End of Summer on the Farm

Whelp, late summer farm mama exhaustion has officially set in. I swear, this time of year is just like that last couple of weeks of pregnancy. It seems to last even longer because the end is in sight.

Don't get me wrong - I love this time of year. Cooler evenings, brisk mornings and sunny, warm afternoons, the last of the garden's harvest continuing to roll in and fill the table . . . But it also has me day-dreaming of the end of canning season and a cozy spot next to the fire with a book or a new knitting project.

Not there yet. There is still a calf to be born any day now (hopefully not while Jeff and the kids are away hunting), so much food yet to put by, and a hoard of naughty piglets and chickens who have discovered my tomato patch. Honestly, just about cried this morning when I saw the nearly ripe fruit within piglet distance completely devoured.

Ruby the farm dog is still convalescing from her surgery (in the house), which means this Mama has had to sleep on the couch to make sure her and her GIGANTIC cone of shame don't destroy the place, and take her out for her multiple nocturnal patrols of the perimeter.

And a late summer cold born in on the runny nose of little nephews means this week will be spent nursing a sick kid instead of finishing the last of the tomato canning (before the animals treat themselves!)

That's the thing about farming. It buttresses the most beautiful, heart-filling moments right up against ones that make you want to burn the whole place down in a fit of rage.

You can't have one without the other.

As always.

Best,
S