Will woke up with a roar. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a false moustache and a bolo tie. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the front porch was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like battleship and doctor. His dad was planning to make plenty of prime rib and enchiladas for everyone. Will would try to blow out all twenty-three candles on the striped and white cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Will would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a flower! He hoped it would be a bent flower. His friend Cinderella had said she would give him a sea shell, and his grandfather always gave him cool stuff like the tube of glue she gave him last year. Will could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a snowstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his false moustache. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the lagoon. He would have to wear a gold medal instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his bolo tie.
He staggered downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cigarettes. His dad was standing there with a cookie cutter in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a beam.
"Hi Daddy!" Will replied hysterically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the prime rib," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra baking soda. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Will replied softly. "Do we have the enchiladas ready?"
"I'm going to wait until twelve o'clock to start that," his father replied stealthily. "It only has to sauté for forty-nine minutes."
"Okay," Will replied gingerly. "I'm gonna go to the front porch."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cotton candy in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the front porch first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Will responded, as he sat down to his cotton candy. "Let's hang lots of silver balloons and cover the dresser and the cushion with khaki crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father vacantly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Melkadas Gardner. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a wooden spoon."
"Shoo," Will 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."