I have a confession to make - six babies is HARD!!! OMG it was crazy how much work was involved with children when they can't walk, can't talk and don't have too much problem being left in their cribs all day. With with six of them, it was full time work for the babysitters, something Max and Bella just couldn't live without.

I decided enough was enough with the crazy babies and aged them up - the first lot of twins were only a few days off anyway, and I sped the game up to speed 3 for a couple of weeks (game time weeks) so there was still some gap.

With six kids, I wasn't about to video record each one lol, so instead, here's the mug shots of each toddler!

Ever wanted to know what it sounds like to have 6 babies? Take a listen...

So, a VERY interesting proposition popped up on my screen when I returned to the sims after my recent break - something I was so not expecting to see...

Whaaaa? But... but... Melani and Max don't have anything to do with each other anymore? Melani is gone from his life, what is this? The only thing I could think of was that they still wanted to remain friends because of the kids...

I decided that if I could move Melani and the kids into Max's place, that I would do it. I could explain it away as Eric having finally had enough and leaving, which of course would devastate Melani and she'd have no where to go. Being that they are Max's kids, he'd take them in. It would also of course, make for very interesting watching.

Sadly though, not only was there no option to move them to Max's place, instead being forced into Melani's 2 bedroom house... and Eric was included in the package. Um, no thanks. Not wanting to leave Bella behind, that makes 4 adults... and of course, a whole lot more kids!! Sadly, to many for one household.


That was the end of that then. I wasn't about to leave Bella with 6 babies to look after, not to mention I really didn't want to play a Max/Melani/Eric family lol, that's just a little too bizarre for my liking. So, it was all called off. Max will stay with Bella, and Melani withe Eric.

Kinda a shame that I couldn't fit everyone under the same roof, would have been hectic, but very interesting LOL!

When you have your first child, you blow a roll of film on their first poop. You record everything - their first outfit, first smile, the first time they try food. Their first attempt at crawling and of course first steps. Everything is new, fantastic and must be documented.

By the second child, you take photos of your first child holding the second, playing with the second etc. And you remember to capture their first steps, and their first birthday.

By the third... you capture their first birthday and any other shot they happen to be in with the other kids.

Now... what if your first child is actually a twin? And then what if your next birth is also twins? It has to be even worse, right? This is the only thing I can use to explain my complete lack of screenshot captures or video footage when Bella not only became pregnant again, but also went into labour for the third time. With 4 newborns to chase after already - which is not an easy feat let me tell you - I completely forgot to stop and celebrate Bella's third pregnancy. Sorry Bella.

Of course, with no "look at Bella - she's pregnant again" image, I have to jump in a bit late and mention that after Max and Bella's fight, they both returned home around the same time and had a good talk. Max appologised for his overreaction, and Bella explained that yes she had said no, but that was only until the other babies had grown up a bit.

After their talk, they both agreed to wait a little bit, but fate decided to step in because a few days later, poor Bella was throwing up every 5 minutes. Checking the age of the 4 babies already, there was no way they were going to age up to toddlers before the new arrival, so I purchase yet another cot.

Of course, the Nursery had to be redesigned - it was already hard enough walking from room to room with two sets of twins, I wasn't about to add on a third room for these two. With the existing nursery layout, I couldn't fit 4 cots into one room, which meant the new twins would have had to be seperated and I didn't want that either.

So instead, I knocked out the wall dividing the two rooms and put all 6 babies into the one massive room. I had to add doors at each end as it was impossible for everyone to get in and out with just the one.


With six babies, I now have a babysitter full time, so that's also a third sim that needs to get in and out... well, IN because the poor babysitter doesn't ever leave the room there's that much to do. What a cruel employer I am - no break, no toilet, no food LOL.

I really hate how you have to hire a babysitter everytime you need them and can't put them on any sort of schedule. I mean, I need them more than just when Max goes to work so it doesn't really matter at the moment, but still annoying. For now, I resign to calling for a babysitter just after midnight each night - a babysitter only lasts till the end of the day you call them, so calling them at 12:01am gives me 24 hours of assistance as they leave at midnight the following day.

If anyone is ever feeling bored with The Sims and wants to try something new - 6 babies. Trust me, you barely have enough time to blink and everyone gets pushed to their limits lol. Thankfully Max has pulled his socks right up, because there is NO WAY Bella could do this on her own... what a different life Max leads now...

