Week 3: Foster

Hello and welcome to the Foster house. I'm Miranda. Just make yourself right at home while I get the kids ready for school. *rushes off*

(An hour later...)

Sorry about that. It's a busy house with all these kids. But now that they're getting older I'm hoping that they'll be a little more independent. But let's start at the beginning, shal we? At the beginning of the week Jazz and Calypso joined Allegra in primary school. I was glad, because it gave me some time for myself when the babies didn't need me. Allegra came home with an A+ that day. Her father was thrilled!


I hired a nanny again for the little ones so that I could go to work. I knew that with all the networking I did during my last pregnancy I was lined up for a promotion or two. It looks like I was right. I was elected into Congress! I was so excited!


Now that three of our children were school age, we decided to have the headmaster over and see whether we could get them into private school. I've heard it's a lot more fun than normal school, and of course we wouldn't miss out on giving our children an advantage in life. It went well, despite the fact that neither of us can really cook. I should probably work on that now that Arcadia's gone.


Not everything went as smoothly as that though. There were times when I was so run off my feet that I was smelly, the babies were smelly and the house was smelly all at the same time. And Darren was working hard on his last promotion so he wasn't much help. But we got through those times as well somehow.


Darren did find time to tech the older twins to study though, for which I was thankful. I can't do everything myself, after all.


Soon enough it was time for the babies to have their first set of birthdays. Time flies, doesn't it? It seemed like they'd only been born the day before! We didn't throw a huge party. Just a small family event with some cake for the kids.


Here is Tempo's birthday picture. He really lives up to his name, since he's a very active boy. They all are, actually.

Tempo Foster: Gemini; 2 sloppy, 9 outgoing, 9 active, 7 playful, 4 grouchy

And this is Cadence. Aren't they just the sweetest things? I'm glad we had so many children. It's a busy house, but at least there's always something going on.

Cadence Foster: Saggitarius; 2 sloppy, 3 shy, 9 active, 7 playful, 9 nice

It looks like getting the kids into private school paid off for Calypso, at least. She started taking violin lessons and became astonishingly good at it. She likes painting as well in her free time. Shame we neither have the room nor the money to buy a piano. I'm sure all the kids would like that.


She also managed to get an A+ in school that day. Her brother didn't do quite as well. I think he was a bit disappointed that he couldn't keep up. He did manage to raise his grades soon after that though.


I went to work again the next day and got another promotion. I liked politics, but being a judge is much more satisfying. Now I can actually apply the laws instead of spending endless hours haggling about new ones.


Of course having two more toddlers in the house also meant that we had to teach them all their skills. It was difficult to find the time with everything else going on in our house, but we did eventually manage to teach them all they had to know.


And since I had a few days off coming up, we decided to try for another baby. This will be our last, I think. The house is full, and I would like to reach the top of my career too at some point. Can't do that if I'm constantly on maternity leave.


The kids had a lot of time to themselves after school, and they spent most of it socializing. They've become good friends with their... well I guess he's their uncle, technically. In any case I think it's good for Apollo to have some contact with children his own age. He's practically growing up as an only child, after all.


Allegra is growing smarter by the day. She became the spelling bee at her school. I guess it was logical for her to be one of the smartest there, since she was one of the oldest as well. She was almost a teenager already.


That day Darren finally managed to get his last promotion in the military career. He was promoted to General!


He looks so sexy in his new uniform, you wouldn't believe. Much better than that astronaut suit. The helicopter that picks him up is a nuissance though. The passers by always complain about the noise.


It was a good time to get that promotion, I guess, beccause I found out that I was pregnant again. Not that we're having money troubles at this point, but it would be nice to add on to the house. It'll be crowded, at least until the first kids leave for college. I'm sad to see them growing up so fast, but then I'm really looking forward to the day when they graduate and get married.


That helicopter was starting to be a real nuissance, so Darren switched careers to sports. I guess he can still use his high physical prowess there. I was surprised when he became a superstar right off the bat. His popularity is bound to help my career once I get back to work!


There's always a birthday party every few days at our house and on Friday we even had a triple party. Well, a quadruple one if you want to count the birth as well. First, Allegra became a teenager.


I was hoping she'd be of help with her younger siblings, but she seems to be more interested in having fun. It's a pity. But at least she doesn't go romancing everything that moves like her older sister.

Allegra Foster: Pleasure, with a LTW to have 50 dream dates
Saggitarius: 2 sloppy, 3 shy, 9 active, 7 playful, 4 grouchy

She wasn't too thrilled to have to share her birthday party with the younger twins, but it would have been far too strenuous to throw three at the same time. Besides, we only had my brother and father as well as a few children from the neighbourhood over.

Here's my younger son, all grown up into a big boy. He looks so much like his father!


And his twin sister looks like a miniature version of Allegra. Only that she's more of a tomboy. I think the pirate costume is cute, though she might change her mind about wearing things like that once she's a teenager.


Thankfully we had the party relatively early in the afternoon, because I was glad that the guests were no longer there to see me give birth to our youngest. That's not how I want the neighbours to see me, especially since they're only kids themselves. I gave birth to a beautiful little girl that we named Rhapsody.


