My son Alex and I were getting ready to go for a walk when my husband Steven came into the room.

“Where are you two headed?” he asked.

“We’re going to take a walk in the woods.” Alex said as he was putting on his jacket. “Do you want to come?”

Steven shook his head. “I’ve still got some work to finish up.” He looked over at me. “You two have a good time.”

I was slipping into my own coat. “Hey, did I tell you that while I was sweeping the kitchen, after breakfast this morning, I found a white feather about this big?” I held my pointer finger and thumb about two inches apart.

Steven nodded his head. “That’s a pretty big feather to find in the house.”

I looked over at Alex. “See! I told you it was a sign from my guardian angel!”

Alex looked over at Steven and shook his head. “I told her it was probably from one of my pillows in my bedroom.” Alex looked over at me. “Because if we go by your reasoning then I have about four signs from guardian angels on my bedroom floor right now!”

I ignored his reasoning and looked back over at Steven. “Right after I found the feather I looked out the kitchen window and saw a red cardinal sitting on the pine tree!” I looked back at Alex. “Another sign of good luck.”

Alex started to laugh. “You have three bird feeders in the back yard! Of course you’re going to be seeing birds out there!”

“Come on!” I said as I zipped up my coat. “A white feather and a red cardinal all within a minute! That can’t be a coincidence.” I reached into the pocket of my coat, looking for my gloves when I felt a coin instead and pulled it out.

Holding it up for both of them to see. “Now I find a penny in my pocket!” I looked at both of them. “How much more proof do you need to see? Clearly I’m finding good luck signs all over the place!”

Steven looked over at Alex and shrugged his shoulders then looked over at me. “Why don’t you toss that penny in the other room so I can find it? I could use some good luck.”

I tucked the penny back in my pocket. “That’s not how these things work.” I explained.

“So you’re telling me that you can’t give some of your luck to me?”

“Nope. These signs are just for me.” I looked over at Alex. “Are you ready to go?”

“Sure.”

Steven followed us to the front door.

Waiting in the doorway, watching us as we walked to the car, Steven finally called out. “Okay, I figured out a way to get around your rules.”

I turned around and looked at him. A confused look on my face. “What do you mean by getting around my rules?”

“Well,” Steven leaned against the door jam crossing his arms across his chest. “You’re telling me that you’re the one finding all these signs of luck so after your walk could you swing by the store and pick up some lottery tickets?”

I looked over the car roof to Alex who was standing by the passenger door and sighed as I rolled my eyes.

Alex shrugged his shoulders and started to laugh. “Hey, you’re the one that’s bragging about finding all these lucky signs today.”

I came into the house carrying several grocery bags, when I was met at the door by Winston, a little black, silver streaked Shih Tzu mix.

“Well, look who’s here for a sleepover!” I cried as I put the bags down on the floor and began petting him. “Oh my gosh! You are so darn cute!”

Tail wagging, and making little whining noises, Winston was enjoying the attention he was getting from his cuteness.

After several minutes of ear rubs, I picked up my bags and headed to the kitchen.

My son Alex was standing by the refrigerator. “Be careful! He’s right behind you!”

I turned and looked down and there he was right on my heels. “Oh, boy. This is going to take some getting used to.”

I began putting away the groceries, moving slowly and deliberately, as if I were walking on ice. Trying to be careful not to step on his tiny paws.

I looked over at Alex as I began folding the grocery bags. “Do you want to take a walk later?”

Immediately Winston began dancing around and barking.

Alex started to laugh. “Well, it looks like he understands that word!”

I sighed as I looked over at his harness and leash hanging from the door knob of the foyer closet. “I guess this walk is going to take place sooner rather than later.”

I looked back at Alex. “You feel like going now?”

“Sure.” Alex shrugged his shoulders. “Why not?”

I grabbed the harness and sat down on the couch. “Come here little man.” I called as Winston came closer to me still barking. “Okay! We’re going!” I cried as the barking continued.

I scooped him up and put him in my lap. I slipped the harness over his head and laid him on his back.

“What are you doing?” Alex asked loud enough to be heard over Winston’s barking as he walked toward the couch, putting on his jacket.

“Right now…” I looked over at Alex and sighed. “If I were being honest, I’d say I was looking for where his batteries were so I could pop them out for a minute and stop his barking.”

