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Herb Stickle made round bales this year. They looked very handsome standing in the field. Sarah, our resident equestrian, described the difference between square bales and round bales: “Square bales are single-serve; round bales are a buffet.”

It is very late in the season to be making hay. I was starting to get more than a little nervous that Herb Stickle wouldn’t show up this year, leaving me to mow umpteen acres of high grass. But Jen and I heard the roar of the mower over the hill while out walking. It was a great relief!

We were more than a bit wistful Sunday evening when it was time to head back to New York after six months (for me, to the day) at the farm. Sarah stared at the hazy sky while Daisy ran over to see what she was doing.

Daisy wasn’t thrilled about heading back to town either.

So far we have had spectacular weather for Labor Day weekend. On Friday we had a visit from Ivan and Elizabeth Saperstein, who brought fried chicken. We contributed a salad from our overflowing supply of tomatoes and cucumbers.

Today, Daisy grazed near the hammock where I spent part of the afternoon, resting after a morning bout of vine-cutting.

Labor Day is alway a bit wistful, a punctuation mark at the end of summer. It is even more so this year. After almost exactly six months here, we will return to New York next Sunday. Sarah returns to school in person on September 16.

Here is Jen, harvesting carrots and tomatoes from her resplendent garden.

And here she is on the sun porch, worrying about Concord Academy’s return-to-school plans. She has many under her care!

Petty well, I would say.

This evening we had dramatic skies, and reflections, after a Sunday thunderstorm. Sarah and Jen spent much of the day in Kingston, gathering supplies for Sarah’s new mask-making business, while I battled various invasive vines in the woods and Daisy slept on the front stoop.

This is about as close as one might want to come to a coyote — and possibly a bit closer. This one wandered into the yard next to the cottage while I was working.

It is unquestionably fully summertime, with temperatures in the nineties, full-scale jam operations underway, and lazy afternoons in the pond.

Here is Daisy performing her nightly task of clearing the deer from the field.

This week we had a visit from John Harris and his boys, who, together with their yellow lab Milo, are driving cross country to visit John’s mother in Little Compton, Rhode Island. It is always great to see the Harris family, and Daisy and Milo got along like old friends.