#UDC

[simmer-rhi]

One of the Twelfth Night traditions is storytelling. Hammond lit a campfire, and told his sons an exciting fairy tale about an ogre...

When Iestyn caught fire, none of the boys knew what to do. It was a very pregnant Alice who ran over with the immersion breaking fire extinguisher to save her son's life.

[oswanily]

It's the big day! Most of the villagers gathered in the church to witness the wedding of Agnès Leblanc and Robin Lechesne.

The toddler who refused to get out of the frame is little Condors, the daughter of Catherine and Imbert.

[khayr]

One of the pics the photographer got from the UDC event. 🥰 Look at my good girl!!

[pinkblusher92]

Prinzess Clara is a baby factory, having around a baby every year. Of course this is no trouble because Harr Urregg is here to take care of the little rascals.

In this photo we have Prinz Boll and Prinzess Rut

[thestressedsimmer]

Hextilda has been struggling silently. The poor dear had symptoms similar to that of her older sister: feeling weak, dizzy, and constantly tired. She frequently couldn't keep up with the other children playing - especially the high energy of the other two triplets.

She didn't want to worry anybody. Jennet and Hendrie had been fighting, John and Isabella were stressed, her mother and father are dealing with Elizabeth's marriage... And she certainly didn't want her baby sister or niece to catch onto her feeling ill. So when everything got to be too much? She would sneak into her brother and sister-in-law's chambers and nap there.

Nobody would check there. Her parents wouldn't disturb the other married couple, her siblings were not allowed, and Isabella and John were busy throughout the day.

Unfortunately for Hextilda, Isabella went into her chambers to grab something and found her there while she was trying to rest. While some women would be irritated by their young sister-in-law taking up their bed, she just felt worry.

She was only nine years old. What could have a nine year old looking so haggard and exhausted?

"Hex?" She asked softly, placing a hand on her cheek. The child was shivering, but it looked like she didn't want to disturb the blankets to crawl under them.

".... Bells?" Hextilda mumbled, surprised that she had gotten caught. "I... I am sorry. Do you need your bed? I can leave."

"No, no, darling. You stay right where you are." Isabella said firmly. She would have to speak to her husband and in laws about this later. Maybe a physician could help her. Surely there was some tincture or diet change or....

"Are you sure?" The blonde's voice startled her from her thoughts.

"I am more than sure. As a matter of fact, move over."

Isabella climbed into bed, settling in place beside Hextilda. She hoped that her clear approval would, at least, leave a safe place for her to come and rest.

Her bed was comfortable.

"There." She said, tugging her into her arms. "Now I have an excuse to nap too."

As the girl snuggled into her arms, Isabella could have swore she heard her giggle before she fell asleep.

[shoami323]

Hello!

My name is Poli and I'm currently 14, nearly 15 years old. I know that I'm quite young, but I've been reading various Decades and Ultimate Decades Challenges on Tumblr and I decided to give it a shot. I don't know if it's a good idea, honestly, but I wouldn't know if I won't even try, right?

History was always an interest of mine, even when my teacher at school wasn't so great at making others love it, rather the opposite of it. I really love historical gameplays in Sims 4 and I did some as well. I already tried to post some on this blog, but I got scared and quit before I even got anyone's attention. But this time's going to be different!

My goal here is to post Ultimate Decades Challenge here on this blog. I don't know how often will I post, but I'll try to do it as often as possible.

Last, but not least, I would like to thank other simmers that are my, I guess you could say, idols. So, @aheathen-conceivably , @carousel-of-sims , @dancemachinetrait , @eternalpastsimming - thank you! If it wasn't for you, I would never find the courage to post anything.

Also, forgive me for my bad English. As my bio says, I'm actually Polish, so it's not my native language. First post comes tomorrow!

Thank you all for reading!

[istandonsnowpiles]

Concrete and Flora

[simshistoria]

MEET THE FOUNDERS

Top: William Wainwright and his wife, Eleanor Wainwright (nee Godwin). Bottom: Anabel Godwin, Eleanor's youngest sister and ward. Edith Bayard (nee Godwin), Eleanor's sister, and her husband Edward.

hi! i'm isa, and i'm starting my ultimate decades challenge with the wainwright family! this will be a good mix of storytelling and gameplay, and a few anachronisms. hope you enjoy, and follow the wainwrights as they go through life in the 1300s.

[trynagraduate25]

Environment: Spotlighting the Unsung Contributions of those who hold The University of the District of Columbia together

As I spoke with Sandy Waters on the same day as President Edington’s Inauguration of him becoming the 10th president of the university, this topic only became one in which I wanted to discuss more just because of the dichotomy between the two parties that are all very crucial to how things operate all within the same institution. 

