"You wake her up."

"No you wake her up."

"You have to listen to me. I'm older!"

"Yeah, by 5 minutes."

"Still counts."

"Does not."

"Does too."

Lorelai barely cracked open her eyes, still unwilling to expend the necessary energy to actually get up out of bed. Her body knew it was too early to wake up. But the two five year old girls arguing in her bedroom didn't seem to understand the concept of sleeping in on Christmas morning. Lorelai closed her eyes again quickly before the girls noticed. With any luck, the twins would continue this line of conversation long enough that she could fall back asleep.

Just as she had started to drift off again, Lorelai heard both girls shout "Rory!" in unison and then scamper off downstairs, presumably in search of their big sister.

"Mom, you really do have to get up now," Rory said, walking into Lorelai's bedroom a few minutes later, a twin on each leg. "Luke hid the bag of m&ms and we can't have our Christmas morning cereal until you get us some from your secret stash."

Lorelai lay stock still, pretending to be asleep.

"Remember, I can tell when you're faking," Rory said, prodding Lorelai with her finger.

"Ugh, I'm up," Lorelai groaned, sitting up in bed and sighing. "Why did I have to have such smart girls?"

"But mommy..." Esther started.

"...we didn't know you were awake." Vicki finished her twin's thought.

"Oh, but you girls knew to get Rory," Lorelai said pulling the two girls in for a big hug. "And that might make you even smarter!"

"Hey, I'm right here!" Rory protested.

"Yes, yes, you're very smart too," Lorelai cooed. "You'd think after Yale, the Obama campaign, and the New York Times Politics Desk you wouldn't need your mother to tell you that."

"Well, I still do." Rory pouted. "Or at the very least I need Christmas cereal."

"Okay, well one bag of holiday m&ms coming right up," Lorelai said while dragging herself out of bed. Noticing that none of the girls were leaving the room, Lorelai pointed toward the door. "I may be sleepy, but no way am I so tired I'll reveal my candy hiding spot. Now out, and I'll meet you downstairs." The three sisters dutifully headed out the door. "And there better be coffee ready!" Lorelai shouted after them.

"Mmm, something smells good." Lorelai said, finally coming downstairs 15 minutes later. Rory, Esther, and Vicki were sitting at the kitchen table, which already had bacon, eggs, and four bowls of cereal out on it. Lorelai tossed Rory the bag of m&ms and she started to divide its contents between the four bowls and pour the milk.

Luke had been mixing up pancake batter at the counter when Lorelai came downstairs but he went over to greet his wife as she walked into the kitchen. Although he intended to give her a just quick peck on the lips, he had a hard time pulling away and let the kiss linger far longer than he planned.

"Merry Christmas," Luke murmured.

"Coffee," Lorelai whispered in return.

"Sometimes I think you only married me for my coffee," Luke rolled his eyes, reaching to grab her a mug of coffee but unwilling to let her fully out of his arms just yet.

"Only sometimes?" Lorelai laughed, taking a slow, deliberative sip and then, after some thought, giving her verdict with a shake of the head. "No, it's still not quite right."

"That's what Rory said," Luke sighed.

"Needs more peppermint, right?" Rory offered her opinion on Luke's latest attempt at replicating Weston's candy cane coffee.

"Exactly! This has barely a hint of candy cane flavor." Lorelai agreed.

"The amount of peppermint oil in that cup of coffee is already absurd," Luke groaned. "Any more and it will taste like mouthwash."

"Well, I don't know how Weston's does it then," Rory said in between mouthfuls of cereal. "Their candy cane coffee is always perfectly balanced."

"Don't worry sweets, we'll pick up a cup later today," Lorelai promised her eldest daughter and then turning to Luke added, "And don't you worry. You have years to perfect the recipe before I leave you for the Weston's candy cane coffee supplier."

"Do you even know who that is?" Luke asked skeptically, finally breaking away from Lorelai and returning to his pancake batter.

"No, that's why you're safe for now. As soon as I find out though, I'm gone." Lorelai warned, grabbing a seat at the table and starting to munch on her own bowl of cereal.

"When do we get to try the coffee Mommy?" Esther asked, looking longingly at Lorelai and Rory's cups.

"When you're 13," Lorelai responded at the same time Luke gave a firm "Never."

"I'm already losing the battle aren't I?" Luke sounded resigned.

"Yup," all four girls replied at once.

"You never even had a chance," Lorelai teased. "The Gilmore is strong in these ones."

"Well, if you can't beat them..." Luke said, bringing over a plate with a large stack of pancakes studded with holiday m&ms and setting both the plate and a canister of whipped cream on the table to a chorus of cheers. Luke couldn't help smiling watching how happy all of his girls were. But, they're getting oatmeal for breakfast for the rest of the week, he thought, breaking into a grin.

Author's Note: For everyone asking about how I arrived at Esther and Vicki for the twins' names, I posted a companion piece that goes into more detail on their birth here: s/10915415/1/Time-to-Meet-the-Mrs-Norman-Maines