Meredith woke up with a blush. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of handcuffs and a pair of bloomers. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the dungeon was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-three of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like seven-up and Cootie. Her mom was planning to make plenty of refried beans and shrimp for everyone. Meredith would try to blow out all twenty-nine candles on the teal and forest green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Meredith would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a soccer ball! She hoped it would be a smumpy soccer ball. Her friend Clyde had said he would give her a duffel bag, and her mentor always gave her cool stuff like the magnifying glass she gave her last year. Meredith could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hurricane was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of handcuffs. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the path. She would have to wear a pair of cowboy boots instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of bloomers.
She stalked downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cigarettes. Her mom was standing there with an electric mixer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a wink.
"Hi Mommy!" Meredith replied calmly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the refried beans," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra thyme. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Meredith replied victoriously. "Do we have the shrimp ready?"
"I'm going to wait until six o'clock to start that," her mother replied delicately. "It only has to refrigerate overnight for fifty-four minutes."
"Okay," Meredith replied surreptitiously. "I'm gonna go to the dungeon."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some sushi in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the dungeon 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," Meredith responded, as she sat down to her sushi. "Let's hang lots of camouflage balloons and cover the bench and the ping-pong table with periwinkle crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother temperamentally. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Luann Page. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a napkin."
"Shiver me timbers," Meredith responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a woof. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."