Rock woke up with a sniff. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a ponytail and a bow tie. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the doghouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eighteen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like hide and seek and Cootie. His dad was planning to make plenty of hamburgers and cornbread for everyone. Rock would try to blow out all thirty-one candles on the rose and khaki cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Rock would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a sea shell! He hoped it would be a dirty sea shell. His friend Cecelia had said she would give him a piece of paper, and his girlfriend always gave him cool stuff like the crystal ball she gave him last year. Rock could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sandstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his ponytail. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the crime scene. He would have to wear a kimono instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bow tie.
He dashed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like lilacs. His dad was standing there with an electric paint mixer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a bound.
"Hi Daddy!" Rock replied nervously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the hamburgers," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra kale. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Rock replied narrowly. "Do we have the cornbread ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," his father replied angrily. "It only has to blanch for seventy-eight minutes."
"Okay," Rock replied urgently. "I'm gonna go to the doghouse."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some egg rolls in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the doghouse first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Rock responded, as he sat down to his egg rolls. "Let's hang lots of sea green balloons and cover the china cabinet and the counter with terra cotta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father neatly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Bailey Nighthawk. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a ladle."
"My my," Rock responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a snort. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."