BAC Update 1
(My apologies for the tardiness of this update. Unfortunately, real life has no appreciation for my Simming needs!)
Ashur and Gloria Oshana had never met before that day in the Office of Planetary Exploration and Colonization, but they both felt a connection when they first saw each other. Ashur held his breath when the proctor began announcing which Sims would be paired with each other. When his name was called he crossed his fingers, and was thrilled when the proctor announced that he would be marrying Gloria! The happy couple spent the entire trip happily planning how they would decorate their new home, and which crops they would grow on their homestead. Of course, they had to have the requisite two children that the OPEC insisted upon, but they both agreed that they would prefer to have four children. They also agreed to wait two years between each child. In fact, Ashur and Gloria agreed on a lot of things. It was amazing that they were so perfectly matched for each other when they had been put together seemingly at random. Whenever someone commented on this fact, Gloria would simply smile and say that the Universe had a way of working everything out!
When they arrive at their new home, Ashur and Gloria found out that they were first in line to have their house built. They had chosen the cozy and efficient mushroom model, and the ship's construction bots had it built in just a few short hours! There was even an extra room for their first child.
They quickly fell into a routine. Ashur spent his days working in the fields and searching for archaeological finds that he could sell to the supply ships that occasionally stopped at the planet. Gloria found she had a knack for sewing, and she spent her days making crafts to sell and cooking for Ashur. Everything went smoothly for the first six months. Then, one day, Gloria realized that she was pregnant! Ashur was thrilled...Gloria was nauseous!
After what seemed to Gloria like a very long nine months, the Oshanas welcomed their first child into the family. Simon was an easy baby. He fussed only when hungry or wet, and spent the rest of the time looking utterly adorable! Before long he was approaching his second birthday...and Gloria was pregnant again.
Shortly before Simon's second birthday, tragedy struck. Ashur was out in the fields, spraying the plants with the latest batch of pesticide that had arrived from the main planets. Suddenly, he felt his heart speed up. He tried to call for Gloria, but the pain that gripped his body was too intense. He felt as though liquid fire was running through his veins! His tortured screams drew Gloria from the house, but she could do nothing to help her husband. As she watched, his skin turned a sallow shade of green, his hair fell out, and what appeared to be leaves sprouted from the top of his head. Minutes later, the pain subsided, but Ashur was already changed in what seemed to be a permanent fashion.
Despite the change in his appearance, Gloria soon realized that his personality had not been altered. he was still the same, sweet Ashur, and she was quick to reassure him that she still love him just as much as always.
However, the stress of Ashur's accident caused Gloria to go into premature labour. Fortunately, she was far enough along that the babies survived. The babies...that was another major surprise in their life! It seemed that Gloria had been expecting quadruplets...two boys and two girls.
Timothy, Robert, and Raquel were as healthy and strong as could be expected, but Daine was sickly and prone to coughing fits. Her parents worried that she wouldn't make it through the winter, especially without a doctor in the colony.
After everything else that had happened, Simon's second birthday seemed quite uneventful. Although, he did turn out to be a very adorable toddler!
* * * * * * * * * *
Derpina pulled the comforter up under her chin. This sucked. Life sucked. Nothing was going the way she had planned. First she was drafted to go to this stupid planet. Who wanted to live on some backwater, uncivilized planet anyways? Oh, yeah, that's right...her 'husband' did. Not only did she get stuck on this stupid planet, but she got stuck with the biggest loser on the entire miserable rock.
Jojoba was one of those crazy hippie types. The second she had seen him at the orientation she had started praying that she wasn't paired with him...anyone else, but not him. Of course, the Universe didn't listen...it never did. Her nose wrinkled at the remembered smell from their "wedding"...the smell of unwashed man and way too much patchouli oil. And the trip out here was worse! She had finally convinced him to bathe more frequently, but he hadn't shut up the entire journey, He had just gone on and on and on about "pristine wilderness," "unspoiled land," and "living off what Nature gives us." She had thought it was just his weird hippie talk. After all, everyone knew that colonists got to choose from several basic housing models that were set up by the bots once they reached the planet.
