A countryside gathering for women to slow down, share food, and reconnect

A slow day in the countryside centered around food, conversation, and reconnecting with yourself.

Many women spend years holding everything together — work, family, responsibilities, expectations — until one day they realize they’ve lost connection with themselves along the way.

When was the last time you had a full day that wasn’t about productivity, performance, or taking care of everyone else?

A Day at the Table is a one-day gathering designed to offer something many of us rarely give ourselves: the space to slow down, breathe deeply, share good food, and reconnect with what matters.

This isn’t a workshop or a wellness seminar. It’s simply a day to step away from the pace of everyday life and gather in the countryside for something simple and meaningful — a shared meal, thoughtful conversation, and time on the land.

Throughout the day we’ll cook together, enjoy a long lunch around the farmhouse table, walk the pastures, and create space for reflection and connection with other women navigating similar seasons of life.

The day is intentionally spacious and unhurried, with time to journal, rest, walk the trails, or simply sit with a cup of tea and breathe.

The Setting

This gathering takes place in the quiet countryside at St. Isidore’s Dairy, just outside Osseo, Wisconsin.

This is a small dairy farm surrounded by grasslands, gardens, and open sky. The farm is home to a small herd of Jersey cows who graze the pastures, along with gardens, pollinator habitat, and a landscape cared for with attention to biodiversity and soil health.

Over time the farm has grown into something that feels a bit like a sanctuary — a place where the rhythm of life is guided more by seasons, animals, and the land than by schedules and deadlines.

Throughout the day you’ll have the opportunity to walk the pastures, meet the cows, wander the trails, or simply sit quietly under the trees.

For many people, simply spending time in a place like this — where things move more slowly and naturally — creates the space needed to breathe, reflect, and reconnect.

The Heart of the Day: The Table

At the center of the gathering is a shared meal — one we prepare together and enjoy slowly around the farmhouse table.

The meal is inspired by the kind of long countryside lunches that have always brought people together — meals where food tells the story of the land and the people who grow it.

Throughout the morning we’ll gather in the kitchen while the meal comes together. The ingredients come from the farm itself and from a small circle of nearby farmers — many of them women — who grow food with deep care for their land.

You may taste:

• cheeses made from the milk of the Jersey cows grazing in the pasture outside

• honey harvested from hives on the farm

• teas grown just down the road

• seasonal ingredients grown by neighboring regenerative farmers

• simple dishes prepared in the farmhouse kitchen

As we prepare the meal, we’ll talk about the stories behind the food — where it came from, who grew it, and how food has always been one of the most powerful ways people gather and reconnect.

Food is one of the oldest ways we return to ourselves.

Come hungry, curious, and comfortable.

You’ll leave with a full belly, a full heart, and perhaps a new way of thinking about the food you eat and the pace at which you live.

A Note About the Kitchen

While we will spend time in the kitchen as the meal comes together, this is not a cooking class.

Think of it more like being welcomed into someone’s kitchen while a meal slowly unfolds.

You’re welcome to participate in small ways if you’d like — tasting ingredients, stirring a pot, helping plate something for the table — but there’s no expectation to cook, measure, or follow recipes.

You’re just as welcome to stand nearby with a cup of tea, ask questions, enjoy the smells of the kitchen, and watch the meal come together.

You won’t need to worry about recipes, timing, or dishes.

This is a chance to experience food in a different way — slowly, curiously, and without the pressure of having to produce the meal yourself.

You’re welcome to participate as much or as little as you like.

Why the Table Matters

This gathering is shaped by many of the practices that helped me find my way back to myself during a season of burnout and reflection.

One of the most important of those practices was something very simple: returning to the table.

Again and again, I found that the act of preparing a meal, sitting down with good food, and allowing a conversation to unfold slowly had a way of bringing me back to myself.

When we cook together, taste food grown with care, and gather around a shared table, something shifts. We slow down. We listen differently. We remember that nourishment is not only about what we eat, but about the people and the stories that surround the meal.

The table becomes the place where the day unfolds — where conversation deepens, laughter appears easily, and people begin to feel less alone in what they are carrying.

This gathering is simply an invitation to return there.

A Sample Rhythm for the Day

While the day is intentionally spacious and relaxed, many guests appreciate having a sense of how the time may unfold. Think of the day less as a strict schedule and more as a rhythm — moving between the kitchen, the land, and the table.

9:00–9:30 — Arrival at the Farmhouse Kitchen

Arrive anytime during this window. Settle in with coffee or tea, meet the other women, and take a moment to arrive fully into the day.

