As Christmas approaches, eleven-year-old Rose, the youngest member of the eccentric Casson family, discovers that life is filled with both catastrophic problems and wonderful surprises.

While trying to reconnect with her friend Tom, who has returned to the United States without leaving a forwarding address, eight-year-old Rose inadvertently discovers the identity of her adopted sister Saffy's father.

Now that both Bella and her cat are three years old, they are big enough to learn about all the wonderful things that happen at Christmas.

When Big Grandma takes the four Conroy sisters on holiday as a cure for the "family failing, " the girls wonder if their grandmother herself is still susceptible to it.