Then they had arrived, and she had discovered that he had been serious about everything. Before she could protest, he had swept her away to a bit of land far from the other colonists. He had built a crude hut from the local timber, and furnished it with crude, hand-made furniture. The place didn't even have a real floor...just hard-packed dirt.
About the only good thing that came from living in the middle of nowhere was that Jojoba spent his days outside in the garden or the forest and his nights staring at the stars. As far as Derpina was concerned, the less she saw of her "husband" the better.
Of course, the OPEC rules stated that all colonial couple were required to produce a minimum of two children or be subjected to very unpleasant penalties. Derpina was not willing to risk that, so she allowed Jojoba near her during her fertile period...and kept him at arm's length the rest of the time. Fortunately, it was not long before she conceived.
Two months into the pregnancy, Derpina was working on a new curtain for the house when she felt the most uncomfortable cramping sensation in her abdomen The cramping quickly escalated to shooting pains and within the hour she knew she had lost the baby.
When Jojoba came in from working in the field he found her curled up on the bed sobbing. He said nothing, just gathered her into his arms and rocked her as she cried. That was the turning point in their relationship.
A few months later, Derpina met Jojoba at the door when he came in for the night. She was beaming as she told him they were expecting again. Jojoba was happy, and he began to work on constructing a crib and changing table for the baby. Of course, he still spent a lot of time outside in the fields or watching the stars at night.
Then, one night, Jojoba was outside stargazing when he saw what he thought was a comet. As he watched, the comet came closer and closer, until he could see that it wasn't a comet at all, but rather some sort of spacecraft. Suddenly, a brilliant beam of light blinded him and he felt his body rising in the air.
The next few hours were a blur of bright lights and sharp pain contrasted with oddly pleasant sensations before he was abruptly deposited in front of the cabin. In shock, Jojoba stumbled inside and fell into bed. Derpina snuggled closer to him and he almost woke her up to tell her what had happened. Then he remembered how she had thought him loopy and resented being married to him for so long, and he decided to just keep quiet about the entire ordeal. She'd never have to know, and he'd never have to worry about losing her over it.
* * * * * * * * * *
Kicky Styver was shocked when his name was announced as being on the list of citizens selected for the new planet's first colonization wave. After all, he was one of the best known athletes in the planetary system! He was the highest scoring forward of any of the system's football leagues! Of course, there had been a lot of disgruntled Sims lately, mostly talking about the lack of wealthier Sims being chosen for forced colonization. Still, he had never expected to be sent to live on some backwater planet at the edge of the system.
Kick wasn't stupid. He knew there was no point in trying to get out of it. Once you were named, that was it, you were going. However, he did make sure he would be as comfortable as possible on the new planet. Fortunately, another of the colonists (a hippie-type called Jojoba Rainbowspirit) had chosen to bring only a few small bags with him, so there was some extra space and extra building materials available. With a few well-placed bribes, Kick was able to get a substantial amount of things on board the colonial ship. Then he went an extra step and paid a private freighter to bring another shipload of things to the planet. The freighter captain told him they wouldn't be able to arrive at the same time as the colonial ship, but Kick expected to have his shipment within the first few months on the new planet.
When the ship arrived at their destination, Kick became very busy directing the bots who were working on his new home. It was not perfect, but it was definitely satisfactory. His assigned mate, a pretty little thing named Skylar, was very impressed by her new home,. Although it was sparsely furnished, she perked up when he assured her that a ship would be arriving within the next few months loaded down with furnishings for their home.
Kick and Skylar both knew that they were under pressure to begin producing babies, or else. They weren't entirely sure what the "or else" entailed, but they doubted it was something they would enjoy. So, with OPEC's decree of "a minimum of two, healthy children" in mind, they set about the fairly pleasant task of producing what would essentially be a years-long series of unpleasant tasks.
It wasn't long at all before Skylar announced that she had caught, and the couple settled down to wait for the big day.
Fortunately, the ship Kick had hired arrived at the beginning of the third trimester. Skylar was thrilled when she saw that Kick had planned ahead and included a number of baby items. It wasn't long before a lovely nursery was set up. Kick thanked the captain and soon negotiated for another shipment of items to be retrieved from the main system.