Winston was still barking and squirming while I tried to put his harness on. “But actually I’m just trying to figure out how this harness goes on.”

Alex came over to help me.

Once we were done and Winston was back on the ground I grabbed his leash and clicked it on. “Okay, we’re ready!”

Winston couldn’t get out the door fast enough.

We made our way down the driveway, stopping every second for him to smell and mark is territory.

Minutes had gone by and we had only gotten as far as our next door neighbor’s large beech tree.

I looked over at Alex. “I don’t think this is actually going to be considered a walk for us.”

“No.” Alex laughed shaking his head. “I think this is more like a scavenger hunt for good smells!”

Winston lifted his leg to mark another tree but nothing came out.

“You’re on empty little man.” I said as Winston pulled me further down the street.

“I don’t think that matters to him anymore.” Alex said as we stopped two feet later by a mailbox that got his attention.

“You’ve got to admit, he is adorable.”

Winston pulled his head away from the mailbox, making a quick snorting sound, before moving onto the next tantalizing smell.

“That he is.” Alex agreed as we moved two feet further down our street.

“I don’t know.” I shrugged my shoulders as I took a forkful of loaded mashed potatoes and put it in my mouth.

“What do you want to do for Valentine’s Day this year?” My husband Steven asked as we sat at the table eating dinner with our son Alex.

“Do you want to go out to dinner?” he asked.

I shook my head and finished swallowing. “Isn’t it on a Tuesday this year?”

Alex joined in the conversation. “Yup.” Then pointed to the salt shaker. “Can you pass the salt please?”

I handed him the shaker. “I’d rather just cook.” I stabbed a piece of chicken with my fork. “How about something in a red sauce in honor of Valentine’s Day?” I asked as I popped the piece of chicken in my mouth.

“Sounds good to me!” Alex said. “What about ravioli?”

“So you don’t want to go out to dinner.” Steven said as he reached for the bowl of loaded mashed potatoes. “What about flowers?”

I had to laugh. “Are you kidding?” I took my napkin off my lap and wiped my mouth. “First, both of you are allergic to most flowers.”

I looked over at Alex who shrugged his shoulders. “That’s true.”

“And second, they’re triple the price they normally are because it’s Valentine’s Day!”

“Okay, that’s true.” Steven agreed. “So, you’re cooking dinner and that’s how we’re going to celebrate this year?”

“Well…” I held up my hand. “I didn’t say that’s all we can do.”

Steven started to laugh. “I had a feeling. So what do you want for Valentine’s Day?”

“A card would be nice.”

Steven shook his head and looked surprised. “That’s a given. I get you a card every year.”

“I know.” I shrugged my shoulders. “Just double checking.”

“So what else are you thinking about?” Steven put the serving bowl down and picked up the salt shaker.

“Well…” I thought for a minute.

“Are you looking for jewelry?”

“No.” I sat and thought a minute. “Maybe a small box of chocolates?”

Alex looked over at Steven. “Already got that one covered!”

“Hey!” I looked over at Alex. “You just spoiled the surprise!”

Alex shook his head. “I didn’t want you getting two boxes of chocolates.”

Steven looked across the table at me and smiled. “Somehow, I don’t think that’s going to bother your Mom.”

I couldn’t help but smile myself. “You know me so well.”

“Okay, the new television is mounted on the wall.” My husband Steven handed me the new remote. “The only thing left is to program it.”

“What?” I looked at the remote in my hand and then back up at Steven. “You know I’m tech challenged!”

“You’ll be fine.” Steven assured me as he patted my shoulder and walked away. “It will walk you right through it!” He called over his shoulder.

I looked at the remote once more, sighed and clicked the power button. The first question it wanted me to answer was what language I wanted to continue in. I scrolled through my options. “Wait.” I looked back through my choices. “What’s the difference between Canadian English and United States English?” I mumbled to myself.

That’s when I knew I was in over my head.

“Chloe!” I called to my son Alex’s girlfriend. “Can you come help me?”

Chloe came out of the kitchen and I handed her the remote. “Can you set this up for me?”

“Sure, I can show you how to use it.” She took the remote and went and got comfortable in a chair.

“Okay.” I sat on the edge of the couch. “But, can you set it up first before you show me how to use it?”

“Of course.” She aimed the remote at the television and pressed United States English.

“What’s the difference between Canadian English and US English?” I asked.

