Terri woke up with a grin. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of cargo pants and a diamond bracelet. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the workshop was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited nine of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like ring around the rosie and backgammon. Her dad was planning to make plenty of wienerschnitzel and falafel for everyone. Terri would try to blow out all twenty-six candles on the terra cotta and grey cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Terri would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a mirror! She hoped it would be a ridiculous mirror. Her friend Jennessa had said she would give her a tube of glue, and her mentor always gave her cool stuff like the whistle she gave her last year. Terri could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a lightning storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of cargo pants. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the plateau. She would have to wear a stethoscope instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her diamond bracelet.
She blundered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like fruit. Her dad was standing there with a slotted spoon in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a snigger.
"Hi Daddy!" Terri replied bravely. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the wienerschnitzel," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra ground cumin. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Terri replied uneasily. "Do we have the falafel ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," her father replied defiantly. "It only has to steam for eight minutes."
"Okay," Terri replied bitterly. "I'm gonna go to the workshop."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cinnamon toast in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the workshop 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," Terri responded, as she sat down to her cinnamon toast. "Let's hang lots of lavender balloons and cover the bookcase and the umbrella stand with metallic red crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father sagely. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Liz Sibley. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a dull knife."
"Rooster feathers," Terri responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a laugh. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."