My Lips Are Sealed by Duane L Herrmann

     “It’s a secret,” Lilybell excitedly told her best friend.  “We’re going to have a party for Daddy!  It’s a surprise.  Mommy and I are going to make a special cake for Daddy.  We’re going to dress up for him.  We’re going to buy him this special thing, I forget what it is, for him that he’s been wanting for a long, long time, since I was this many.”  She held up two fingers.

     “Mommy is going to get her hair fixed special.  I’m going to get a new ribbon for my hair and…”  She paused dramatically.  “Mommy’s going to paint my fingernails the same color as her’s!  Daddy will be so surprised!  He’s not going to know what Mommy’s going to do.  I’m going to make him a special picture, LOTS of special pictures!  He likes my pictures.  He takes them to work to show the people there.  When I went to visit, he showed me them on the side of his computer.  He said they make his office really pretty!  I gave some to some of the nice people there and they were happy too!  It’s a secret.  A surprise.  We’re going to make a cake and decorate it with candles!  I had candles on a cake too, but it was a long, long time ago.  He’s going to have more candles on his cake cause he’s bigger.  He’ll have to blow them all out all by himself.  I’m not supposed to help him.  It’s going to be a BIG cake!  He’ll be surprised.  Mommy said we can put candy on the cake.  Daddy will be REAL surprised to find candy ON his cake!!  And, Mommy said he’ll be happy when he gets that thing she’s going to get for him.  I forget what it is.  It’s a BIG DADDY thing!  Maybe even lots bigger than ME!  And,” she took a big breath.  “We’re going to have ice cream too!  Two kinds of ice cream: brown and white.  Mommy said Daddy likes them both – at the same time!  I only like them one at a time.  I don’t like to mix my food.  Daddy doesn’t know we’re going to do this.  I forgot what day it will be, but the cake isn’t baked yet, so it won’t be today.  Mommy’s going to get her hair prettied in three days.  Maybe that will be then.  I’ve made his pictures today.  One of them is you, Teddy.  Do you like it?”

     Lilybell held the picture in front of Teddy’s face.  Teddy just grinned in happiness.  Teddy liked the picture.  In the picture, Teddy had a red dress.  Teddy liked red, just like Lilybell.

     “It’s a secret, a BIG secret!  Don’t tell anyone.”

     “My lips…” Teddy began.

     “Oh!”  Shrieked Lillybell.  “Daddy’s home!”  She jumped up, dropped the pictures, and ran to the door as her father entered the house.

     “Daddy!  Daddy!  We’re making a secret for you!  We’re making a cake with lots of candles, and Mommy’s going to get that thing you wanted, and she’s going to get her hair real pretty for you, and she’s going to paint my fingernails the same as her fingernails, and I get a new ribbon for my hair, and it’s a secret, and it’s a surprise just for YOU Daddy!  Don’t tell anyone,” she ended in her serious voice and put her fingers on her lips.

     “Are sealed,” Teddy Bear ended with his lips permanently sealed in a grin.