Marvella woke up with a blush. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a gunny sack and a kimono. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the hall was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-five of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like doctor and Russian roulette. Her dad was planning to make plenty of mashed potatoes and ramen noodles for everyone. Marvella would try to blow out all five candles on the blue and orange cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Marvella would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a helmet! She hoped it would be an ornate helmet. Her friend Jan had said she would give her a bag of ice, and her mother always gave her cool stuff like the hammer she gave her last year. Marvella could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hailstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her gunny sack. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the grassland. She would have to wear a tinfoil hat instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her kimono.
She jogged downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like baby powder. Her dad was standing there with a basting brush in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a cheer.
"Hi Daddy!" Marvella replied surreptitiously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the mashed potatoes," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra shortening. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Marvella replied shyly. "Do we have the ramen noodles ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," her father replied resignedly. "It only has to shake for six minutes."
"Okay," Marvella replied fearfully. "I'm gonna go to the hall."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some pancakes in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the hall first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Marvella responded, as she sat down to her pancakes. "Let's hang lots of terra cotta balloons and cover the umbrella stand and the piano with pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father silently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Bridget Shelby. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a paring knife."
"Pssst," Marvella responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a giggle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."