Some mark the end of summer with the beginning of school. Others mark it with Labor Day. In our family, we know summer has come to a sad end when it’s time to take the pool down.

But before emptying the 7600 gallons of water, there must be one final swim. One last hoorah, and today was the day. The air temperature was perfect, but the water temperature was, um, a bit chilly. I didn’t grab the video camera in time to catch Jake jump in, but he howled and shrieked for 30 seconds. Here are the other three boys entering the arctic waters:

If you listen closely, you can hear Ruth in the background yelling out to her brothers. I walked inside and saw this:

I’m guessing she may be part of that polar bear swim next year.