Horatio woke up with a coo. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of bloomers and a coat. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the boudoir was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-two of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like hide and seek and Candy Land. His dad was planning to make plenty of pizza and hot dogs for everyone. Horatio would try to blow out all twenty-five candles on the hot pink and khaki cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Horatio would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a baseball! He hoped it would be an art deco baseball. His friend Roxie had said she would give him a kite, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the saw she gave him last year. Horatio could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a flood was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of bloomers. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the pasture. He would have to wear a pair of booties instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his coat.
He danced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like pizza. His dad was standing there with an ice pick in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a simper.
"Hi Daddy!" Horatio replied thankfully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pizza," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra sage. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Horatio replied openly. "Do we have the hot dogs ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," his father replied hysterically. "It only has to microwave for thirty minutes."
"Okay," Horatio replied crazily. "I'm gonna go to the boudoir."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some lamb curry in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the boudoir 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," Horatio responded, as he sat down to his lamb curry. "Let's hang lots of beige balloons and cover the bench and the buffet with hot pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father ferociously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Julieann Manley. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a ladle."
"Alack," Horatio responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a hoot. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."