Max and Bella have had their first fight since their blissfully happy relationship began. And the reason behind the fight is just as surprising as the fight itself - and no, it has nothing to do with Melani.

Believe it or not, the disagreement was over Max wanting MORE babies!! I know... "whaaaaaat??"

But it's true. With four newborn babies already, plus how ever many he's had with Melani, the man who couldn't handle it has done a complete 180 and now wants another baby!! I think it's having boys honestly, I think what ever it was about having Seth and Max Junior has made Max want to do it all again.

Of course, poor Bella freaked out and told him no way. And Max, having never been told "no" before, didn't know how to react. Like all men, he stuffed it up big time. Throwing a tanty that would rival any toddlers, he stormed out of the house and, of course, ended up at Melani's.

Unfortunately that too was going to backfire in his face...


After telling Melani about the situation at home, she decided that Max was just far too much drama for what he was worth and told him to leave not long after this picture was taken. I mean, you can't blame her - she hasn't called or made contact of any sort, and here Max is putting all his problems on her, then leaning in for some comfort kissing. C'mon Max, get a clue.

Bella was more sensible with her reaction to Max's wish. After her initial "no way" response to the thought of having more babies so soon after TWO sets of twins, she decided to clear her head. Hiring a babysitter, something that was becoming a regular occurrence with 4 babies, Bella went for a run...


The fresh air did her head good and before she knew it, she was at central park - quite a run from their secluded mountain home.

Not quite ready to head back home straight away, Bella took some breathing time to sit on one of the park benches that overlooked the small pond to watch the fish swim. It was not long before the trance inducing fish allowed Bella's emotional and physical drain to catch up with her...


Poor Bella...

With the wedding joy wearing off, the house of Max and Bella was beginning to return to normal. Max was back signing autographs, holding concerts and playing for tips to help pay for Bella's spending habbits. The twins already had the best cots available, and with a new bubba on the way, they would be treated equally as well.

Although Max was freaking out at the possibility of more children with Bella, which I find funny because he never freaked out with Melani's kids, since he didn't have to worry about taking care of them, I'm excited! I know Bella adores Max, and she's over the moon about being pregnant again, although we're both a little scared about having another baby so close after having the twins. Then again, it means they will all be friends as they grow up since they're only going to be like a week apart haha. Damn the sim pregnancy for only lasting 4 days, not very realistic...

Our excitement quickly changed however, when Bella didn't give birth to just one more baby... but ANOTHER set of twins!!

With Bella being pregnant again, she decided to take the relationship matters into her own hands. She gave Max an ultimatum - marry her, or leave!! Yikes! Being brought up in a fairly old fashioned way, Bella didn't believe in kids before marriage but had let the first birth slide as she was terrified of Max leaving her at the time. Now, things were different, she wasn't afraid to go at it alone should be chose to run. Two pregnancies and a 3rd child on the way, it was time for Max to step up and do the right thing, or she'd find another man who could.

So I decided to load up my little simmies yesterday morning while I did some work on the other computer. Figuring Max had been left to his own devices for long enough, he would be the family I would check in on first.

All I can say... is I'm exhausted! Seriously! This post isn't even scratching the surface of everything that's happened in a few hours of game play (actually, I let them run all day and nearly all night), and it will all have to be spread over the next few days lol. That said, it was easy to leave them up to their own devices while I did other things, so I might just do that from now on. Let's me keep following their stories without actually having to designate "play" time for them...

Ok, so we left off last time with a Max > Melani > Bella love triangle... except of course, Bella didn't know about Melani so it's not really a "triangle" as much as it is Max being a cheating schmuck. Bella had just given birth to twins, who of course witnessed the "betrayal" that was Max and Melani making out in front of not only them, but also Melani's partner Eric as well as Bella's brother Michael.

I still don't know how Bella could have missed what was going on as she walked through the house while Melani and Max were arm in arm and oblivious to anyone except each other. But, she hadn't... Bella had no idea. Obviously her brother hasn't told her, although they appear to have had a falling out as they are no longer friends, and Eric either didn't care, or didn't want to see Bella hurt so soon after having her twins.

I kinda felt sorry for Bella, especially when I logged in to see three of Max's current wishes:

So, I have three main families now:

1. Melani Banks, my first "family" orientated sim. Has recently asked Hal to move in with her in an attempt to move past his cheating ways. Hal came coupled with his other love child Muhammad...
   
