Alice 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 rain coat and a wig. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the patio was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited five of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like musical chairs and backgammon. Her mom was planning to make plenty of country glazed ham and potatoes and gravy for everyone. Alice would try to blow out all twenty-five candles on the pink and jet black cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Alice would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a flag! She hoped it would be a wet flag. Her friend Doc had said he would give her a plaque, and her girlfriend always gave her cool stuff like the coat hanger she gave her last year. Alice could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a typhoon was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her rain coat. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the plain. She would have to wear a tunic instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her wig.
She strolled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like barbeque. Her mom was standing there with a melon baller in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a twitch.
"Hi Mommy!" Alice replied hysterically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the country glazed ham," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra ham. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Alice replied sarcastically. "Do we have the potatoes and gravy ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eight o'clock to start that," her mother replied lightly. "It only has to fry for thirty-eight minutes."
"Okay," Alice replied immediately. "I'm gonna go to the patio."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some chicken soup in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the patio 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," Alice responded, as she sat down to her chicken soup. "Let's hang lots of emerald green balloons and cover the water bed and the washing machine with rose crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother resignedly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, LaVerne Arnold. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a fork."
"W00t," Alice responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a honk. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."