A/N: I'm thrilled that you guys are liking these cute little food ideas and are even trying some of them yourselves. Although I definitely have a few holiday traditions of my own that I do every year, it is always nice to branch out and try something new! This chapter is partially brought to you by the Bob Rivers Comedy Group. Even though it is not in the true spirit of the holidays, some of their songs are just too dang funny to pass up!

It's 0600 when Mac stretches and turns in Harm's embrace, "Come on, Babe, it's time to get up."

Harm softly kisses her lips and mutters, "No daycare, no school, on leave, sleep in."

They were both supposed to be on leave for the holidays as of today, but Mac's case ran over yesterday and she had to go in this morning long enough for closing arguments and for the members to return a verdict. She didn't expect to be there long as everyone wanted to be able to secure for the holidays and the evidence against the defendant was overwhelming. She expected deliberations to be very quick with the return of a guilty verdict.

The shrill ring of a cellphone is heard as Mac turns her head to the nightstand and pulls his phone off the charger to hand to him, "Better think again, Squid, it's yours."

He answers, "Rabb."

Mac slides out of bed as Harm states, "Good morning, Sir."

Five minutes later, Harm steps into the bathroom where Mac is taking a shower. As he turns on the cold water in the sink to throw on his face he remarks, "I guess I am going to have to get the kids up and take them to work with me after all."

Mac lets out a breath, thankful that he isn't being sent out of town. Always a possibility in his line of work. She pokes her head out, "What's the matter?"

Harm grimaces as he makes quotation mark with his fingers, "Apparently in my rush to leave the office yesterday, I forgot to sign off on the fit reps that I left in the General's inbox. All of them."

Mac chuckles, "Oops."

He lathers up his face with shaving cream, "Yeah, big oops. Cresswell is not pleased with me at all. He had intended to review them first thing this morning, so I need to get there as soon as possible."

Mac sympathizes, "You go on in, and I'll get the kids ready and bring them with me. I can drop them off with you before I start court."

Harm leans in and kisses her, "Thanks, honey. I'm sorry. It shouldn't take me long at all to finish these up. Everything is done except affixing my signature. I just don't know how long the chewing of my six will take!"

Two hours later, Harm has finished with the General and heads up to Mac's chambers to retrieve his offspring. Her yeoman tells him to go on in, but Harm only finds Mac there. Shocked, he inquires, "Where are the kids?"

She smiles, "At home. Frank woke up to the smell of coffee brewing and insisted that I should let the kids sleep in and he would take care of them until one of us could get home. I tried to tell him it wasn't necessary, but he was quite insistent."

Harm replies, "It isn't often that he has time with them to himself, so I can understand that. Perhaps I will see if he wants to finish up some shopping with Matthew and I if the ladies are willing to set us free. How long do you think you will be? Think you might be home for lunch?"

Mac shrugs, "Not sure. I think so, but you never know how long it will take for the members to come back, even when you think you know the verdict."

Harm leans over to give her a hug and a kiss good-bye. "Call me when you are done, and hopefully we will all be able to get together for at least a late lunch."

She smiles, "Will do, Sailor. Have a good time."

Harm heads back home to find everyone settled at the table eating Frank's famous blueberry pancakes. Harm looks at his mother and Grams, "Would you mind watching Trisha for a little bit? Matthew and I have a little shopping to finish up for his mom and I was kind of hoping Frank would join us for a guy's day."

Trish replies, "That would be perfect, because before you arrived, we were just discussing taking Trisha shopping for a few things anyways. Frank hates sitting around while we try on clothes so he was going to stay here with Matthew anyway."

Harm dishes up a plate of pancakes for himself and smiles, "Perfect."

The ladies are dressed and ready before the men and Grams leaves a parting shot just before they walk out the door, "You behave yourselves while we are gone."

Harm chuckles, "Grams, what possible trouble could we get into in a couple of hours?"

Trish stares at him wide-eyed like he has grown another head, "Ha! It only takes you a few seconds to find trouble, Harmon!"

Harm tilts his head from side to side contemplating her statement not willing to agree or disagree with her, "Frank's here to chaperone. We'll be just fine."

Harm, Frank, and Matthew head out to a local shopping center and Matthew finds what he wants to get in the second store that they visit. They had stopped in the hobby shop because Frank wanted to look for a new car to add to the Lionel Christmas Train that ran around the base of the Rabb tree. Matthew selected a set of hand-blown glass mini dinosaurs that contains a triceratops, a brontosaurus, a pterodactyl, and a tyrannosaurus rex. Harm knows that Mac will truly appreciate them, he just has to make sure that they don't get broken before she receives them. Matthew almost dropped one before Harm's pilot reflexes prevented it from shattering on the floor. They return fairly quickly, not in the least bit surprised to find the house empty.

