We just launched the Del Marie Creamery blog today. Check it out, add it to your feed. Enjoy!
Life changed a lot when I went on sabbatical, resigned from WMF and decided to start a business. Sometimes I feel like this isn’t my life, it’s just something I’m watching happen to someone who looks like me (It can’t really be me, is it? That lady looks a little ‘fluffier’ that I do).
Now I own a 30 gallon cooler, 2 huge stock pots, lots of canning jars and a bottle full of culture. I am making yogurt at midnight. I’ll set my alarm to wake up at 3:30 am, get up and switch new hot water bottles into that cooler, then let it go another few hours.
I saw my sisters-in-law midday, looked at books with my niece, shot the breeze for a few and drank a cup of coffee.
I attended an event at the Kaneko this evening, for Caleb’s work. Mingled, drank some wine, ate some cheese, looked around, talked, and left when I wanted to. We stopped at Dwight and Janna’s on the way home to say hi and hang out for a bit.
We’re still getting settled in our house and I’m making another push after taking a nesting break. I bought curtains today, with some gift cards we got for Christmas. It makes it feel more homey here. If only the art was hung!
Tomorrow I’ll dine on fresh yogurt for breakfast before driving out to the farm with Annemarie to buy more milk, chat with the farmer and see those gorgeous jerseys.
I’m just trying to enjoy this phase where everything is new and exciting and fun. Some small progress seems to be made each day and every day our dream of Del Marie is one step closer to becoming a reality. Who knows how long this feeling will last. Eventually I’ll get a part-time job to help pay the bills. Pretty soon Del Marie will be up and running–a runaway train that demands its daily coal stoke. People say you lose sleep over it. I know that life might get hard soon but today I had a simple, lovely, full day. I want to remember this feeling forever.
When I laugh ’til I cry and it’s usually A) at Caleb or B) watching 30 Rock. Last night’s episode was the best! “Good God, Lemon!”
Happy New Year!!
Since I haven’t blogged much lately, I thought I’d post a portion of my January WMF letter for you, fine readers.
Some changes are going on around here and it’s high time I let everyone know.
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Sabbatical
The past six months in Minneapolis were everything I’d hoped it to be—in fact, it was more than I could have imagined. My life was surrounded by beauty and love, from the home we lived in to the friends we lived with to the beautiful scenery, lakes and trails to the Minneapolis art scene. I can’t imagine a better place for us to have been for my sabbatical.
Caleb and I departed for Minneapolis with a lot of excitement and our little car piled to the ceiling with books, clothes, art supplies, and two newly refurbished bikes on the back. We took it slow and on the way, celebrated our one-year wedding anniversary in Des Moines.
Our beautiful sabbatical home, affectionately named the Bonny Doon Homestead, is a big Victorian house located in the middle of the city. It is a community home, and during our stay we had Nikolas, Sharne, Ivy, Paul, Isaac and Matt as housemates (not all at once, though!).
The day we arrived, there were two small garden plots ready and waiting for me. Nikolas and Sharne (owners of the home) even had seedlings and seeds ready for me to plant. I was in the garden before I even unpacked. So dreamy! Caleb and I joked that if we were pioneers we’d be goners before the summer ended, but I had such fun practicing at gardening. Spending quiet hours in the sun and soil was so restorative to my soul. Gardening will continue to be a part of my life, it is something I bring back from sabbatical into my future.
I found (and Caleb rediscovered) lifelong friends in Nikolas, Sharne and Ivy. Wise sages who have been living in community for ten years, Nikolas and Sharne touched our lives in a deep and profound way. The pace and priorities of their lives inspired us; they mentored us in doing life, in our faith and in our marriage, not to mention all the big breakfasts, raucous laughter and just hanging out we did with them.
6-month-old Ivy immediately stole our hearts! We loved being able to watch her learn to sit, crawl, stand, make monkey/bear/cow noises, say Didi (my name of course!), laugh and dance to Caleb’s beatboxing. We were happy to be able to attend her 1-year birthday party the day before we left and honored to participate in her first year of life.
I did a lot of cooking, using our small garden pickings and the hefty CSA deliveries (community supported agriculture if you’re not familiar…check it out!). I learned new methods, tried out lots of Indian dishes and even ventured into Julia Child’s cookbook.
I saw tons of art, visiting museums, galleries and going to lots of art openings and art talks. I spent hours in the studio with Caleb and Bethany as they worked on paintings together. I even did some painting of my own.
I spent so much time on my bicycle, utilizing the amazing Minneapolis trails and bike lanes to ride to lakes and all around the city.
I skulked around the beautiful Minneapolis main library, reading in their big chairs and enjoying the beautiful architecture.
I met up with my pal Caron in Chicago and had the chance to be with Sarah for a few days on the beach in southern California. My parents and I had a wonderful time together in Wisconsin for a few days, (way too short!). Our friends, John and Annemarie, came up to visit and we vacationed at a cabin near the Boundary Waters. Several other friends came to visit us in Minneapolis and experience the same peace and rest at the Bonny Doon that we were able to have during sabbatical.
