Tess woke up with a smack. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a gladiator helmet and a bodysuit. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the patio was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eight of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like red rover and marbles. Her mom was planning to make plenty of jambalaya and lime sherbet for everyone. Tess would try to blow out all eighteen candles on the white and rose cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Tess would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a duffel bag! She hoped it would be a stolen duffel bag. Her friend Irving had said he would give her a saddle, and her grandpa always gave her cool stuff like the brochure she gave her last year. Tess could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a snowstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her gladiator helmet. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the desert. She would have to wear a gown instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her bodysuit.
She zipped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like natural gas. Her mom was standing there with a potato peeler in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a squint.
"Hi Mommy!" Tess replied needlessly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the jambalaya," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra anchovies. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Tess replied grimly. "Do we have the lime sherbet ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," her mother replied elatedly. "It only has to smoke for twenty-seven minutes."
"Okay," Tess replied craftily. "I'm gonna go to the patio."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some Hamburger Helper 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," Tess responded, as she sat down to her Hamburger Helper. "Let's hang lots of forest green balloons and cover the filing cabinet and the bathtub with purple crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother briskly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Hallie Rexford. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an egg cutter."
"Meh," Tess responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a furrowed brow. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."