our-yoga

Now that my girl is nearly two years old she's saying all kinds of things. Some of them are less than pleasant, like yesterday when she screamed "NO, Mommy, NO!" as loud as she possibly could for a solid 5 minutes while I was trying to interview a source for an article. (To my credit, this particular interview had been scheduled for nap time but the source wasn't available then and called me back later--when my daughter was feeling particularly disagreeable.)

But she also says a lot of really insightful things that, with a little imagination, can could easily be really profound themes for a yoga class.

Things like:

1. "Take ya time, Mommy! Take ya time!" Confession. She got this little phrase directly from an episode of American Idol a couple of weeks ago when we had it on in the background as my daughter played in the floor because she was refusing to sleep at her predetermined bedtime (8 p.m.). She looked up just at the moment when one of the judges told a contestant not to rush through a song. "Just take your time." My sweet girl has been reminding me to slow down, move more deliberately, and stop re-examine my definition of the word "late."

2. "This is fun! This is fun! This is fun!" Sometimes it's swinging at the park or bouncing with me on my yoga ball. Other times it's just running in circles around the living room or throwing a toy for the dog. My little one feels (and expresses) joy and happiness in so many moments that I take for granted each and every day.

3. "Wake up!" It's true that these words are most often uttered at me when I'm pretending to be asleep on the couch--often following the direction of a toddler with mad leadership skills who just told me to "Close ya eyes!" But, I also think that she might be catching on that life is a lot better when you're fully engaged in the moment. There are many times when I'm basically asleep at the wheel--incessantly checking my email or Facebook feed while I could be taking in (and enjoying--see No. 2 above!) the moment.

I can't wait to find out what's going to come out of her mouth next. Om Namah Shivaya?

What profound little nuggets have you heard your little ones say?

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When I was pregnant I thought I'd need a million different things to help me care for my baby--from cribs and co-sleepers to bouncy chairs and Bumbos--my Must Buy List was impressively long. I used all of that stuff a little bit (though, admittedly, there were some gadgets that I barely got out of the packaging before my daughter had outgrown them). But nothing (really, NOTHING!) has turned out to be as useful as my yoga ball (also known as exercise or stability balls). Yoga balls are inexpensive, fun, and, most important, versatile--seriously, they have a million different uses.

For example:

1. Back savers. When I was in my third trimester of pregnancy, there were two things that could ease my low back pain. One was a vibrating lumbar pillow that I used behind my desk and behind the wheel of my car every single day (kind of like this one). The other was squatting in the floor with my back leaded up against my yoga ball.

2. Inducing labor? I heard that bouncing on a yoga ball is a way to start contractions and ultimately induce labor. I'm pretty sure this is a crock of crap (it definitely did not work for me!), but I'm throwing it out there just in case.

3. Laboring at home. Once my labor started, my plan was to stay at home for as long as I possibly could so there would be fewer chances for interventions that I did not want at the hospital. Of course, I ended up rushing to the hospital positive I was going to have a baby any minute, then spent a good 8 more hours in a hospital bed before I finally got to meet my little one. In any case, for the early part of labor it was nice to have a yoga ball ("birthing ball") to help me move into different positions to get as comfortable as possible.

4. Colic calmer. Until my baby was a good 9 or 10 months old there was really only one way to calm her down when she cried--cradling her in my arms while I bounced gently on my yoga ball. I was elated when she finally let me sit in a rocking chair with a nice, solid back to rock her to sleep instead of bouncing. But, honestly, bouncing on a ball was definitely better than, say, walking the halls with her strapped to me in her Moby Wrap.

5. Indoor playground equipment. When my little one had gained good control over her head, she giggled with delight when I put her on her belly on the ball and gently rolled her back and forth. Once she learned to stand on her own, the ball made for an excellent bongo drum!

6. It "tickles" my toddler. Now that my little one is 21 months old, we've been using the ball a lot again. One of her favorite things to do (again!) is to sit on my lap as I bounce up and down on the ball. When she was teeny tiny, my bouncing was to soothe her. Now, the bouncing is strictly for entertainment purposes. There's nothing more gratifying than hearing your toddler laugh and say (in a voice that sounds so grown up it's crazy!), "This is fun, Mommy! This is FUN!"

So there you have it.

If you're a mommy-to-be who I love and adore in real life (as opposed to just online) and you get a yoga ball from me as a gift, please do NOT think for a second I'm interested in encouraging you to "lose the baby weight" after you give birth. Please don't worry about that at all. You have your whole life to think about how you look in a bikini, but these precious moments with your little one will be over in the blink of an eye. Your body is amazing! It grew a person! I digress.

A yoga ball (exercise ball, stability ball, birthing ball, whatever you want to call it) was one of the best things I had as a new mama. If you've got one in your house already, I hope this post will give you some ideas about how to use it with your little one. If not... Buy one immediately! :) Here's a link to the the one I have.

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There are many reasons a new mom needs a good yoga mat--the most obvious (and most important!) one being that when that little cherub of yours is sleeping soundly, you're going to need something you can do in the house to maintain your sanity (and laundry isn't going to be much help, trust me!). It's also a great idea to let your little one see that you take care of yourself. In the almost two years my daughter has been in this world, I've found there a few other practical uses for yoga mats than actually practicing yoga when you have a baby. I'll share them below.

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Yes...



No...



Any questions?

P.S. I wasn't going to post this video of me with my wee one. I wanted to re-record my awkward instructions, but I never got around to it. But when a new video surfaced last week similar to the one above of a woman swinging her new born around coined "baby yoga" I decided to post our version of yoga and show how incredibly different the two are.

Please, oh please, stop calling the exercise in the latter video "baby yoga." OK? Thank you.

we recommend you to buy some goods below for comfort, safety and ease of your yoga activities

Image via Flickr

It's confession time.

I didn't take a shower yesterday. And you know what? I might be a lot stinkier in the days and weeks to come. Here's why.

I recently read an article about how meditation can help you become a better leader (and, frankly, a better person in general). It was written by someone who should know. A Harvard Business School professor... isn't that like the leader of the smartest leaders like.. anywhere? It's a great read--go ahead, see for yourself.

At this point you might be wondering what the heck this has to do with my lack of personal hygiene. Let me explain. I'm a work-from-home mom now, so I juggle my part-time writing work and a baby who sometimes demands more attention than I ever imagined could be possible. My little one is going through a phase (a phase that has lasted pretty much since she was born, except the week or two when she was a newborn and I was pretty sure she hated my guts) where she sleeps approximately 10 minutes when I put her down in her crib for a nap. After that she starts screaming. I go get her. She falls asleep in my arms again. Lather, rinse, repeat.

10 minutes. 10 precious minutes is all I have to do something for myself. In that time, I have a choice to make: I could do a little work. I could write a blog post. I could answer emails. I could shower. OR I could simply close my eyes and pay attention to my breath.

So if I have to be a little stinkier to be a better leader (a.k.a. better mom, better yoga teacher, better writer, and generally a better person) so be it! This is one of the many perks of staying at home--I can be stinky and no one has to know... unless I write about it on my blog... Don't judge me!

Smell ya later.*

*Direct quote from The Fresh Prince

we recommend you to buy some goods below for comfort, safety and ease of your yoga activities