   
2. The Waters Family. Multiple deaths by electrocution took out both Evil family members, Emily had a mental break down, Susie age-warped past her entire childhood and Thomas is turning into a devious little boy.
   
   
3. Or Max and his recent love triangle between the Melani in his town and his new love Bella Bachelor.

Or of course you might love all three?

The reason I ask is I notice more readers hitting the blog on certain families, and numbers dropped off on one of them. While I'm not about to change my playing habits entirely to suit the readership, there are moments like now, where I've had enough of one family for a moment (Hal's stressing me out too much lol) and I want to check in on one of the others. I'm not real fussed which one, and if there was a particular favourite amongst my loyal fans, I'd be more than happy to allow that to influence my choices.

So, is there one family in particular you just can't wait to read more about? Perhaps two you follow and one you don't really care for? Or maybe you just like reading about all three - after all, there's more than one neighbour in Ramsey Street...

Like sands through the hour glass... these are the days of Max's life. Scratch that - the hourglass is nothing more than a countdown until this love rat gets busted!! Have you been following the story line so far? How Melani was pregnant, then Bella was pregnant, then Max went over to Melani's house, made out with Melani while Bella made friends with the toilet bowl, etc etc?

Well... it gets worse.

Max had the wish pop up to throw a house party. Nothing unusual there, he's a party animal after all. I figured I'd just use it as a "welcome to our twin girls" kind of party. Bella had a wish pop up to get a massage, and really, who could blame the poor girl - twins on your first shot? Ouch. I decided to send Bella off for a massage and let Max get ready for the party while looking after the babies.

Bella also had an opportunity to teach an art class at the local school pop up a couple of days ago, so I decided to make her stop past to do that before then sending her on for a good rub down. Making sure she was getting from one place to the next safely, I switched back to Max to learn that the party was already getting started. That wasn't the shocker though... I right clicked Max's profile to zoom across town, landed straight on him, and this is what I saw!!

Um... what's Melani doing IN MAX'S HOUSE?! I didn't invite her, what the hell? Right at that moment, I actually gasped out loud, I was so surprised lol. I obviously made a loud enough noise that my daughter, happily destroying the room at the time, stopped and looked at me to make sure I was ok. How do you explain to a 2 year old that mummy is ok, a sim just surprised her and not cause irreputable damage requiring years of counselling later on?

After releasing the pause button and regaining my composure, I watched Melani reach into the crib and pick up one of the twins. Now, my problem is not that she's handling Max's new babies, the girl has more baby skills than any other sim in town with the rate she pops them out. My problem was with the fact they were not her babies!


I know it must be confusing for her, Max is there, a baby's there ... naturally she'd assume it was hers. I sat there, stunned, as I watched the two play happily families. It was quite unnerving how well they worked together as a team.


I kept flicking back between Bella and Max to make sure Bella was safely away from the house as I didn't know what would happen if she came home to see Melani mothering her new born. I mean, does Bella even know about Melani and Max's past? Does she know that Max already has children, and the mother of those children has rocked up, uninvited, to the party being thrown to celebrate her babies?

As I flicked back to Max, I heard a noise exit my mouth involuntarily. I didn't even realise what I had said until I heard my own little parrot behind me repeating it, "Noooooo... hehe... Noooooo... hehe". Apparently, judging by her volume, I must have yelled it quite loudly. What could cause me to scream at my computer?

This!!


GAH!! Oh my god!! Not only was there the shock that the two were locking lips, in Max's house, in front of the babies, but holy cow that's Eric standing in the background - that's Melani's husband!!! What is Melani thinking?!

I know what she's thinking, "the old fart of a husband has aged quicker than she has and the sims don't sport little blue pills"... that's what she's thinking. Regardless of what Melani is or isn't getting, she can't be doing this in Max's house!!

By this point I'm practically getting whiplash from swapping between Max and Bella. I was so freaking out that Bella would rock up home, Max would be caught out and everything would fall apart. I know from past experience (way back at the start) that the sim just has to be on the lot to witness a betrayal. Apparently sims can see through walls.

So long as Bella stayed at the beauty salon, I was safe. But the massage had to end eventually, and as soon as I saw her get in the car to come home, I raced back to Max to make him kick Melani out. Just when I thought it couldn't get anymore complicated... I saw this.


Bella's brother is standing there watching the whole thing!!! Aaaahh!! He now knows Max's little secret. What he will do with it I have no idea, but it's quite clear he is not happy about it. Crap!

