9. Growing family

Learn how to have a baby, care for them 24/7, and help your SimKid succeed in school and life in The Sims. Don't let social services take your baby!

So, you've got a couple of adult Sims who are head-over-heels for each other and living together? That's fantastic! It means you're ready to start thinking about growing your family in The Sims. You've got a couple of ways to go about this. The most common route is through a lot of romantic interactions, like kissing. Keep at it, and eventually, the game will ask if you want to try for a baby. Say yes, and voilà! A baby, complete with a crib, will magically appear in your house. If you've got the Livin' Large expansion, you can also use the 'Love Bed' for 'Play in Bed' activities, which ups your chances of welcoming a little one. Sometimes, you might even get a phone call offering you the chance to adopt a baby. If you accept, they'll be delivered right to your doorstep too!

Now, there's a key difference between having your own biological baby and adopting. When your Sims have a biological baby, they get to pass on their traits. Adopted babies, on the other hand, are a bit of a wild card – they grow up randomly and aren't physically related to your Sims at all.

Babies are pretty demanding little creatures. They only live as babies for three days before they transform into SimKids, but those three days can feel like an eternity. Your baby needs *perfect* care, and they'll let you know when they need something by crying. They wake up frequently, and if you don't respond to their needs promptly, you'll get a stern warning from social services. Ignore them again, and they'll take your baby away – that's your last chance, so don't mess it up!

Your adult Sims have three main ways to care for a baby: Feed, Play, and Sing. You'll need to cycle through these actions until the baby drifts back to sleep. A popular and effective combo is Feed, Feed, Sing. Keep this up for three days straight, and always, always respond to those cries.

Here’s a pro-tip for surviving the baby phase: make sure at least one of your adult Sims is fully available. This might mean quitting their job temporarily or setting up a work schedule where one Sim stays home each day while the other goes to work. You'll also want to move the baby's crib into your adult Sims' bedroom. Since taking care of a baby is exhausting, the bed is the best place for your Sim to recover energy. When the baby cries, your Sim will automatically wake up – quickly direct them to care for the baby before they go back to sleep. Repeat this cycle until the baby becomes a SimKid.

Note: You can move the crib using Buy Mode, but only when your Sim isn't actively interacting with it (like feeding, playing, or singing). Wait until the baby is asleep and your Sim is busy with something else.

After those three intense days of constant attention, your baby will blossom into a SimKid! You won't get to choose their gender or traits – it's a surprise. SimKids can't hold down jobs or interact with certain adult-oriented objects, but they are surprisingly helpful around the house with chores like cleaning dishes and general home maintenance. Their main responsibility, however, is school.

A school bus will pick up your SimKid every day, just like a carpool for an adult with a career. Your SimKid has a school grade that you can improve by reading books or studying on the computer. Honestly, just sending them to school every day will naturally make them smarter. But be warned: if you skip school, their grade will drop, and eventually, they could be sent to military school, which you'll have to pay for, and you'll never see them again. So, make sure they get to school if you want to keep them around!

SimKids can also earn some Simoleons. Studying on the computer might occasionally net them 100 Simoleons. Plus, if they achieve an 'A' grade, their 'grandfather' (even if you don't have one in-game!) might send them money. SimKids can also paint, and while their artwork doesn't sell for much, it's still a way to earn cash. They can't cook, so if both adult Sims disappear, your SimKid's survival would depend on selling paintings and ordering a lot of pizza – not exactly the ideal childhood!

On the bright side, having SimKids can actually reduce your household bills. While the exact amount isn't specified, more kids mean a more significant reduction, which can help offset the costs of raising them. Just remember, SimKids can't grow up into adults on their own; they'll stay kids forever unless you're playing with specific expansion packs that allow for further aging.