Marvella woke up with a simper. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in an 'I'm with Stupid' shirt and a feather boa. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the cage was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-six of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like Candy Land and Clue. Her mom was planning to make plenty of fried okra and burritos for everyone. Marvella would try to blow out all twenty-seven candles on the mauve and mauve cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Marvella would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain an air compressor! She hoped it would be an immense air compressor. Her friend Ivan had said he would give her a piece of candy, and her grandpa always gave her cool stuff like the key ring she gave her last year. Marvella 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 'I'm with Stupid' shirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the circus tent. She would have to wear a pair of false eyelashes instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her feather boa.
She capered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like chloroform. Her mom was standing there with a pair of tongs in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a honk.
"Hi Mommy!" Marvella replied nicely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the fried okra," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra egg yolks. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Marvella replied nervously. "Do we have the burritos ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," her mother replied quickly. "It only has to microwave for eighty-six minutes."
"Okay," Marvella replied nonchalantly. "I'm gonna go to the cage."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some pumpkin pie in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the cage 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," Marvella responded, as she sat down to her pumpkin pie. "Let's hang lots of pink balloons and cover the ottoman and the toilet with aqua crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother demurely. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Cherise Schaffer. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a chopstick."
"By all the saints," Marvella responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a twitch. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."