Doris woke up with a dope slap. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of UGGs and a pair of roller skates. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the porch was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twelve of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like hopscotch and jacks. Her mom was planning to make plenty of pecan pie and roast Cornish game hen for everyone. Doris would try to blow out all twenty candles on the brilliant orange and carrot-orange cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Doris would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a pair of pliers! She hoped it would be a thick pair of pliers. Her friend Walt had said he would give her a cream puff, and her grandmother always gave her cool stuff like the elephant tusk she gave her last year. Doris could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a bit of precipitation was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of UGGs. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the wasteland. She would have to wear a beehive instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of roller skates.
She jumped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cherry blossoms. Her mom was standing there with a spatula in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a stiff upper lip.
"Hi Mommy!" Doris replied primly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pecan pie," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra soy sauce. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Doris replied gracefully. "Do we have the roast Cornish game hen ready?"
"I'm going to wait until two o'clock to start that," her mother replied crankily. "It only has to deep fry for thirty minutes."
"Okay," Doris replied doubtfully. "I'm gonna go to the porch."
"First, young lady, 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 porch 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," Doris responded, as she sat down to her roast turkey. "Let's hang lots of burgundy balloons and cover the beanbag chair and the dresser with magenta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother grimly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Francie Ordway. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a candy thermometer."
"Peachy-keen," Doris responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a glare. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."