Before sitting down with Sandy, I just categorized her job at the university as a “librarian” and it wasn’t long before I realized how little I was selling her short. Sandy usually mans the front desk of the 6th floor in building 71 not only on Weekdays and Weekends, but during Spring Break, Summer Break, during the Pandemic - all times that Students and Professors alike were allowed to be home for. Sandy by her own words is a “Media Technician, here to assist students, faculty, and even DC residents'' and it took no time in seeing her in action as our discussion was interrupted three times as she effortlessly helped a student with the printer, helped another sign in to a computer, and wished a farewell to an older gentleman who was leaving for the day. 

Sandy is a class of 2000 UDC alumni in the very major I’m studying now but then it was called “Mass Communications” and has a history of being a photographer for weddings and general parties before she enrolled. She still has goals, and aspirations just as high as any student here as she told me she is still doing freelance photography and videography, and even a couple of documentaries that she wants to finish.

Sandy said sometimes she feels it’s a thankless job, but given that she does it all with such a joyous demeanor, I can’t help but to feel that her description of her job at the University is even in some ways selling herself short.

[zappysims]

In the tumultuous year following Elsa's abduction, the Wishart family found solace in new additions: a stray greyhound named Honey and their son, George. Amidst uncertainty, these new members brought comfort and unity to the family.

1314 - honey and george's arrival

family tree - spreadsheet

[playingwithhistory]

Year 1318

Previous | Beginning | Next

Peter grew up to be a man now and he has already found his lover.

What happened in 1318?

Births

Joan Normann

Simon Normann

Birthdays

Peter Hambleton (Teen)

Deaths

Joan Normann (1318-1318)

[simmer-rhi]

The weather begins to warm up, and Madog is enjoying his last day as a child. Alice saved up some produce to make a tart, and the family took a picnic to the Bramblewood.

Madog makes his final mess, and his cousin Aelfric calls over to show off his new teenagehood.

Aelfric: I hope you survive the age up roll too, lil guy.

[oswanily]

Here is toddler Félipa! She survived her roll.

[aviandtheseals]

The Rowntrees Ultimate Decades Challenge - Winter 1374

I'm not feeling as motivated to play and I'm starting college soon, so I'm going to try writing shorter posts from now on. This year will be a story in 4 parts (one each season).

At the start of 1374, news arrived in the village: the fighting in the war against France had come to an end! A few men who fought came back to the village, but news from Gilbert hadn't arrived yet. The family waited anxiously for Gilbert's return but were not sure when he'd arrive. For the time, Kymmie chose not to say anything to Sabina, to not get her hopes up.

Since Finnian's injury, the women were left to take care of the garden. Kymmie and Sabina did not have the strength or stamina to work outside for long hours, so a lot of the tasks fell to Edussa. However, having her work in the garden brought down the store, which Kymmie was often too busy to open.

Edussa loved running the store. She learned simple math from Kymmie when she first married into the family and enjoyed counting up the change and bartering with customers. While gardening, she tried to come up with ideas to make gardening more efficient, so she could return to running the store. Then one day, Edussa came up with a plan she thought was good enough to run by her mother-in-law.

Kymmie had noticed that Edussa did not enjoy gardening and tried to calm her daughter-in-law.

"I know gardening is boring, but perhaps it would help for you to concentrate on the food and money we will get once the crops are harvested," Kymmie advised. "And you taking care of the garden means Finnian is not stressing about it, and he will heal faster."

Edussa was not convinced. "Um, yeah," she said distractingly. "Speaking of the garden, um, I had an idea of how we can take care of it without me having to do it. But I'm really not sure it will work."

Kymmie wanted to chuckle at Edussa's nervousness. She went for a joke instead. "What is it, sell me off as hunting bait? Because I think I'm too old to fetch that good of a price."

Edussa smiled weakly. "So I was thinking, we can't afford to hire a gardener. But... what if we can?"

Kymmie looked on, confused.

"There's going to be a lot of men coming from the war, right?" Edussa spoke quickly. "So, there will be more people, but the same number of jobs. And probably some people who don't have any life to get back to will pass through our village. And all these people will need jobs but won't need to be paid much. If we hire a gardener now, we can pay him half the usual price and still find someone."

Immediately after she said her idea, Edussa wished she hadn't. Kymmie was usually kind to her, but what if she thought Edussa was lazy or ungrateful for not just dealing with the current God-given circumstances?

But Kymmie beamed at her instead.

"Edussa, sweetie, that's a wonderful idea! You are a very clever young lady to think about the situation like that. You are right. I remember my father telling me that after he came back from the war when he was young, many stragglers showed up on his farm looking for jobs. I will open the shop tomorrow and ask around for someone looking for a job."

Kymmie wondered how many ideas Edussa had kept quiet about because she feared a negative response.

"Sweetheart, you're a very smart woman," Kymmie told her daughter-in-law. "When you have ideas, even if they end up not working out, you should still tell me about them. It's important to be curious and constantly think about ways to improve your situation."

