Thirty-nine year old Ellie Bircham wakes up one Friday morning, sliding face-first into the worst day of her life. She has a hangover. Her kids and her cat all hate her. Her government job is being transferred from Ottawa to Belleville, three hours away. She doesn't have enough money to pay all the bills this month. Her eighteen-year-old daughter, Kellie, is hiding secrets and has taken to staying out all night. Her middle child, Nicholas, is becoming more and more withdrawn. Her intrusive mother is trying to run her life. Her landlord is throwing them all out. And she hasn't been on a date since the weekend her youngest child, Morgana, was conceived. On the advice of one of her co-workers, Ellie signs up for a night school course, based on the powerful Emotional SMARTS(r) system, developed by Dr. June Donaldson in Calgary. She has reviewed the manuscript and has given written permission for her work to be referenced in this way. Using this powerful system, Ellie learns to identify her own feelings, deal more constructively with conflict, stand up for herself without bullying others, talk so her kids will hear her, solve problems and make decisions. Derek Munro, another student in the class, manages to get Ellie out for her first date in twelve years, and then surmounts many difficulties before they make it to the second date. Ellie starts to find she has options. Her boss offers her an important and challenging place in a start-up that she and her partner want to launch. Derek wants her as his partner at his plant nursery, in more than one way. She finds the family a new home, gets her kids to start talking to her and learns to deal with her mother. When Derek finally pops the question, Ellie will be ready to answer, "Yes."