Tad’s Point of View:
“That’s kind of interesting.”, Tad thought.
He set the painting aside to dry and started another one. Perhaps blurred images can be my signature style … blurred COLORFUL images, he amended as he added a third color to the background.
Tad was so focused he barely registered May rushing past as she headed out the door. “Bye, Dad!” If he had, he might have said something about her sleeping late and not eating breakfast so perhaps it’s best that he hadn’t.
Right as he finished, he heard a happy giggling sound behind him.
“Good morning, little buddy!”
They went to the consignment shop and Tad was slightly disappointed with the prices his paintings brought in (§7 and §13, respectively) but really pleased with the moonstone May found (§595). While chatting with the clerk, Tad learns that items like rocks and wildflowers are much in demand because Sims want to complete their collections.
Tad takes Ice to the park across the street and set him up with a bottle as well as a toy boat under a nice shady tree so he can go collect wildflowers.
After collecting more than a dozen small bouquets, Tad “collects” his son and they return to the shop.
His jaw drops when he is handed a bundle of simoleons (§5,365). “I can’t believe that flowers, flowers!, are worth so much … I’m not complaining, no not at all. Thank YOU very much!”
Meanwhile …
May’s Point of View:
May and her classmates are seeing what it took to get meals ready for customers during their field trip to the bistro.
She carefully watches the slicing and dicing techniques, thinking she might need to learn how to cook since dad isn’t very good. “He tries, Mom, but his cooking is nowhere near as good as yours!”, she thought.
May asks a lot of questions, ignoring the laughter from the girls and the eye rolls from the boys. She smiles when her teacher tells her, “Knowledge is power!”.
On the other side of downtown …
Tad’s Point of View:
Tad takes Ice to the library to read a few books but their visit is cut short when he sees Goodwin Goode and Sinbad Rotter get into a fight. He isn’t sure who started it or why but doesn’t want to risk getting caught up in it so quickly scoops up his son and heads home.
Back at the house …
May’s Point of View:
The school bus drops May off and as she was walking through the tall grass, she hears a noise. She investigates and is able to befriend a crow.
She asks her dad if it is okay to take the bird to the science center. Tad gives permission but wants her to come straight home since he is so tired he can barely stand up and wants her to watch Ice.
May returns home as quickly as she can and happily puts 337 simoleons in their money tin. “Won’t dad be surprised when he learns that small animals are fun to watch and worth a lot, too!”, she thinks.
Ice plays with his toy while Tad sleeps and May does her homework.
Poor Tad seems to be apologizing for not being a better provider for his family even in his dreams.
Tad’s Point of View:
Tad wakes and joins his daughter at the table. She tells him about the money she added to the tin and he asks what she would like to do with it.
May: “Maybe a bookcase for all of us to use.”
Ice causes them to laugh when he chimes in with: “Bench!”
May: “A second easel might be nice. You can have one inside when the weather is bad or it’s too dark to paint outside.”
He finishes his dinner and decides it’s past time to remove the pile of rocks blocking their windows.
The sound of crying and yelling has him dropping the pickaxe and racing back inside!
May: “Dad! Ice woke me up! How am I supposed to sleep with all that noise he’s making?”
Tad changes Ice’s dirty diaper and soothes him back to sleep.
“Everything is good now so you can go back to sleep, sweetheart.” He whispers to his daughter.
A few hours later …
“Oh my! This is not what I expected to see.”
Tad pulls out his phone and calls the police department, hoping this was merely a horrible accident and not something else.
When it rains, it pours. The outhouse toilet breaks. Tad does what he can to fix the pipe and keep the mess from going inside their home.
A very tired Tad drags himself off to bed. Thankfully, the discovery of the skeleton doesn’t hinder his sleep.
Addy’s Note: It’s interesting seeing what Sims dream about!
Good night.
Have I Got A Story for YOU! 
Oh, no! Not a skeleton! LOL Nice chapter, Addy!
Yes, it certainly was a surprise to me! None of the others playing/writing about this had mentioned it, lol
Thanks!
Another great chapter!
Thank you very much! ♥
That house has good bones.
…Too soon?
LOL
What a surprise! 🙂 Great chapter!
Yes, it was! Didn’t expect it at all, lol
Thank you very much! ♥
It’s sad that his art is worth less than some flowers or a bird. 😦
I know, right?! Quite the humbling experience!
Great chapter, definitely worth the effort to collect flowers they are certainly more lucrative than paintings, although with time and practice paintings are very lucrative indeed! May is definitely becoming very wise with her money by wanting a bookshelf verses a toy, although she should be more patient with her little brother.. Hopefully, the skeleton was left there a long time ago…
Flower collecting is well worth the time it takes to pick them! Most give a small return but one is worth $200 (Sweet William), another $400 (Indian Blanket) and another $600 (Cosmos). Much more lucrative than paintings in the beginning but eventually, Tad’s skill and painting values will become comparable.
It’s difficult sharing a room with a baby or toddler because there is often interrupted sleep.
Hopefully … 😉
Very true sharing a room with a younger sibling is very hard indeed! I remember during my teen years (14) when my youngest brother would cry at night for hours ( this was after my mom checked on him and he was already fed, diapers changed, etc,,, babies have a mind of their own) it was very difficult to sleep, and when it happened on a school night that would be very frustrating. I can sympathize with May, babies do require a lot of patience!
Poor you! That had to be rough on all of you … a teen and a little one. My brother and I were 13 months apart so it was rougher on mom than us.