Kirsten woke up with a sniff. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a bridal gown and a birthday suit. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the library was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-nine of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like dodge ball and cribbage. Her dad was planning to make plenty of hot dogs and macaroni for everyone. Kirsten would try to blow out all twenty-six candles on the white and lime-green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Kirsten would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a washrag! She hoped it would be a striking washrag. Her friend Ginger had said she would give her a pistol, and her aunt always gave her cool stuff like the diary she gave her last year. Kirsten could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a snowstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her bridal gown. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the river. She would have to wear a beard instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her birthday suit.
She sauntered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like meatloaf. Her dad was standing there with a ladle in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a smack.
"Hi Daddy!" Kirsten replied positively. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the hot dogs," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra graham crackers. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Kirsten replied lovingly. "Do we have the macaroni ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," her father replied wryly. "It only has to place on serving dish for thirty-four minutes."
"Okay," Kirsten replied tenderly. "I'm gonna go to the library."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some beans in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the library 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," Kirsten responded, as she sat down to her beans. "Let's hang lots of navy blue balloons and cover the wooden crate and the hope chest with violet crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father uneasily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Kelley Stetson. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a piece of cheesecloth."
"Brrr," Kirsten responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a backward glance. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."