Jason woke up with a giggle. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of pantaloons and a gown. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the patio was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-eight of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend five hours playing fun games like battleship and Rummy. His mom was planning to make plenty of blueberry pie and duck a l'orange for everyone. Jason would try to blow out all twenty-seven candles on the lavender and khaki cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Jason would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a can of beans! He hoped it would be an imitation can of beans. His friend Tracy had said he would give him a bell, and his mentor always gave him cool stuff like the orange she gave him last year. Jason could hardly wait!
He 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. He looked in his closet for his pair of pantaloons. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the briar patch. He would have to wear a hamster costume instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his gown.
He bounced downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like a locker room. His mom was standing there with a potato masher in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a flutter.
"Hi Mommy!" Jason replied woefully. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the blueberry pie," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra chicken broth. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Jason replied elatedly. "Do we have the duck a l'orange ready?"
"I'm going to wait until six o'clock to start that," his mother replied dreamily. "It only has to sauté for eighty minutes."
"Okay," Jason replied glibly. "I'm gonna go to the patio."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some doughnuts in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the patio 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," Jason responded, as he sat down to his doughnuts. "Let's hang lots of striped balloons and cover the dining table and the floor with sea green crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother fiercely. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Cassie Porterfield. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an oven mitt."
"Really," Jason responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a smack. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."