After talking to Kymmie, Edussa was ecstatic. Her entire life she thought her purpose was to be a good mother, and she was shocked when her first child didn't bring her the joy she expected. Now Edussa realized her purpose was to be a good mother, just not in the way she thought. She wanted to run the store successfully and come up with tricks to sell more stuff. And one day, by being a successful businesswoman, she would make enough money to guarantee her children didn't have to be serfs. Edussa was grateful that she married into a family where she wasn't just stuck as a farmer's wife.

[citrinedecades]

1314 - A Shocking Loss

As the year begins and springtime returns, Sir Amis arranges for his son Tobias to be engaged to a rich heiress from Willow Creek, Marie Moreau. She visits the Verviers manor with her mother to meet Tobias, but neither of them are impressed with the other, and the betrothal is off to a rocky start.

To complicate matters, Lucan discovers that his father has cut him out of his will and only plans to leave the bare minimum to Gemma to allow her to survive with her two sons after his death. Lucan suspects that this means his father is on to them or may even already know of their affair, and so he pressures Gemma to speak to Tobias and convince him to break off his engagement to Marie.

Lucan believes that if Tobias is married and their father passes away, Tobias will claim the land and manor to raise his family there, and Gemma and Lucan will be left penniless. If he remains unmarried, however, he might yet allow Gemma and Lucan to stay at the manor with him after his father's passing.

Gemma, knowing that Tobias is her best chance at being taken care of as long as he is in love with her, seduces him and convinces him to speak to his father about the engagement. Tobias, completely in love with Gemma, gets into an argument with his father over the betrothal. Before they can speak to Marie and her mother to officially break things off, however, several people in the household fall ill and are bedridden for days.

Lucan and Tobias both pull through, but Gemma passes away, leaving everyone shocked and her sons inconsolable. Heartbroken, Tobias ultimately consents to marrying Marie and moves to Willow Creek, while Lucan remains at his father's side, secretly unsure whether Gemma's sons might be his.

Amis, who had begun to doubt Gemma's loyalty, regrets not trusting her and has difficulty accepting that his much younger wife has passed away before he did. He resolves to care and provide for their two sons as well as he can, but given his advancing age, he begins to worry about who their guardian will be once he is gone, unsure he can trust Lucan with the task. With Gemma's death having given him a new perspective on things, he attempts to reconcile with Lucan, with whom he has always had a rocky relationship.

In Windenburg, the Barrow family celebrates Stefanie and Adrianna's birthdays and the birth of another child, Alyson. Frederik and Rosemary agree that this will be their last child, and thank the Watcher for a home full of healthy children. News of Gemma's death reaches them, and Frederik mourns the passing of his little sister with Cecilia.

As the year ends, Frederik sits with Rosemary and admits that he is worried about the state of the farm. After the torrential rains and cold weather of the past year, barely anything has grown, and from what he has heard from their neighbours, they have been struggling as well. With a home full of children to feed, Rosemary and Frederik cannot help worrying about what the future holds.

Births: Alyson Barrow

Deaths: Gemma Barrow aka Emma Verviers • 1284-1314 (30 years old) • Influenza

[thestressedsimmer]

Standing outside of Elizabeth's door when John left? Was Joan, a disapproving look in her eyes. She had told him time and time again that he should not speak to their children when he was angry.

He had not been angry when he walked into the room, but Elizabeth has a way of riling him up.

"You were far too harsh on her," his wife said.

". . . You heard?"

"The entire manor could hear, John, you were not exactly quiet."

"I apologize for disturbing you, dear. It's just... Elizabeth has no idea how badly she jeopardized her future by that behavior. We are lucky that they are not questioning her purity and Her Majesty put it down to youthful excitement."

"Because the queen understands that they are young and they are human. Surely you remember when we were betrothed? We did far worse than sneak off for a kiss."

"That is exactly why I am so upset! I put your honor and your future at an immense risk, if we had been caught? What could have happened to you?"

"Our marriage simply would have been rushed. It is not uncommon! And besides, you are only suddenly against our actions because --"

"Because it's our daughter, Joan! Our baby!"

"I was somebody's daughter too."

Those words seemed to stall John's rant. He looked at his wife, swallowing thickly. He did not truly regret their time together. All of the times they snuck off and had amorous exchanges. They were beyond lucky that she didn't fall pregnant until after they were married, but. . . This was something different.

It was fear. His little girl was growing up. His eldest daughter went through her betrothal and marriage without pushing any boundaries and that had been hard enough. . . Elizabeth was different. She was adventurous and wild. He was terrified for his remaining four daughters.

"I. . ."

"I understand. John, truly I do." Joan said softly, offering him a smile. "But you will have to learn to let go."

The silence lasted a long moment before he rested a hand on his wife's shoulder. He realized he was too harsh on Elizabeth now, but it was too late to take it back.

"I am not apologizing, but I will allow you to handle things from now on."

"That is all I ask."