I had the chance to reflect with gratitude on the past, especially my last ten years of service with WMF. My ten year anniversary with WMF came when I was on sabbatical. I was able to simply be grateful for the time I’ve received there.
I was able to just be in the present. There are many days I sat on the porch at the Bonny Doon with an unread book sitting open on my lap. I would gaze at the garden, soak in the sun, and simply be. What a gift to be in the present – to receive the moment simply and fully.
I began to think about my future….and Caleb and my future together. I had the chance to assess and to dream. We began to see a new future open up before us, one that is more suitable to our new married life together–and one that surprisingly leads me away from WMF. I did not anticipate this happening, but I do know that many people (almost 80%!) who go on sabbatical move on to other service and employment after sabbatical. Speaking for myself, it was really helpful to pull over to the side of the road for a bit and to give thought to where the journey was taking me.
Ending my Service with Word Made Flesh
My decision to resign from WMF was a difficult one. I know there will be layers of saying goodbye and there will be mourning with that. But this decision comes with a lot of peace and anticipation. It may sound cliché, but one chapter is closing and another is opening. The season is changing. I have loved being a part of WMF and take with me so many experiences and memories that have changed me forever. I am grateful to my community for the love and support that I have been given all these years.
I have almost completely transitioned out of the office as of now, though most of that was done with my departure for sabbatical.
What’s Next for Daphne and Caleb?
We have discerned that the next season of our life is moving toward more involvement right here in Omaha. While I have loved being internationally-focused with WMF, this new phase is going to be locally-focused. Caleb and I feel very drawn to participate in the cultural, artistic and entrepreneurial life of the city. There is such a great energy in Omaha right now and we both feel inclined to bring our experience and skills to the table.
Caleb has started a new job at The Kaneko in Omaha. The Kaneko is a non-profit started by the international artist, Jun Kaneko, to provide education and opportunity for creativity in the arts, sciences, and philosophy. We’re excited about the chance to more fully participate in the Omaha arts community via his connection there.
I am in the planning phase of starting a new business with my friend and new business partner, Annemarie, called Del Marie Creamery. We are excited to support local dairy farmers by producing yummy cultured dairy products to be sold right here in Nebraska. A delicious, cream-top yogurt (made naturally from local grass-fed, kindly treated jersey cows) will be our first product and we hope to expand into fresh cheeses, butter, and other cultured products in the future. Stay tuned for more at delmariecreamery.com and on Twitter at del_marie.
Yet another change is that Caleb and I moved out of our apartment to a super cute rental house the week after we got back to Omaha. We love being able to spread out in a house and we are just a block away from our friends Matt, Julie, Finley and Clive! You can see a lot is going on lately, sometimes I can hardly believe it.
So, what are you up to these days? I wanna know!
First, a quick update to catch you up on my current predicament:
We’re back from sabbatical! Yes! Omaha is awesome! We moved from our small apartment to a 3-bedroom rental house two weeks ago. Since we arrived back in Omaha, I’ve been packing, unpacking, lifting, moving, rearranging, bringing home thrift store finds to fill our new home. Oh, and also shoveling out of the blizzard that arrived the day after we moved in, dumping 9 inches of snow on our house-on-the-corner.
So, last week I borrowed a truck to pick up a couch and a bookshelf from a thrift store. The bed was full of snow and I couldn’t get the hatch down. “No problem! I’ll shovel it out lickety split!” Regrettably, a foolish little voice inside flattered me into thinking I was strong enough to lift out big ice chunks over the side of the truck. And why not try an awkward twisting motion while you’re at it? Um, yeah. My back was not happy about that one.
Yesterday, after rearranging furniture, putting two coats of pain (er, paint rather!) on the new bookshelf and winterizing the windows, my already ailing lower back revolted against me. “I’ve had enough of this!” it said.
I needed help to get out of bed this morning, but no problem. It took me a few minutes to get down the stairs, but that’s okay. It wasn’t until I had spent five minutes trying to kick the sweatpants off the floor into my hand without bending over, that I realized this was not a productive or safe use of energy.
I went back to bed and Caleb, the dear, brought me coffee. I promptly spilled half of it all over my shirt while trying to sip it lying down. So he helped me to a sitting position, propped up pillows and brought me all the handwarmers that I’ve been hoarding in my sock drawer. He also set me up with books, computer and my phone and promised to come back to check on me at lunchtime.
Now, I sit here happily — propped up, with five warmers stuffed into my sweatpants. But that half-cup of coffee is processing and I gotta pee. I have four choices:
- hobble to the bathroom (ow)
- bedpan (not old enough to own one)
- soiled sheets (more work than it’s worth)
- urinary tract infection (hmmm)
Thankfully modern medicine can cure a number of personal mistakes. UTI and antibiotics it is!
I put together a little Minneapolis City Guide for my girls at Who Cares. Check it out!
