Nellie woke up with a snort. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a toga and a pair of briefs. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the corridor was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eleven of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like ring around the rosie and rummy. Her dad was planning to make plenty of brownies and Swiss cheese for everyone. Nellie would try to blow out all six candles on the polka dotted and aqua cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Nellie would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a stone! She hoped it would be a nifty stone. Her friend Evette had said she would give her a box, and her aunt always gave her cool stuff like the microscope she gave her last year. Nellie could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a typhoon was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her toga. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the hill. She would have to wear a moustache instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of briefs.
She cantered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a sardine cannery. Her dad was standing there with a garlic press in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a power fist.
"Hi Daddy!" Nellie replied coolly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the brownies," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra Hershey Bar. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Nellie replied glumly. "Do we have the Swiss cheese ready?"
"I'm going to wait until two o'clock to start that," her father replied vacantly. "It only has to blanch for six minutes."
"Okay," Nellie replied hopefully. "I'm gonna go to the corridor."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some ramen noodles in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the corridor 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," Nellie responded, as she sat down to her ramen noodles. "Let's hang lots of crimson balloons and cover the TV and the hamper with black crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father viciously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Mandy Allen. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pair of tongs."
"I've had it," Nellie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a grimace. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."