Geraldine woke up with a roar. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a gun belt and a skirt. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the corridor was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited thirty of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like red rover and bridge. Her dad was planning to make plenty of beans and chicken gumbo for everyone. Geraldine would try to blow out all ten candles on the golden and sparkly cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Geraldine would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a deck of cards! She hoped it would be a chic deck of cards. Her friend Joyce had said she would give her a horseshoe, and her sister always gave her cool stuff like the ping-pong paddle she gave her last year. Geraldine could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hot day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her gun belt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the pond. She would have to wear a diamond necklace instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her skirt.
She bounced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like pine trees. Her dad was standing there with a corkscrew in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a grin.
"Hi Daddy!" Geraldine replied kindly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the beans," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra basil. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Geraldine replied brashly. "Do we have the chicken gumbo ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," her father replied carefully. "It only has to age for seventy-seven minutes."
"Okay," Geraldine replied temperamentally. "I'm gonna go to the corridor."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some pecan pie 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," Geraldine responded, as she sat down to her pecan pie. "Let's hang lots of sea green balloons and cover the stairway and the filing cabinet with periwinkle crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father properly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Leonie Tooker. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a grater."
"Crackers," Geraldine responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a sniffle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."