While Mama measured out the ingredients for chocolate con leche Amirah walked over to the little desk in the corner of the living room where she kept all her favorite art supplies How are the invitations coming Baba asked as he sipped his coffee Almost done Amirah replied Mrs Maria’s Maria’s will be the first one I deliver I’m bringing it to her later I’m sure she will like that Baba said I know your visits brighten her whole day I hope so Amirah said reaching for her favorite pink glitter pen Making personalized invitations for her party guests was one of her special traditions and Amirah had been spending spending a lot of time at her desk over the last few weeks as she worked on them Amirah had spent twice as much time on Mrs Maria’s invitation as all the rest Mrs Maria one of Amirah’s elderly neighbors and a close friend treasured the handmade invitations that Amirah had brought 4
her over the years She kept them on display year-round Oh good the paint’s dry Amirah exclaimed exclaimed Mrs Maria’s card had a birthday cake on it covered in colorful sprinkles of course A single candle in the cake burned brightly with a flame made from red orange and gold glitter Amirah carefully tucked Mrs Maria’s invitation invitation into the last envelope and added a handful of shiny confetti She loved birthdays so much that she even wanted her invitations to feel like a party when her friends and family opened them Amirah could tell from the delicious smell of chocolate wafting from the kitchen that her drink was almost ready so she wandered into the kitchen and sat down at the table Your invitations turned out beautifully this year Mama said as she stirred the pot of chocolate con leche on the stove I noticed you painted a lot of birthday cakes Any ideas about your birthday cake 5
Amirah sighed and shook her head I don’t know why I can’t decide she replied I want it to be delicious and different but beyond that I’m just not sure Try not to worry princess Mama said You still have a whole week to figure it out I know the perfect cake will come to you Amirah hoped so She had already worked out all the other details for her party from the type of piñata she was going to have unicorn shaped to the outfit she was going to wear rainbow striped dress denim jacket and silver glitter sneakers The candy bags Amirah would hand out to all her guests were even planned out Every little detail had been finalized except for the cake After breakfast Amirah spent the next few hours working on the last batch of party invitations Finally when they were all finished she left them to dry on her desk She grabbed her backpack and her pink sweater and hurried 6
down the path to the sidewalk Her neighbor Mrs Maria lived just two doors down Mrs Maria’s grandkids all lived in the United States so she treated Amirah like an unofficial granddaughter granddaughter Amirah didn’t mind one bit She loved to visit her for an afternoon of stories and conchas The sweet seashell-shaped treats were more of a breakfast food but Amirah loved that Mrs Maria liked to serve them in the afternoon too As she stood on the doorstep Amirah knocked on the door rap-rap-thud-thud-tap-tap-tap rap-rap-thud-thud-tap-tap-tap The special knock was a code to tell Mrs Maria that she’d come to visit And sure enough Mrs Maria swung open the door just moments later Her bright smile smoothed out all the lines in her face Happy New Year Amirah Mrs Maria exclaimed holding open the door for her Happy New Year Amirah replied I have something for you 7
