Freddie woke up with a crow. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a sport coat and a visor. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the workshop was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eight of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like treasure hunt and charades. His mom was planning to make plenty of fried chicken and roast turkey for everyone. Freddie would try to blow out all thirty candles on the golden and periwinkle cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Freddie would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a coupon! He hoped it would be a fuzzy coupon. His friend Lorenzo had said he would give him a hammer, and his mommy always gave him cool stuff like the piece of candy she gave him last year. Freddie could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a rainstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his sport coat. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the gully. He would have to wear a headscarf instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his visor.
He rushed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like lilies. His mom was standing there with a foot in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a crow.
"Hi Mommy!" Freddie replied carelessly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the fried chicken," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra cayenne pepper. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Freddie replied nimbly. "Do we have the roast turkey ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied calmly. "It only has to sear for four minutes."
"Okay," Freddie replied rapidly. "I'm gonna go to the workshop."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cornbread in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the workshop 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," Freddie responded, as he sat down to his cornbread. "Let's hang lots of salmon balloons and cover the settee and the hatstand with crimson crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother perkily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Liz Gupta. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a paring knife."
"Ah," Freddie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a finger gun. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."