Bonita's Wants, Final Hurdle

[katrisims]

Hello, and welcome back to Bonita's Wants! This is a Great Boolprop Olympic Challenge, where Bonita Curious attempts to fulfill 100 Wants while living her normal everyday life and raising a family. We've hit the final stretch of this challenge now, last time Bonita hit 75 Wants. That means only 25 more and we'll be done!

So let's get to it shall we? Bonita and her wife Brenda just had a tiny little baby boy last time, and they named him Brandon. Both of them are working parents, and now that Brandon is little, they're taking turns. Today Brenda has a day off, so Bonita heads to work. She's on level 7 in Science, which is also her LTW career, and she's met all her promotion requirements. So, off to work you go Bonita!



While Bonita was at work, Brenda's job for today was to take care of Brandon.



While Brandon slept, she could induldge in her hobbies, like chess.



It was the start of summer, and we got a thunderstorm. After watching it for a while, I felt a bit worried and bought a few lightning rods.

Brenda: “Actually, being hit by a lightning would be kind of interesting.”

No, Brenda. This challenge is all about Wants, but even if it was in Bonita's Want Panel, I still wouldn't risk it.



It seems the money on the lightning rods was money well spent.



Brenda stayed safely inside, but apparently one of the townies didn't mind the weather, but decided to jog by the house. In his ballet suit, in the thunderstorm.



Bonita's workday was rather short, she came back in the early afternoon. With a promotion, no less. Congrats Bonita!

Bonita: “Thanks. Only two more levels to go.”

Yeah. If the Wants don't totally finish this challenge, like, right away, you might actually have time to top the career.



While Bonita took care of her needs, Brenda continued to look after Brandon.

When she got the chance, Bonita of course hit the couch for some skilling. Fortunately, studying cooking from the tv builds fun too.

I don't know if Benny also wanted to watch tv or what, but I found him peering through the door of his cage. Please don't get your face stuck between the bars okay?


Brenda had hit the chess board and managed to get her skilling Want before Bonita. She's quite good at logic now.





Bonita, however, wasn't far behind with her cooking.

Want #76: Reach Cooking Level 8.



Bonita took a small social break when her phone rang, she caught up with Tammy.



When the clock hit six, we found that it's Brandon's toddler birthday. So, when he wakes up, it's time for some cake.



In the meanwhile, Bonita cooked for the adults and they had a nice dinner together.



After dinner, Brandon was again awake, so Bonita took him to the cake.



Brenda joined the celebrations too, although I don't know why she decided to hide behind the fridge.





Let's go ahead and find out how the little buddy turns out!



Well hello there Brandon. Aren't you a cutie, and a formal little guy!



Now that Brandon was a toddler, it was a good time to make some Smart Milk to store in the inventory.



And here's little Brandon after a makeover. The cheeks are a bit odd, I suppose because of his alien heritage, but nevertheless he's a little cutie.

Brandon's personality is 5/3/10/4/9 (Pisces).



Both Bonita and Brenda rolled some Wants to help Brandon with his toddler skills, which suited me quite well. The tricky part of course is trying to lock and fulfill them cleverly so that as many as possible are scored. Bonita got right to work with walking training.





Soon enough, their work was fruitful.

Want #77: Teach Brandon to Walk.



When left to his own devices, Brandon seemed to enjoy the logic toy.



He also got started on his potty training with Brenda.





After the rest of the family had gone to bed, Bonita still did some studying, and at that, scored another Want.

Want #78: Reach Cooking Level 9.



The morning started with a nice breakfast for the adults. Today, Brenda would be going to work and Bonita would be staying at home with Brandon.



Brenda had a bit of time to skill before work, and by maxing her logic skill, she made herself platinum too.



So it was a good time to head for work.



For Bonita and Brandon, the morning meant bath time.



After he got some Smart Milk, Brandon snuck off to dance to the stereo. It seems that the kid is taking after Brenda there.



While dancing is fun, Bonita and Brandon had some work to do too, to get Brandon talking.





With both the Smart Milk and the thinking cap, it was quite efficient.

Want #79: Teach Brandon to Talk.



Potty training was also in order.





Brenda had already done most of the work, so the rest went by quickly.

Want #80: Teach Brandon Potty Training.



We left the Nursery Rhyme for Brenda, and Brandon headed for his logic toy, which he seems to like very much.



Bonita, in turn, got a lunch break.





While Brandon was doing his own thing, Bonita had time to work on her cooking skill, and in fact, thanks to a eureka moment, maximize it.

