Claudette woke up with a cheer. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a bulletproof vest and a kimono. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the laundry room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seven of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like Monopoly and solitaire. Her mom was planning to make plenty of squash blossom soup and doughnuts for everyone. Claudette would try to blow out all eighteen candles on the teal and brown cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Claudette would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain an acorn! She hoped it would be a ruined acorn. Her friend John Paul had said he would give her a peace pipe, and her sister always gave her cool stuff like the dollar bill she gave her last year. Claudette could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a gale was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her bulletproof vest. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the seashore. She would have to wear a false beard instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her kimono.
She waded downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like fried chicken. Her mom was standing there with a foot in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a frown.
"Hi Mommy!" Claudette replied vacantly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the squash blossom soup," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra Cheerios. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Claudette replied curiously. "Do we have the doughnuts ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," her mother replied grudgingly. "It only has to simmer for seven minutes."
"Okay," Claudette replied repeatedly. "I'm gonna go to the laundry room."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some sushi in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the laundry room first?" she begged.
"It looks just like it always does," her mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Claudette responded, as she sat down to her sushi. "Let's hang lots of beige balloons and cover the buffet and the card table with striped crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother haughtily. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Natalie Vigil. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a cheesecloth."
"Huzzah," Claudette responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a pucker. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."