She shrugged her shoulders. “Doesn’t matter to me.”

“See, that’s where I get in trouble.” I sighed as I picked up my phone. “I over think these things.” I went to Google to look up the difference. “Okay, so it’s basically the same except they spell a few words differently.”

Chloe nodded as the screen went on to the next question. “So what’s your wifi password?”

I had to laugh. “Not a clue on that one.”

Chloe got up and headed for the kitchen for a pad and pen. “I’m sure it’s on your router.” She headed downstairs. Once she got back she began putting in the password. “Okay, we’re connected!”

“Great! So it’s all done?”

The screen turned blue saying that it was checking for updates and then said it was downloading latest software.

“Not yet.”

It rebooted and then went back to downloading latest software.

“Wait!” I cried. “Didn’t it just do that?”

Chloe shrugged her shoulders. “There must be more.”

It rebooted again.

This went on several times more and I was beginning to get impatient.

“This is taking forever!” I cried leaning back against the cushions and staring up at the ceiling.

Chloe laughed again. “It’s almost done.”

I was still looking up at the ceiling. “Did I thank you yet for doing this for me?”

“You’re welcome.”

When I looked over at him he stopped and brought his hand closer towards my face. “Hold still.” he said.

It was first thing in the morning and my husband Steven and I were busy getting ready for work. I was standing in front of our closet, wondering what I was going to wear, when Steven came over and reached in to get his shirt off the hanger.

I instantly pulled away. “Why?”

Steven shook his head and laughed. “You know you have some serious trust issues.”

I held up one of my hands. “Hey, I just don’t like surprises.”

“You have an eyelash on your cheek.” He reached over and plucked it off my cheek. While it rested on his pointer finger he held it out to me. “Make a wish.”

I thought about it for a moment, silently made my wish and tried to blow the lash off his finger, but it didn’t budge. “Okay, that’s a do over!” I called as I reached over and took the lash off his finger.

Steven shook his head. “Nope. I’m pretty sure if you don’t blow it off the first time it means your wish won’t come true.”

I put the eyelash on the tip of my finger. “Well, I say it’s my eyelash and it should have been on my finger to begin with.” I blew it off and it quickly disappeared. “See! Now my wish will come true!” I smiled as I went back to trying to decide what to wear.

“Did you make a new wish?” He asked as he slipped his shirt on and began buttoning it up.

“No. It was the same as the first one.” I reached into the closet and pulled out a sweater and tossed in on the bed.

“It doesn’t work like that.” Steven said as he grabbed the hanger with his pants on it. “The lash never moved on that wish which means that wish was denied.”

I looked over at the clock on my bedside table and sighed. “Oh, great. I’m running late.” I pulled out a pair of pants and a shirt. “I can’t believe we’re arguing over an eyelash wish.” I slipped on my pants and reached over for the shirt. I quickly slipped it over my head and began fumbling to get my arms through the sleeves.

“It’s not arguing.” Steven said as he closed the closet doors. “It’s discussing the nuances of wish making.”

“So an eyelash wish is different than birthday candles?” I grabbed my shoes and headed for the bedroom door.

“Well, if you don’t blow all the candles out, in one puff, your wish isn’t going to come true either.” Steven was following me down the hall as I went into the living room.

Sitting on a chair I began to put on my shoes. “But if they don’t blow all the candles out, in one puff, nobody tells the birthday person that their birthday wish isn’t going to come true.”

“Well, of course not.” Steven was at the foyer closet getting his coat. “Nobody’s going to say that out loud. It’s the person’s birthday!” He looked over at me. “Do you have your car keys? I’ll start your car up for you.”

“Oh, thanks.” I took the keys from my pocketbook and handed them to him.

While he was outside I went into the kitchen to pack my lunch.

As I was putting my sandwich in my lunchbox my son Alex came out into the kitchen. “Hey, have you ever made a wish on an eyelash?” I asked.

Alex started to laugh. “I have.”

“So, if it doesn’t blow away the first time do you ever do a do over?”

“Sure.”

Steven opened the front door.

“Alex said it’s okay to do a do over!” I called.

Alex looked over at me and began to shake his head. “What did you just get me in the middle of?”

I reached and patted his arm. “No worries. You gave the right answer.”

I stood in the doorway of the laundry room, staring at the five different piles I’d made when my husband Steven walked by.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m decluttering.”