Want #81: Maximize the Cooking Skill.



When Brandon was on his afternoon nap, Brenda came home, and with a promotion too. Great work Brenda!



I'm not sure if I'd noticed before that there's shy sim dancing. Now I did, and it's of course adorable!





After she was done with dancing, Bonita felt like spending a bit of time with her wife.

Want #82: Talk to Brenda.


Brenda needed a new skill to work on, as logic was now done. I decided to kill two birds with one stone and bought an easel. There's points for grabs if there's photos – I take it to mean painted portraits in TS2 – of all of the family in the end of the challenge. Brenda already has some creativity skill, so she got started on Bonita's portrait.





Yet in the evening Bonita had time for another, by now quite familiar, Want.

Want #83: Stargaze with Telescope.


After that, she headed back to the couch for some more skilling. If nothing else, for future Wants.



Brandon snuck off to dance again. He seems to really like it.



Brenda kindly fixed the plumbing again. She's been doing that a lot.




Thanks to some hard work, Bonita was able to score one more Want that evening.

Want #84: Reach Cleaning Level 9.



Brandon woke up early in the morning, so he had to wait for a bit for his parents to wake up. He was able to keep himself entertained, though.



They did eventually get up, and Brenda took the first turn, giving Brandon a bath.





Meanwhile, Bonita made breakfast for the adults.

Want #85: Serve Food.


After breakfast, Brenda and Brandon finalized Brandon's toddler training by learning the Nursery Rhyme. Most of the training went by the Wants that Bonita rolled, but Brenda had the Nursery Rhyme locked and she got to teach that one.



Bonita spent that time hitting the couch with a book, as usual.





After Brandon had learned the Nursery Rhyme, Brenda had some time for painting and chatting on the phone.



In the early afternoon, it was time for her to go to work.





Bonita's hard work paid off, as she maximized her cleaning skill that afternoon.

Want #86: Maximize the Cleaning Skill.





Bonita had a pretty calm afternoon, taking care of her needs and catching up with friends.



Brandon took a break from his logic toy and played with the xylophone for a change.



There was time for some tickles with Bonita, too.



Congrats on the promotion, Brenda! If we had more time, you could just, fly through the ranks, but this challenge is pretty close to the end already.

Brenda: "Yeah, Bonita is efficient about those Wants. But it was nice to get this promotion at least."





Bonita was indeed pretty effective in the Wants department. It was conveniently night time, so she could again score one simple Want.

Want #87: Stargaze with Telescope.





It was getting pretty late, so Bonita and Brenda enjoyed a late dinner and went to bed.





The morning was started off with another Want.

Want #88: Talk about Hobby.





Cuisine was one of Bonita's hobbies, so talking about hobbies made her feel like cooking. As it happened, it was breakfast time right about then.

Want #89: Serve Food.





Bonita's car pool showed up, and she was about to leave, but as she was on the verge of being in platinum, I held her back for one more small Want. Platinum mood is great for promotions.

Want #90: Play Computer Game.



The she ran off to her carpool and made it in time.





Brenda had the forenoon off. That time was spent with Brandon, and at the easel.



Brenda's current work shift overlaps just barely with Bonita's. Bonita was due a promotion, so she went to work, and that left Brenda at home. She doesn't have vacation days unfortunately, so she called in sick. Luckily the boss didn't question her story.



Brenda returned to her easel, and pretty soon she was done with Bonita's portrait, which I hung on the wall.



Brandon didn't need anything right then, so Brenda got stared on her own portrait next. And while she was at it, she gained more creativity skill.



Little Brandon got some tickles and attention too.



Bonita came from work in the afternoon, and her strategy of going to work in platinum mood had worked beautifully: she got a promotion. Congrats, Bonita!

Bonita: "Thanks! Only one more to go and I'll be Mad Scientist!"

Yeah, it's really not long until then. Kind of too bad that you have a long weekend off, as you already have all the required skills.

Bonita: Well, it does mean I get to spend some time with the family, and score some Wants too.

True. Just let's try to keep you from reaching 100 before you can top your career, you've made it so far.



The rest of the afternoon went by with Brenda at the easel and Bonita taking care of her needs and catching up with friends.



Brenda's self-portrait was shaping up and in a Eureka moment, she gained another creativity point.



When Brandon woke up from his nap, he and Bonita spent some time together. Bonita helped her son get into platinum mood, as today is a big day: Brandon is about to grow into a child!



When he was good and ready, we bought a cake and Bonita brought him to it.



Brenda took a break from her painting to come cheer for her son.





