her. A red dress hugged her curves and her eyes looked a shade of red Brea had never seen before.
"You look nice," the woman said, and Brea nodded politely.
"Thanks. So do you."
The woman in red moved closer, and Brea wondered if she was human. This was Moonwood Mill, after all, and werewolves roamed every corner of the place. But Hayley had told Brea all about her friends, the wolves, and this dark-haired woman oozed control and sophistication. Decidedly un-wolflike.
The woman let out a hungry breath, which carried on the wind to Hayley's perch above the evergreen tree line. The spellcaster dropped her hands and raced toward the smell, interrupting Brea and a hungry vampire as the bartender poured drinks behind the bar.
(Yes, that is Charlie's vampire therapist-turned-maker, Sonia Stonehart. She randomly appeared on the lot and started talking to Brea. I teleported Hayley off that mountain so fast! 😂 Come get your goddaughter before something goes wrong!)
"Goddaughter," she said, because she wouldn't let the woman know Brea's name. "I've almost finished charging my magic. Come with me to take in the view, but we should be on our way before it gets dark. There's a Full Moon tonight, and that's when this place really belongs to the wolves."
Brea nodded and finished her drink. Moonwood Mill was a beautiful place, but it didn't exactly have much in the way of painted art beyond graffiti on rusted out cars. "That woman was hunting. It's good that you didn't notice a thing, but vampires can find their way under your skin in insidious ways. Always be vigilant."
Brea nodded dutifully, because she had no interest in falling under a vampire's spell, and their next stop was artist-friendly Windenburg.
In the mountain metropolis, Brea and Hayley explored the picturesque Old Town, where Brea found an easel overlooking Tudor-style housing that looked too inspiring not to paint. Impressed, Hayley watched her work, noting when Brea added a bit of purple. "There's no purple on the rooftops," she pointed out, but Brea shrugged.
"I just like purple."
Hayley smiled. "Have you spoken to your friend Lavender since we left?"
"She's posting on Social Bunny and it looks like she and Violet are having a great time. She texted some pictures of purple flowers she thinks I might like to paint."
"But she's still head over heels for that girlfriend of hers?"
"I love Violet," insisted Brea. "She's a great friend."
Hayley nodded. "And I know that makes it harder. Why don't you finish up your artwork and we'll head down to the bar for a drink? If you need a wingwoman, I'm the best godmother for the job."
"You're my only godmother, Hayley."
"Oh, how lucky for me!" she chided playfully. Once the women were inside the bar, Hayley spotted a girl making eyes at Brea from under her green wool hood and coat.
With a wave of her spellcaster's hand, she called the girl toward the bar, vacating her stool before she introduced her quiet goddaughter.
"I'm Sakura," said the woman, whose bald head and piercings intrigued artistic Brea. Unfortunately, that was about all that intrigued her, as the conversation between them failed to go anywhere deeper than small talk. Sakura didn't understand art, and Brea didn't know anything about archery.
The conversation was pleasant enough, but by the time Brea and Hayley left Windenburg, the young artist still hadn't found what she was looking for.
Their next stop was gloomy and mysterious Ravenwood, where Hayley dressed as a Reaper to blend in with their surroundings. She had business to attend to in another part of town, but the sun was bright and Brea was inspired by the Gothic architecture.
Growing up by the Gordons, and with a spellcaster for a godmother, Brea had an appreciation and respect for the supernatural, and she found an easel to paint to her heart's content before strolling through centuries-old headstones in the cemetery.
She found a ghost merchant who offered her a special gift, but she parted with more money than she should've for some essence of sadness in a bottle. Was that supposed to be a metaphor? She couldn't even ask the ghost merchant, who faded away before she could ask for a refund.
She left the cemetery when a couple strange guys invited her to join their mourning gang, and a short time later Hayley texted to say her business was done. They could finally head to the place Brea had been most excited to visit all along - the art lovers' paradise of Nordhaven.
Brea loved the colourful, modern architecture set among mountains, and classic sculptures lining oceanfront plazas with foodstalls and art stands. It felt like a place she could call a home as soon as she and Hayley stepped off the plane.