Steven pointed to one of the piles. “What’s the difference between the piles?”

I pointed to the pile closest to me. “Those are things to move to another room.” I pointed to the next pile. “Things to donate to charity.” I pointed to another pile. “Things to toss out.” I pointed to the next pile. “Things to give to a specific person and finally…” I pointed to the last pile. “Things I need to think over.”

Steven slowly nodded his head. “Why is the move to another room pile the biggest?”

I put my hands on my hips, tipping my head to the side. “Why?” I have to admit I was a little annoyed with that question. “This room is already the laundry room, my office, the sewing room, craft room, and wrapping station! It can’t be the dumping ground for everything!”

Steven looked surprised. “Hey, I was just asking a question.” He held his hands up as if he were surrendering.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have raised my voice.” I took a deep breath and took my hands off my hips. “It’s just that I’ve been working in here for the past two hours and I’m running out of momentum.”

“I get it.” Steven came over and gave me a kiss on the cheek. “But exactly where are you planning to put the vacuum cleaner now?” He pointed back to the ‘move to another room’ pile.

“I thought we could put it in the guest bedroom closet.”

He looked over at the laundry basket filled with board games. “Where are they going?”

“We already have a cabinet that has board games in it. I was going to see if they fit in there.”

Steven nodded as he scanned the other piles. “So where’s the bag of books going?”

It was the only thing in that pile. “That’s the thing to give to a specific person.” I looked over at Steven. “Rosanne and I exchange books a few times a year. I was planning on calling her soon.”

Steven was still nodding his head. “What’s the clothes pile?”

“That’s things to donate to a charity.”

“Wait a minute!” He picked up a sweatshirt. “This still has the tags on it!”

I took it from him and tossed it back on the pile. “It’s been in here since we moved here six years ago. Don’t you think someone else could use it?”

Steven shrugged his shoulders. “I guess.”

He was scanning all the other piles. “Wait. What pile is the yarn in?”

“That’s the think-it-over pile.”

“Why?”

“Because I used to knit all the time but I haven’t in years.” I picked up one of the aqua colored skeins. “I just have to decide if I’m ever going to knit again.” I tossed it back on the pile.

Steven looked around the room again. “Seems like a lot of work.”

“It is.” I sighed.

He came over and gave me a hug. “What if I cooked dinner tonight?”

I couldn’t hold back my smile as I stepped back and clasped my hands together. “Really? I was just about to call it quits but that would give me the momentum to finish this project today!”

He smiled as he left the laundry room. “You’re welcome.” He called over his shoulder as he headed for the kitchen.

I walked up the front sidewalk of my house. I had an orchid cradled in the crook of my arm, my other hand up by the flowers to protect them from the wind.

I was struggling to get the house key out of my pocket when my son Alex opened the front door.

“Thanks!” I walked by him and placed the orchid on the side table in the living room. I stepped back to admire it’s placement then looked back at Alex. “Well, what do you think?”

Alex shrugged his shoulders. “It’s pretty.”

“I know!” I couldn’t help but smile as I unzipped my jacket and looked around the house. “Everything looks so depressing once the Christmas decorations get put away. So, I thought getting an orchid would give me something pretty to look at for the next few months.”

“That’s going to last a few months?” Alex asked.

“It should.” I tossed my jacket on the couch and went over to the plant. “That’s why I only buy them when most of the flowers haven’t bloomed yet.” I gently touched one of the unopened buds. “This one should definitely last a couple of months.”

I walked over to the hallway, where our bedrooms were, and turned around. “I miss December when I’d get up in the morning and your Dad would turn the Christmas tree lights on for me.” I pointed straight ahead. “ It was the first thing I’d see when I went to make my cup of tea. It was the perfect way to start my day.” I pointed over to the orchid. “Now, when I get up I’ll see that!” I looked over at Alex. “I’m hoping it will help me get through the rest of this winter!”

Alex looked confused. “But isn’t it dark when you wake up? I thought that’s why you liked seeing the tree lit.” He pointed over at the orchid. “You won’t be seeing that in the dark.”

“Oh, yeah.” I shook my head. “I forgot that part.”

My husband Steven walked into the room and saw Alex pointing to the orchid. “That’s pretty.” He looked over at me. “Did you just get that?”