Time to blow out the candles and to grow up!





And there he is, little guy! Growing up was something Brandon had been looking forward to. And well, Bonita too.

Want #91: Brandon Grows Up Well.



For the first time in his life, Brandon got to have some cake, and he really enjoyed it.



His parents seemed to mysteriously disappear pretty quickly from the table, even though there was plenty of cake left.



But fortunately Brandon didn't mind, that meant more cake for him right? And dancing, dancing's always good.



After having some more cake, everyone was so tired that we decided to leave Brandon's makeover for the next day.





In the morning, Bonita was in the mood for cooking again.

Want #92: Serve food.



And what's nicer than having a relaxed breakfast with the whole family?



After the dishes were cleared, Bonita took a trip to the clothing store to buy something nice for Brandon.



After she was back home, Brandon went for the dresser to put on his new clothes. Here he is after his makeover. A cute kid, looks like he grew into his features. Only after Brandon got his new clothes, I realized that the whole family is wearing something red. Well, I suppose it suits them.



Oh, and the old nursery got a bit of a makeover too, as Brandon is now a big boy who needs his big boy bed and a desk for homework.





A lot of the day was spent doing something fun. Bonita felt like playing some chess.

Want #93: Play Chess.



Brandon was more into jumping rope. Good thing there's a good amount of space in the kitchen / living room.



Brenda finished her own portrait and it was hung up next to Bonita's. She immediately got started on Brandon's, as there's not much time left in the challenge. Two down, one to go!



I noticed there was a kid standing on the front lawn, and as Brandon had the Want to make a friend, I sent him out to say hi. His name was Neil Charvat. (If I accidentally call him Nicholas it's because a prominent character in my alphabetacy was named Nicholas Charvat.)



Brandon and Neil got chatting on the yard and seemed to be getting along nicely.



Bonita hit the couch, as she has so many times in this challenge. Her Want Panel had some new skills in it.



The boys did eventually come inside. Like Brandon, Neil seems to like dancing.



Brenda kept an eye on the kids, while also working on her painting. Another heureka momentwas just what she needed to gain more skill.



When the boys started to get hungry, it was time for a meal break for everyone.



Brandon and Neil making friends with each other wasn't entirely easy. Brandon is super shy – he inherited that from his mothers – and I think Neil is more outgoing. So whenever I look away, Neil tends to try to hug Brandon or play red hands or something, and that terrifies poor shy Brandon.


They did make friends in the end, though, with a bit of help from me.




Meanwhile, Bonita completed another Want by learning what to do in case of a fire.

Want #94: Learn Fire Prevention.



As the evening fell, Brandon said goodbye to Neil, he was getting quite tired.



Soon after, Brenda finished his portrait, which came out quite nice. And at that, the whole collection is finished in time for this challenge!





Brandon actually needed a bit of a nap before having dinner, so that he wouldn't fall asleep in his food. The adults naturally spent that time skilling.



Monday morning arrived. The adults have the day off, the last one before Bonita's next shift that should hopefully get her the promotion to the top of Science. She has a Want for that locked now, and I'm thinking that with some clever timing, it could be her 100^th. I was debating myself earlier on whether I should count the LTW as a Want or not if Bonita were to fulfill it before the challenge ends. Now, if her 100^th regular Want was the same thing, it wouldn't matter as the LTW would then be #101 if I were to count it.



But before that, there's still other stuff to do. Benny needed food, for like the second time during this challenge. That's not how I remember small pets from being in this game. My alphabetacy had a bird and that one needed feeding like, every day or even more. Maybe womrats are different?





Brandon seems to take after his parents in that he tends to want some skill points too. Well, he can have those so he goes to school happy. Have a good first day at school Brandon!







Bonita got to have skill points too, for some of her remaining Wants. She started with a double score.

Want #95: Gain a Skill Point.

Want #96: Reach Mechanical Level 4.



Brenda wanted to max out her creativity, so she stayed at the easel for the morning. It paid off before luchtime, too.




Bonita kept on working, and got another Want for it. We're very, very close to the end now.

Want #97: Reach Mechanical Level 5.





Since they were home alone for the day, Bonita and Brenda took a bit of break for romantic times.



Bonita felt like learning something about creativity, so I bought a one-tile piano for the family so they wouldn't have to fight over easel turns.





That was quite easily accomplished.

Want #98: Gain a Creativity Skill Point.

That's it then. We'll leave room for one more Want tomorrow morning so that Bonita can raise her Aspiration before going to work one last time.



