Juanita woke up with a curtsey. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a toupee and a pair of trousers. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the bedroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seven of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like crazy eights and rummy. Her mom was planning to make plenty of fried eggs and French fries for everyone. Juanita would try to blow out all three candles on the azure and silver cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Juanita would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bird bath! She hoped it would be a stolen bird bath. Her friend Randy had said he would give her a chair, and her grandma always gave her cool stuff like the magazine she gave her last year. Juanita could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a rainstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her toupee. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the grassland. She would have to wear a fedora instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of trousers.
She swung downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like mushrooms. Her mom was standing there with a candy thermometer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a grunt.
"Hi Mommy!" Juanita replied gently. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the fried eggs," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra sardines. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Juanita replied needlessly. "Do we have the French fries ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," her mother replied vigorously. "It only has to bake at 450 degrees F for twenty-five minutes."
"Okay," Juanita replied sheepishly. "I'm gonna go to the bedroom."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some fried eggs in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the bedroom 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," Juanita responded, as she sat down to her fried eggs. "Let's hang lots of purple balloons and cover the crib and the washstand with olive green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother tearfully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Alexis Clapper. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a napkin."
"Ssss," Juanita responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a snort. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."