Gen 3 Chapter 14: World Renowned Surgeon?

The days after Ken's death were solemn, but we all kept ourselves busy, and when we needed to, we cried and let some of the emotions out.

I got along ok, but I most certainly felt uncomfortable sleeping in our old bedroom. If I stayed out of that room, I did ok when I was home. But when I walked in that room, it was all I could do to keep myself together. I couldn't fall apart all of the time. My kids needed me. 

I was lucky enough to get a promotion that next day at work. Normally, I would have been on top of the world, and ready to celebrate, but Ken's death overshadowed that. 

I was glad to have the promotion, especially after all the hard work I had put in, don't get me wrong. I just hoped I could hold on to my promotion being the emotional wreck that I was.

My kids suggested I go have a day at the spa and relax a little. They knew all too well all the extra work I was putting in before Ken passed, and they were concerned about how well I'd handle the stress of it all. I took them up on it. A spa day might just be exactly what I need.

When I was finished, I felt like a new person! The pain of Ken's absence was still there, but I didn't realize how tired my old body was getting from it all. I felt truly relaxed! Harmony happened to be outside when I was through, and we had a long talk about my family, and Ken's passing. It was very helpful to talk to her. 

"You know, Symphony, if you'd like, you and I could switch shifts tomorrow, and you can go teach a medical seminar for me at the theater, and I'll handle your rounds at the hospital. It might be a little easier on you."

"Oh, that would be great actually! It would be nice to get out of the hospital and have a change of scenery. I'd love to!"

The kids were back to school the day after their Dad's death, and although it was difficult for them, they did a good job of carrying on while mourning Ken. They worked on their homework, and Kenny even invited a girl home from school to study with. All of the kids seemed to band together and really help each other when I wasn't there, and I was so grateful for that.

Mikinna was very close to graduating now, and she really needed to pull up her grades before then. I tried to help her in the mornings before work. I know life had been tough lately, so I didn't try to nag her about it, just offer a lot of help and support.

The next day I had to go to the theater to teach that medical seminar for Harmony. It was the best idea ever for me to give up my stressful, busy rounds at the hospital for the day and teach the seminar. I enjoyed it a lot, and met some really great people.

The weekend was upon us, and the kids were really enjoying their free time. Mikinna had taken up the guitar, Logan decided to leave it behind when he moved, and said he'd come back for it later, but he knew how much Mikinna wanted one and I think he was trying to make up for leaving so abruptly after Ken's passing. 

After making sure the kids were ok without me, I headed to the library to do some studying and research for work. I was working hard to find a cure to a disease that had been plaguing the city lately. I knew if I could figure this out, I'd get that promotion for sure. 

I was going to need a little help with  my next promotion, because that goose chase I went on to try to track down the medical supply shipments ended with no luck retrieving them. The files I found at city hall didn't help. At least they were nice enough to compensate me for the extra time I had put in chasing all the info down.

Kenny had chose to spend the weekend working on his inventing, so he went down to the local scrap yard to pick some scrap up for his workbench at home. It seems, that he found a little more than just scrap!

"Ahh!"

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to scare you!"

"Oh, that's ok, I just didn't see you there."

"I haven't seen you around town before, are you new here?"

"Yes, we just moved in this weekend."

"Oh, well my name is Kenny. Nice to meet you."

"Carol. Nice to meet you too."

"So, are you an inventor too?"

"Well, I thought I might give it a try. My Gammy wanted me to find a hobby to keep me busy after school."

"Gammy?"

"Gammy is my foster grandmother. Well, my foster "mom" to be technical, but all of us consider her more of a grandmother."

"Ah, I see, that's cool. So, you'll be starting school here then on Monday?"

"Yes. Me and my foster sister and 2 foster brothers. I'm a little nervous about starting a new school."

"Sure, I can understand that. It's not too bad. Even entertaining at times. Just remember, if you can get the Government teacher all riled up about current events, he'll forget all about his lecture and go on and on, and forget to assign homework!"

"Haha, that's great information! I'll remember that!"

Kenny stayed at the junkyard until his curfew chatting with Carol. He promised me that they were barely even friends and that there was nothing romantic going on there, but I don't know, I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see.

We also had a nice, lazy Sunday before we were all back to the old grind. I spent my time chatting with Grace, and Mikinna painted while Kenny worked at his workbench all day. 

Kenny decided since I wasn't using my room anymore to go ahead and make that his new room, and he used his old room only for working on his inventions, which meant that pretty much the whole 3rd floor was Kenny's now. I was perfectly fine with that, and he of course loved it.

My disease research paid off, as when I brought it to work the next day to show everyone, they all marveled that I managed to find a cure! I was immediately given a promotion! I was now a Neurosurgeon! Only one more step away from my dream! Maybe I would make it to see that day after all!

That evening was Mikinna's birthday! She was becoming a woman tonight! I couldn't believe my little girl was now an adult. 

Happy Birthday Mikinna!

She Loved spending time Outdoors now, and very rarely was home. Although her favorite was being out in the fresh air, she liked visiting the clubs too. She did gain a little bit of weight when she aged up, and I was concerned with how that was affecting her interactions with members of the opposite sex.