The women signed up for a drop-in pottery class at the modern art museum - and artistic medium neither had ever tried before. After a stroll through the exhibits they entered the quiet classroom, but Brea immediately recognized someone scowling at one of the stands.
"Dayana? You tattooed my best friend and I back in Brindleton Bay. Have you started your shop out here in Nordhaven yet?"
Dayana nodded, but her tense expression never wavered. "Running a shop is not as easy as I thought it would be, but trying to unwind with pottery isn't helping me much, either. I can't get the hang of this stupid wheel!"
Brea laughed. After trying her own hand at pottery, she quickly lost interest, more intrigued by the paintings on the walls and in the pretty, if sour-faced, Dayana Pangilinan.
Her godmother, Hayley, enjoyed pottery immediately. Maybe it was the leather gloves of her hooded velvet disguise, which kept the clay from embedding itself in her fingernails and coating up to her elbows.
"You look like you could use a break," Brea told Dayana, and the tattoo artist nodded in agreement.
"Why don't you both take a break?" urged her godmother. "There's a lounge a few blocks from here, and I can meet you there when I'm done."
Brea knew Hayley was trying to be her wingwoman and smiled politely at Dayana. She wasn't sure there was a spark, but she was so used to pining for her best friend, Lavender, she wondered if she just wasn't giving her a fair chance.
"I could get a drink," she offered, and Dayana pulled her foot off the pedal of her pottery wheel.
The lounge wasn't busy this early in the day, which gave Brea and Dayana the chance to sit down and talk. But Dayana was wild and unpredictable, which didn't suit Brea much at all. It turned out Dayana's mood had less to do with work and more to do with a recent date.
"They made me see stars and then never called," she groaned. "Why can't people just communicate and say what they really want?"
"People get scared," Brea said. "Or comfortable with wondering."
Dayana frowned. "Is that your story?"
Neither Brea nor Dayana were in a place to consider this a date, and the ring of Brea's phone broke up the awkward silence between them as they finished their drinks.
Brea checked the called display and creased her brow in surprise. Lavender hadn't called her since she left for Tomarang, and she excused herself from her conversation with Dayana. "It's my best friend, Lavender - the friend you let me tattoo. Do you mind if i take this? If she's calling me, it must be important."
Dayana smiled. "Of course."
Brea connected the call. "Hey! How's Tomarang?"
"Violet and I...we broke up." Lavender sobbed into the phone. "She dumped me, actually."
"What happened?"
Between sobs, Lavender got out what she could. "We want different things but maybe we won't later...and she told her landlord she was dumping me...and she just broke up with me five minutes ago!"
"It's going to be okay," Brea said softly. "Where's Violet now?"
"She's with some friends. I don't know if I'll see her again before I leave. I called you first and now I have to call my parents for help changing my flight home, but I have a few weeks to kill now, I guess. I might go to Henford to see family for a bit before I take my grandpa's furniture with me to Evergreen Harbour."
"That sounds like a good idea. I'm sorry, Lav."
"Don't be sorry. Thanks for taking my call on your awesome world travels. Where are you and your godmother today?"
"Nordhaven. I'm actually out with our tattoo artist right now."
"Wow," she said, but she couldn't raise a smile or any excitement. "Tell her I say hello. Wait, are you on a date?"
"...Not exactly. I thought it could be a date, but there's no spark."
"I'm proud of you for getting out there, though. Next date, there will be a spark."
Brea laughed. "if you say so...Are you going to be okay?"
"I can already feel a headache coming on from crying, but yeah, I will be once I can get home...or, eventually. I don't know. Thanks- oh, my mom's calling me on the other line. I should get that and break the news that I probably need to spend a thousand simoleons on a flight change."
"Good luck," she offered sweetly. Hanging up the phone, she fumbled for her pocket to stow it away.
Brea's mind blanked as she processed Lavender's news - the girl she loved was single again, and she was out with someone else halfway around the world. ->
<- Previous Chapter | Gen 3 Start
Gen 1 Start | Gen 1 Summary
Gen 2 Start | Gen 2.1 Summary | Gen 2.2 Summary | Gen 2 Finale
NOTE: You might've guessed I don't have @ethicaltreatmentofcowplants' simself, but we chatted about keeping her mysterious and doing the big hats and coats after Brea walked past a random Reaper I snapped from behind, and I asked Hayley if I could say that was Brea's godmother. Then it just became a thing to cover her and shoot from behind everywhere, instead of coming up with a million different reasons for her to always leave Brea by herself. It made for a more interesting trip for me to have two sims to shoot most of the time, too.
