Alice woke up with a guffaw. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a raincoat and a badge. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the patio was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-six of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like Parcheesi and follow the leader. Her mom was planning to make plenty of hamburgers and fondue for everyone. Alice would try to blow out all twenty-eight candles on the azure and purple cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Alice would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a coin! She hoped it would be a miniature coin. Her friend Miguel had said he would give her a can of soup, and her grandmother always gave her cool stuff like the duffel bag she gave her last year. Alice could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a pall of doom was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her raincoat. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the tundra. She would have to wear a set of scrubs instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her badge.
She sped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like wood. Her mom was standing there with a garlic press in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a blush.
"Hi Mommy!" Alice replied grimly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the hamburgers," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra corn syrup. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Alice replied crazily. "Do we have the fondue ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," her mother replied fervently. "It only has to simmer for ninety minutes."
"Okay," Alice replied nonchalantly. "I'm gonna go to the patio."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some corn on the cob in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the patio first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Alice responded, as she sat down to her corn on the cob. "Let's hang lots of teal balloons and cover the card table and the cupboard with violet crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother greedily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Claudette Park. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a fork."
"Hell's bells," Alice responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a raspberry. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."