Another Labor Day, another chance to honor hard work by taking a few days off—like our NYC editor, Raven, who is away in Martha's Vineyard celebrating the end of summer. Even without her here, Mommy Poppins can lead the charge away from labor this holiday weekend, and toward all that is fun, festive and/or FREE this week, in easy reach of the city. Feel free to bury your heads in the sand for one more weekend before facing the back-to-school music.

Care to escape the city for, say, Elizabethan England? It's never too late (or at least not until late September); the New York Renaissance Faire is still going strong in Tuxedo Park, including the holiday Monday. Or spend a few corny hours in Sleepy Hollow for Philipsburg Manor's CORNucopia celebration in Westchester.

If you're headed for the Hamptons this weekend, there's a Pow Wow worth stopping in on, and our New Jersey team has several suggestions for day trips in the Garden State (or you plan-ahead types can take a look at upcoming September festivals in NJ). Connecticut has fairs and festivals popping up all over this holiday weekend, including a life-affirming Labor Day parade in Newtown.

And wherever you spend this holiday weekend, make sure you take a minute to enter our Cinderella ticket giveaway. One lucky family will win four tickets to see the musical on Broadway!

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week: