Vinny woke up with a blush. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a parka and a pair of cowboy boots. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the linen closet was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited six of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like solitaire and Cootie. His mom was planning to make plenty of mulligan stew and blueberry pie for everyone. Vinny would try to blow out all nine candles on the brown and violet cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Vinny would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Kindle! He hoped it would be a cotton Kindle. His friend Luther had said he would give him a pair of pliers, and his dad always gave him cool stuff like the carrot she gave him last year. Vinny could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that an ice storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his parka. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the crime scene. He would have to wear a mortarboard instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of cowboy boots.
He pranced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like Estée Lauder. His mom was standing there with a grater in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a wink.
"Hi Mommy!" Vinny replied uselessly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the mulligan stew," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra ground pork. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Vinny replied shakily. "Do we have the blueberry pie ready?"
"I'm going to wait until three o'clock to start that," his mother replied lovingly. "It only has to smoke for twenty-five minutes."
"Okay," Vinny replied delicately. "I'm gonna go to the linen closet."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some fish and chips in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the linen closet 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," Vinny responded, as he sat down to his fish and chips. "Let's hang lots of lime-green balloons and cover the bar stool and the overstuffed chair with terra cotta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother charmingly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Erica Bogart. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a melon baller."
"Uh," Vinny responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a wink. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."