Mindy Kim and the Birthday Puppy

My name is Mindy Kim. I am eight years old.

That’s right-not seven, not seven and a half, but EIGHT.

Today is my birthday!

“Yay!” I jumped out of bed with Mr. Toe Beans, my corgi stuffed doll.

The sun was shining bright outside, and even from inside my room I could tell it was a beautiful day! And the best part? It was a Friday, and I was going to have a party after school with all my friends. I was so excited!

“Happy birthday, Mindy!” my dad said as he opened my bedroom door. “How does it feel to be eight?”

I quickly hid Mr. Toe Beans behind my back before Dad could see. I was eight now! I didn’t want dad to think I still slept with a stuffed animal. Big kids didn’t sleep with dolls, and the bigger of a kid I seemed, the more likely it was that Dad would buy me a puppy. Dad had said he’d get me a puppy for my birthday. And today was finally the day!

“Good! I feel so big now!”

Dad put a hand to his chin, like he was thinking really hard as he looked at me. “Hmm, you do seem a bit taller than you did yesterday.”

“Really?” I bit my lip with excitement.

Dad laughed. “I’m just messing with you. But don’t worry, sweetie. You’re definitely still growing! Come down and eat some seaweed soup! Let’s call your grandparents!”

Every birthday, I eat seaweed soup for breakfast. It’s a Korean tradition! And then we call my grandparents in Korea so they can with me happy birthday before they go to sleep. Korea time is thirteen hours ahead of Florida, so it was already nine p.m. there.

Mom used to always make seaweed soup for me, but since she wasn’t here this year, Dad made it. It wasn’t as good as Mom’s, but I didn’t tell him that. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings.

Dad brought his laptop to the dining room table as I ate. Grandma and Grandpa were already on the screen, their smiles were wide and eyes shining. They looked so happy to see me! And I was happy to see them, too.

“Saeng-il chook-ha-hae, Min-jung-ah!” said Grandpa, wishing me happy birthday in Korean. He used my Korean name, like everyone else did back in Korea.

“Gomap seum-nida!” I said thanks, bowing with respect.

My grandparents asked me a lot of questions about how I was doing and what I was going to do today. They always ask me lots of stuff when we talk, because we only call each other on special days. I don’t know how to call my grandparents in Korea by myself, and Dad is usually too busy to do it for me on regular days.

When we were done catching up, Dad put away his laptop and joined me at the table with his bowl of seaweed soup. I was done eating by then, but I remained sitting to keep Dad company.

“Dad,” I asked, “why do we eat seaweed soup on our birthdays?”

“It’s because a lot of mothers in Korea eat seaweed soup after they have their babies. Seaweed is full of nutrients that are really good for the moms.”

Dad mentioning mothers reminded me of Mom and how she wasn’t here to celebrate my birthday. And then I realized that she wasn’t going to be here for any of my other birthdays, either. That made me really sad, all of a sudden.

“Are you excited for your party later today, Mindy?” Dad asked with a smile.

“Yes!” I said, trying to smile back.

Dad frowned, as if he knew what I was thinking. I’m a really bad liar.

“Your mom would be so proud of you, Mindy,” he said. “It was hard, but you adjusted so well to living here. And you have so many friends now!”

“Thanks, Appa,” I replied, feeling kind of grown-up.

I was looking forwards to my party today, but I was also looking forwards to getting a puppy for my birthday, just like my dad had said. But I didn’t mention that part. I didn’t want to ruin the surprise.