Carmen woke up with a bound. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a false beard and a sundress. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the doghouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eighteen of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like tennis and hearts. Her dad was planning to make plenty of chicken pot pie and tacos for everyone. Carmen would try to blow out all five candles on the white and yellow cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Carmen would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a nail! She hoped it would be a miniature nail. Her friend Krystal had said she would give her an African violet, and her grandmother always gave her cool stuff like the stick of gum she gave her last year. Carmen could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drizzle was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her false beard. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the treetop. She would have to wear a straitjacket instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her sundress.
She swung downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like creosote. Her dad was standing there with a paring knife in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a cheer.
"Hi Daddy!" Carmen replied roughly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the chicken pot pie," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra milk. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Carmen replied tearfully. "Do we have the tacos ready?"
"I'm going to wait until one o'clock to start that," her father replied smoothly. "It only has to sear outside for seventy-one minutes."
"Okay," Carmen replied gruffly. "I'm gonna go to the doghouse."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some chopped liver in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the doghouse 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," Carmen responded, as she sat down to her chopped liver. "Let's hang lots of violet balloons and cover the wardrobe and the pedestal with hot pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father perkily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Lindy Lamb. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an egg cutter."
"Ack," Carmen responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a furrowed brow. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."