Todd woke up with a belch. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of overalls and a false beard. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the foyer was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited three of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like marbles and Parcheesi. His mom was planning to make plenty of popcorn and lime sherbet for everyone. Todd would try to blow out all twenty-three candles on the turquoise and purple cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Todd would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a piggy bank! He hoped it would be a polished piggy bank. His friend Frankie had said he would give him a toilet plunger, and his mother always gave him cool stuff like the bag of potato chips she gave him last year. Todd could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a gale was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of overalls. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the island. He would have to wear a pair of shoes instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his false beard.
He inched downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like carnations. His mom was standing there with a slotted spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a power fist.
"Hi Mommy!" Todd replied tensely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the popcorn," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra olive oil. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Todd replied hopefully. "Do we have the lime sherbet ready?"
"I'm going to wait until one o'clock to start that," his mother replied later. "It only has to boil for fifty-eight minutes."
"Okay," Todd replied firmly. "I'm gonna go to the foyer."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some ham in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the foyer 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," Todd responded, as he sat down to his ham. "Let's hang lots of fuchsia balloons and cover the bookcase and the rocking chair with periwinkle crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother softly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Chelsea Burtle. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a napkin."
"Aaaw," Todd 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."