Mac comes home a little later to find Frank standing next to a ladder and Harm lying prone on his stomach up on the roof with their neighbor, Mr. Gellerson, sitting closely by.

Holding her hand above her eyes to shield the glare of the sun, she calls out, "Honey, what exactly are you doing up there?"

Harm grumbles as he pulls his hand away after getting a slight jolt, "Trying to fix the damn err dang lights. I swear, one goes out and they all go out! I'm an engineer, this shouldn't be this freaking complicated!"

Mr. Gellerson, trying to shield some of the blame from Harm, yells down to Mac, "I'm afraid that is my fault, Colonel. I noticed last night that several of them weren't blinking and figured there was a short in the line so when my wife and I came by to drop off the fruit basket, I offered to stay and assist if he wanted to get them fixed."

Mac places her hand on her hip, "Where are the kids? Please don't tell me they are in the house alone while you are doing this! And the problem with being an engineer is that you tend to overthink it!"

Frank answers for Harm, trying to let him concentrate on what he is doing before he really does hurt himself, "Matthew is inside napping and Mrs. Gellerson is watching her soaps in the living room in case he wakes up. Your daughter is out with Trish and Sarah, but they should be home any minute."

Mac simply shakes her head, the man she married likes everything to be just right. And he has the nerve to call her a perfectionist! She has to admit though, compared to several of their neighbors their light display is actually very minimal. It is also simple and quite tasteful unlike several others that are just overdone and gaudy. The white lights dangle like little icicles and they placed wreaths and plastic lit candles in all windows that face the front of their property. Mac absolutely refused to allow any blow-up depictions of any characters in their yard. One of her favorite displays in the neighborhood is just a few doors down where the porch contains several gargoyles dressed up as Santa and his elves; definitely a unique idea. Some folks are still working on their decorations, but they plan to troll the neighborhood early next week to see what everyone has come up with. Thankfully, they didn't move into a neighborhood that engages in a battle of the bulbs. She cautions, "Just be careful. I don't really want any trips to the emergency room this close to the holidays!"

Harm mutters, "Yes, dear."

Trish and company pull into the driveway. As soon as Grams is out of the vehicle she notices where Mac's gaze is directed. Trish grabs their shopping bags from the backseat and ushers her grand-daughter into the house, fully knowing that Grams is about to read someone the riot act. Grams tells her granddaughter-in-law, "I should have known that he would do something foolhardy the minute we were out the door! That boy just can't stay out of trouble! Been climbing on roofs since he was three years old, always had to be in the air!"

Harm ignores the women so that he can concentrate, plugging in what he believes is the last light in. Laying the cord back in place, he asks his neighbor, "Steve, would you mind checking them now so the women will stop their griping?"

Mr. Gellerson nods his head as he carefully makes his way down the ladder. Ensuring that Harm has no cords attached to him, he flips the switch. Walking the length of the house to ensure all the bulbs are lit, he yells up, "It looks great, Harm!"

Harm takes a look at his surroundings as Mac chuckles, "Need a hand down, Harm?"

Harm shoots his wife a dirty look before expertly crawling over to the ladder and swinging his legs over to hit the rungs of the ladder. Half stepping and half sliding down, he reaches the pavement and replies, "Just because I don't like crawling through the mud on an obstacle course like the Marines, doesn't mean I don't know how! As Grams no so politely pointed out, I 've been climbing on roofs for years. I'm perfectly capable of getting down safely all on my own, thank you very much! Now, if you ladies will politely go inside, I will put my tools away and come join you in a few moments." Looking over at his neighbor and Frank, he adds, "Thank for the help, guys. I think I've got it from here!"

Grams reaches up and yanks him down by the ear to her level, lowly telling him, "You might want to remember that you are neither too old nor too big for me to bend you over my knee! You will treat all women with the respect that you were taught to give them!"

When she lets go, he straightens back up to his full height sheepishly muttering, "Yes, Ma'am."

The ladies and Mr. Gellerson head inside while Frank helps Harm carry the ladder back towards the shed. As they are walking, Frank laughs at the little display he just witnessed even though he didn't hear what was said, "You Grandmother still knows how to put you in your place, doesn't she?"

Harm furrows his brows, "Unfortunately, she does. However, my wife and mother are the same way. I'm quite sure that mom doesn't let you get away with anything either."

Frank agrees, "Nope, she sure doesn't. My golf clubs have gone missing on more than one occasion when I've ticked her off! She definitely knows how to get her point across."

