Octavius woke up with a bound. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a feather boa and a bodysuit. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the kitchen was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-eight of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like treasure hunt and crazy eights. His dad was planning to make plenty of mulligan stew and lobster for everyone. Octavius would try to blow out all thirty-one candles on the carrot-orange and forest green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Octavius would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a teacup! He hoped it would be an automatic teacup. His friend Josephine had said she would give him a pinwheel, and his grandfather always gave him cool stuff like the hacksaw she gave him last year. Octavius could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a downpour was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his feather boa. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the seashore. He would have to wear a swimsuit instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bodysuit.
He stormed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like bubble gum. His dad was standing there with a strainer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a roar.
"Hi Daddy!" Octavius replied victoriously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the mulligan stew," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra water chestnuts. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Octavius replied gracefully. "Do we have the lobster ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his father replied haughtily. "It only has to age for fifty minutes."
"Okay," Octavius replied quietly. "I'm gonna go to the kitchen."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cherries jubilee in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the kitchen first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Octavius responded, as he sat down to his cherries jubilee. "Let's hang lots of striped balloons and cover the pedestal and the china cabinet with emerald green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father fervently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Hallie Silva. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a foot."
"Quick," Octavius responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a clenched fist. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."