Cedric woke up with a bow. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of knickerbockers and a badge. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the boudoir was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited thirteen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like croquet and treasure hunt. His mom was planning to make plenty of hot dogs and wienerschnitzel for everyone. Cedric would try to blow out all nineteen candles on the khaki and aquamarine cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Cedric would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a teapot! He hoped it would be an authentic teapot. His friend Vance had said he would give him a pair of scissors, and his cousin always gave him cool stuff like the rag she gave him last year. Cedric could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that an earthquake was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of knickerbockers. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the lagoon. He would have to wear a stovepipe hat instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his badge.
He tore downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a spring rain. His mom was standing there with a paring knife in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a frown.
"Hi Mommy!" Cedric replied unexpectedly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the hot dogs," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra mozzarella cheese. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Cedric replied strangely. "Do we have the wienerschnitzel ready?"
"I'm going to wait until six o'clock to start that," his mother replied demurely. "It only has to braise for eighteen minutes."
"Okay," Cedric replied greedily. "I'm gonna go to the boudoir."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some sweet potatoes in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the boudoir 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," Cedric responded, as he sat down to his sweet potatoes. "Let's hang lots of salmon balloons and cover the safe and the wardrobe with black crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother impatiently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Mindy Wright. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a meat tenderizer."
"Great balls of fire," Cedric responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a backward glance. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."