She seemed to be on some kind of Conquest to be a Master Romancer or something. All she could talk about was finding a guy, flirting with guys, etc. She was really worrying me. I was really worried she was trying to somehow boost her self-esteem. She hadn't even wanted to look for a job. I hoped that maybe she would come around and at least want to work eventually.

Our life was starting to get back to normal. I think we had all come to grips with Ken's death, and were all going on with life. Grace and Kenny's grades were improving drastically as they had both decided to make homework a priority. I was very proud of them. 

Mikinna was still sleeping all day and staying out all night, but she didn't seem to be getting into too much trouble, so I guess she was ok. After all, she was an adult now, and this was her life.

Then, it finally happened. I had been running some files over to the mausoleum, and when I got back to the hospital, the whole staff surprised me with a big party!

I was pleased, but I didn't have a clue what it was for. I finally pulled the new girl aside, and said, so, why are we having a party in my honor? And she said, "Um, I'm pretty sure we're celebrating your promotion to World Renowned Surgeon."

OH MY PLUMBOB!!!! I FINALLY DID IT! I WAS A WORLD RENOWNED SURGEON! My lifetime wish was complete! My co-workers asked me if I planned on retiring now, and I told them 'no way!' I had worked too long, too hard, and sacrificed a lot to be where I am today, I was going to stick around and enjoy it as long as I could. It was time for me to go home and celebrate with those who mattered to me the most. My kids!

*buckey's notes*- Holy cow, we made it! Whew!! Symphony has finally completed her LTW, and she's just a day shy of 90, I believe! This ends Generation 3, next up, Generation Kenny! Both of Symph's last promotions she pretty much earned each in one day. I was so relieved that she kept getting work opportunities, because I got her the "Opportunistic" Lifetime Reward, and for every one she completed, she'd get more than the normal reward. Carol and her "foster siblings" are Sims I threw into town, along with some others, hoping that Kenny and maybe even Grace would have some good choices for significant others, and to my surprise, Carol was at the junkyard when Kenny went! They totally got to meet by happenstance, and they got to chat as Kenny had a wish to become friends with someone. So far, no wishes concerning her, but I'm hoping they will become better friends at school. We shall see! Thanks for reading everyone, and sticking with me! Generation 4 will be coming soon!

Gen 3 Chapter 13: Fulfilled

Ken and I were smack dab in the middle of the next stage of our parenthood. Now that Kenny had entered school, all the children were academic minded now, running here or there for a school report or activity, working on homework, and asking Ken and I for help along the way. 

I wasn't as available as Ken was, but the whole family had an understanding that I was chasing after my lifetime wish, and my children were very gracious to me, cutting me all kinds of slack for not being around as much right now. Of course, there were times where me working myself to the bone did frighten the kids. I hated that it was Kenny who discovered my exhausted body on the living room floor one evening after work.

After a million promises to take it easy, however, most everyone forgot all about it and went back to their daily activities. Alex and Logan were very close to graduating now, and had decided that they would move out together, and help each other out. Although neither of them knew exactly what they wanted to do, or what career they wanted to pursue, I was so glad they decided to venture out together. I knew I would worry about them a lot less knowing they had each other's backs.

At work, I was still running in circles trying to do every bit of extra work that came my way to make it to the top. My appointment with City Hall had been rescheduled, and so I still had a few more days to wait on that, and I was desperately trying to make good friends with my boss so I could ask her outside of work for a promotion. I figured that was my best bet at this point. 

I knew I couldn't keep up the pace at work with all the younger new folks working twice as hard with half the effort it took me to do the same. I thought if I could just talk to Kerry away from the hospital, and share with her my heart about how important this next promotion is to me, surely she would see it my way, and give me that promotion. After work, I went over to her house and our conversation went so well, she invited me to a party that she was throwing that night. I was so close, I knew it! I hurried home and changed into swim gear and headed back over to her house. 

But, it seemed that fate was working against me and my dream. We were having a great time chatting like old friends, and we had just touched on the subject of work and in the middle of me pouring my heart out to her about why I really needed this next promotion, the unthinkable happened.

"Kerry, are you ok?!? Kerry!!!"

Right then and there, at her own party, in her own home, I watched my boss die. I went home in complete shock. I was still trying to process what had just happened.

I was too caught up in the traumatic experience to realize that I had missed my oldest son Alex's journey into adulthood.

Happy Birthday Alex!

He decided he wanted to join the local sports team and wanted a career as a professional athlete. He was so excited to start work! 

He'd be sticking around the house for a little while longer to wait for Logan's birthday and then my oldest boys would be officially on their own. I started to worry just a little about Alex though. He went over to his new boss' house to get to know her better and when he came home, he was acting so strange. 

He was carrying a back pack with him, and when I asked what was in it, he very abruptly said "Nothing!" And went straight to his room. I don't know what happened over there, but I hoped he wasn't getting himself in trouble.

Watching someone die helps to put thing in perspective a bit, and I decided I wanted to check in with all my kiddos and make sure they were doing ok. 

Mikinna was doing good, she had been doing some extra credit work at the science facility, and it was going well. 

