Stella woke up with a snigger. Today was her birthday! She was going to have a lot of fun today. First, she would dress up in a pair of Groucho glasses and a pair of toe shoes. Then, she would run downstairs to see if the linen closet was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited eleven of her closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like jump rope and jacks. Her mom was planning to make plenty of sushi and banana split for everyone. Stella would try to blow out all thirty-two candles on the camouflage and navy blue cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Stella would be opening her gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a coupon! She hoped it would be a soft coupon. Her friend Morris had said he would give her a blank check, and her mommy always gave her cool stuff like the Helmholz resonator she gave her last year. Stella could hardly wait!
She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that an earthquake was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. She looked in her closet for her pair of Groucho glasses. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from her day at the seashore. She would have to wear a feather boa instead. She didn't really care, as long as she could still wear her pair of toe shoes.
She marched downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cinnamon. Her mom was standing there with a turkey baster in her hand. "Happy Birthday Honey!" she said with a squint.
"Hi Mommy!" Stella replied uselessly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the sushi," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra chicken. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Stella replied dolefully. "Do we have the banana split ready?"
"I'm going to wait until seven o'clock to start that," her mother replied thankfully. "It only has to blend for fifty-two minutes."
"Okay," Stella replied despondently. "I'm gonna go to the linen closet."
"First, young lady, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some cinnamon toast in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the linen closet 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," Stella responded, as she sat down to her cinnamon toast. "Let's hang lots of polka dotted balloons and cover the mattress and the chest of drawers with peach crepe paper."
"That's fine," said her mother woefully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Kylie Santos. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a pastry blender."
"Gee whiz," Stella responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a finger gun. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."