One of the items that came with the shipment was a massage table. Skylar shyly mentioned to Kick that she had learned the art of Swedish massage. Kick eagerly submitted to her skilled hands, and soon he felt all the tension of the last few weeks melting away. Skylar also enjoyed giving massages, but she found herself a bit distracted by the long scars that ran down the length of his back. Part of her wanted to ask him about them, but another part felt too shy to bring up what might be a very sensitive subject. Being the sensible woman that she was, Skylar decided to wait until they had known each other longer before asking questions that could dredge up painful memories.
Several months after the shipment arrived, Skylar woke in the middle of the night in terrible pain. Kick woke up when she let out a yelp during a particularly sharp pain. He quickly realized that she was having the baby. Fortunately, before leaving on the colony ship, Kick had taken a quick course in childbirth. His knowledge, plus the huge bathtub he had purchased, resulted in Skylar having a fairly easy water birth. Of course, nothing in life is ever that easy. The proud parents were surprised when, after giving birth to a healthy baby boy, Skylar pushed out a beautiful baby girl. They held their breath after that but, fortunately, there were only two babies joining the Styver family.
They named the children Nelson and Maureen.
With their required two children present, Skylar began taking oral contraceptives. After all, neither of them had really wanted children to begin with. They certainly did not want more than the minimum required to keep them from getting in trouble with OPEC. However, the pills seemed to have some negative side effects (most noticeably, nausea and weight gain). Eventually, they realized that the side effects weren't from the contraceptives...unless they took into account the fact that the contraceptives had failed to do their job.
On a cold, winter day Skylar went into labor. Both parents were very distressed when Skylar gave birth to an unplanned, and unwanted, baby boy. The irritated couple refused to name the child, and began trying to figure out what to do with this unneeded baby. As they were discussing the possibilities, Jojoba Rainbowspirit knocked on the door. After a quick chat, Jojoba left their house with one cup of sugar...and a baby boy! As he walked away from the Styver house, Kick and Skylar hoped that was the only time they would have to deal with the headache of an unasked for child.
Ashur and Gloria Oshana had never met before that day in the Office of Planetary Exploration and Colonization, but they both felt a connection when they first saw each other. Ashur held his breath when the proctor began announcing which Sims would be paired with each other. When his name was called he crossed his fingers, and was thrilled when the proctor announced that he would be marrying Gloria! The happy couple spent the entire trip happily planning how they would decorate their new home, and which crops they would grow on their homestead. Of course, they had to have the requisite two children that the OPEC insisted upon, but they both agreed that they would prefer to have four children. They also agreed to wait two years between each child. In fact, Ashur and Gloria agreed on a lot of things. It was amazing that they were so perfectly matched for each other when they had been put together seemingly at random. Whenever someone commented on this fact, Gloria would simply smile and say that the Universe had a way of working everything out!
When they arrive at their new home, Ashur and Gloria found out that they were first in line to have their house built. They had chosen the cozy and efficient mushroom model, and the ship's construction bots had it built in just a few short hours! There was even an extra room for their first child.
They quickly fell into a routine. Ashur spent his days working in the fields and searching for archaeological finds that he could sell to the supply ships that occasionally stopped at the planet. Gloria found she had a knack for sewing, and she spent her days making crafts to sell and cooking for Ashur. Everything went smoothly for the first six months. Then, one day, Gloria realized that she was pregnant! Ashur was thrilled...Gloria was nauseous!
After what seemed to Gloria like a very long nine months, the Oshanas welcomed their first child into the family. Simon was an easy baby. He fussed only when hungry or wet, and spent the rest of the time looking utterly adorable! Before long he was approaching his second birthday...and Gloria was pregnant again.
Shortly before Simon's second birthday, tragedy struck. Ashur was out in the fields, spraying the plants with the latest batch of pesticide that had arrived from the main planets. Suddenly, he felt his heart speed up. He tried to call for Gloria, but the pain that gripped his body was too intense. He felt as though liquid fire was running through his veins! His tortured screams drew Gloria from the house, but she could do nothing to help her husband. As she watched, his skin turned a sallow shade of green, his hair fell out, and what appeared to be leaves sprouted from the top of his head. Minutes later, the pain subsided, but Ashur was already changed in what seemed to be a permanent fashion.
