Fabien woke up with a cackle. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a lab coat and a turtleneck. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the outhouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited four of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like dominos and musical chairs. His dad was planning to make plenty of chicken pot pie and crumb cake for everyone. Fabien would try to blow out all eight candles on the olive drab and rose cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Fabien would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain an avocado! He hoped it would be a dirty avocado. His friend Shirley had said she would give him a clothespin, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the magnifying glass she gave him last year. Fabien could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hot, sunny day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his lab coat. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the river. He would have to wear a diaper instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his turtleneck.
He traipsed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like rotten potatoes. His dad was standing there with a melon baller in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a wince.
"Hi Daddy!" Fabien replied blissfully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the chicken pot pie," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra chopped pecans. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Fabien replied softly. "Do we have the crumb cake ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," his father replied viciously. "It only has to sear outside for twenty minutes."
"Okay," Fabien replied happily. "I'm gonna go to the outhouse."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some hash in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the outhouse 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," Fabien responded, as he sat down to his hash. "Let's hang lots of purple balloons and cover the windowsill and the ping-pong table with salmon crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father neatly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Harriet Black. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a meat thermometer."
"Great," Fabien responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a grin. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."