'Alexis?'

'Yes Max.'

'I have a question for you.'

Alexis looked down at Max, whose bright blue eyes were slightly hidden by the fleck of freshly falling snow on his glasses. It was a great day for tree-cutting, neither freezing nor damp and bright with just a light dust of snow blowing around. He adjusted his glasses, blinked once. 'Is Petra sleeping all the way through the night like a big girl yet?'

'No, sweetie, she still wakes up so she can have her snack but she always wakes up at the same time,' Alexis replied. 'Why do you ask?'

'Because I heard Heddie asking when she is big enough to have a sleep-over night.'

'Oh, I see.'

'Girls like doing that, don't they?' Max further asked, slipping his gloved-hand into Alexis' as she escorted him towards the horse-and-wagon loading area. 'They like getting all loud and laughing with their other friends who are girls.'

'They do,' Alexis agreed. 'I know Jojo likes spending time with Trini and Heddie and Violet.'

'Boys are different,' he decided. 'But that's fun, because otherwise we'd be like the Borts.'

'The who?'

'The Borts, the robots on this show that Violet's daddy likes. He says they look kinda human but they're like robots and they all think the same thing at the same time.'

'Oh the Borg,' Alexis laughed, remembering that Dave was a Trekkie. 'Yeah, everyone all the same is very uncool. And besides, who would decide what's best? We wouldn't go to a big tree farm like this for our tree.'

'That's right!' Max exclaimed, then looked up at Shane who had joined them, took the ME's hand. 'Mama likes dog-fur which makes sense since we have Tortuga at home.'

'Douglas Fir,' Shane chuckled lightly to correct the boy. 'That's the kind we are getting too, I think. They have short needles which is good for our Chanukah surprise.'

'Chanukah surprise? What's the surprise?'

'If I tell you it's not a surprise.'

Max scrunched up his face, shook his head. 'No fair. Mama!' he hollered over at Meredeth, who was attending to the twins and making sure they spilled no hot chocolate on their new ski coats. 'Make Shane share his surprise!'

'Max Power, if he shares it won't be a surprise,' she called back.

'Sheesh, it- oh oh oh! Look the horsies are coming!'

Insult over the surprise forgotten, Max saw the wagon coming with the Parrish-Robbinses and the Ryans plus Tessi with their trees. He always felt a little funny whenever he saw his sister with Dell - that wasn't right, she had to be protected from boys. 'Alexis, Petra is never ever allowed to have a friend like Dell,' he informed her importantly, looking at the junior-sized lovebirds.

'Oh, why not?'

'Because boys are yucky. I'm a boy, I know,' he said with such confidence that Shane had to laugh.

'Max, are you offering to look out for Petra when she has boyfriends?'

'Oh yes, Shane. She isn't allowed to be all...' Max trailed off, made an indistinguishable noise that had Shane and Alexis laughing.

'Max, you are hilarious.'

'How come Petra didn't come today?'

'Because she is too small and we wanted to be able to get a great tree without worrying if Petra is cold or tired or anything like that. Plus when she comes with us next year, she will be big enough to play with all of you.'

'Oh yeah!' Max brightened at this, then looked over at his siblings who had finished their chocolate. 'Guys, Petra is at our house, staying safe!'

'We know, Max,' Leo giggled. 'We get to tell her all about the tree-getting when we have supper.'

'She's little and she has to know that we didn't leave her out of the fun,' Trini explained to Alexis, as if this was some mysterious ritual. 'Soon, she will be big enough to ask us questions and learn our names.'

'When Max learned how to talk, he called me Wee-oh, and Triini was Tee-nee. The only one he got right was Tessi.'

'I was little and learning,' Max retorted in only a way a younger brother could. 'And Tessi will be upset if she hears you mocking the way people talk.'

That had the twins shutting up right quick - they knew their sister's struggles with her speech impediment and would not have it get back to Tessi they were mocking others for an affliction similar to hers. Instead, Trini began to pat at Alexis' coat like she was a TSA agent, prompting a questioning look.

'Uh, Trini, whatcha doing, sweetheart?' Alexis asked in genuine confusion.

'Where is your camera? We have to take pictures to show Petra! Heeheehee, pictures for Petra, that is like a rhyme!'

'Here.' Alexis reached into her ski-pants, pulled out the camera. 'Go nuts. Ah!'

Trini lowered the camera, grinned. 'There, now Petra will see her mami whenever she wants while you have supper tonight at our house and you're not right beside her.'

'Well, considering she is a little baby who nurses...'

Shane cracked up when Leo looked like he'd smelled rotten eggs while turned the shade of a pomegranate. 'Leo, I cannot wait to see you as a teenage boy.'

'Why?'

'I have my reasons. How about I take this-' he nipped the camera from Trini's hands '-and you and your brothers and Alexis hop onto the wagon, and we take some pictures for Petra to see?'

'Okay!' The children chorused, waiting for Alexis to boost them up before turning towards Shane. 'We can show her all the steps of getting the tree, like- like a picture book!'

'Good idea Leo.' Shane held up the camera. 'Say cheese!'

'Queso!'

'Oh man,' Alexis laughed, gave a little 'oof!' as the wagon lurched, and Shane got a running start to jump onto the wagon. 'What is our little girl gonna sound like if these are her examples of friends?'

'Just like part of the family.'