NOTE 2: On her YA birthday, Brea rolled skeptical at first, but I vetoed it because her godmother is a spellcaster - even if she'd technically never met her because she wasn't in the save. Lore took precedent over gameplay and her second random roll was animal enthusiast - perfect for her, so that one stuck!
Yoga instructor: Alright everyone, find a comfortable place on your mat.
Yoga instructor: Take a slow inhale through the nose… and exhale fully.
Yoga instructor: Close your eyes for a moment and settle into the room.
Yoga instructor: Thank yourself for showing up and taking this time for yourself today.
(…)
Alexander: Nasja asked if we want to grab lunch together.
Avery: Sounds lovely, but I’ll have to pass. I scheduled a meeting with Darren to go over Finn’s case. I just hope he has some idea what to do about it…
author's note: Ahh, yes~ Let's just hope Darren pulls an ace out of his sleeve, because you can bet they need any input they can get on that case. :'D
Geekcon! Fern wins the hackathon, Abi faces off against Darth Vader, Saphira has lots of fun time, and an old face has come back in town from Sulani to visit...
Looks like it might be time to woo the pub owner... I forgot how I made the last baby daddy who was actually female able to impregnate Yvonne... I must investigate
There's vampires in Saint Denis? Pray I never come across one.
We get to dress Arthur up again? Welllll say less.
Plan is is that Strauss will be behind the men we will be playing poker with to give us signals on if we should fold the round or bet all in. Plus, the dealer is a friend of Trelawny's so he will be giving us good cards. We are such sneaks.
First round, we folded. Now it's just me and you big guy. But Arthur wants to raise the stakes... We're now betting lots of money and a very expensive watch. (Also I gave Arthur's hair a trim. I personally was loving the long hair, but we needed to look a little more put together for this is we're to pull off we're some rich oil man.)
Who you calling hillbilly?
Tehehehe. Show me the money and the watch!
Javier was disguised as one of the security guards on this boat. We really thought of everything!
The other guards started looking around since they heard my gun shot... Just play it cool...
That is one way to play it cool!
He's onto us...
a shoot out happened so fast, I really didn't know exactly what I was supposed to be doing, nor who I was supposed to be shooting at.
But we fled the boat and swam to shore! Came out with thousands. This will please Dutch! (Not that I care to please that man anyway)
This sure is something, Dutch, I agree. Do we think we're gonna get into some trouble?
Well probably not too much trouble without our weapons.
We met up with Bronte and he started telling us of the richest folk in Saint Denis.
*record scratch* whoa now-
I mean...
Arthur is not amused by this Italian man. Me either frankly. Also, Arthur looking so beautiful in a suit, I am absolutely pleased with this.
Interesting man. I think this is our next villain.
But he's definitely not stupid. He knew we were around for something, so he asked. Dutch was honest. We're looking for money and a lot of it. He told us there's a trolley station with lots of it. A trolley station seems really random but what do I know. Maybe trolley's are racking in the dough.
Got it. Find the Mayor. Steal nothing.
Being a gentleman and serving the ladies champagne.
Went up to introduce ourselves to the mayor and he was getting heckles by this very obviously drunk man. Arthur took care of it.
We put him in time out.
Brownie points with the Mayor!
While guests were distracted by fireworks we followed this worker to see if we could find out more about they know about Cornwall.
Found somethinggggg
Everyone got some sort of lead on something. Looks like our job here is done.
Jared: “Glad to see everyone here at the Ravenwood Cemetery. Hope everyone is ready for lab today. Your task is to find 5 graves from before 1912, and 5 after, and compare the average lifespans. Then we can move on into our study of bacteria and viruses.”
Renee: ”No offense Professor Lopez, but where do you come up with these weird labs?”
Jared: “The best lessons are learned hands on. Just watch out for ghosts and you’ll be fine.”
Tori: “Man, it’s hard to see the name on this one. It’s a shame though, he died so young…”
Jared: “That is a shame.”
