Carrie woke up with a wink. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in an Eton jacket and a blazer. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the bedroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited thirteen of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like Monopoly and Rummy. Her mom was planning to make plenty of brownies and pretzels for everyone. Carrie would try to blow out all twenty-nine candles on the green and lime-green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Carrie would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bow tie! She hoped it would be a funny bow tie. Her friend Alf had said he would give her a blank check, and her grandma always gave her cool stuff like the magnet she gave her last year. Carrie could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hailstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her Eton jacket. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the garden. She would have to wear an 'I'm with Stupid' shirt instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her blazer.
She paraded downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like smoked fish. Her mom was standing there with a cheesecloth in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a snort.
"Hi Mommy!" Carrie replied zestily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the brownies," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra pretzels. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Carrie replied violently. "Do we have the pretzels ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," her mother replied tenderly. "It only has to whirl for twenty-two minutes."
"Okay," Carrie replied brightly. "I'm gonna go to the bedroom."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some lasagna 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," Carrie responded, as she sat down to her lasagna. "Let's hang lots of camouflage balloons and cover the end table and the dining table with brilliant orange crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother properly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Loreen Clinton. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a grater."
"Nope," Carrie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a blush. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."