Despite the change in his appearance, Gloria soon realized that his personality had not been altered. he was still the same, sweet Ashur, and she was quick to reassure him that she still love him just as much as always.
However, the stress of Ashur's accident caused Gloria to go into premature labour. Fortunately, she was far enough along that the babies survived. The babies...that was another major surprise in their life! It seemed that Gloria had been expecting quadruplets...two boys and two girls.
Timothy, Robert, and Raquel were as healthy and strong as could be expected, but Daine was sickly and prone to coughing fits. Her parents worried that she wouldn't make it through the winter, especially without a doctor in the colony.
After everything else that had happened, Simon's second birthday seemed quite uneventful. Although, he did turn out to be a very adorable toddler!
* * * * * * * * * *
Derpina pulled the comforter up under her chin. This sucked. Life sucked. Nothing was going the way she had planned. First she was drafted to go to this stupid planet. Who wanted to live on some backwater, uncivilized planet anyways? Oh, yeah, that's right...her 'husband' did. Not only did she get stuck on this stupid planet, but she got stuck with the biggest loser on the entire miserable rock.
Jojoba was one of those crazy hippie types. The second she had seen him at the orientation she had started praying that she wasn't paired with him...anyone else, but not him. Of course, the Universe didn't listen...it never did. Her nose wrinkled at the remembered smell from their "wedding"...the smell of unwashed man and way too much patchouli oil. And the trip out here was worse! She had finally convinced him to bathe more frequently, but he hadn't shut up the entire journey, He had just gone on and on and on about "pristine wilderness," "unspoiled land," and "living off what Nature gives us." She had thought it was just his weird hippie talk. After all, everyone knew that colonists got to choose from several basic housing models that were set up by the bots once they reached the planet.
Then they had arrived, and she had discovered that he had been serious about everything. Before she could protest, he had swept her away to a bit of land far from the other colonists. He had built a crude hut from the local timber, and furnished it with crude, hand-made furniture. The place didn't even have a real floor...just hard-packed dirt.
About the only good thing that came from living in the middle of nowhere was that Jojoba spent his days outside in the garden or the forest and his nights staring at the stars. As far as Derpina was concerned, the less she saw of her "husband" the better.
Of course, the OPEC rules stated that all colonial couple were required to produce a minimum of two children or be subjected to very unpleasant penalties. Derpina was not willing to risk that, so she allowed Jojoba near her during her fertile period...and kept him at arm's length the rest of the time. Fortunately, it was not long before she conceived.
Two months into the pregnancy, Derpina was working on a new curtain for the house when she felt the most uncomfortable cramping sensation in her abdomen The cramping quickly escalated to shooting pains and within the hour she knew she had lost the baby.
When Jojoba came in from working in the field he found her curled up on the bed sobbing. He said nothing, just gathered her into his arms and rocked her as she cried. That was the turning point in their relationship.
A few months later, Derpina met Jojoba at the door when he came in for the night. She was beaming as she told him they were expecting again. Jojoba was happy, and he began to work on constructing a crib and changing table for the baby. Of course, he still spent a lot of time outside in the fields or watching the stars at night.
Then, one night, Jojoba was outside stargazing when he saw what he thought was a comet. As he watched, the comet came closer and closer, until he could see that it wasn't a comet at all, but rather some sort of spacecraft. Suddenly, a brilliant beam of light blinded him and he felt his body rising in the air.
The next few hours were a blur of bright lights and sharp pain contrasted with oddly pleasant sensations before he was abruptly deposited in front of the cabin. In shock, Jojoba stumbled inside and fell into bed. Derpina snuggled closer to him and he almost woke her up to tell her what had happened. Then he remembered how she had thought him loopy and resented being married to him for so long, and he decided to just keep quiet about the entire ordeal. She'd never have to know, and he'd never have to worry about losing her over it.
