Well, that's over

Ready for the first wave in eight minutes. 

The above picture means my classroom is ready. It also means the summer is concluded. Sam and Caroline return to their school tomorrow. I have one day of teaching under my belt, which means another summer of Fridays is only 183 teaching days away.

I don't know how to summarize this summer, other than to say that I leave it stunned at how good, how mature, how fun of kids my Sam and Caroline are. They grew up a lot this summer. I trusted them with more this summer, and they rarely let me down. Other summers stand out for me in terms of trips taken or experienced, uh, experienced. This one will be the year I remember of my two children really acting more like big kids, and I mean that in every positive way I can.

Caroline's fall fashion show. 

At Woody's, Hartford.