The Whittaker Saga

As Christmas comes around, Sydney decides it's time for them to throw a big party. A caterer and mixologist are hired, people invited, the house decorated. By the time the guests arrive, Sydney is so ready for their first party, especially as they have invited their very prominent neighbors. She is really excited that they all agreed. The party goes, overall, well. The caterer is a mess, has no uniform and insists on interrupting her cooking in order to try to join the party, but with some work she's kept in the kitchen. Her food is good, luckily, and the guests seem happy enough dancing, drinking and eating.   But Carl is restless. He's happy that all his siblings have come, and he tries to enjoy himself, but guilt is eating away at him. He knows he should have told Sydney everything before they married, but every step of the way, every week and month, he finds excuses not to. This party is only the latest in the string of excuses he has had. As the party dies down, he hid...

For Cathy this is a happy time. She turns Steve's bachelor pad into a home they both can enjoy living in. She doesn't quite understand why Steve is insisting on having the TV downstairs. "It's so ugly, can't we have it upstairs in your office instead?" "The TV stays, and my office stays as it is, until we need the space for a nursery. Anything else is up to you." Cathy thinks he's a bit unreasonable, but agrees all the same. After all, he should have equal influence over their home. "So when do you think would be the right time for that nursery?" "Whenever you feel ready," Steve says and right then and there Caty could live with a hundred TVs in the living room. It does also help that she's been given her own walk in closet to tie her over until she can decorate that nursery. Beth, on her hand, is settling into her new home in Creek Lake, where the autumn have started to change the color of the leaves. It's a small h...

In the start of 1983, it's time for Cindy to become an adult. This is a big moment for anyone, but for Cindy it's something she's longed for since her sisters moved out. To be free, independent, to go her own way. As Oasis Springs develops, there are fewer and fewer teens around. Once a thriving town for families, Oasis Springs now have a lot of grandparents, but younger people move away, and houses are too expensive for young families. Cindy cannot wait to get out of here. To go to the big city, to experience life! But first, a birthday party. As usual it's held in the garden, with ribs and burgers on the menu and swimming as an optional activity. Cindy loves it. Especially as it means seeing her sisters again. When she blows out her candles, she dreams of becoming a rock star, of living fast and having fun. But first college, to make sur her parents don't have a fit. There is no way she'll get out of that. And while she waits for her acceptance letter, what be...