Despite his sister Ruby's admonitions, Max waits up on Christmas Eve to see Santa Claus coming down the chimney.

On a shopping trip to the department store, Max's determination to get a dragon shirt leads him away from his distracted sister and into trouble.

Ruby tries to keep her brother Max from eating so many sweets by reading him an altered version of the story of King Midas.

Max and Ruby spend so much on emergencies while shopping for Grandma's birthday presents, that they just barely have enough money left for gifts.

Max's big sister Ruby is determined to help him clean up his messy room, but he keeps rescuing things that she wants to throw away.

While Ruby plans a Fourth of July doll picnic, Max sends letters to Santa to ask for "a bright red Sand-Spitter Motorcycle with Bigfoot tires," but the letters are delivered to his grandmother, instead, and she must try to decipher the pictures. Includes lift-up flaps.

At bedtime, Grandma tells Max and Ruby three favorite stories about themselves.

"Max's big sister Ruby and her best friend Louise play school with their younger siblings"--

When Max discovers that the lunch he's been looking forward to is missing, he and Ruby embark on a search for it.

Max figures out how to assemble his new gift even though the instructions for putting it together are written in Bulgarian.