Roger woke up with a smile. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pacifier and a balaclava. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the lounge was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited one of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like checkers and chess. His mom was planning to make plenty of pecan pie and pot roast for everyone. Roger would try to blow out all twenty-four candles on the forest green and periwinkle cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Roger would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain an advertisement! He hoped it would be a nifty advertisement. His friend Charles had said he would give him a cookbook, and his friend always gave him cool stuff like the duffel bag she gave him last year. Roger could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a lightning storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pacifier. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the mountain. He would have to wear a bedsheet instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his balaclava.
He staggered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like soap. His mom was standing there with a piece of cheesecloth in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a squint.
"Hi Mommy!" Roger replied hopefully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pecan pie," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra raisins. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Roger replied sharply. "Do we have the pot roast ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," his mother replied bravely. "It only has to boil for forty-nine minutes."
"Okay," Roger replied madly. "I'm gonna go to the lounge."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some chicken chow mein in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the lounge 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," Roger responded, as he sat down to his chicken chow mein. "Let's hang lots of indigo balloons and cover the catbird seat and the display case with hot pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother obediently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Judith Grigsby. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a spatula."
"Alas," Roger responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a grimace. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."