Children are about the last thing Will Freeman, a 36-year-old convinced bachelor, wants. He lives comfortably and lazily off the royalties of a Christmas song his father composed in 1938. He spends his days doing nothing, and in the evenings, he makes an effort to date young, single, attractive mothers. Marcus, at twelve years old, has very different problems. His parents have separated, and his mother has the alarming tendency to cry during breakfast. Additionally, she hates sneakers on children's feet. The wrong clothes, the wrong haircut, and a musical inclination inherited from his mother for Joni Mitchell make Marcus an outsider at school. Fortunately, fate brings him together with Will, who is an expert in fashion, pop music, and soccer. Marcus soon realizes how helpful Will can be in building a new personality.