Maudlin was so tired of dealing with fighting toddlers. Ever since the quads had transitioned her life had been a living hell! Every two seconds one of them was shrieking abou something...and they all had these shrieks that seemed to jam themselves into the base of her skull!
Then, she would see that rare moment when two of them would be getting along and, suddenly, it would all be worth it!
Then, she got pregnant again.The days dragged by and Maudlin grew more and more irritable. She hadn't wanted to get pregnant again, but the birth control had apparently failed. So, here she was...pregnant again. Life sucked!
Eventually, she gave birth to a tiny, baby girl. She was vastly relieved that there was only one! They named her Vegas and Van took some time off so he could take care of her while Maudlin tried to get herself back into the swing of things at work.
The quads' birthday finally arrived! Manchester...
...Perth...
...Raleigh...
...and Sydney all grew up.
The day after the boys' birthday Van started talking about having another baby. After an hour and a half of his going on and on about how the boys and Vegas were growing up so fast and how the triplets would be leaving for college soon and so wouldn't it be nice to have a new baby in the house, Maudlin cut him off with a scream. "I am so freaking sick of this. All you talk about all day long is 'baby this...baby that'! Well, I've got news for you buddy...I'm done with morning sickness, swollen boobs, stretch marks, and labor. If you want another baby you go and have one, but I'm getting a tubal next week and if you have a problem with that then file for divorce!"
Van was shocked. He honestly hadn't realized how much all the pregnancies were bothering Maudlin. He calmed her down and told her that he would support her no matter what she wanted to do!
Now that she knew that her baby making days were over, Maudlin was able to relax and enjoy her children a little bit more. She was happy to see that Phoenix had found a girlfriend.
She had long conversations with Dallas who was eager to talk about his desire to become a world famous fashion designer. Apparently, the dowdy maternity clother she had spent most of her life in had inspired him and he now wanted to create a chic line of maternity clothes.
Austin's birthday was a small affair with just the family, and he remained as serious as when he was a little boy.
He was a very helpful boy. When he wasn't spending time studying he was taking care of Vegas. In fact, he was the one who helped her transition to toddlerhood. Like most of her children, poor Vegas seemed to have gotten her daddy's eyes.
Before they knew it. Van and Maudlin were saying goodbye to the triplets as the headed off to college. Phoenix was still going through is Goth/punk phase, but at least he seemed to be serious about his studies.
Brooklyn, on the other hand, worried them. She blew off their offer to drive her to college, and when they saw her as they dropped the boys off they were shocked.
Aside from the hair and make-up, she was dressed in the most revealing outfit Maudlin and ever seen! She just knew that Brooklyn was going to get herself in trouble.
Dallas was the hardest to say goodbye to. He seemed happy to be getting one step closer to realizing his dreams, but he was also sad that he had to leave his home and family to do so. Maudlin assured him that he would soon be so busy he wouldn't even give them a seond that.
As Van and Maudlin returned home that day she felt a strange sadness at the thought of her babies growing up and for a moment she understood why Van was constantly wanting more children. Perhaps they could adopt one.
Note: Yes, Phoenix's girlfriend is from pixel_trade...peanut butter oatmeal cookies to the first person who guesses who she is!
