Grandpa Jim is scheduled to make a guest appearance in a special Christmas program in Branson, Missouri. Backstage at the program , it is chaos--the children are out of control, and the director is out of patience. To make matters worse, Grandpa Jim's truck breaks down on the way to the performance.

Grandpa Jim is scheduled to make a guest appearance in a special Christmas program in Branson, Missouri. Backstage at the program , it is chaos--the children are out of control, and the director is out of patience. To make matters worse, Grandpa Jim's truck breaks down on the way to the performance.

With the children’s constant bickering, pretty packages and a sweet-smelling tree don’t come close to filling the McDonald home with the true spirit of the first Christmas. Then Mom remembers an old tradition of building a soft bed for Baby Jesus one straw at a time. Each time someone secretly does something nice for another family member, he or she gets to add a single straw to the manger. Soon the children's quarreling and negative feelings subside and the homemade crib is overflowing. But for one family member, a required act of kindness becomes more than he can take.