Alison woke up with a stiff upper lip. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a black armband and a pocket watch. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the kitchen was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-four of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like Simon Says and billiards. Her mom was planning to make plenty of tuna casserole and oyster on the half-shell for everyone. Alison would try to blow out all ten candles on the burgundy and sea green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Alison would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a brochure! She hoped it would be a curved brochure. Her friend Matthew had said he would give her a lollipop, and her girlfriend always gave her cool stuff like the cage she gave her last year. Alison could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a period of warm weather was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her black armband. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the savanna. She would have to wear a pair of Bermuda shorts instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pocket watch.
She dashed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like baby lotion. Her mom was standing there with a pastry blender in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a chuckle.
"Hi Mommy!" Alison replied truculently. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the tuna casserole," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra sour cream. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Alison replied busily. "Do we have the oyster on the half-shell ready?"
"I'm going to wait until ten o'clock to start that," her mother replied sternly. "It only has to poach lightly for eight minutes."
"Okay," Alison replied glumly. "I'm gonna go to the kitchen."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some corn on the cob in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the kitchen first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Alison responded, as she sat down to her corn on the cob. "Let's hang lots of periwinkle balloons and cover the hamper and the end table with violet crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother haughtily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Linda Barrymore. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a corkscrew."
"Alrighty-roo," Alison responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a death glare. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."