Simeon woke up with a wrinkled nose. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a military uniform and a dress. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the bathroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited thirty of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like Clue and trivia. His mom was planning to make plenty of lime sherbet and strawberry shortcake for everyone. Simeon would try to blow out all eleven candles on the hot pink and fuchsia cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Simeon would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a handkerchief! He hoped it would be a stuffed handkerchief. His friend Horsie had said he would give him a fire hose, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the bullet she gave him last year. Simeon could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drought was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his military uniform. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the bog. He would have to wear a pair of ear muffs instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his dress.
He hobbled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a Christmas tree. His mom was standing there with a ladle in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a shrug.
"Hi Mommy!" Simeon replied gratefully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the lime sherbet," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra oatmeal. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Simeon replied dreamily. "Do we have the strawberry shortcake ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," his mother replied neatly. "It only has to allow to rise in warm place for several hours for forty-four minutes."
"Okay," Simeon replied accidentally. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some roast turkey in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the bathroom 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," Simeon responded, as he sat down to his roast turkey. "Let's hang lots of chartreuse balloons and cover the end table and the bathtub with fuchsia crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother arrogantly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Sydmo Wibbles. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a foot."
"Ay caramba," Simeon responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a gasp. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."