Savannah woke up with a snicker. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a tutu and a swimsuit. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the nursery was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited four of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend one hour playing fun games like backgammon and Cootie. Her mom was planning to make plenty of clam chowder and smoked salmon for everyone. Savannah would try to blow out all four candles on the golden and burgundy cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Savannah would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a telephone! She hoped it would be a bent telephone. Her friend Tracy had said he would give her an ingot of plutonium, and her friend always gave her cool stuff like the can of beer she gave her last year. Savannah 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 tutu. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the mesa. She would have to wear a jumper instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her swimsuit.
She reeled downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like baby lotion. Her mom was standing there with a fork in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a shiver.
"Hi Mommy!" Savannah replied ingeniously. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the clam chowder," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra Brussels sprouts. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Savannah replied blankly. "Do we have the smoked salmon ready?"
"I'm going to wait until four o'clock to start that," her mother replied madly. "It only has to heat for sixty-three minutes."
"Okay," Savannah replied timidly. "I'm gonna go to the nursery."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some catfish stew in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the nursery 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," Savannah responded, as she sat down to her catfish stew. "Let's hang lots of brown balloons and cover the piano and the bar stool with burgundy crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother furiously. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Dusty Cantada. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pair of chopsticks."
"Good grief," Savannah responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a roar. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."