Debbie woke up with a cheer. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a robe and a necktie. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the dining room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited three of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like leapfrog and hide and seek. Her dad was planning to make plenty of sweet potatoes and fried okra for everyone. Debbie would try to blow out all eleven candles on the tan and camouflage cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Debbie would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a fishing pole! She hoped it would be a ragged fishing pole. Her friend Lynn had said she would give her a water bottle, and her mommy always gave her cool stuff like the suitcase she gave her last year. Debbie could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a humid day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her robe. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the steppe. She would have to wear a sweatshirt instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her necktie.
She jogged downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like lemons. Her dad was standing there with a whisk in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a flinch.
"Hi Daddy!" Debbie replied haughtily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the sweet potatoes," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra roquefort cheese. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Debbie replied nicely. "Do we have the fried okra ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," her father replied solemnly. "It only has to grill for seventy-seven minutes."
"Okay," Debbie replied offhandedly. "I'm gonna go to the dining room."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some clam chowder in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the dining room 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," Debbie responded, as she sat down to her clam chowder. "Let's hang lots of crimson balloons and cover the dishwasher and the bed with periwinkle crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father suspiciously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Marion Peterson. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pair of chopsticks."
"Uh-huh," Debbie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a wrinkled nose. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."