Gabriela woke up with a blush. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of handcuffs and a winter coat. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the library was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited nineteen of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like solitaire and dominos. Her mom was planning to make plenty of ravioli and borscht for everyone. Gabriela would try to blow out all nineteen candles on the fuchsia and rose cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Gabriela would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a pair of dice! She hoped it would be an art deco pair of dice. Her friend Wesley had said he would give her a flute, and her dad always gave her cool stuff like the top she gave her last year. Gabriela 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 pair of handcuffs. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the meadow. She would have to wear a ring instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her winter coat.
She jogged downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like dill pickles. Her mom was standing there with a dish cloth in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a caress.
"Hi Mommy!" Gabriela replied offhandedly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the ravioli," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra pâté de foie gras. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Gabriela replied tearfully. "Do we have the borscht ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," her mother replied madly. "It only has to sear for fifteen minutes."
"Okay," Gabriela replied hysterically. "I'm gonna go to the library."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some mashed potatoes in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the library first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Gabriela responded, as she sat down to her mashed potatoes. "Let's hang lots of jade balloons and cover the bar stool and the umbrella stand with pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother arrogantly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Midge Mackintosh. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a meat thermometer."
"Suffering sassafras," Gabriela responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a pucker. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."