“I did.” I went over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Did I thank you for turning the Christmas tree lights on for me every morning?”

Steven laughed. “You did.”

“Okay, great.” I stepped back and held my hands together in a pleading way. “Because I have another favor to ask you.”

Steven looked guarded. “Okay.” he said slowly.

“When you get up before me can you turn on the light next to the orchid?”

Steven look turned to confusion. “Sure. Why?”

“Because it’s going to be a long winter and I’d like to see something beautiful first thing in the morning.”

Steven started to laugh. “Well, I can fix that in another way.”

Now I felt confused. “How?”

“I can switch on the bedroom light when I get up and you can see me!”

“Are you nuts!” I cried. “You get up at like 5 o’clock in the morning! That’s over an hour before my alarm goes off!”

“Okay, fine.” Steven sighed. “I’ll turn the living room light on for you.”

“Thanks!” I gave him another kiss on the cheek. “Then when you come into the kitchen for your second cup of coffee I’ll see you then.”

I was sitting on the couch using my phone to skim through some articles on the internet when I came across one that caught my interest. “Okay, now I know what I have!” I called out to my husband Steven who was out in the kitchen making a sandwich. “I have all the symptoms!”

“What are you talking about? I thought you were feeling better.” he called back.

“I feel better from the cold I’d had but these other symptoms have been with me for a while now.”

Steven walked into the living room, a half of a ham and cheese sandwich in one hand and a glass of water in the other. He placed the glass on the coffee table and sat down next to me.

“What symptoms do you have?” He took a bite of his sandwich.

“I’m always ready for a nap.” I held up my thumb to show him how I was ticking off my symptoms. I held up my pointer finger. “Feeling stressed.” I looked over at him, raising my eyebrows. “That’s a big one for me.”

Steven nodded. “Okay.”

“Not being able to finish simple tasks.” I held up another finger.

“What simple tasks?” he asked as he reached for his glass and took a drink.

“Like unloading the dishwasher.” I shook my head. “I emptied the top rack but then I heard the buzzer going off on the dryer. By the time I folded the load in the dryer I just needed a quick break on the couch before even thinking about finishing the dishwasher.” I pointed to my phone. “That’s when I decided to start Googling my symptoms.”

“So what do you have?”

“I have low E.”

Steven looked confused. “What’s low E?”

“It’s low energy.” I looked over at him. “My energy is SO low that it takes too much time to say energy so they just say E.”

“So how do they say you fix it?” Steven took another bite, leaned back against the cushions and put his feet up on the coffee table.

“Well…” I skimmed the article. “Oh, wait!” I began shaking my head. “That’s not going to happen.”

“What?” Steven was trying to look at my phone.

“They say the best way to fight low E is to exercise.” I was still shaking my head. “I don’t have the energy for that!”

“They might have a point.” Steven tried to reason.

“Nope.” I clicked off my phone. “It’s the same in the beginning of every new year. They want you to join a gym or buy a new piece of exercise equipment.” I tossed the phone on the couch next to me. “Well, they’re not going to fool me!”

“But you have been exhausted lately.” Steven reminded me.

“That’s true but sometimes just knowing what you have makes all the difference in the world.” I leaned back against the cushions and looked up at the ceiling. “Maybe we should order take out tonight.” I turned my head to look over at Steven. “That might help my low E.”

On Christmas Eve I’d come down with a fever, so I put myself to bed and began taking Covid tests. After a few days, and several negative tests later, I felt like I was fighting a cold and could come out of quarantine.

A day later my son Alex and his girlfriend Chloe got sick. But when they took their Covid tests they both came up positive.

I was sitting on the couch listening to their persistent coughs in the other room.

“How are you doing it there?” I called to them.

“Hanging in!” Chloe called back.

“I think what we all need right now is for me to make a big batch of homemade chicken soup!” I grabbed by coat and car keys. “Anyone want anything else while I’m at the store?”

“Maybe some ginger ale.” Alex called. “My throat’s pretty sore.”

“Okay! Be right back!”

Wandering around the grocery store, collecting all the things I would need, I found myself in the soup isle ready to grab a few cartons of chicken stock. Next to the chicken stock I saw a box of chicken bone broth. Pulling both cartons off the shelf I tossed them both into my cart.

Once I was home I opened both containers and began pouring them into a pot. I could see the bone broth had a richer look to it than the stock.

