Tara woke up with a grimace. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a bustier and a hoop skirt. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the porch was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited six of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like Clue and shuffleboard. Her mom was planning to make plenty of chocolate-covered ants and steak for everyone. Tara would try to blow out all twenty-one candles on the crimson and brilliant orange cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Tara would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a cream puff! She hoped it would be a soft cream puff. Her friend Wendell had said he would give her a dollar bill, and her grandma always gave her cool stuff like the clipboard she gave her last year. Tara could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a drought was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her bustier. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the countryside. She would have to wear a visor instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her hoop skirt.
She galloped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like used books. Her mom was standing there with a mixing spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a roar.
"Hi Mommy!" Tara replied intensely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the chocolate-covered ants," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra crabmeat. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Tara replied surreptitiously. "Do we have the steak ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," her mother replied smoothly. "It only has to blanch for eleven minutes."
"Okay," Tara replied trustingly. "I'm gonna go to the porch."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some chicken soup in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the porch 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," Tara responded, as she sat down to her chicken soup. "Let's hang lots of brilliant orange balloons and cover the coffee table and the futon with burgundy crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother hysterically. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Holly Sullivan. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a spoon."
"Gee whillikers," Tara responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a titter. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."