He put on coffee knowing that with all he needed to accomplish today, caffeine was just the opening gambit. He would crave all the energy he could muster, and what better way to get started than with a hearty breakfast. It was the irresistible sizzling smell of bacon that awakened Janey, she appearing in short order dressed in her purple pajamas and rubbing her eyes with the lingering effects of sleep. “Morning, sleepyhead.” “Hi, Dad, wow, you’re up early.” “It’s going to be a busy day.” “But it’s Sunday, usually it’s nice and quiet, we just play.” “But with Christmas getting closer, we have to get ready.” “There sure are a lot of things to do to get ready for just one day,” she said. “Yes, but isn’t it all worth it? Remember last year, all those great gifts?” “That weren’t under the tree,” she said. She would never let him forget that Christmas morning, when he’d fallen asleep on the sofa while all of her wrapped gifts remained securely hidden inside a locked closet inside the windmill, once Annie’s hiding place.
