Travis woke up with a bow. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in an 'I'm with Stupid' shirt and a pair of sweatpants. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the study was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited four of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like red light green light and pool. His mom was planning to make plenty of refried beans and fondue for everyone. Travis would try to blow out all twenty-three candles on the violet and lime-green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Travis would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a hockey puck! He hoped it would be a mysterious hockey puck. His friend Drew had said he would give him a painting, and his sister-in-law always gave him cool stuff like the coloring book she gave him last year. Travis could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a typhoon was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his 'I'm with Stupid' shirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the garden. He would have to wear a pair of combat boots instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of sweatpants.
He hopped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like wet paint. His mom was standing there with a corkscrew in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a squint.
"Hi Mommy!" Travis replied boisterously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the refried beans," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra canned milk. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Travis replied uselessly. "Do we have the fondue ready?"
"I'm going to wait until five o'clock to start that," his mother replied courageously. "It only has to sear outside for sixty minutes."
"Okay," Travis replied openly. "I'm gonna go to the study."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some popcorn in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the study first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Travis responded, as he sat down to his popcorn. "Let's hang lots of lime-green balloons and cover the counter and the billiard table with ivory crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother thankfully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Cheryl Duke. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a slotted spoon."
"Remarkable," Travis responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a pound of the chest. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."