Carey woke up with a coo. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a towel and a set of camo fatigues. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the tool shed was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited five of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like jump rope and croquet. Her dad was planning to make plenty of prime rib and sweet potatoes for everyone. Carey would try to blow out all thirty-two candles on the camouflage and aquamarine cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Carey would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bell! She hoped it would be a rough bell. Her friend Sadie had said she would give her a paper airplane, and her mommy always gave her cool stuff like the clarinet she gave her last year. Carey could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a sleet storm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her towel. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the island. She would have to wear a derby instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her set of camo fatigues.
She barrelled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like nachos. Her dad was standing there with a sharp knife in his hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" he said with a snigger.
"Hi Daddy!" Carey replied jokingly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the prime rib," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra lime Jell-O. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Carey replied cautiously. "Do we have the sweet potatoes ready?"
"I'm going to wait until five o'clock to start that," her father replied humbly. "It only has to heat in microwave for nineteen minutes."
"Okay," Carey replied openly. "I'm gonna go to the tool shed."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some crumb cake in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the tool shed 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," Carey responded, as she sat down to her crumb cake. "Let's hang lots of white balloons and cover the toilet and the card table with khaki crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her father quietly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Clarisse McCracken. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a strainer."
"Why not?," Carey responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a wince. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."