unexpected results of election day

March 2040 - Phoebe Bui is 30, Adrian Bui is 28.

Phoebe gives up her seat in Congress to run for the Senate, and she wins!

But Election Day brings more changes than just a new job.

the happiest guy in the world

May 2039 - James and Anne Smith are 58, Pierce Phillips is 30, Jamie Phillips is 29, J.P. and Jodie are 6, Parker is 3.

Pierce is pretty sure that his father-in-law is the happiest person he's ever met.

"What's your secret?" Pierce asks him.

"There's no secret. I've spent my life married to my college sweetheart doing what I love to do and raising four wonderful children. What more could I have wanted out of life?"

cute little alien babies

March 2039 - Rachel Cooper and Genesis McCullough are 30, Zoey McCullough is 4.

It's an exciting year for the McCullough family. Little Zoey will be starting kindergarten next year, and Genesis is pregnant again with twins.

even more twins

May 2038 - Alex and Piper Smith are 26, Joey and Lizzie Smith are 2, Alice and Charlie Smith are 9 months.

Piper has heard her sister-in-law Rose complain about the Cooper's tendancy to have twins, but she doesn't really understand her exhaustion until she and Alex have a second set of twins.

young scientist

February 2037 - John and Abby Smith are 30, Jacob Smith is 3.

John and Abby are expecting their second child, and they've been trying to give Jacob extra attention before the baby comes.

the Smith zoo

June 2035 - Pierce Phillips is 26, Jamie Phillips is 25, J.P. and Jodie are 2.

Parenting twins isn't easy, but it's even more challenging now that J.P. and Jodie are rambuctious toddlers.

twin-prone

November 2034 - Alex and Piper Smith are 23.

Alex's life has unfolded so perfectly according to plan, sometimes he's tempted to pinch himself to make sure it isn't all a dream. At 23 he's a doctor at New Athens Hospital, just like he always dreamed of being. Since graduation, he and Piper have been living in Arcadia; they're just around the corner from his parents, and a block away from John and Abby. The house is small, but they have a big yard, and they adopt Jem and Scout from his parents.

single mom

August 2034 - Whitney Riley is 24, Keiran is 1 month (Abhijeet Turner is 25).

Whitney fell in love with Abhijeet in college, and after college she moves in with him. But their relationship is a lot harder now that they've graduated.

"We're not in college anymore!" Whitney tells him. "You need to grow up."

moving up in the world

November 2033 - Rachel Cooper and Genesis McCullough are 25.

Genesis is painting a portrait of Jillian and Jack's wedding. When they got married they didn't have enough money to have a wedding portrait painted. All they have is a photograph, which Genesis borrowed a few months ago to paint this portrait.

"It's really nice of you to do this. My mom really appreciates it," Rachel says.

"Well I want to get on her good side," Genesis says.

"She doesn't hate you..."

"No, but she'd be happier if I were a man. This is a sorry-I'm-your-daughter's-lesbian-lover-instead-of-her-husband present."

another Smith grandbaby

September 2033 - John and Abby Smith are 27.

Tom and Jamie both already have kids when John and Abby decide they want to start a family. They've been married for five years, and both of their careers are going well - Abby has taken over the architecture firm, and John is known as one of the best lawyers in the area.

Their first child is a son who they name Jacob. He has brown hair and brown eyes like both of his parents.

family man

April 2033 - Arthur Cornwall is 54, Richie Gaunt and Ellie Cornwall are 25, Morgan Cornwall is 6 months.

Richie never thought he'd be a family man. His own family was so confusing - his parents divorced, then started dating each other. He knows they love each other, but they couldn't make marriage work. He loves Ellie, he has for as long as he can remember, but he wonders if their marriage will work any better than his parents did.

He is scared when he proposes, but once they are married, he knows it's right.

After graduation they move in with her father. They live in the townhouse Arthur and Rowena bought after they graduated, and they sleep in Ellie's childhood bedroom on the third floor.

an unexpected arrival

October 2032 - Tom Smith is 26, Madison Miller-Kim is 24.

Madison and Tom came back from Twikkii Island refreshed, relaxed... and with an unplanned pregnancy.

and another set of twins!

May 2032 - James and Anne Smith are 51, Pierce Phillips is 23, Jamie Smith Phillips is 22.

Jamie's pregnancy fascinates Pierce. "You're huge," he says. "You're growing people in there!"

expanding their dynasty

June 2031 - Edward and Kaylynn Gaunt are 25, Cassiopeia is 2.

Edward and Kaylynn think they have the most perfect little girl in the world.

Kaylynn has always wanted a big family, but she and Edward wait a few years before trying for more children. It's just too much fun to spoil and dote on their little girl.

The twins are born just after Cassiopeia's third birthday. It's a boy and a girl, Regulus and Bellatrix. They both have black hair; Regulus has brown eyes like his father while Bellatrix has her mother's green eyes.

double trouble

September 2030 - Jackson and Rose Cooper are 24, Darien and Trip Cooper are 1 month.

