Trixie woke up with a grunt. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of booties and a Hawaiian shirt. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the bedroom was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-four of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like Clue and poker. Her mom was planning to make plenty of wienerschnitzel and mashed potatoes for everyone. Trixie would try to blow out all twenty-three candles on the forest green and green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Trixie would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a suitcase! She hoped it would be an overgrown suitcase. Her friend Mahatma had said he would give her a flute, and her cousin always gave her cool stuff like the flag she gave her last year. Trixie could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a flood was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of booties. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the jungle. She would have to wear a cap instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her Hawaiian shirt.
She paraded downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like popcorn. Her mom was standing there with a food processor in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a clenched fist.
"Hi Mommy!" Trixie replied thoughtfully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the wienerschnitzel," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra flank steak. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Trixie replied blankly. "Do we have the mashed potatoes ready?"
"I'm going to wait until ten o'clock to start that," her mother replied daringly. "It only has to freeze for thirty-one minutes."
"Okay," Trixie replied frenetically. "I'm gonna go to the bedroom."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some biscuits and gravy in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the bedroom 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," Trixie responded, as she sat down to her biscuits and gravy. "Let's hang lots of silver balloons and cover the file cabinet and the fainting couch with rose crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother boldly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Nettie Hudson. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a mixing spoon."
"Goodness me," Trixie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a coo. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."