Dennis woke up with a squint. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a sweatshirt and a pair of suspenders. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the conservatory was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-five of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like tag and hopscotch. His mom was planning to make plenty of pizza and popcorn for everyone. Dennis would try to blow out all twenty-seven candles on the scarlet and fuchsia cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Dennis would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a dart! He hoped it would be an immense dart. His friend Del had said he would give him a kite, and his mother-in-law always gave him cool stuff like the coat check ticket she gave him last year. Dennis could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a driving rain was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his sweatshirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the grassy knoll. He would have to wear a wizard's hat instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of suspenders.
He slid downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a beauty salon. His mom was standing there with a bare foot in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a wince.
"Hi Mommy!" Dennis replied grandly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the pizza," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra Italian seasoning. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Dennis replied briskly. "Do we have the popcorn ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," his mother replied vigorously. "It only has to spoon into container for six minutes."
"Okay," Dennis replied kindly. "I'm gonna go to the conservatory."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some Swiss cheese in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the conservatory 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," Dennis responded, as he sat down to his Swiss cheese. "Let's hang lots of beige balloons and cover the buffet and the crib with pea green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother crossly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Judith Potter. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a meat tenderizer."
"Nice," Dennis responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a beam. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."