Deng woke up with a face palm. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a wristwatch and a pair of UGGs. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the boudoir was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-seven of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like Simon Says and Russian roulette. His mom was planning to make plenty of roast beef and wienerschnitzel for everyone. Deng would try to blow out all twenty-four candles on the purple and sparkly cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Deng would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a computer! He hoped it would be a new computer. His friend Alf had said he would give him a notepad, and his friend always gave him cool stuff like the egg shell she gave him last year. Deng could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hailstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his wristwatch. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the seashore. He would have to wear a bodysuit instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of UGGs.
He staggered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like Pine-Sol. His mom was standing there with a slotted spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a backward glance.
"Hi Mommy!" Deng replied carelessly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the roast beef," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra cracker crumbs. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Deng replied fearfully. "Do we have the wienerschnitzel ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied timidly. "It only has to simmer for fifty-eight minutes."
"Okay," Deng replied roughly. "I'm gonna go to the boudoir."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some oyster on the half-shell in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the boudoir 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," Deng responded, as he sat down to his oyster on the half-shell. "Let's hang lots of striped balloons and cover the hamper and the hamper with tan crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother thankfully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Elise Lawrence. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a melon baller."
"Ick," Deng responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a chortle. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."