Once Petra was fed and changed, Alexis and Shane discovered they were had timed their loving all too perfectly. They'd no sooner redressed into camera-ready lounging clothes, Petra into her adorable little red Christmas onsie, when the proud auntie and uncle came running in.

'It's after seven!' RJ thrust his wrist forward, showing off the spanking-new watch he'd gotten for his birthday. 'Jojo cuddled with me for a whole hour!'

'I did,' Jojo agreed, moving over to inspect Petra's jammies; when they were met with a wrinkle-nosed grin, she looked at her sister and brother-in-law. 'How are your Mormones, Alexis?'

'My mormones are doing okay,' she replied on a laugh at Jojo's use of another RJ catchphrase.

'Good, because it's Chrismukkah and you can't be sad about that. Not when there are presents and hugs and kisses and love and cookies!'

'I think anyone would be hard pressed to be sad after that,' Shane agreed, ushering the young ones out while he watched Alexis snuggled the baby close. Having his beautiful Alexis back was the best Christmas gift ever. 'Have you guys checked out the tree yet?'

'Uh-huh!' RJ nodded. 'We did our tradition of going downstairs to see the tree and then coming to find you guys!'

'Cool.'

'Do you remember your first Christmas Shane?' Jojo asked, taking his hand to walk with him downstairs where Beckett and Castle were already in the kitchen setting up their Christmas morning breakfast of nibbles.

'I sure do. It was when RJ was just over a year old, when Alexis and I first started dating. I was really nervous because I had no idea what to expect. Then I got distracted by RJ asking what the word 'initials' meant and we were opening up our Christmas stockings.'

'Did I really ask that?' RJ looked impressed at his own precociousness.

'You sure did, just like I was there when you said your first words,' he continued as they found spots on the floor in the living room around the tree; Shane knew Alexis would want the floor for Petra's cushioned playmat. 'You know what those were?'

'Her name!' Jojo piped up, proud she'd remembered that story. 'And Mumum says mine was 'bride' because Alexis looked so pretty in her wedding dress!'

'Close enough,' Alexis laughed, then headed into the kitchen to fetch Petra's bottle to let it warm; she'd discovered Petra stayed far more content if her breakfast was room temperature rather than super-hot from warming in boiling water. That had been her first major break-through since starting therapy - Petra didn't need Alexis to be the perfect mom, she just needed Alexis to be the best mom for her.

'It's almost time for breakfast, baby girl,' she told her daughter brightly, flicking the tip of her finger down her nose which elicited a bright coo from Petra; she bapped her palms on Alexis shoulder as if to say she couldn't wait.

Beckett watched Alexis as she arranged cracked wheat toast and sour-dough baguette slices in a basket, added them to the tray of fruit and cheese. It was so great to see her girl on the road to healthy. The real test would be the following day at Meredeth and Esposito's.

'You ready for this Petra, can you handle the fun?'

'She says, Omi of course I can! Mumum's almost all better, and Papa he is so happy and so am I because nothing is worse than seeing my mumum sad,' Alexis replied on her daughter's behalf, grinning at Beckett. 'I'm still feeling embarrassed that I was needlessly hard on myself like that, and it's hard too, accepting that time I lost that I didn't need to be miserable.'

'You did the right thing, you got help and look where you are now,' Castle told her, coming over to put the plate of turkey bacon on the tray. 'Here enjoying Christmas with your baby and husband and your family.'

'Exactly, and I'm not wasting another second dwelling on my...my illness. I want to be here, now, with my daughter. I think I forgot one thing, too.'

'What's that?'

'Richard Castle, man-child extraordinaire, raised me and look how I turned out,' Alexis teased her father, making him wrap his arms around her and Petra together. 'Aw Dad, knock it off, we're wasting present time!'

'That we are.'

They headed into the living room, surrounding the tree where RJ put himself in charge of giving everyone their stockings; he stopped short when he frowned as he held Petra's while glancing back and forth from Alexis to Shane.

'Who holds Petra's stocking? She's a little thing yet, she can't even say her own name!'

'How about we put little missy-' Alexis gave Petra a little bounce '-onto her playmat, and you and Jojo can take turns helping me open gifts while Shane does the big under the tree presents with Petra?'

'Ooo, that's good and fair,' Jojo nodded, then looked at the tray of goodies. 'Mumum, can we start?'

'Food or gifts, bumblebee?' Beckett asked.

'Both!'

So saying Jojo grab a slice of toast with a napkin, took a bite so the slice stayed in her mouth while she reached into Petra's stocking for the first gift. She unwrapped with with the precision and grace of a Tazmanian Devil grinned about her toast.

'It's shampoo! That's awesome Petra! You've got dark red hair just like me so that's a really good thing to keep you pretty. Shane take a picture!'

Shane could only laugh as Jojo leaned in towards the clueless Petra, perfectly content with keeping a hold on her own toes, for the photo before they moved onto the next one, with RJ repeating the process over the matching bubblebath. If this was how the young aunt and uncle were going to be treating their princess of a niece the whole day, it was a good thing there would be wine at dinner.