Tillman Tinkerson is a third grader at My Dear Watson Elementary School. He’s a pretty sharp kid, but he doesn’t apply himself in school. Thanks to countless hours of watching reality television shows, Tillman is very wise to the world around him and can usually parlay that “street cred” knowledge to his benefit when he finds himself up against bullies, teachers and his big sister, Tweetie. Tillman’s need to feed his curiosity is typically the catalyst for most of his angst…and injuries.

Tweetie Tinkerson is the Tinkersons’ moody and temperamental tween. Tweetie views Tillman as more of a little bother than her younger brother. She has reached a critical point in fifth grade where friends are the most important thing in her universe, so she spends the majority of her free time texting and instant messaging them. Tweetie doesn’t suffer fools kindly. The only problem is…she thinks everyone around her is a fool!

Ted Tinkerson is a family man and the primary breadwinner. He’s in his late thirties (wait, how did that happen?), but he still feels like a big kid. Ted’s main struggle isn’t his family or kids. It’s not even his receding hairline (now really, when did THAT happen?). His biggest problem is his job. He dreams about the day when he won’t be a lightbulb sales rep for Ed-N-Son Light Bulbs, but with a weak job market and the fact that he has absolutely no idea what else he could do, it looks like he will be there for the foreseeable future or until he has the proverbial “bright idea” that will make him an overnight millionaire. Did we mention that he works for a LIGHT BULB company? Irony. That’s Ted, in a nutshell.

Tiff Tinkerson is a no-nonsense wife and mother and the linchpin who keeps the Tinkerson home going. It’s not easy being a stay-at-home mom and raising two kids (three, if she counts hubby Ted…and she does). When she is not balancing the family checkbook or cutting coupons from the weekly circular, she likes to daydream about what she would do if she had more money and time to herself. But as exasperated as she sometimes seems to be, Tiff wouldn’t change a thing when it comes to her family. Well, she might want Tweetie and Tillman to stop fighting…and Ted to be a little more responsible with his money and less lenient with the kids…and Tubby to track less dirt into the house...and it would be nice if they had a new dishwasher…and...

The family dogs. When these two aren't shedding all over the couch or barking at anyone who steps onto their porch, they can be found lying in wait...for someone...anyone...to leave a snack unattended.

The family dog. Tubby is cool, laidback and does his own thing. When he isn’t snoozing in one of his many napping stations around the house or shedding shamelessly all over Tiff’s newly vacuumed living room carpet, Tubby lies in wait…waiting for one of the Tinkersons to leave the snack cabinet open or a plate of food unattended. For a chubby dog, he sure moves fast!

Oh boy, this one is a firecracker and she has Tillman right where she wants him...next door! Her family just recently moved next door to the Tinkersons AND to the man of her dreams!

Judy is Tillman’s next door neighbor and best friend. She is also his future “the one who got away” girlfriend. She is the voice of reason in Tillman’s otherwise irreverent world. It’s very obvious to anyone with eyeballs that Tillman is quite smitten with Judy, but she is either completely oblivious or intentionally ignoring his infatuation. Judy is smart, pretty and well-mannered, which makes Tillman’s older sister, Tweetie, want to barf.

As the aloof owner of Ed-N-Son Light Bulbs, Ed is Ted’s dim-witted boss. Since his divorce, Ed has completely lost his sense of humor and compassion for family, friends and employees. Summer picnics? Forget it! Christmas party? Don’t even think about it! Ed treats his employees worse than a butcher treats salted meats. It’s obvious to everyone who works at his company that Ed has no idea what he is doing. Ed’s signature is on Ted’s paycheck, but Ted isn’t 100 percent confident that Ed can even spell his own name correctly.