Anastasia woke up with a laugh. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a gas mask and a necklace. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the bedroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited three of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like marbles and badminton. Her dad was planning to make plenty of mushroom quiche and pecan pie for everyone. Anastasia would try to blow out all four candles on the burgundy and striped cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Anastasia would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Frisbee! She hoped it would be an authentic Frisbee. Her friend Dianna had said she would give her an ashtray, and her cousin always gave her cool stuff like the bottle she gave her last year. Anastasia 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 gas mask. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the creek. She would have to wear a pair of ear muffs instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her necklace.
She whirled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a new car. Her dad was standing there with a wooden spoon in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a wince.
"Hi Daddy!" Anastasia replied narrowly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the mushroom quiche," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra pecan pieces. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Anastasia replied pitifully. "Do we have the pecan pie ready?"
"I'm going to wait until two o'clock to start that," her father replied noisily. "It only has to refrigerate overnight for sixty-five minutes."
"Okay," Anastasia replied openly. "I'm gonna go to the bedroom."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some spaghetti in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the bedroom 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," Anastasia responded, as she sat down to her spaghetti. "Let's hang lots of pea green balloons and cover the floor and the ottoman with terra cotta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father violently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Ruth Pickett. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pair of tongs."
"Malarkey," Anastasia responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a caress. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."