Natalie woke up with a cringe. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a necklace and a coat of mail. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the outhouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited ten of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like crazy eights and blackjack. Her dad was planning to make plenty of pizza and cabbage rolls for everyone. Natalie would try to blow out all twenty-six candles on the salmon and sea green cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Natalie would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a cowbell! She hoped it would be a handy cowbell. Her friend Marina had said she would give her a pair of fuzzy dice, and her grandma always gave her cool stuff like the magazine she gave her last year. Natalie could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a hot day was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her necklace. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the pond. She would have to wear a pair of UGGs instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her coat of mail.
She sailed downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like chocolate cake. Her dad was standing there with a melon baller in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a caress.
"Hi Daddy!" Natalie replied arrogantly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pizza," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra salsa. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Natalie replied uneasily. "Do we have the cabbage rolls ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," her father replied boldly. "It only has to steam for eighty-five minutes."
"Okay," Natalie replied proudly. "I'm gonna go to the outhouse."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some fried eggs in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the outhouse first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Natalie responded, as she sat down to her fried eggs. "Let's hang lots of peach balloons and cover the dining table and the dining table with lavender crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father woefully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Marybel Lott. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a whisk."
"I doubt it," Natalie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a wince. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."