MauldenNews - July/August 2012

Here we are again. Summer is almost over and we are already back to school. Sam - my baby- started kindergarten.

 It might look as if Papa had to drag him in, but no. They're just having fun.

 Sam with his teacher. He's not crying, just bashful about having his picture taken. Really!

Alle declined to be photographed on her first day of second grade, but this morning she gave me a most beautiful pose:

She was proud of the way she fixed her hair. :-)

The year started a little bit rough around the edges as both of them adjusted back to the routine. Sam was sent to the principal's office within the first week for losing his temper and disobeying the teacher. Luckily this past week was better and we just hope things go well. We are really grateful for Sam's small class size (12) and for the loving and patient people at this school.

Backing up a bit...Labor Day weekend was spent with church friends at our all church camp in the mountains. Loved it...sorry I didn't take any pictures, (totally loafing and neglecting my mom-role) but it was fun and relaxing. :-) We had a huge thunderstorm and the kids were excited to get to really use their umbrellas (hard rain and umbrellas are kind of a novelty in Utah). Sam told everyone he got to sleep "on the top shelf" (top bunk). Alle completed a challenging hike to the top of a mountain with me and friends. This girl is not afraid of heights!

Speaking of hiking, we also made it up to Cecret Lake (that is the correct spelling, I'm afraid) for the kids' first time. 

 Detour from the trail - this log was made for balancing on!

 Paintbrushes in bloom.

 Alle being a mountain goat.

Cecret Lake.

We also celebrated Alle's 8th birthday. Her birthday wish list included

• scotch tape 
• wax paper 
• a Nook 
• a baby squid
• wrapping paper
• Skittles
• shaving cream

and a few other odds and ends. She did not get the baby squid, but did not seem too disappointed. The look on her friends' faces when she unwrapped the wax paper was priceless. She was delighted and has used it to make several creations, as well as to display her stickers which she can then peel off and re-use. 

One of her friends asked why she wanted shaving cream, and Alle told her it's fun to play with in the bathtub. She used the entire can of shaving cream in one super-fun bath and declared it "the most FUN bath I ever had!" I heard later from the friend's mom that she had also requested shaving cream for the bathtub and had a very giggly bath herself. :-) 

The party would not have been complete without a seahorse pinata...

(at this point, Alle noticed me with the camera and wouldn't let me take anymore, but we did sing to her and enjoyed her excellent taste in birthday cake: cheesecake with raspberry topping.)

Other news...I finished my third marathon and it was fantastic! I got lucky with the weather and took the pace slower than my first two. Guess what-- it hurt less at the end. I ran the last mile without walk breaks and finished strong. Happy!

Last but not least, on going to bed a few nights ago I noticed a pair of toenail scissors and a bunch of short black hairs on my bathroom counter. I deduced that Sam had cut his hair and was very curious to know what it looked like, but since he was asleep I had to wait until morning to find out. It wasn't disastrous, but he did make a notch in the front. You can look for it in his school pictures coming up next week. 

Hope all is well with everyone. 

With Love,

Sarah