mum and her younger brother Sam. He had started school only two weeks before.
Molly stroked Ashaâs silky ears.
âCould I walk Asha, please, Chrissie?â she asked.
âOf course you can, Molly,â agreed Luluâs mum. âLulu can take Jessie.â
The group walked down the hill, chatting and laughing. Mum pushed Gus in the pram. A neighbour waved and called hello as they passed.
It was a fine morning, with a deep-blue sky. A flock of white-and-yellow cockatoos swooped overhead. They squawked and cawed.
âItâs going to be scorching today,â said Mum. âIf itâs still hot this afternoon, we might go to the beach for a swim. Would you, Molly and Sam like to come too, Tien?â
Mollyâs mum Tien nodded. âWhat a lovely idea,â she said. âWe can take a picnic afternoon tea.â
âYay,â cried Lulu, Rosie and Molly together. Sam smiled.
âCan we take our boogie boards?â asked Lulu.
âAnd my angel wings?â suggested Rosie.
âWhy not?â replied Mum. âItâll be fun. Perhaps we can have fish andchips for dinner on the beach.â
Jessie wagged her tail extra-fast. âDinnerâ was her favourite word.
âWoof?â the dog asked. She looked back and forth between Mum and Lulu.
âNot you, Jessie,â replied Mum. âYou and Asha are staying home.â
Jessieâs tail drooped and her eyes stared up mournfully. Lulu patted her head.
âNever mind, girl,â said Lulu. âWeâll save you some chips.â
Jessie smiled happily again. She really was the smiliest dog in the world.
At the school gate, Mum kissed both of her girls and waved goodbye. Gus waved goodbye too.
âSee you this afternoon. Have a lovely day,â called both mums.
âBye, Mum. Love you, Mum,â called Lulu, Rosie, Sam and Molly.
âLove you, too.â
Now Lulu had two things to look forward to. First was Miss Baxterâs surprise. Then there was the trip to the beach.
Chapter 3
After School
The summer sun blazed down when the bell rang for the end of school.
Some of the year six boys were having a water fight. They squirted each other with their water bottles. One of them squirted Lulu. She squealed with shock. The icy waterfelt lovely and cool down her back.
Luluâs mum and Mollyâs mum were waiting under the shade of a tree in the playground. Mum looked cool and calm in a blue floral sundress. Mollyâs brother Sam was standing close beside his mother.
Gus was wearing his Bug Boy suit despite the heat. He ran to the climbing frame with some friends from pre-school.
Lulu and Molly skipped over to meet their mothers. They dumped their school bags beside the pram. It was piled high with towels, beach bags, boogie boards and Rosieâs angel wings. âHello there, honey bun,â said Mum. She gave Lulu a hug. âHow was your day?â
âIt was great, Mum,â said Lulu. âGuess what Miss Baxterâs surprise was? She has asked us all to draw a design for a mural. Our class is going to do a giant painting on the fence of a new building site.â
Luluâs face shone with excitement.
âThat sounds like fun,â said Mum. âDo you have any ideas for it yet?â
âIâm not sure,â replied Lulu. She chewed her lip. âMiss Baxter said that the mural will be up for at least a year, so it needs to be very special. At first I thought about doing some flower fairies. But the building company wants the mural to be about our local community.â
âWell, perhaps you will get some ideas down at the beach,â replied Mum. âI thought we could go there straight away. Whereâs Rosie?â
Lulu waved her hand towards the hall. Rosie was surrounded by a group of girls. They were all chatting and giggling.
âBye, Ruby. Bye, Mia. See you tomorrow,â said Rosie. She ran towards her family. âHi, Mum. Did
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