Grace was doing good in school, and had been doing her homework without any help now, as her teachers started printing off her worksheets in giant print, she was able to read them with no help.

Kenny was excited about helping his Daddy with his new hobby, gardening. Ken had made a beautiful little garden in our back yard and had started a few plants. 

Kenny loved being outside with him while he was working out there. 

Logan decided right before his birthday, that he would like to Master the Guitar, but also to learn public speaking skills, and Master Charisma as well. I would have never guessed that my loner son would have an interest in such a thing as Charisma, but I knew if he learned those skills, he would be so much more successful in life, so I let him know we fully supported him! It didn't take long for his birthday to come, and soon, no longer was Logan a boy, he was a full grown man!

Happy Birthday Logan!

I guess Ken's new gardening was rubbing off on more than just Kenny, because Logan suddenly took an interest in all things green as well. He said he thought he might have a Green Thumb, and wanted to borrow Ken's gardening book so he could read up on the plants Ken was growing and help him in the garden as well. 

He said that wherever he and Alex moved he hoped they had a garden he could keep working on.

So, Alex prepared for his first day of work, and Logan made preparations for them at a new home to rent. They would be moving out right after Kenny's birthday.

We almost forgot how soon Kenny's birthday was coming, and so for an early birthday present, we bought him something he's wanted for a long time, an inventor's workbench! It made his room a little bit crowded, but we figured since the boys would be moving out soon, he could always take over their room, and turn his room into his workshop if he wanted.

I found out the next day at work that my new boss was none other than my own sister, Harmony! At first I was a little torn up that I hadn't gotten the position, but then I decided to look at this positively, at least I was in better with this boss than the last one, since it was my sister! Surely, my promotion would be closer than ever now! I still took all the extra work that came across the desk, and found myself giving seminars in some strange places, as well as doing some independent research with the science faciltiy, just to keep my logic skills sharp.

I decided that I was going to go to my sisters' house, and I wasn't going to leave there until I had my promotion! She wasn't off of work yet, so my other sister, Melody welcomed me in until she got off work.

That night, Logan made all the final preparations, they would officially be moving out!

But first, Kenny had a birthday coming!

Happy Birthday Kenny!

Wow! Our last child, the youngest, was now a teenager. And so handsome! Ken joked with him about going to high school, and having the girls' fall all over him, and he blushed, and said, "I hope not! I wouldn't know what to say to a girl!". Kenny was going to be Shy apparently. I knew he was a good kid though, so I had no worries that someday a girl would catch his eye.

This birthday was a very big deal to Ken, because this meant that he had done it! He had achieved his LTW of raising 5 children like he had always wanted!

 

I was still at my sister's house, so I wasn't there to celebrate with him, but I told him over the phone that we'd have to really celebrate properly this weekend.

Little did I know, I wouldn't have the chance.  Melody offered for me to stay the night which I told her I'd love to. Because of that, I missed being there for my family at the time they probably needed me the most.

Ken.... was.....leaving us.

The kids called me and told me what had happened. I was so in shock, I didn't know what to do. I was about to run home to them, when an emergency came through, one the hospital desperately needed me for. Mikinna told me to go, finish the emergency and then come home, after all, Dad was already gone, there wasn't anything I could do. I told them they didn't have to go to school, they could stay home if they wanted. 

As soon as Alex and Logan had their father's gravestone moved out to his garden, they packed up and moved out. 

At first I was a little angry that they left, in light of everything that had just happened. On the other hand, I knew that witnessing a parent or someone you love die is a life-changing, horrible event. Ken was so close with the both of them. Alex being our first born, and Logan bonding with him in the hospital, they were both very attached to him. I hoped they would be ok, but I couldn't let myself be consumed with worry, because I had 3 kids to get home to and help piece their broken hearts back together. 

As much as I wanted that promotion, I knew I needed to be home fully focused on my kids today. It was my day off, and I put aside the books, the errands, the studying and let my children cry on my shoulder, as I cried on theirs. 

The man who was the strength of our family was here no longer. Could we all make it through this? Could we survive this devastating loss? Time would tell. The one thought that brought me comfort as I looked into our youngest's teenage eyes: Ken left this life fulfilled.

*buckey's notes*- So, seconds after fulfilling his LTW, Ken passes on. I couldn't believe the timing. Just a few minutes before, and Ken wouldn't have got his Wish! It makes me very nervous for Symphony. She is 82 days old at the end of this chapter, so she's cutting it close. In my game, she's at level 8. I hope I can pull off those last 2 promotions! This is the closest it's come for me. Eeek! I've decided that if something happens, and I end up failing the Wishacy with Symphony, I'll start a new one over with Kenny. I really hope it doesn't come to that! And, it was a little bit difficult to allude to Alex's last trait, he got Kleptomaniac, and stole something from his boss's house. Bad boy! LOL This has been the generation of assigned traits, I've only got to pick a few, as babies, and the rest have pretty much all been assigned. *sigh* Anyways, one more chapter from this generation, and either Symphony will make her LTW, and we'll continue, or she won't, and my 1st Wishacy attempt will FAIL. 0_o Let's hope Symph comes through!