When the chicken was finished cooking and was set aside on a cutting board to cool, I began chopping some carrots and celery.

My husband Steven came into the kitchen. “Already smells good in here!” he said as he walked by.

I held up the carton of bone broth. “Have you ever used this in any the the soups you’ve made?”

Steven looked over. “Sure. I used some beef bone broth in the beef stew I made last week.”

I tossed the empty carton into the trash and picked up the cutting board. Holding it over the pot I began pushing the carrots and celery I’d just chopped into the soup. “Well, this is the first time I’m using it. I hope it tastes good.”

“Of course it will. It also has more protein and minerals than regular stock has.”

Once the soup came to a low simmer I poured in some noodles, wanting them to absorb all the flavors.

“DINNER!” I called once the soup was ready.

Steven came in first. “Where are the kids eating?” He asked as he grabbed a bowl and went over to the pot to serve himself.

I shrugged my shoulders. “I guess they’re going to eat at the dining room table.”

Steven took his filled bowl, went to the drawer to grab a spoon and headed downstairs to watch television. “Good to know, I’ll be eating mine downstairs.”

Chloe and Alex came out of their room.

“Do you want us to wear masks?” Chloe asked as she stood in the doorway.

“You’re fine.” I placed two filled bowls on the dining room table along with some freshly toasted ciabatta bread. “You two eat in here.”

I went over and grabbed another bowl, filled it with soup for myself and headed for the living room.

“Hopefully, a couple of bowls of this will help get you both on the mend before the New Year!” I called over my shoulder.

“I’m feeling better already!” Chloe called.

“What about you, Alex?” I asked.

“I’ll keep you posted.” He said while he stifled a cough. He picked up his spoon and took a tiny sip of soup. “I do have to say this is making my throat feel better.” He took another sip. “Okay, I’m starting to feel some hope here.”

I tucked the last wrapped present under the tree and stood back to admire it all.

That’s when my husband Steven came into the room. He walked up next to me and put his arm around my waist. “You’ve really done a spectacular job again this year.” He said as he looked at the tree with me.

“Thanks. But it’s always around this time that I can’t help but think I’ve forgotten something.” I sighed.

“Hey, you can only do so much.” He reached over and adjusted one of the ornaments.

“I know. It’s finally time to say ready or not Christmas is here.”

“You’ve been making lists for weeks.” He reminded me.

“And yet there’s always something to add!” I sighed again.

“I think you’ve finally gotten to the point where it’s time to stop worrying and just sit back and enjoy all the work you’ve done.”

“You’re right.” I went over to the couch, sat down and put my feet up on the coffee table. Steven came over and sat next to me. “It is nice to just sit here and look at the tree knowing there’s nothing more I need to do.”

Our son Alex came into the room. “Well, I just finished wrapping the presents I got everyone.”

I pointed to our tree. “Are you going to be putting them under the tree?”

Alex shrugged his shoulders. “I’ll just keep them in my room until Christmas morning.”

I leaned my head back against the cushions. “You know I saw a post on Facebook that said you shouldn’t tell your kids that Santa gives them the expensive presents.” I looked over at Alex. “Because kids whose parents can’t afford to give expensive gifts think they’ve done something wrong when Santa only gives them something small or even nothing at all.”

Alex looked at me shaking his head. “Don’t worry I’m pretty sure Santa isn’t giving me anything this year.”

I had to laugh. “I’m not talking about you! It’s just that I never thought about that before.”

Steven started to shake his head. “Let me guess?” He patted my knee. “Now you’ll be feeling guilty about the presents Santa gave our boys?”

I tipped my head to the side. “Yeah. A little bit.”

“Don’t worry.” Alex came over and patted my head. “I don’t think any less of you for telling me Santa gave me my Game Boy twenty years ago.”

I had to laugh again. “Thanks.” I looked back over at the tree. “But I do look at what we have and I have to say I’m grateful.”

“Isn’t this the conversation we’re supposed to have on New Year’s Eve?” Alex asked.

“Any day is a good day to be grateful.” I reminded him.

“God bless us, every one.” Steven said.

I looked over at him while shaking my head.

“What?” Steven shrugged his shoulders. “I just thought it was a good time to quote from ‘A Christmas Carol’!”

I swatted him on the arm as I got up from the couch. “I’m going to go start dinner.”