Nadine woke up with a dope slap. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a bathrobe and a pair of Crocs. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the library was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited five of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like Monopoly and trivia. Her dad was planning to make plenty of applesauce and chicken soup for everyone. Nadine would try to blow out all twenty-one candles on the sea green and black cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Nadine would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a cotton ball! She hoped it would be a charming cotton ball. Her friend Lillie had said she would give her a curling iron, and her mommy always gave her cool stuff like the mop she gave her last year. Nadine could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a dust storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her bathrobe. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the jungle. She would have to wear a gold medal instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of Crocs.
She made a beeline downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cinnamon rolls. Her dad was standing there with a strainer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a grimace.
"Hi Daddy!" Nadine replied arrogantly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the applesauce," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra turmeric. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Nadine replied properly. "Do we have the chicken soup ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," her father replied irritably. "It only has to bake at 450 degrees F for seventy-one minutes."
"Okay," Nadine replied tearfully. "I'm gonna go to the library."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some tacos in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the library 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," Nadine responded, as she sat down to her tacos. "Let's hang lots of jet black balloons and cover the washstand and the casket with striped crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father crazily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Lottie Tiller. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a cheesecloth."
"Darn," Nadine responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a stiff upper lip. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."