Harm and Frank pass Mr. and Mrs. Gellerson as they are leaving the Rabb house wishing them a Merry Christmas. As they head inside, they notice Mac coming down the stairs carrying a still very sleepy Matthew on her hip. Harm's forehead creases in concern, "Is he okay? He's been sleeping for a few hours. He shouldn't still be this tired."

Mac presses a soft kiss on her little boy's forehead, "He doesn't feel warm. I think he's just a little overwhelmed by all the excitement in the house. The kids were up later than normal last night regaling your parents and Grams with all the stories. I think he will be just fine."

Harm reaches out his arms for Matthew, wanting to verify for himself that his little boy is feeling alright. He sits down on the couch and Matthew snuggles into the crook of his neck. Harm asks, "Hey Buddy, are you still going to be up to making Grandma's famous popcorn tonight?"

At the mention of one of his favorite snacks, Matt's head immediately pops up, "Popcorn?"

Harm chuckles, "I guess he is feeling alright after all." Mac rolls her eyes at him, silently telling her husband, 'I told you so' as all the other adults laugh at the couple's antics.

Trish looks at Harm and Mac, "We stopped by the craft store while we were out today, and I got some supplies for the kids to make some homemade ornaments to hang on the tree. Harm and I used to do this when he was a kid. There is a kit there if you want to follow it, or several loose items that you can experiment with on your own. Why don't you two and Frank help Trisha and Matthew create them while Grams and I cook dinner."

Mac objects, "You are our guests, you do not need to be preparing dinner for us, especially if you are making dessert for the kids later!"

Grams pats Mac on the knee, "I know I don't need to; I want to. The two of you are always running nonstop between work and home. I want you to have a chance to relax and enjoy some time with your children."

Harm, Mac, and Frank assist Trisha and Matthew in making several wreaths, candy canes, and snowflakes made from pipe cleaners, star shaped and tri-corned beads, and some ribbon and lace. They crafted various different things and then had the elders vote for their favorites. Trisha went all out on one of her wreaths and used lace in between her pink and purple beads to give it a "frilly" design with an accompanying white bow. Matthew decided that it should be Halloween at Christmas and made a candy cane with orange and black crystal beads. Mac alternated blue and white star shaped beads for her wreath and Harm made a rather intricate angel with gold, red, and green round beads.

The family sits down to a feast of chicken or vegetable pot pies courtesy of Grandma Rabb's famous homemade recipe and cinnamon apples. When dinner is finished, Trish ushers the younger generations into the living room knowing that the movie is starting shortly, "You get settled while I work on the popcorn."

They have just turned the television on and sat down on the couch when Frank calls out, "Harm, Mac, where do you keep the Pop-Secret?"

Harm quickly heads back into the kitchen before his mother throws a fit, knowing that she only makes this specific popcorn from kernels baked on a stove. Microwave popcorn is just entirely unacceptable! He pulls the kernels out of the cupboard along with the butter, salt, food coloring, marshmallows, and sprinkles. He tells Frank and Grams, "I'll help mom, go watch the movie. This won't take long."

Harm and Trish work side by side. While Trish pops the corn, Harm works on the topping. He melts butter and mini marshmallows in a medium sauce pan, stirring until all the marshmallows have melted completely. He pulls it off the burner, and adds in some drops of yellow food coloring stirring until the whole mixture is as bright as the sun. He then adds just one drop of blue coloring and stirs it again making it a bright lime green color. His mother grabs a large bowl and dumps the freshly popped kernels in it, adding plenty of salt. As Harm slowly pours the sauce over it, Trish stirs it in ensuring that all the kernels are thoroughly covered. Placing wax paper on a cookie sheet, they spread it out and pour the last of the sauce on top and add some dark green sprinkles, some marshmallow bits, and both large and small red candy hearts. Trish tosses a few red M&M's in just for good measure. Harm laughs, "Since when are M&M's part of your famous Grinch popcorn recipe?"

Trish smiles, "Since I decided I like a little chocolate with my salt! Trust me, you will appreciate the new addition."

They dish up enough bowls for everyone and walk into the living room to hand them out just as "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" starts on television.

Trisha is bouncing up and down on the couch, "This is the same color the Grinch is!"

Her grandmother gasps, "Why yes, it is, imagine that!"

Mac adds, "And it's just like your dad too, with a heart three sizes too big!"

Trisha turns to her dad with her eyebrows raised, "Daddy, is your heart really that big?"

Harm tousles her hair as he looks lovingly at his wife, "No it isn't, honey. But it is always bursting with love for my family."