James, an affable young Pilgrim father, who always sees the glass as half full, wants to stay and fulfill the hopes and dreams of building a new nation, although he can't even build a house. James must also contend with his best friend, Cotton, the bumbling village idiot who wreaks more havoc than a New World winter. James' lovely, strong-minded wife, Polly, wants to stand by her man, but her patience is tried by his unwavering optimism as well as the 50 percent mortality rate. Meanwhile, their three young children -- boy-crazy Abigail, so-smart-she-may-be-burned-at-the-stake Elizabeth, and slow-witted William -- are entertained by their Grammy, a wizened senior citizen who has quite the eye for strapping young men. Even though they live in an era centuries apart from today, the issues they face have remarkable and humorous similarities to modern life. (CBS press materials)