Deb 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 pair of safety glasses and a pair of earmuffs. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the doghouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-six of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like leapfrog and billiards. Her dad was planning to make plenty of mulligan stew and candy for everyone. Deb would try to blow out all fifteen candles on the purple and jade cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Deb would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a coat check ticket! She hoped it would be a fluffy coat check ticket. Her friend Kathryn had said she would give her a button, and her cousin always gave her cool stuff like the teddy bear she gave her last year. Deb could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sleet storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of safety glasses. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the butte. She would have to wear a wig instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of earmuffs.
She flounced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like boiled cabbage. Her dad was standing there with a turkey baster in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a shiver.
"Hi Daddy!" Deb replied grimly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the mulligan stew," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra garlic powder. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Deb replied gracefully. "Do we have the candy ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," her father replied sagely. "It only has to sear outside for eighty-nine minutes."
"Okay," Deb replied ignobly. "I'm gonna go to the doghouse."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some banana split in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the doghouse 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," Deb responded, as she sat down to her banana split. "Let's hang lots of silver balloons and cover the wine rack and the umbrella stand with fuchsia crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father majestically. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Ashley Young. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a spatula."
"Spiffy," Deb responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a grin. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."