Chelsea 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 headscarf and a coonskin hat. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the rec room 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 jump rope and hopscotch. Her dad was planning to make plenty of macaroni and potatoes and gravy for everyone. Chelsea would try to blow out all three candles on the terra cotta and azure cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Chelsea would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a fountain pen! She hoped it would be an expensive fountain pen. Her friend Elise had said she would give her a pair of scissors, and her sister always gave her cool stuff like the teddy bear she gave her last year. Chelsea could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a bit of precipitation was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her headscarf. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the river. She would have to wear a kimono instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her coonskin hat.
She clambered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like fruit. Her dad was standing there with a potato peeler in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a snicker.
"Hi Daddy!" Chelsea replied glibly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the macaroni," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra corn chips. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Chelsea replied sorrowfully. "Do we have the potatoes and gravy ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," her father replied nimbly. "It only has to marinate for thirty-three minutes."
"Okay," Chelsea replied numbly. "I'm gonna go to the rec room."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some ravioli in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the rec room 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," Chelsea responded, as she sat down to her ravioli. "Let's hang lots of sparkly balloons and cover the rug and the buffet with orange crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father sternly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Katie Ward. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a grater."
"Ay yi yi," Chelsea responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a wrinkled nose. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."