Vilmer woke up with a sigh. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a dress and a bonnet. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the conservatory was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited nineteen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like baseball and hide and seek. His mom was planning to make plenty of lasagna and tortillas for everyone. Vilmer would try to blow out all nine candles on the crimson and magenta cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Vilmer would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Happy Meal! He hoped it would be a wooden Happy Meal. His friend Aristotle had said he would give him a crystal ball, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the hot potato she gave him last year. Vilmer 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 dress. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the island. He would have to wear a belly button jewel instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bonnet.
He bounced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like an old goat. His mom was standing there with a basting brush in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a backward glance.
"Hi Mommy!" Vilmer replied admiringly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the lasagna," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra sweet potatoes. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Vilmer replied coolly. "Do we have the tortillas ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied courteously. "It only has to simmer for fourteen minutes."
"Okay," Vilmer replied nimbly. "I'm gonna go to the conservatory."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some tuna casserole in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the conservatory 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," Vilmer responded, as he sat down to his tuna casserole. "Let's hang lots of aqua balloons and cover the filing cabinet and the billiard table with camouflage crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother ruefully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Emily Bing. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an ice pick."
"Can you dig it?," Vilmer 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."