Daniel woke up with a snuffle. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a hood and a pair of cowboy boots. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the dining room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-five of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend four hours playing fun games like jump rope and volleyball. His dad was planning to make plenty of fried eggs and lamb curry for everyone. Daniel would try to blow out all five candles on the brown and turquoise cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Daniel would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a Kindle! He hoped it would be an excellent Kindle. His friend Alexis had said she would give him a pair of binoculars, and his mentor always gave him cool stuff like the gun she gave him last year. Daniel could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a thunderstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his hood. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the ridge. He would have to wear a blazer instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of cowboy boots.
He set out downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cedar. His dad was standing there with a pair of tongs in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a backward glance.
"Hi Daddy!" Daniel replied sadly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the fried eggs," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra salmon filets. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Daniel replied resignedly. "Do we have the lamb curry ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," his father replied boisterously. "It only has to scramble for eighty-three minutes."
"Okay," Daniel replied positively. "I'm gonna go to the dining room."
"First, young man, 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 dining room first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Daniel responded, as he sat down to his catfish stew. "Let's hang lots of emerald green balloons and cover the wooden crate and the cupboard with pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father thoughtfully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Laura Winkler. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a paring knife."
"Bless your heart," Daniel responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a coo. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."