Noah woke up with a cringe. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a helmet and a bridal gown. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the hall was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-three of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like tennis and checkers. His mom was planning to make plenty of mashed potatoes and chocolate-covered ants for everyone. Noah would try to blow out all nineteen candles on the burgundy and lime-green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Noah would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a chess set! He hoped it would be a damaged chess set. His friend Franklin had said he would give him a bullet, and his mommy always gave him cool stuff like the coloring book she gave him last year. Noah could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a rainbow was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his helmet. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the battlefield. He would have to wear a tie instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bridal gown.
He went downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like anise. His mom was standing there with a meat thermometer in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a squint.
"Hi Mommy!" Noah replied greedily. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the mashed potatoes," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra cream of tomato soup. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Noah replied gently. "Do we have the chocolate-covered ants ready?"
"I'm going to wait until one o'clock to start that," his mother replied mysteriously. "It only has to roast for forty-six minutes."
"Okay," Noah replied softly. "I'm gonna go to the hall."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cinnamon toast in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the hall 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," Noah responded, as he sat down to his cinnamon toast. "Let's hang lots of lavender balloons and cover the casket and the carpet with sea green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother violently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Bonnie Miller. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a slotted spoon."
"Beshrew me," Noah responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a furrowed brow. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."