Contains craft and recipe suggestions for family craft activities at Christmas.

Zac never had a family of his own, but Rudy has enough to share. Shy, inexperienced Rudy has a crush on Zac from the moment his new colleague walks through the door. On an office night out before Christmas, Rudy finds the courage to make a move, and they form a tentative bond. When he discovers Zac will be alone at Christmas, he invites Zac to come home with him. Zac prefers to keep people at arm's length. Yet when Rudy offers him a family Christmas it's impossible to resist. With no parents of his own, Zac is pleasantly surprised to be welcomed by Rudy's. The only drawback is that everyone assumes they're a couple. Unwilling to disappoint Rudy's mum and make Christmas awkward, they decide not to deny it. It's not a chore for Zac to pose as Rudy's boyfriend, but the pretence makes him want things that scare him-things like a real relationship with Rudy. Zac's suffered enough rejection in his life already and is afraid to risk his heart. If he can get over his past rejection and let Rudy inside his armour, he might get more for Christmas than he ever imagined.

Laid off and in a new city, Maddie is eager to get her life back on track before Christmas. With a new gift wrapping business in the lobby of the Drummond Building, the last thing on her mind is falling for Chase, the heir to the Drummond fortune. But it isn’t Chase who captures her heart. Annie, only ten years old and recently orphaned, needs more than gifts for Christmas, and Maddie might just have enough love left in her heart to help.

Timeless melodies, half-forgotten wishes, well-remembered scents, sights, and sounds . . . all bring to mind the wonder of this very special time of year. With stories about good folks gathering on snowy church steps, a little girl's gracious generosity, and a departed husband's last gift of love, A Family Christmasstirs the heart with tender sentiment and renewed hope. Come and enjoy this celebration of family, faith, and God's most blessed gift of all!

The Family Christmas Treasures collection of fine art and literature, at once both classic and contemporary, celebrates the warm, loving, family Christmas as it is enjoyed throughout the world. It focuses on the secular aspects of a family Christmas: spending time with loved ones, exchanging gifts, anticipating the arrival of Santa Claus, decorating the tree and home, cooking and feasting, caroling, and all the other delights that we associate with the magic of the season. Included are excerpts from such classics as Dickens’s A Christmas Carol and E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker, as well as selections—including those from John Donne, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and L. Frank Baum—that appear in their entirety. Christmas stories by major contemporary writers such as Maeve Binchy and Anna Quindlen provide a balance of old and new. Whether the family faithfully returns to such well-known classics as William Dean Howell’s Christmas Every Day or whether they eagerly devour lesser-known gems such as Theodore Roosevelt’s The Tree in the White House Closet, they are sure to find tales that fill their hearts with cheer. Accompanying these texts is a collection of exquisite art in full-page, full-color format. Ranging from classic to modern, this collection includes the imaginative creations of such esteemed artists as Norman Rockwell, Thomas Nast, N. C. Wyeth, Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, and many others.

"Stories, features and articles for all the family to enjoy."