Hi! You can turn off aging for unplayed sims, which will freeze them in time. To do this:
Start the game.
Press the Play button to enter the neighborhood view.
Click the ... in the top right corner.
Click Game Options.
Click Gameplay.
Remove the checkmark in the box for Auto Age.
Click Apply.
No, it doesn't freeze them in time. I come back to the inactive household and there's dished all over the place, kids haven't gone to school, adults haven't gone to work but time passes and they're being flagged for these things. In a house with an infant, if I don't play long enough, the kid will never get fed and it will get taken away.
EA REALLY needs to fix this.
They are frozen in time as in they will not age. Infants toddlers and children will not be taken away as the game fills thei need when it goes in the red.
@stevenwagenheim it helps to only switch back on a non work/school day. They won't have been affected while you weren't playing but if you arrive at say 11am on a Tuesday you would find that nobody is at work/school as you load the game. So loading them on a weekend (depending on their careers) Sunday is probably better. I tested this recently for a different issue.
Turn off Neighbourhood Stories in your Game Options as well as ageing to preserve your previous households as much as possible. That's what I've done and the only career changes/household changes are linked to the phonecalls that Sims in my current household get asking for advice about promotion/trying for a baby/accepting a date or friendship request/getting engaged for example, depending on what answer they get. But I'm in control of what happens with those.
The infant/toddler problem isn't linked to switching away from households, it's linked to leaving the lot or household for any reason and it has been flagged as a bug. I have this issue too and I agree it is a nasty one indeed. Hopefully it will be fixed soon. So before switching back to the household, save your game. That way if you don't get the infant/toddlers needs met quickly enough and they are taken away you can exit without saving and try again. Mine are usually miles from the lot and lying on the ground too so I leave every other problem and get a Sim to them as fast as possible to boost their needs, luckily I've not had one taken away.
This is quite an old thread so it may be locked soon for necroposting and if your problems continue you will likely be asked to start a new thread, just come back with any questions and you'll be sure to receive help.
Hope this helps, good luck.
