Bix woke up with a gasp. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of flip-flops and a uniform. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the hall was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like bridge and rummy. His mom was planning to make plenty of egg salad sandwich and Cheerios for everyone. Bix would try to blow out all twenty-eight candles on the jet black and khaki cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Bix would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Band-aid! He hoped it would be a rough Band-aid. His friend Armand had said he would give him a clipboard, and his grandpa always gave him cool stuff like the teacup she gave him last year. Bix could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a dust storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of flip-flops. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the badlands area. He would have to wear a sombrero instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his uniform.
He crept downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like mint. His mom was standing there with a whisk in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a cackle.
"Hi Mommy!" Bix replied jokingly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the egg salad sandwich," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra capers. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Bix replied victoriously. "Do we have the Cheerios ready?"
"I'm going to wait until two o'clock to start that," his mother replied automatically. "It only has to grill for forty-three minutes."
"Okay," Bix replied irritably. "I'm gonna go to the hall."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cotton candy in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the hall first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Bix responded, as he sat down to his cotton candy. "Let's hang lots of striped balloons and cover the bath mat and the file cabinet with magenta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother strangely. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Hannah Nixon. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a garlic press."
"Spiffy," Bix responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a glare. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."