Brandon came home from school. His grades are improving, and with some homework help, we'll see more improvement. Although, if everything goes to plan, not during this challenge.





The family had a late lunch together, and then it was time to take care of needs otherwise.



In Brandon's case that meant playing some games, as school had totally tanked his fun. Private school would be less un-fun, and that had made a quick appearance in both Bonita's and Brenda's Want Panel, but in the end, it didn't fit the schedule.


Bonita took care of some chores, such as filling the fridge. It may be almost over, but you still need to eat.



She also spent some time with Brandon. Because slapping another sim's hands is more fun than anything, beating for instance computer games.



After Brandon's fun motive was sufficiently high, Bonita went on to teach him how to do homework.



That was something that Brandon wanted, too. Bonita didn't roll that Want, but at this point of the challenge, that's perfectly ok.



After homework, it was time for dinner.

Brenda: "So you're about to get that final promotion?"

Bonita: "Yeah. Tomorrow is a work day, so hopefully then."



After polishing his plate, Brandon had yet a bit of time to play with Benny.



But soon it was time to get some much needed sleep. Tomorrow would be an important day.



The morning saw the usual morning routines, plus some fun things.


Bonita's situation was a little delicate. Her Want Panel included the Wants to reach the top of her career, to gain a skill point in Mechanical, to gain a skill point in Creativity, and to gain a generic skill point.

If she were to gain a Mechanical or Creativity skill point, she'd score two Wants at once and end the challenge immediately, before having the chance to get the final promotion. And after working so hard on it, we'd lose the points for topping the career AND achieving an LTW. That wouldn't do. The solution: Bonita got working on Charisma instead.



Time for Brandon to go to school. Bye Brandon, have a good day!




Bonita didn't have any skill points in Charisma, so she got her Want quite quickly.

Want #99: Gain a Skill Point.



There was one final problem: 1,000 aspiration points were not able to put Bonita in platinum mood, but just barely under. So there was a bit of a discussion to have with Brenda.

Bonita: "... so I probably wouldn't get the promotion today, but would have to wait an extra day. That'd probably be fine, but there's the risk that I'd accidentally fulfill another Want and end the challenge before I got another chance."

Brenda: "That's tough. But it sounds like you have something in mind."

Bonita: "Well, there's one way for me to get platinum without scoring another Want..."

Brenda: "... The Simvac."

Bonita: "Yeah. I wouldn't even want to suggest it, but it's the only thing I can think of and..."

Brenda: "No, I'll do it. This challenge is almost done, and with that we can end it in the best possible way."



So, what happened was that I bought a Simvac with Bonita's aspiration points (she had plenty to spare) and had her use it on Brenda to steal aspiration. That put Bonita in platinum, and Brenda in low green.



Bonita: "Are you ok?"

Brenda: "Yeah I'm fine. It wasn't that bad. I'll just score a Want or two and I'll be happily back to gold."

Bonita: "Thank you, honey."

Brenda: "You're welcome. Now go get that promotion."



And with that, Bonita walked out the door and into the car pool that was honking on the driveway.



There wasn't much left for Brenda to do. She finished her current painting while waiting for her own car pool.



And of course, in a true Knowledge sim fashion, she did some studying.


Then it was time for Brenda to go to work, too. Now all there was to for me to do, was wait.




I didn't have to wait for very long. Early in the afternoon, Bonita came back from work, with a promotion as we had hoped. With that, she topped her career, completed her LTW and scored her 100^th regular Want, ending the challenge then and there.

Want #100: Reach Top of Science Career.



Congrats, Bonita! As it's no longer raining, you can splash in the puddles while I wrap this challenge up.

So with that, we're done with my Summer Sim Challenge. We got there within the given time, and I'd say we did pretty well. All that's left for me to do is to calculate the score.

+ 25 for reaching the first hurdle
+ 50 for reaching the second hurdle
+ 75 for reaching the third hurdle
+ 100 for reaching the fourth and final hurdle
+ 30 for Bonita completing her Lifetime Want
+ 10 for Bonita reaching the top of her career
+ 20 for completing the challenge in one generation
+ 10 for Bonita maximizing Cooking
+ 10 for Bonita maximizing Logic
+ 10 for Bonita maximizing Cleaning
+ 15 for family fund (§ 25,404) in the end
+ 15 for having portraits of all of the family
+ 10 for sharing the story
Total: 380 points

Not bad at all I'd say. This was a fun little challenge, and I might well try it again sometime with a different activity. Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed the challenge too. Until next time, happy simming!