The (viewable parts of the) Del-Leon honeymoon documented in one second Super8 snippets. This video is my new favorite, aside from Caleb who is my all-time forever favorite. It took us a year and three months to get it from Super8 to digital, but it was so worth the wait. Just please don’t let all the short clips cause a seizure — close your eyes if you get dizzy!
Music by Sigur Ros.
Well, I came back from vacation inspired. But before I can do the really inspiring stuff, I really need to unpack, do laundry, tend to my scraggly garden and make an appointment to get my equally scraggly hair cut. All that to say, this will be a quick post.
After the first day up at the boundary waters we realized it was so great that we needed to stay an extra day. It was beautiful and so refreshing to be with John and Annemarie. Although it rained most of the time, it let up in patches — enough to get in a few really gorgeous hikes. Despite the rain, the guys pressed through with fishing while Annemarie and I did some serious skin-tending in the awesome sauna. A lovely wettish canoe ride at dusk may have been the highlight for me. The chilly row in the mist made me feel like I was rowing a stone’s throw from Marilynne’s Robinson’s Housekeeping cover. Sigh.
With Annemarie and me together, in a cabin with an almost full kitchen, there simply had to be cooking. The best two meals had to be:
– A killer Indian menu from Julie Sahni’s Classic Indian Cooking that included Moghul Braised Chicken, Saffron Rice with Peaches (the peaches and pistachios made this the highlight of the entire meal), Lucknow Sour Lentils and Fresh Mint Relish (chopped, not pulverized in a food processor. so good with the chicken!)
– Beef Bourguignon with mashed potatoe. TO. DIE. FOR. Especially with the pearl onions cooked in white wine (rather than the same red as the beef). Like the rest of the country, we’ve been inspired to cook from Julia Child, Simone Beck and (with?) Louisette Bertholle’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I’m hooked. Luckily, I got a phone call from the bookstore saying a used copy came in that they’re holding for me. YES! Omelettes next, right Mele?
Check out Leon’s beautiful nature photography from our vacation here.
Signing off … maybe I’ll tell you about the fish I caught later.
I had an article published in the Lausanne World Pulse a while back. I just forgot to tell you about it.
This week I have that childlike excitement of looking forward to vacation. On Saturday our friends, John and Annemarie, will come visit us in Minneapolis for the weekend. Monday the four of us head to a little cabin up north for some serious relaxation. Our lakeside cabin has a sauna, deck and canoe to use — yes! I have a little to-do list to complete before taking off, but it’s not insurmountable. I am enjoying the getting ready part, which must mean that I have really unwound. It has been a long time since I’ve really enjoyed that period of looking forward to what’s next, rather than panicking about it. It feels really good.
Growing up, my mom taught us that looking forward to something is almost as much fun as doing it. The day after Thanksgiving, we’d go cut down our Christmas tree. We’d come home and Mom would turn on the Christmas music. Then she let it play straight through New Year’s. It was the same with vacations, we’d talk about and plan, start a bag of games and goodies and get excited about it weeks in advance.
My parents taught me that getting there is fun, too. We took a lot of road trips together, especially to visit my grandparents in Oklahoma. Dad would load the luggage in the car carrier on top of whatever station wagon we had at the time, which left the back cargo area free for us kids to stretch out. We lounged on blankets (no seatbelts, gulp!) and played games, read and listened to corny music.
My parents are pretty spontaneous and easy-going, which made for fairly peaceful car rides, aside from the general “Mom, she’s touching me!” and “Don’t make me stop this car and spank you” deal. We’d stop at what seemed like every lookout point, and Mom would exclaim about the beautiful view. That really irritated me as a teenager, but now I love it and do the exact same thing as her. We made frequent stops at rest stops, not just to go to the bathroom, but to stretch our legs and look around, too. We’d drive 15 hour days, but unless a snowstorm was coming in Albuquerque or a jack rabbit bone punctured our tire in the desert, they were relaxed about the schedule.
We always had a really good time together — well, except for the summer I was 14 when my parents were acting soooooo lame. Thankfully they grew out of it after a couple years, but it really took a lot of patience on my part. Mom and Dad held it together when my brother, Andrew, got the stomach flu directly after chowing down at Arby’s. And they somehow put up with Amelia and me the rest of the trip and years beyond, when we pointed out every Arby’s we drove past, just to make him mad (and hopefully nauseated). Vacation requires long-suffering!
Looking back so many things contributed to those good times: consciously looking forward to it, mindfully enjoying the journey, being spontaneous and laid-back, enjoying simple and inexpensive pleasures, stopping to notice the beauty of creation, practicing patience with each other and making sure the bags are packed with plenty of music, games and books.
So I’ve decided to practice some of my parents’ vacation tips this week. But as for entertainment — I’ve moved beyond The Music Machine, Nathaniel the Grublet, Coloforms, Nancy Drew and Encyclopedia Brown. Do any of you have suggestions for me?
