Christmas has always been a big deal in Salem, but this one may be dismal for our favorite characters.

Theresa's about to be caught, Nicole has to return that baby, and Paulina may have a serious illness.

Even so, Days of Our Lives spoilers for the week of 12-18-23 promise the annual Horton Christmas -- but with a shortage of Hortons in Salem, will it be a memorable one?

Theresa's Christmas surprise will turn to disappointment and fear, and we're here for that!

Theresa always lights up when Andrew comes to town. Despite her many flaws, she loves her big brother, and the two rarely share scenes, so his arrival is always special.

But Andrew's not just visiting for the holidays. He has news: he knows that Theresa was involved in kidnapping baby Victoria.

Having to explain to your spy agent brother that you only kidnapped a baby because your former partner-in-forgery was blackmailing you is the kind of problem that only happens in Salem. But if anyone can see through the barrage of panicked lies Theresa's about to tell, it's Andrew.

Though they don't spend much time together, he knows her better than anyone. Will he get the full story?

Whatever happens next, let's hope it is the beginning of the end of this annoying storyline. Konstantin needs to be shipped out of Salem ASAP, and Theresa's committed a bunch of crimes that make Tate's destruction of school property look like nothing.

But what's happening with the more interesting secret across town? Now that EJ has discovered Nicole with the baby, he'll have some choices.

EJ won't turn his wife in, but he'll probably presume this is more evidence of a mental health issue and try to protect her while getting that baby back to its "rightful" parents.

Sloan's making yet another attempt to confess, but spoilers say she'll get interrupted, so don't expect the truth to come out any time soon. It would be great if EJ took out the DNA test in his safe as part of a bid to convince Nicole she's delusional, only to discover he's not the baby's father!

Please scroll down if you'd like the scoop on everything happening as Days of Our Lives moves toward its annual Christmas celebration.

Will Nicole get caught?

EJ won't turn his wife in, but Rafe or Eric might put two and two together if EJ and Nicole somehow get the baby back to its legal guardians.

Eric was already suspicious.

So, will he turn his full wrath on Nicole and EJ if he figures out the truth?

What's wrong with Paulina?

Spoilers say that Paulina seems exhausted and not herself but tries to hide her condition from Chanel and, later, from Abe.

She seemed like she was on the cusp of a heart attack the last time she was on-screen. The stress of being mayor, plus trying to deal with Abe's memory loss, may be getting to her.

Let's hope this doesn't lead to a depressing storyline! That's not the kind of memorable Christmas story viewers want or need.

Stephanie storms out after coming face-to-face with all of her men.

Very mature, as usual.

Stephanie now has three exes in Salem, not counting whatever happened with Harris.

It's a small town; she has to learn to deal with running into people she used to be involved with and storming off in a huff, isn't it.

Stefan gets disturbing news about Gabi.

According to spoilers, Stefan learns Gabi has been injured in prison, and he's sure Clyde is to blame.

Maybe this wouldn't have happened if he'd spent less time telling Ava about how important it is to get rid of Clyde and more time doing something to achieve that goal.

Will Stefan go full Dimera on Clyde's ass now? Let's hope so. The time for talk was over a long time ago!

Maggie admits to Sarah that she's having trouble getting into the Christmas spirit.

Now, this is the kind of Christmas story I'm invested in! Or it would be if Konstantin wasn't again listening in on conversations that are none of his business so that he can swoop in and pretend to be Maggie's savior!

Christmas is hard for many people, and the best Horton Christmases have involved cheering up those suffering during the holiday.

Maggie's a new widow -- and yes, it's her second go-around, but that doesn't make her grief any less. It would be surprising, and not in a good way, if she wasn't having a hard time with Christmas.

If only we didn't have this silly Konstantin story hanging over our heads, this could easily be riveting television.

Theresa may not be so happy to see Andrew when she finds out what he knows.

As mentioned above, Andrew knows that Theresa helped with the baby-napping. I wonder if he thinks she also had something to do with Eric's baby disappearing from the Square!

I don't think he'll arrest his sister, though. He'll probably give her a chance to provide a "very good explanation" for her presence on that security video.

I'd rather Shane confront his errant daughter himself, but I always love it when Andrew turns up, so I'll take it.

Several long-time residents of Salem take a pre-Christmas stroll down memory lane.

Steve, Kayla, John, and Marlena will get together to remember old times.

While I wish our vets had more stories of their own, I'm a sucker for this type of nostalgia, and many long-time viewers may be as well.

Let's hope for plenty of flashbacks to compensate for the dismal attendance at this year's Horton Christmas.

Doug and Julie host the annual Horton Christmas tree-trimming party.

The annual Christmas party may not be as robust as usual. It's especially disappointing that no one's invited classic couple Jack and Jennifer, especially since Jennifer hosted the tree-trimming party for years.

We're short on Hortons altogether, and since Maggie is feeling low, it would have been nice if Melissa and Nathan had returned for the holiday.

Still, the spoiler video promises flashbacks of Alice and Tom and the annual hanging of the iconic Christmas ornaments (each family member gets one with their name on it.)

So all is not lost, and we might get some fuzzy feelings out of this, especially if Konstantin is unmasked or Jada stops by and recognizes Everett.

Your turn, Days of Our Lives fanatics. Hit the big, blue SHOW COMMENTS button and tell us what you think about these spoilers!

Check out the latest Days of Our Lives reviews and Days of Our Lives Round Table discussions if you'd like to chat about already-aired episodes.

Days of Our Lives streams exclusively on Peacock. New episodes drop on weekday mornings at 6/5c.

Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on X.