Chapter 3: Happy Easter and Birthday to Me!
The next day, I met up with Sarah, James, and Henri, as well as some of my other friends Alex Russo, Justin Evans, and Max Greenwald at their house in Squirrel Hill for a special Easter dinner in the backyard. "Hi, guys!" I greeted my friends. "Hi, Angel!" Sarah greeted back. "Happy birthday, Angel!" Alex wished me. "Thanks, Alex," I replied. Prior to dinner, Alex, Justin, Max, and I interviewed 6 girls for the morning Childhood Chat while jamming out to 98 Degrees. We chatted with Nicole Ellis about her Easter-themed slumber party in 4th grade in downtown Pittsburgh, Emily Grey about her Easter selfie at 3 years old in East Liberty, Hannah Mifflin about her Easter pillow fight in 4th grade in the North Side, Brianna Shokoko about making an Easter craft in 10th grade in Oakland, Emma Wallace talking in silly Easter accents in 8th grade in Shadyside, and Kayla Jennis sleeping in total darkness in 10th grade in the South Side. Then, we went back to their house for dinner, in which we ate outdoors in their backyard as the patio was decorated with beautiful Easter decorations. Sarah provided Yukon gold potatoes, acorn squash, golden delicious apples, Bartlett pears, cranberries, and navel oranges. Alex provided cauliflower, white button mushrooms, portobello mushrooms, jalapeno chile peppers, plums, and honeydew. James provided white cheddar cheese, blue cheese, and havarti cheese. Justin provided Asiago cheese, brie cheese, and feta cheese. Henri provided fine egg noodles, ravioli, and farfalle (bow tie) noodles. Max provided macaroni, spaghetti, and orzo. "Is this your best idea for an Easter dinner, or what, Alex?" Sarah asked. "I am so glad that you are enjoying it, Sarah," Alex remarked. "I remember that we were originally supposed to have this meal for Sarah's birthday last time, but it was a little too summery," I pointed out. "Yes, we wanted a traditional Christmas dinner like we had once many years ago at Christmastime," Sarah pointed out. "When we were kids and teenagers, perhaps," I added. "I also believe that creamy mashed cauliflower is a good, decent alternative to creamy mashed potatoes," Alex stated. "Less carbs and more nutrients." "Did we have mashed potatoes for Christmas dinner, or not?" Sarah asked. "I forget." "The summer hors d'ouerves match your dance anthem," I told Alex. "With the jalapeno peppers and especially the plums, in which congas and bongos sound like, while cymbals and shakers sound like potatoes." "Oh, okay, Angel," Alex remarked. "I just figured that if you guys all like music so much, I would point this out," I stated. "By the way, at least I am not drinking regular soda." "Yes, but it is still important to drink water, because Diet Coke still has all of those artificial sweeteners and chemicals," Alex reminded me. "I just personally think that you will lose weight faster if you drink more water." "You chose some very nice choices for cheese, Justin," James remarked. "Thank you, James," Justin replied. "I was thinking that maybe once you live across the street from me and Max, we could make a grilled cheese sandwich featuring all of our favorite cheeses that we eat for holiday meals." "That would sound tasty," James remarked. "Henri and I would love that, along with some chocolate for dessert." "Well, you're in luck because we have cupcakes and ice cream sundaes for dessert," Justin pointed out. "Oh, I knew it," James happily stated. "Aw, no party games this year, Max?" Henri asked. "No, unfortunately, not this year, Henri," Max replied. "We wanted to have the dinner be similar to our senior banquet at MSG Academy." "I can only guess what your favorite food at the banquet was," Henri stated. "Was it pasta?" "Ah, yes," Max replied. "It was like a combination of the macaroni and the meat sauce on top of the spaghetti." "That was actually penne that you ate, not macaroni," I reminded Max. Then, we ate cake and ice cream while Alex announced her idea for outdoor dining at a nice restaurant in downtown Pittsburgh again, which to her would have been preferably Buca di Beppo or another restaurant in downtown Pittsburgh. It made sense because Alex's birthday was almost a month away from my birthday, and this year, it fell on a Sunday. On the way home from Alex's house, Sarah, James, Henri, and I interviewed 7 girls for the afternoon Childhood Chat while jamming out to Santana. We chatted with Isabella Black about her Thanksgiving selfie at 4 years old in Ross Township, Kaitlyn and Colleen Marioni about having a pillow fight at Thanksgiving in 1st grade in McCandless, Samantha Mifflin about making a Thanksgiving craft at 4 years old in Hampton Township, Taylor Paulson about talking in silly Thanksgiving accents in 9th grade in the western suburbs, Lauren Bennett doing Thanksgiving makeovers in 2nd grade in the northern suburbs, Victoria Spurnick sleeping in total darkness in 11th grade in the southern suburbs, and Sarah Ching arranging her sleeping bag line in 10th grade in Westmoreland County. After our Childhood Chat was over, it was time for all of us to head back home. "Thanks for a great birthday and Easter weekend, everyone!" I thanked my friends. "You're welcome, Angel," Sarah replied. "Bye, guys!" "Bye!"