Pete woke up with a squint. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in an Armani suit and a bolo tie. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the master bedroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-three of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like blackjack and marbles. His dad was planning to make plenty of chicken soup and crab rangoon for everyone. Pete would try to blow out all thirty-four candles on the orange and violet cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Pete would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a teapot! He hoped it would be a chic teapot. His friend Frances had said she would give him a lightsaber, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the sack she gave him last year. Pete could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hot, sunny day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his Armani suit. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the butte. He would have to wear a ponytail instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bolo tie.
He rushed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cherry pie. His dad was standing there with a strainer in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a honk.
"Hi Daddy!" Pete replied viciously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the chicken soup," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra Italian seasoning. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Pete replied reluctantly. "Do we have the crab rangoon ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," his father replied sweetly. "It only has to whirl for thirty minutes."
"Okay," Pete replied dolefully. "I'm gonna go to the master bedroom."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some catfish stew in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the master bedroom first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Pete responded, as he sat down to his catfish stew. "Let's hang lots of camouflage balloons and cover the overstuffed chair and the carpet with green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father gently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Kaylee Whitefoot. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an oven mitt."
"Why not?," Pete 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."