Beverly woke up with a pucker. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a midi skirt and a pair of knickerbockers. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the corridor was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twelve of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like Clue and Parcheesi. Her dad was planning to make plenty of candy and cinnamon toast for everyone. Beverly would try to blow out all twelve candles on the forest green and chocolate brown cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Beverly would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a houseplant! She hoped it would be a ragged houseplant. Her friend Leila had said she would give her a fish bowl, and her grandpa always gave her cool stuff like the watering can she gave her last year. Beverly could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a blanket of mist was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her midi skirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the seashore. She would have to wear a bathrobe instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of knickerbockers.
She sneaked downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like pineapple. Her dad was standing there with a piece of cheesecloth in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a belch.
"Hi Daddy!" Beverly replied daintily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the candy," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra vanilla. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Beverly replied urgently. "Do we have the cinnamon toast ready?"
"I'm going to wait until three o'clock to start that," her father replied anxiously. "It only has to poach lightly for six minutes."
"Okay," Beverly replied irritably. "I'm gonna go to the corridor."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some beef bouillon in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the corridor first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Beverly responded, as she sat down to her beef bouillon. "Let's hang lots of magenta balloons and cover the bar stool and the safe with camouflage crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father vigorously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Beatrice Bianchi. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a wooden spoon."
"You're kidding," Beverly responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a curtsey. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."