Jared: “He deserved so much better. How I wish I could turn back the hands of time…”
————————————
We are so back! I’ve determined that the only way I’m going to keep my posts coming is to minimize the screens, no captions, and let gshade do the editing after the disaster that was me deleting my entire document folder. Hope to get more posts going, I’ve missed it ❤️
Also this is a real lab I did in a college environmental science class. I did not make this up on my own lol.
The problem is, both Cassia and Adrian are very social paras. They want friends, but they never got around to making any before they dove head-first into a very abrupt parenthood. (Thanks a lot, Watcher! 😒)
Isabelle is a super sweet baby. So adorable. The best! But Cassia is restless and lonely. She doesn't really want to be a full-time stay-at-home mom.
So she browses the job listings and finds a tour guide position in the evenings that will work nicely with Adrian's work at the elementary school. They'll only need to have Isabelle in daycare for a couple hours!
Her new job won't start until Sunday, but that's too far away. She's growing a little stir-crazy, and she needs to get out of this house!
She doesn't have a baby carrier or a stroller, so she'll just carry Isabelle in her arms. While she runs around town. Without being able to multitask, she can't even read this sign board while she holds her baby, so the only thing to do is to put the baby down on the ground.
This outing isn't going very well, so she heads back home to wait for Adrian's arrival.
Finally, at long last, hubby is home.
"I missed you so much," Cassia squeals, hugging her man. "Here's the baby. There's a bottle ready in the fridge. I signed up for yoga on the mountain tonight. Love you, bye, see you later."
Exhale. That was the best escape yoga she ever did.
New parenthood is isolating and exhausting for these two, but they're making it work, and their marriage still mostly fine. They still like each other. But babies are pretty tedious, and there's not very much to do. But they think it might be kind of cool if their Watcher rotated households for a few days, like maybe until Isabelle's toddler birthday???
Sunday arrives and Cassia finally gets out to start her new job as a tour guide at the museum. She used to be a hairdresser for a minute, but she won't return to that line of work. (Because we totally forgot that she ever used to do it...) And anyway, this uniform is super adorable on her!
In her absence, Adrian discovers just what Cassia already knew—having a baby in this game makes you feel a little bit stir-crazy.
So, let's go to the gym.
In real life, some gyms have those nifty childcare rooms to drop off your kiddos while you work out, but this one does not (maybe we can edit the lot to add one???), so Adrian does what we do with babies in Paralives. He sets her on the floor.
But it's good to get out of the house and make some new friends. Adrian meets a fellow gym-rat. His name is Jason and we hear he's a very popular guy. Adrian feels a little intimidated. At six feet tall himself, he feels like a shrimp next to this guy!
No worries, though. Jason is cool. But he does have a question. "Hey, is that your baby over there on the floor?"
"Yeah, totally," Adrian says. "But it’s cool. She’s happy. She has her rattle!"
Isabelle is thinking: Hey, Dad, this concrete is kind of hard and cold. At least, like, put a rug down or something?
notes: I really like the age spans mod I chose. It's really nicely balanced in all the life stages, and the extra long splits everything into tidy weeks and makes the paras lifespan long enough, but not ridiculously long. My only complaint is that they gave babies two weeks! 😱 One week would have been perfect, but two is a little much with so little to do!
That's okay, we'll just rotate around town for a bit until she's due to become a toddler! 😆
Starting the day with the only thing that never glitches: coffee.
Phee: “What? You want coffee too?”
Louie:…
He communicates exclusively through judgment. - “Every household needs a tiny judge. Mine just happens to be striped and smelly.”
“Pretending I’m a Sim with full green needs for five whole seconds.”
Phee: “Look at you, acting like my high-level Familiar. If you’re here to warn me, can you use actual Simlish this time?”
Crow usually chooses ‘Mysterious Caw’ interaction.
Ravenwood at night: peaceful, eerie, and definitely not haunted. Probably. Escorted home by my emotional support omen.
Victor: “Hey! Did you survive capitalism?”
Phee: “Barely. I’m one errand away from a full-on
Tense Walk animation.”
End of spooky walk. 10/10 restored by balcony himbo energy.