After her birthday Allegra became very interested in her good friend Keith McMillan. I'm a bit worried that he'll break her heart, since he's quite a bit older than her. He's going to head off to college soon, and Allegra only just hit highschool. But I guess there's no harm in getting her first kiss and going on a few dream dates, I guess.


Tempo was very interested in the other gender as well, although I'm quite sure the pretty blonde wasn't too interested in him, at least for now. We've really got to have a talk with him about not trying to copy his older siblings.


Well, Darren isn't getting any younger so he decided to quit being an active player now. Instead, he's going to train the team. At least he's home more often this way, and he doesn't have to fear that an injury will end his career anymore.


We invited the headmaster again so that the younger twins can go to his school once it starts up again on Monday. Since their older siblings got in just fine, it wasn't a problem. And I guess my fears about not getting any help from Allegra were unfounded. She did a great job of keeping her youngest sister out of my hair while I was entertaining the man.


Assistant Coaches don't get the weekend off, it seems, but that did have it's good sides. Darren is moving up swiftly in his new career. I'm almost jealous, since I haven't been able to snag that final promotion myself.


It's kind of embarrassing to admit, but I should probably get Darren to do a bit of private coaching with me as well. All those pregnancies and no time to exercise haven't done a lot for my figure. And the fact that I've learned how too cook quite well hasn't helped much either. Now that I'm done having children, I hope I can get rid of that baby fat again ASAP.


On Sunday it was time for another round of birthdays. It seems nobody ever gets one to themselves in here. Not surprising, since we have two sets of twins. This time it was the older set who grew up. We now have three teenagers in the house! We didn't throw a huge party again, just a few friends.


My oldest son grew up into quite a fetching young man.

Jazz Foster: Fortune, with a LTW to become a Business Tycoon

Saggitarius: 2 sloppy, 3 shy, 9 active, 7 playful, 9 nice

And though I'm not sure whether I'd have chosen the outfit myself it seems to work quite well for his sister.

Calypso Foster: Family, with a LTW to graduate 3 kids from college
Gemini: 2 sloppy, 9 outgoing, 9 active, 7 playful, 4 grouchy

Last but not least, Rhapsody already became a toddler. I can't believe there'll be no more babies in the house now. But with three teens in the house at least I can go back to work now without having to worry about babysitters.

Rhapsody Foster: Gemini; 2 sloppy, 9 outgoing, 9 active, 7 playful, 4 grouchy

End of round accomplishments:
- Allegra, Jazz and Calypso become teens, Tempo and Cadence become children and Rhapsody is born and ages to toddler.
- Darren reaches the TOC in the military and switches to sports
- All the kids get into private school
- Miranda gets two promotions, but regrets neglecting her figure.

Points this round:
- 1 for the new baby, Rhapsody
- 1 for Darren's TOC in the Military

Week 3: Stevenson

Hello all, I'm Michael and I'll guide you through what happened at our house this week, for lack of a better alternative. I'm usually not a big talker. Anyway... the week started off as usual, with my mother dating while everyone else was of at school or work. That's not exactly what we bought the car for, but it explains why she still wanted me and Cathy to carpool to work. Heh.


The kids are doing great at school, and even had a few extracurricular things going on. Hendrik's good at science, and our youngest has always had a sweet tooth. I guess it paid off for both of them.


Of course, me and Cathy couldn't be outdone by our children. We both brought home yet another promotion that day. It seems that the precinct is respecting our wishes to be promoted together. We're a great team, both at work and privately.


Meanwhile, Chloe has picked up her siblings' habit of bringing friends home from school almost every day. Here she is with one of our neighbours' girls. I believe it's Calypso Foster.


Frederik got a job after school at the local hospital. He's quite good at it and was promoted to EMT. It's not the job he wants to stay with once he's grown up, but it pays quite well and that's the most important thing to him at the moment.


Me and Cathy were busy workign out for our next promotion, so we asked mom to make sure Chloe was doing her homework. She waited until quite late, but it got done in the end.


I think the only time mom wasn't dating was in the dead of the night so that the neighbours wouldn't complain. Abhijeet took that occasion to deliver small gifts at our doorstep. I sewar we could have decorated the whole house with flowers ten times over by now if they didn't wilt. I guess he just wants to make sure she's constantly reminded of him even when he's not there. Which is seldom enough.


Until finally, sometime near the middle of the week, she announced that she'd had 50 dream dates with Abhijeet and was now blissfully happy. Wow! I'm surprised she even managed to keep count, since she's been getting rather forgetful lately. Maybe she kept the bouquets as a reminder.


Making sure that Chloe did her homework paid off, because soon enough she was bringing home an A+ like her brothers and sister.


Since Sophie liked having her study time, she didn't get her job in Athletics until relatively late in the week. But when she did, it really went off with a bang. She was involved in a scheme to ruin the reputation of one of the star players on her team. I'm so proud she worked up the courage to do the right thing. I'm hoping this means me and Cathy have been a good influence.


