Chapter Eight

Strong Bodies

Dear Diario,

Well, Halloweek, Halloween, and Halloweekend are all officially over. I’m not too sad, though, because I have a big soccer tournament this weekend, and we are having extra practices this week. Yay! Ben and I gave up the rest of our Halloween candy. I traded mine for a new pair of shin guards, and Ben traded his for a new book, 101 Jokes for Kids. Ben sure loves his jokes.

Shalom,

Lola Levine

A few days after Halloween, I give Mom a hug, and she smells like… chocolate.

“Mom!” I say. “Did you keep some of our Halloween candy?”

“Well… ,” Mom says.

“In this house, we always tell the truth,” I say, smiling.

“Yeah, Mom!” says Ben.

“Okay, okay!” Mom says. “I admit it. I did save a few pieces of candy for myself before I threw it out.”

“Let’s see!” says Ben. Then Mom takes us to her secret candy-hiding place—in the pantry behind the rice.

“Let’s get rid of this for good,” she says, looking at Dad.

“Dad?!” I say. “Do you have hidden candy, too?”

“I like lollipops” is all he says, and then he goes out to his studio and comes back with a handful. Ben and I march our parents out to the garbage cans on the curb and watch them throw their candy away.

“Good job,” I say, patting Mom’s back.

“Great idea,” Dad says, and Mom agrees.

“Thank you, Lola,” Mom says before we go in.

“For what?” I say.

“For reminding me that it’s important to take care of my body.”

“Strong bodies!” I say, pumping my fist in the air.

“I’m strong!” says Ben, jumping high into the sky.

“Me too!” says Dad, and then he does a cartwheel on the grass in front of our house. My dad is super silly. “I bet you can’t do this!” he tells Mom before doing another cartwheel.

“Oh, yeah?” says Mom. “I bet I can.” Then she’s cartwheeling on our lawn, too. So, of course, Ben and I have to join in.

“We are the cartwheel family!” says Ben. We all do cartwheels until we are too dizzy and have to stop. Then we lie down on the grass and look up at the clouds in the sky. My family is awesome, in my opinion, and I have lots of opinions!