The sisters' hands were a kaleidoscope of sparklers, as they danced through the night air with their incandescent wands. "Lighting up the night for ya," they chimed together. Leo rolled his eyes. "How utterly pointless."

The Cedillo family's living room buzzed with the chatter of a sitcom, the interior as cozy as a warm hearth.

Outside, the biting wind whistled, but the clear glow of the porch light shone brightly, casting long shadows of everyone in the yard, intertwining then parting.

Andre, eager to show his wife the snowman he'd built, had thrown himself into the task with gusto.

Despite the winter chill, he'd shed his coat and was bustling about in the yard, devoid of his usual CEO demeanor.

At that moment, he was simply Andre-Hansen's son, Mia's husband, Henry's dad. No matter how imposing he might appear, he couldn't escape the simple human joys-the smoke from a chimney, the laughter of his family. Oh, and little Henry was snuggled up in the arms of their trusted nanny.

Because his mom was about to set off fireworks!

One arm cradling a child does make it a bit harder to celebrate.

When the sparkling display was done, the sisters whipped out the secret stash of skyrocketing rockets, fizzling and popping all around the yard. Mia ran to ask her husband for a lighter, "Honey, I wanna set these off, gimme your lighter, will ya?" Before marriage, Mia would have asked her father for a lighter; now, it was her husband's turn.

Andre patted his pockets, found none, and handed her the car keys instead. "Check the car."

Finding the lighter, Mia and Molly set to work, igniting each firework.

Little Henry watched, wide-eyed and pajama-clad in his mom's fluffy coat and the extra blanket his aunt insisted he wear, his tiny tiger hat and a scarf wrapped around his face, leaving only his sparkling eyes visible, full of curiosity. Chad had tried calling Molly several times to no avail.

Eventually, he let it go and continued his night shift.

Last year, she'd brought him dumplings; this year, she seemed to have forgotten him.

Chad chuckled to himself. "Oh well."

was quiet, with not

their granddaughter, "Molly doesn't

might as well enjoy the peace this year. Once Molly and

immediately began to

abandoned the snowman to comfort

given baby Henry quite the

cried in his father's arms. Why set off

had her fill of

dashed over to scoop up her

eleven, the snowman was finished,

grabbed her lipstick to paint the snowman's lips, while Mia

puzzled over her lipstick and

lipstick's dry;

ink in her husband's study. "Molly, wait here. I'll get some ink. It'll work

waiting for a rebuke, Mia scampered off and

sighed as he

eyed his uncle, "Uncle, she's using your ink! Aren't you gonna stop

say a

lips. "It's just using my hubby's ink. Why would he be mad?" Mia

emperors used it. Think about it, what

That ink's more

felt a thousand

blinked in disbelief, then turned to her husband with puppy-dog eyes, "Honey, I messed up." Andre didn't scold her on the holiday. He just smiled, "It's okay, have fun. That's what matters." Mia was near tears, "Honey, can you please

as you're

they returned the

seemingly more regal

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