Gavin woke up with a bound. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a big grin and a bib. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the auditorium was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-eight of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like ring around the rosie and Snakes and Ladders. His mom was planning to make plenty of pot roast and Cheerios for everyone. Gavin would try to blow out all twenty-six candles on the terra cotta and pink cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Gavin would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bat! He hoped it would be a hand-painted bat. His friend Pablo had said he would give him a pair of shoes, and his mommy always gave him cool stuff like the magnifying glass she gave him last year. Gavin could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drought was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his big grin. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the buffalo wallow. He would have to wear a belt instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bib.
He tore downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like caramel corn. His mom was standing there with a blender in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a hiccup.
"Hi Mommy!" Gavin replied strangely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pot roast," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra tomato sauce. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Gavin replied sympathetically. "Do we have the Cheerios ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," his mother replied again. "It only has to spoon into container for twenty minutes."
"Okay," Gavin replied crazily. "I'm gonna go to the auditorium."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some blueberry pie in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the auditorium first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Gavin responded, as he sat down to his blueberry pie. "Let's hang lots of violet balloons and cover the armoire and the bookcase with black crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother cunningly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Marcie Russell. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an electric mixer."
"Tarnation," Gavin responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a wince. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."