She was a bit embarrassed about her boyfriend seeing her in her new work outfit, but he seemed to think it suited her just fine. Maybe he's a fan of the team, who knows. They've been dating more or less steadily all week, though I'm not sure whether their relationship will survive her moving to college


I think mom got a bit tired of all that dating after she'd hit 50. Or maybe it was just her old age starting to show, because we barely saw Abhijeet in the next few days and she did more relaxing instead.


She also tried out the new plaything we got to make working out easier for us and the teens. I guess it's not the right thing for an older lady. I was afraid she'd hurt herself, but she actually said it was quite fun. That's my mom, always the pleasure seeker!


That evening was quite an eventful one. For one thing, me and Cathy both got our last promotion and became Captain Hero and Captain Heroine! None of Prosperity Pinnacle's criminals had a chance against the two of us together! We noticed though that there's not much going on in this town in the form of crime and only one of us was needed. Since Cathy's always been dreaming of becoming a general, she got a new job in the military.


But first we rewarded ourselves by having a little date in the car. Now I know why mom liked this so much. We haven't had this much fun since we were dating as teenagers! *chuckles*


Talking of... the second thing that happened is that Hendrik finally got his first kiss. From one of the McMillan triplets that live down the street. The girl's a bit of a troublemaker from what I hear, but he's head over heels. They have a lot in common too, since she wants to be a Business Tycoon as well.


Sadly enough, that was also the night my mother passed away. I promised myself that I would try to be strong since we all knew it was her time, but it was hard not to plead for her to stay a little bit longer. At least she led a full life and had an excellent relationship with all of us when she died. We couldn't have asked for a better mother and grandmother.


In the end, she went willingly and without complaint, but the rest of us were devastated. She left us quite a few simoleans too. I never even knew she'd taken out a life insurance, but the money will come in handy to renovate the house.


The next day at work I faced a most difficult decision. The Llama Queen was really out to get me, but with some quick thinking I managed to foil her plans once again! I got a hefty paycheck on top of the gratitude of the people of sim city. It really helped to raise my spirits.


Sophie wasn't as lucky though. I guess she bit of more than she could chew when she tried to fill the footsteps of the previous mascot. Ah well, it was her last day of work before she leaves for college, so she won't have to worry about it anymore. At least she wasn't fired.


I think growing up with so many older siblings and witnessing all their dating has been a bad influence on little Chloe. I could have sworn I overheard her and Jazz foster talking about how they were in love and wanted to be boyfriend and girlfriend the other day. It wasn't long before she became a teen herself, but still a bit premature in my eyes!


Since the criminal mastermind was finally apprehended, I decided to turn my attention elsewhere as well. I went into the science field and promptly became a scholar. I'm not sure how thrilled my older children are that I'll be working at their university, but I'm loving the job. The hours are great and it's not as physically demanding as being captain hero. I'm not getting any younger after all!


Chloe's birthday fell on the weekend, so we had enough time to throw a big party for our little princess. Cathy decided that it would be a good opportunity to reconnect to some of our friends, and I think she went a bit overboard. And of course the kids had to invite their friends as well. I don't think I've ever had the house so full, and I'm used to a lot! Here's Chloe hugging her best friend Calypso and Hendrik having a serious talk with his twin sister's boyfriend, while his own girlfriend is laughing at her brother's dancing skills.


Frederik made it as well, and brought his fiancé Sarah. All in all, I think we had all the McMillans, quite a few Fosters and Mitchells, and the odd townie over. We had to move the cake outdoors so that everyone could be there when Chloe blew out the candles. Thankfully the weather's always nice here.


Here she is all grown up and looking a lot like her older sister. She wants the same thing out of life as well. To gain as much knowledge as possible. Both are very sensible girls!

Chloe Stevenson: Knowledge, with a LTW to be Chief of Staff

Aries: 6 neat, 9 outgoing, 6 active, 4 serious, 6 nice

My mother haunted the house that night. I think she was sad that she died and missed her granddaughter's birthday. She always did love a good party.


She managed to scare both my daughters, who were thrilled about it, and my wife, who was not. She stayed outside though, so I think we're pretty much safe if we're not stargazing at night.


At least safe from the ghosts. The computer broke down and Cathy insisted on fixing it herself, though I was worried senseless that something would happen to her. I don't want to lose another loved one so soon after my mother. She was fine, but next time that computer breaks down I'm buying a new one before she notices.


Finally, it was time for the twins to leave for college at the end of the week. They racked up quite a few scholarships each, so I'm sure they'll do fine. They're moving in with their older brother, so at least they already know someone there. And he promised to show them around once they arrive.


End of round accomplishments:
- Michael and Cathleen both became Captain Hero
- Samantha had 50 dream dates and died in Perma Plat, with maximum influence and maxed relationships to all her family members
- Sophie and Hendrik reached the top of their teen careers
- Chloe had a monsted birthday party and grew to a teen
- The twins racked up some scholarships and moved to college

Points this round:
- 10 for Samantha's LTW to have 50 dream dates
- 10 more since that was also her IW
- 2 for Michael and Cathleen's TOC