Katy woke up with a blush. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a belly button jewel and a pacifier. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the attic was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seven of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend eight hours playing fun games like blackjack and golf. Her dad was planning to make plenty of crab rangoon and sweet potatoes for everyone. Katy would try to blow out all thirty-one candles on the turquoise and salmon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Katy would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a box! She hoped it would be a dusty box. Her friend Kendra had said she would give her an antenna, and her mom always gave her cool stuff like the dart she gave her last year. Katy could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sandstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her belly button jewel. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the country meadow. She would have to wear an evening gown instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pacifier.
She reeled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a saloon. Her dad was standing there with a chopstick in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a yawn.
"Hi Daddy!" Katy replied frantically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the crab rangoon," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra wine vinegar. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Katy replied deliberately. "Do we have the sweet potatoes ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," her father replied sourly. "It only has to heat for seventy-two minutes."
"Okay," Katy replied grimly. "I'm gonna go to the attic."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some refried beans in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the attic 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," Katy responded, as she sat down to her refried beans. "Let's hang lots of carrot-orange balloons and cover the ironing board and the filing cabinet with magenta crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father obediently. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Luann Baker. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a meat tenderizer."
"Can it," Katy responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a grimace. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."