Rose has always wanted to have a baby, but motherhood turns out to be a lot harder than she had expected, especially since her first pregnancy results in twins. At her father-in-law's insistence, she names the boy Jack Cooper III, Trip for short. She names her daughter Darien after her hometown. She's always thought it's a beautiful name.

a newborn queen

May 2028 - Edward and Kaylynn Gaunt are 22.

Edward and Kaylynn got started on the baby making while on their honeymoon, and their first child is born just nine months later.

They name her Cassiopeia. She has her mother's green eyes and her grandfather's blond hair. She's the first girl born to the Gaunt family, and the first member of the third generation.

baby time

2007 - Martin Miller, Miranda Kim, James Smith, and Anne Smith are 27; John Smith and Tom Smith are 1.

Martin, Miranda, James and Anne have been friends since their freshman year of college. They lived in the same dorm all four years; they've shared beers and soccer games and late-night gossip. They are and always will be best friends, but now when they get together it's a little different.

Martin and Miranda haven't seen a lot of James and Anne since the birth of their twins. One night when the twins are a little over a year old, they are invited over for dinner.

"Nothing fancy," Anne warns them. "Just chicken noodle soup. But we'd love to see you again, and we'd love for you to see the boys."

James and Anne are both American history buffs; they named their twins John Adams Smith and Thomas Jefferson Smith. John is the older twin, and he's already a serious little boy. Tom is sillier, always quick to laugh. Miranda has never thought of herself as a baby person, but she spends hours playing with blocks with John and watching Tom color.

James asks the obvious question over soup: "So when are you two going to have your own kid?"

Miranda and Martin exchange glances. "We haven't really talked about it," she admits. "We've been --" She pauses, uncertain how to finish the sentence. She and Martin have been focused on their careers ever since graduation.

"Are you two going to have any more?" Martin asks, changing the subject.

"We're planning to," Anne replies. "We've always wanted a big family. But the twins are a handful. I think we're going to have to wait a few years before we have more kids." She smiles so they know she's only teasing. "Just don't wait too long. Don't you want our kids to grow up together?"

Miranda brings up the subject in bed that night. "We could have a baby," she suggests.

"Do you want a baby?" Martin asks.

"Do you?"

He's quiet for a moment. Martin is a thoughtful guy, he never says anything without thinking it over. "Yeah," he says. "We've talked about having kids before, but it's always been in the future. But I think we're ready now. We both have good jobs. We're happy at work, and we could take some time off." He smiles. "Yeah. Let's make a baby."

Martin's never been an overly emotional guy. He doesn't get down on one knee and make wild romantic gestures. He reasons things through. But Miranda can see what underlies his lists. He loves her, and she loves him, and they're going to have a family together.

"Okay then," she smiles. "We'd better get to work."

I didn't take any pictures of their newborn baby, but they had a girl, Madison Miller-Kim. These updates have been pretty sporatic, but once there are more family members to play with, hopefully I'll have something to say for each family every year.

she waits faithfully

2005 - Jack Cooper is 26, Jillian Piper Cooper is 23.

Jillian had always imagined herself in a beautiful townhouse, surrounded by friends and family, attending elegant parties with her sophisticated husband by her side. But in college she fell in love with Jack Cooper. He was poor but ambitious, and he promised that he would give her everything her heart desired. He graduated, and she waited for him, lonely but faithful as he built his empire.

It wasn't everything she had dreamed. They get married as soon as she graduates, but it's in a small ceremony in their own yard. Her parents refuse to attend, and he refuses to invite his. He leaves her alone a lot, in a house that is beautiful and elegant, but remote and empty. When she gives birth to their first child less than a year after their wedding, she's overjoyed, not just to be a mother, but because now she won't be alone anymore.

beginning of a dynasty

2004 - George is 26, Jan is 24.

Jan doesn't know what she thought being married would be like, but it certainly wasn't this. When he was courting her, George was charming and romantic, always buying her roses and fancy gifts. But now his life is his work. Most days she hardly seems him, except in the morning before he heads off to work. Even then he's distant, reading the paper and thinking about business. He doesn't care that she wants to work; that she is just as smart and ambitious as he is.

The only time he seems genuinely interested in her is when he brings up the subject of children. He wants one right away. "A boy," he says, and she knows that what he really means is an heir.

She never thought of herself as a mother. When she married him, she saw herself as helping to build his empire and restore his family's power and reputation. He saw that too, just in a different way.

Jan wondered how George would react if their firstborn was a girl, but it's a boy, just like he wanted. They name him Edward. He's beautiful, perfect in every way, and yet as she holds him she can't help but wonder if he can possibly fulfill his father's expectations.

My neighborhood finally has its first child! I'm hoping now that they've started having babies, the families will be a bit more interesting.

Poor Jan - George really wanted a baby, but all she wants is to make money! Now that the baby is born hopefully she'll be able to go back to work. George, on the other hand, has been flying through the Business ranks. He got promoted to Business Tycoon which was his LTW, so I started him on the Criminal career track since that's his new LTW. It fits with my vision of their family - rich, powerful, and not above a little law breaking to make their fortune.