9:30 — Gathering Around the Table

We’ll begin together in the farmhouse kitchen with a welcome and a brief introduction to the day ahead.

10:00 — A Walk Through the Pastures

We’ll step outside for a slow walk through the farm. You’ll meet the Jersey cows, see the grasslands, and experience the land that produces many of the foods we’ll share later.

11:00 — The Kitchen & The Stories of the Food

Back in the kitchen, the midday meal begins to come together. During this time we’ll explore the ingredients we’re using and the farmers and land that produced them.

12:30 — The Long Lunch

We’ll sit down together for a slow countryside-style meal around the farmhouse table. This shared meal is the heart of the day.

1:45 — Quiet Farm Time

After lunch, the afternoon opens up. You’re welcome to journal, read, walk the trails, rest in the shade, or simply enjoy the quiet countryside.

2:30 — Dessert, Tea & Conversation at the Table

We’ll gather once more around the table for tea or coffee and a simple dessert. During this time Inga will share reflections drawn from her own journey — how food, land, and gathering around the table helped her reconnect with herself during seasons of burnout and change.

3:00–4:00 — Open Farm Time & Departure

You’re welcome to depart anytime after 3:00, or stay a little longer to take another walk through the pasture, sit under a tree, journal, or simply enjoy the quiet of the countryside.

Participation in every part of the day is always optional.

You’re Welcome to Come Alone

Many women attend gatherings like this on their own — and that’s exactly how this day is designed.

You don’t need to bring a friend with you to feel comfortable here. From the moment you arrive in the kitchen, the day is built around shared conversation, preparing food together, and gathering around the table in a relaxed and welcoming way.

If anything, coming alone often allows people to settle in more fully — to meet new people, to reflect, and to experience the day without needing to take care of anyone else.

This is a space where you can simply arrive as you are.

What to Bring

Bring whatever helps you feel comfortable and relaxed.

You may want to bring:

• Comfortable clothes for the weather

• Barn boots or sturdy shoes for walking the pasture (extras available)

• A journal if you enjoy writing

• A good book if you’d like quiet reading time

• A water bottle

• Sunscreen or bug spray if you prefer

We’ll spend time both indoors and outdoors throughout the day — around the kitchen table, walking the pastures, meeting the cows, tasting cheese, and sharing food.

You’re always welcome to participate in whatever parts of the day feel right for you.

Your Host

Inga Orth is a fourth-generation farmer, licensed Wisconsin cheesemaker, and the former host and creator of the PBS television series Around the Farm Table.

For more than a decade, the show blended cooking, farming, and storytelling as Inga traveled across Wisconsin meeting farmers and bringing their ingredients back to the kitchen. The series highlighted seasonal food, regenerative agriculture, and the deep connection between the land and the meals we share.

During those years, however, Inga was also quietly experiencing deep burnout — the result of years spent overachieving and trying to hold too many responsibilities at once.

After stepping away from filming, she began the slow work of finding her way back to herself.

Today, Inga lives and works at St. Isidore’s Dairy, where she cares for a small herd of Jersey cows and produces farmstead cheese.

This gathering is shaped by that journey — and by the belief that sometimes the most meaningful way to reconnect with ourselves is through good food, honest conversation, and time spent around a table together.

Event Details

Date: Friday, May 15, 2026

Time: 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Arrival Window: 9:00–9:30 AM

Location:

St. Isidore’s Dairy

Osseo, Wisconsin

The exact address will be shared after registration.

Investment: $325

Lunch, refreshments, and the full retreat experience are included.

Group Size

This gathering is intentionally limited to 12 women so the day feels relaxed, personal, and welcoming.

A smaller group allows for meaningful conversation, space to connect with one another, and the freedom to participate in whatever way feels comfortable.

Accessibility

The gathering takes place on a countryside farm, and portions of the day include walking on uneven ground such as pasture and gravel paths.

At this time, the farm is not wheelchair accessible, and we want to be transparent about that so guests can make the best decision for themselves.

Participation in outdoor portions of the day is always optional, and indoor spaces are available throughout the gathering.

Cancellation Policy

Because this gathering is intentionally small and each seat is limited, registrations are non-refundable.

If you find that you’re unable to attend, you’re welcome to transfer your spot to another guest.

A Final Invitation

If life has been asking a lot of you lately, this is an invitation to step away for a day.

Spend time on the land, cook and share a beautiful meal, connect with thoughtful women, and give yourself permission to slow down.

Take a seat at the table.