Hi. We are still alive, just really busy. It didn't rain much this year in Sacramento, but whenever there was any hint of rain, or at least some puddles from sprinklers, Sal and Milo would don their rain boots and splash until they were wet from head to toe.

 This is Sal's last day of kindergarten. What a great year. She loved it. I was really looking forward to the summer though. No lunches to pack, nowhere in particular to be in the mornings. Plenty of time for Sal and Milo to fight play...

 We rode to school on the bike bus most days. Sal loved riding along in the back. It was heavy though! I said, "Sal, pedal!" about a million times.

 Milo was not always happy to go get Sal from school. Her schedule interrupted his nap and he was very grumpy. I'm pretty good at wrestling him into the bike seat now.

 More of Sal's last day of kindergarten. She really changed a lot this year. So grown up now.

 Here's the bike we rode to school. Heavy, but I still love it. We even got groceries in it a couple times.

 Sal did a lemonade stand with her cousins in July. They had a great time. Chloe and Stella talked Sal into getting her violin out to drum up some business. She was reluctant at first, but then the quarters started rolling in...

 I think she ended up with about $11. Not bad! She spent it all on the drive back from Utah on a pink poodle in a pink bag. Oh, the joys of spending your own money! It reminds me of when I discovered I could buy sugar cereal at the grocery store during college. I lived on Marshmallow Mateys for about a year.

 Milo has grown up so much this year. He is quite the talker now and yabbers with me all the time. I love what he has to say, but his facial expressions that go along with it are even better. He frequently asks for a "snuggle and a kiss." He felt pretty sad when I told him it's better to kiss our babysitter on the cheek than on the lips.

 There's nothing Milo likes better than a playground. Except maybe a pool. We swam non-stop all summer. The cold ocean water didn't stop him one bit. He's like Sal, no nerve endings.

 Milo prefers to be naked, but if he can't be naked, he prefers not to wear a shirt. He says, "I don't need a shirt, I have my belly."

 Milo is so sweet, and so hard. He wants to do everything himself. He doesn't like being told what to do. He yells really loud when he's mad, usually something like, "YOU'RE NOT MY MGRTHBA!" I'm never sure exactly what he means and I'm not sure he knows either.

 Milo and Sal managed to get popsicles from the ice-cream truck three days in a row at the beach house. They talked me into it the first day, Sammy the second, and Meme the third. Milo finished off Carolina's also. We had such a great trip to Maine. I was busy having too much fun to take any pictures, which of course I'm sorely regretting now. We swam, played with cousins, had a successful LaRiviere Olympics, played at the beach, visited with Jacqueline and Carolina, spent time at the beach house, went raspberry and blueberry picking... Maine is how I reboot for the year. I miss it already. The leaves were already starting to change color when I left at the end of August.

 Sal's first day of 1st grade. She was pretty apprehensive. Same school, but longer day, bigger class, and bigger playground with lots more kids. We've had a lot of tears this week. She loved kindergarten so much that I'm hopeful that things will turn around. But I have to admit that I'm tempted to homeschool. I miss her while she's gone for so long. It doesn't help that I do most of my teaching in the afternoon/evenings. We have a new nanny, and it's an adjustment. Things haven't settled yet.

 We rode scooters and balance bikes to school on the first day. Maybe we'll try real bikes to school before too long. Sal has a new haircut, a result of the "beauty salon" she and Stella had tucked away in the upstairs bathroom in Maine. I was finding chunks of hair for days after. Fortunately, we didn't have to shave her bald. We are able to hide the chunks under her bangs and by parting her hair to the side. Every kid needs bangs at least once in their childhood anyway. I think it's cute, just so different than before. Sal was worried no one would recognize her at school.

 My girl. Love that face.

Sal insisted that she wanted to do ballet this year. We have her in a little class at ArtBeast. I'm not crazy about her dancing, but she loves it. We started soccer again for the fall season. Their first game was Saturday, and she had a lot of fun. She wasn't bothered at all by the 11-0 score.