June woke up with a sneeze. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a belt buckle and a space suit. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the doghouse was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seven of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like volleyball and Parcheesi. Her dad was planning to make plenty of fondue and sauerkraut for everyone. June would try to blow out all two candles on the pea green and brilliant orange cake. While the guests were eating their cake, June would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a notebook! She hoped it would be a hand-carved notebook. Her friend Regina had said she would give her a Kindle, and her girlfriend always gave her cool stuff like the roll of toilet paper she gave her last year. June could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a dense fog was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her belt buckle. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the crime scene. She would have to wear a gas mask instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her space suit.
She leapt downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like peanuts. Her dad was standing there with a potato peeler in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a snarl.
"Hi Daddy!" June replied glibly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the fondue," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra tapioca. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," June replied shakily. "Do we have the sauerkraut ready?"
"I'm going to wait until one o'clock to start that," her father replied ruefully. "It only has to braise for thirty-six minutes."
"Okay," June replied truculently. "I'm gonna go to the doghouse."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some falafel in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the doghouse 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," June responded, as she sat down to her falafel. "Let's hang lots of tan balloons and cover the bar stool and the hamper with silver crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father strangely. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Tammy Wells. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a meat thermometer."
"Why," June responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a grin. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."