The worst part? Every time I cancel an interaction between Max and Melani, another one pops straight up. Flirting, caressing, embracing, kissing, making out, I couldn't keep their hands off each other. The entire time I'm cancelling an interaction, zipping back to Bella, squealing as she gets closer and closer to home, zipping back to Max, prying him and Melani apart, back to Bella, back to Max, back to Bella... aaaah!

And then, it happens. Bella's home. Max and Melani are still in the nursery... touching.

....

....

I sit there, stunned. Silent. Mouth agape. I watch with baited breath as Bella, who is now not only dog tired from the new babies, but also extremely relaxed from her recent massage, walks a straight line from the front door to the bedroom and passes out as soon as her face hits the pillows.


I can not believe Max's luck. The main bedroom has a full glass wall that opens out onto the pond. On the other side of that pond is the Nursery, which also has a full glass wall. I checked Bella's moodlets, no betrayal. I check them again, nope, she definitely doesn't know. How she doesn't I have no idea, but I'm just happy to be breathing again.

Immediately I thank my lucky stays, mentally boot Max up the ass and tell everyone to go home. Party is over!! And I make sure Melani leaves the lot entirely...

Unfortunately, the whole sage was not without betrayal...


Of course, I really don't know how a 1 day old baby would be able to see well enough to witness the betrayal, let alone know what Max is doing isn't allowed. Smart cookies those kids...

I don't know if I can keep up with three drama families. Max, Melani and Bella. Poor Emily Waters, and then Melani and wanna be cheat Hal. Games shouldn't be this stressful lol!

The life of Max has been related a day time soap opera by some of the blog readers lol. And I'm going to have to agree with them! I teased you all earlier in the day with the image of two empty cribs - twin cribs. For those savy enough to notice the background, and remember the shots I shared of when I started building Max's new mansion... that's his pond area in the background. Which means... yup, Bella had twins! Twin Girls!

Now, in real life, a woman carrying twins will often be larger than one carrying a single child. And unless your a celebrity, there is just no immediate bounce back from that - it takes time. Obviously, our sims share the same genes (and money) as celebrities as Bella bounced back into a perfect pre-pregnancy body. I have a new name for her and although it does begin with a B... it's not Bella.

One thing EA could do to bring even more realism into the game? Make your sims at the fattest end of the slider after birth and make us work it off again lol.

Unfortunately I can't see that happened. I wish it would though, because then I could explain away Max's wandering eye at least - you know, the hot new girlfriend got all fat and fugly so Max wants to cash in for a newer model. Instead, I have to look at how hot Bella looks and still deal with wishes like this:


What is wrong with this man?! He has Bella as a live in girlfriend, who is also completely smitten with him. He has Melani on the side who apparently drops what ever she is doing to make Max happy, and yet, he's STILL not happy?! I was lost for words at that wish...

The other day I made a post: Max! Leave her alone!! Apart from the obvious "what are you two doing together" factor to it, I also mentioned how I wasn't 100% sure if the baby inside Melani was in fact Max's. I could only assume it was his because who goes around feeling and listening to other people's tummies just for fun? Also, as yumiki53 pointed out, it most likely is Max's baby because in the second screenshot I shared, Max had the wish to read a pregnancy book. Who would want to read a pregnancy book if they have no child on the way.

Not 5 minutes into gaming last night, I got the confirmation message. While Max slept peacefully in bed with his new love Bella, Melani went through the agony of childbirth and gave birth to Max's child, a baby girl. I can only hope that Eric was by her side...

Thankfully only one and not twins this time lol. Unfortunately, although I did screenshot the message as the name was really unusual, I stuffed up and saved another screenshot over it. Because the in game screen capture feature doesn't include the interface, I have to use the Print Screen button and then paste into a Paint or Photoshop. Of course, all those are then given the name of Untitled 1 or 2 or so on.

So I took the shot of the baby's name, saved as untitled 1 quickly and went back to the game. Later on I got another shot, went to save it and realised the name was also untitled 1, went to cancel and instead hit enter without thinking (hands moved faster than brain) and boom... first image gone.

But trust me, the kid is Max's lol.

You want to know what the second image was that saved over that first, oh so important image? This!

Yes, ironic huh? See the face of the sim that belongs too...?


Yup! Bella is pregnant! Clearly Max has very active swimmers... it must be from the boxers and not briefs (or nothing at all) this Rock star wears under his pants.