Oh, I loved it! I'm moving backwards through as many stories as I can, and this one really stood out. I, too, wondered about the story behind the ornaments. Perfect-and I always appreciate Mark's appreciation of the most common activities, and the fact that the Judge does, too.

THANKS!

What a nice and sweet Christmas with love,Friendship,and Caring.

I read it before and loved it then and now as well.

Great story.

JeanneZ84

Hi Cheride,

I could hear their voices in this one! Most excellent!

I sniffed at the thought of Mark and the mangy fake tree in jail. *sniff* I could well imagine what the judge might be thinking at that time.

It was almost as if I had a cup of hot cocoa with this tale... it went down just that nicely. *Sighs in content* Thanks!

Sincerely,

Strut

Very warm, Cheride, and very holiday-y (?)! With a bit of that awkwardness you'd expect from a new relationship, and yet the beginnings of that fondness we all now will be there for future Christmases. Very nice! Merry Christmas, too.

Pony

Great story. I loved this scene that explained the ornaments for the tree. The ornaments were the perfect two for them and placing them in the tree together would be the right way to do it.

Have your self a very Merry Christmas and I hope you get everything you wanted and much more.

Loved it! What a nice Christmas present for you loyal fan fic readers - thanks!

Loved it! Merry Christmas - I hope Santa brings us all our very own Mark for Christmas! :)

I love how, in times of uncertainty and confusion, you have Mark fall back on cracking wise. He knows he can count on a kindly whack in the arm and a shove in the right directions from a guy who's got a crusty exterior over a marshmallow center.

This is a delightful Christmas treat, from Mark's understated description of why there weren't any festive strings of lights on the tree the year before, right up to creating a new tradition.

It also is a wonderful thing to see ATCBT turning into a regular growth industry-an OC spin-off here, a flashback scene evolving into a story there; I love it, Cheri. I think we should go for an entire subgenre.

So many aw moments in your stories, but this one in particular fills in a background hole. Wonderful job as always.

Oh, that's so cute! You are the best when it comes to retroactive stories, and this one is just perfect. Lovely little moments, hanging on the tree for us to enjoy every Christmas from now on. Thanks, Cheri, for adding another story-ornament. And when you can't decide on ham or turkey, get both!