No matter who showed up, Arabella was confident she could snag their tail and trace it back to the puppet master pulling the
strings!
"Bella, we still keep the Christmas tree at home. You hadn't have tto decorate the tree last time, so let's go hang some
ornaments on the Christmas tree, shall we?" Louisa called from a short distance away.
"Sure."
Thought they all had celebrated the Christmas Day together, and had a happy time. Since they finally had Bella back, they wanted
to celebrate every festival with her. To make each one a grand event. Hence, all morning, they were busy with festive preparations.
They stuck decals on the windows, arranged cheerful streamers, and hung ornaments. They crafted New Year's decorations and
placed them in every nook and cranny of the house, adorning the indoor plants with fairy lights and ornaments.
The family was engulfed in laughter and chatter, a lively scene indeed.
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The staff wasn't idle either; they strung up joyful banners across the ceiling and decorated the garden's flora with strings of lights.
The whole house, inside and out, was brimming with the spirit of the New Year. A dozen photographers captured the moment, no
staged shots necessary; every frwas filled with warmth and joy.
Seeing her htransformed, Arabella felt something new stirring within her. Celebrating the New Year with so many people was
truly happiness.
As noon approached.
Four chefs rolled out dough, prepared fillings, and gathered everyone to sit down and make cheese tarts together.
"Bella, do you know how to make them? I've just learned it myself." Louisa started to show her daughter how to make cheese tarts,
but in the blink of an eye, Arabella had already crafted one perfectly.
Everyone was stunned, not even catching how she did it.
"Bella, did you make a fortune as a chef? You not only can make tarts but such intricate ones at that?"
Her brothers were in disbelief. Their little sister, a maestro in the making!
"Grannie Grace taughta while back." Arabella said with a casual smile, her heart wandering to memories of Grannie Grace.
Sensing her mood shift, they all knew she was missing Grannie Grace.
"In the afternoon, each family will have the afternoon tea. Let's honor Grannie Grace by enjoying the cheese tarts she taught you
to make."
Before Louisa could finish, Kenneth chimed in, "Exactly, we owe her so much. As her parents, we should pay our respects."
"lI want to thank her for raising my precious granddaughter so well." Grandma Cornelia's voice wavered with emotion, imagining
how much livelier it would be if Grannie Grace were still with them.
Belinda added, "We'd like to thank her too."
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"We'll join as well," said David. "If the Murphy family doesn't pay tribute to Grannie Grace, then we, the Collins family, will make
sure she knows we care about her. We'll never forget what she did for Bella."
Moved by their words, Arabella replied, "If Grannie Grace can hear us, she'd be delighted.”
Afterward, Arabella crafted various creative tarts which the chefs baked and served. Everyone clamored for a taste.
Grandpa Bernard snatched three cheese tarts from the emptying plate.
"I've never had the chance to taste food made by my sweet granddaughter."
"You're stealing food from the elderly."
"Has the Collins family starved you lot?"
In the end, the older folks commandeered the cheese tarts from the younger ones’ plates.