* * * * * * * * * *
Kicky Styver was shocked when his name was announced as being on the list of citizens selected for the new planet's first colonization wave. After all, he was one of the best known athletes in the planetary system! He was the highest scoring forward of any of the system's football leagues! Of course, there had been a lot of disgruntled Sims lately, mostly talking about the lack of wealthier Sims being chosen for forced colonization. Still, he had never expected to be sent to live on some backwater planet at the edge of the system.
Kick wasn't stupid. He knew there was no point in trying to get out of it. Once you were named, that was it, you were going. However, he did make sure he would be as comfortable as possible on the new planet. Fortunately, another of the colonists (a hippie-type called Jojoba Rainbowspirit) had chosen to bring only a few small bags with him, so there was some extra space and extra building materials available. With a few well-placed bribes, Kick was able to get a substantial amount of things on board the colonial ship. Then he went an extra step and paid a private freighter to bring another shipload of things to the planet. The freighter captain told him they wouldn't be able to arrive at the same time as the colonial ship, but Kick expected to have his shipment within the first few months on the new planet.
When the ship arrived at their destination, Kick became very busy directing the bots who were working on his new home. It was not perfect, but it was definitely satisfactory. His assigned mate, a pretty little thing named Skylar, was very impressed by her new home,. Although it was sparsely furnished, she perked up when he assured her that a ship would be arriving within the next few months loaded down with furnishings for their home.
Kick and Skylar both knew that they were under pressure to begin producing babies, or else. They weren't entirely sure what the "or else" entailed, but they doubted it was something they would enjoy. So, with OPEC's decree of "a minimum of two, healthy children" in mind, they set about the fairly pleasant task of producing what would essentially be a years-long series of unpleasant tasks.
It wasn't long at all before Skylar announced that she had caught, and the couple settled down to wait for the big day.
Fortunately, the ship Kick had hired arrived at the beginning of the third trimester. Skylar was thrilled when she saw that Kick had planned ahead and included a number of baby items. It wasn't long before a lovely nursery was set up. Kick thanked the captain and soon negotiated for another shipment of items to be retrieved from the main system.
One of the items that came with the shipment was a massage table. Skylar shyly mentioned to Kick that she had learned the art of Swedish massage. Kick eagerly submitted to her skilled hands, and soon he felt all the tension of the last few weeks melting away. Skylar also enjoyed giving massages, but she found herself a bit distracted by the long scars that ran down the length of his back. Part of her wanted to ask him about them, but another part felt too shy to bring up what might be a very sensitive subject. Being the sensible woman that she was, Skylar decided to wait until they had known each other longer before asking questions that could dredge up painful memories.
Several months after the shipment arrived, Skylar woke in the middle of the night in terrible pain. Kick woke up when she let out a yelp during a particularly sharp pain. He quickly realized that she was having the baby. Fortunately, before leaving on the colony ship, Kick had taken a quick course in childbirth. His knowledge, plus the huge bathtub he had purchased, resulted in Skylar having a fairly easy water birth. Of course, nothing in life is ever that easy. The proud parents were surprised when, after giving birth to a healthy baby boy, Skylar pushed out a beautiful baby girl. They held their breath after that but, fortunately, there were only two babies joining the Styver family.
They named the children Nelson and Maureen.
With their required two children present, Skylar began taking oral contraceptives. After all, neither of them had really wanted children to begin with. They certainly did not want more than the minimum required to keep them from getting in trouble with OPEC. However, the pills seemed to have some negative side effects (most noticeably, nausea and weight gain). Eventually, they realized that the side effects weren't from the contraceptives...unless they took into account the fact that the contraceptives had failed to do their job.
On a cold, winter day Skylar went into labor. Both parents were very distressed when Skylar gave birth to an unplanned, and unwanted, baby boy. The irritated couple refused to name the child, and began trying to figure out what to do with this unneeded baby. As they were discussing the possibilities, Jojoba Rainbowspirit knocked on the door. After a quick chat, Jojoba left their house with one cup of sugar...and a baby boy! As he walked away from the Styver house, Kick and Skylar hoped that was the only time they would have to deal with the headache of an unasked for child.