A new book for new moms

Yesterday I received books ordered online at Hay House Publishing's site for a steal at $5 each (a holiday special). Some of the books usually sell for $15-$30 so I felt like I found some bargains and wonderful gifts as well. I found one for myself called The Mommy Chronicles by Sara Ellington and Stephanie Triplett. It's a collection of real e-mails between two girlfriends who both are pregnant for the first time a few weeks apart. They keep in touch through birth and new motherhood via electronic mail since they live in different areas of the country.

I started reading it last night, and it's really entertaining. Reminds me a lot of e-mails between myself and some of my friends who are pregnant or have already given birth. In fact, my good friend Shannan had her second baby yesterday morning! It's a boy, and they named him Drew Miles! (She didn't find out the sex and kept the name a secret.) Now she has a boy and a girl, which is awesome because it sounds like she's done with pregnancy, no matter what they ended up having! Congratulations Shannan and Kurt!

Back to the book. Seems like the pregnancy section of the book must be a small percentage of the actual content, and the book is more focused on being new mothers (I'm on page 25, and they are both over halfway done with the pregnancy. The book is 231 pages total.) Not sure if I'm quite ready to read about the baby actually being here - I'm definitely more nervous about taking care of the baby versus the labor. It's basically a simple, time comparison; labor, hopefully, will take hours versus child rearing, which is FOREVER! OK, breathe deeply - inhale, exhale. I'm better now... I'll keep reading and will let you know what I think, but so far so good.

Finding yoga sequences online - priceless

Found this yoga sequence specific for those in the second trimester on http://www.healthandyoga.com/. Added it to del.ico.us! I'll try it out soon and will let you know what I think.

I'm elated the weekend is finally here, and I can chill. Work has heated up a bit for me, so I will enjoy having some downtime. I teach a hatha yoga class tomorrow morning and then have nothing the rest of the weekend. Plus the weather is supposed to be icy and snowy in Kansas City so we'll probably have to stay in - fine by me. I must admit I enjoy couch time - if my husgand read this he'd say that's an understatement! I follow the scientific rule of a body in motion stays in motion and a body at rest stays at rest.

I should take advantage of being at home and hang artwork I've had for three months sitting against my guest bedroom wall, but I'm nervous to do it since we have plaster walls. My parents were planning to visit and help me do some of this type of stuff around the house (we moved in about five months ago). However, their drive is three hours and with the winter-weather conditions, it didn't seem worth it. Hopefully the weather will be nicer next weekend, and they can visit then - my mom is good at decorating so I need her help!

I guess even when you're about to be a mommy a girl still needs her mommy.

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Heartbreak for my hometown

I debated whether or not to write about this, but I just have to address the deadly shooting that took place in Omaha, Neb., yesterday. The reason it really haunts me is because I grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa right across the Missouri River from Omaha. Hearing the news broke my heart.

I didn't know any of the victims but the news was still shocking, nonetheless. The randomness of it makes it even more perplexing. Why take the lives of people you don't even know? Why kill another human being, period? I guess there is no reasoning behind it, but how does one move forward from something like this?

Maybe the teachings of The Secret are the answer. The main point of it, at least to me, seems to be to reverse negative thoughts to positive ones to bring about what you want not only in your own life but in the world. So if you're against the war, don't protest the war, instead have a peace rally. 'What we resist, persists' so next time you see a news story about the shooting, change the channel or stop reading so you don't dwell on it (in fact, I originally had a hyperlink to a CNN story about the event in the first paragraph, but I removed it because I didn't want to perpetuate.).

Let's all pray and envision a peaceful and safe society for us all to live in - our minds are powerful things so let's use them in a positive way.

A DVD for the pregger yogini

Have you ever tried Yoga Zone's DVD Postures for Pregnancy? The instructor says it's safe for all three trimesters of pregnancy, which is convenient. The pregnant lady performing the postures looks about ready to pop so it must be okay for me being only at the beginning of the second trimester. I just completed a few chapters of it - never seem to have enough time in the morning!

Checked it out at the local library (I LOVE the the library!) and have done it a few times. It's a little slower than what I'm used to and is more Iyengar (form-focused) versus Vinyasa-style yoga (linking the breath with the movement), which is my favorite type of yoga. However, I feel great after doing a few chapters of it this a.m.

The instructor is actually the husband of the pregnant lady showing the postures - Alan Finger and his wife Greta. He seems to know a lot about alignment, but he has a bit of an accent (British I think) and pronounces words differently than I'm used to, which distracts me a bit.

Overall, I recommend this DVD, which I think is overdue at the library, so I better return it! Maybe I'll buy it or just check it out again in a few months.

Lego my Ego please

Taught my Wednesday night, YMCA power yoga class and had a full room, which is always exciting (I can't help the ego sometimes.) I've been trying to guide the class more with my voice than by demonstrating physically up in the front, to prepare for when my bump grows so big I won't be able to touch my toes. I'm feeling more comfortable with this teaching style and feel like I am helping as well. If I do "correct" students, I usually try to do it verbally or demonstrate next to them how to alter what they are doing for the best alignment. I'm still not super comfortable with touching people, but every once in a while I will lightly touch to show the area that I'm talking about if verbal cues don't seem to be getting anywhere (i.e., between the shoulder bladed in down dog so they'll release more deeply.)

Any suggestions out there on what's right or wrong, good or bad? Keep in mind, I teach at a YMCA, not a yoga studio, however these people are kind of hard core yogis and know their stuff more than you might think so I don't think they'd mind physical adjustments. But I just remember how I felt when I received my first adjustment and wasn't expecting it - plus it kind of hurt my ego - there's that pesky ego again.

Oh my goodness, I didn't realize it was so late - better hit the hay.

Showing at 15 weeks - RAMA?

Apparently I'm beginning to show. The last few days, once I break the news to someone, he or she says, "I was wondering..." Well, what's that supposed to mean?? Is the bump really that noticeable? I can still fit into my normal jeans without any struggle. In fact, some of my pants fit me better now - I swear my butt is getting smaller while my belly enlarges! Fine by me!

Since I'm beginning to show, I figure I better start looking for some maternity yoga clothes. Surfing online, I'm not seeing much and what I am seeing is kind of pricey. After googling "pregnancy yoga clothes" I found a decent article on this topic, such as where to shop and what you should buy on www.BabyFit.com. Here's the list of suggestions for mothers to be in terms of workout gear:

• 1 pair maternity fitness shorts
• 1 pair maternity yoga pants (long or capri); for yoga or any activity
• 2 really good and supportive bras
• 1 supportive swimsuit for any kind of water workout
• 2 maternity tanks or tees for layering

Since I teach yoga 3x week, I'm not sure if that's enough yoga pants... guess I'll be a smelly teacher! :)

Being grateful is so RAMA

Today I actually felt awake the first time in months, for a Monday that is. Maybe it’s because I’m finally out of the first trimester, but I think it also has to do with the fact that I did a little yoga this morning (which I have been negligent on doing consistently in the a.m. the past few months). Also I set my intentions for the day and gave thanks. I discovered this process from a John Gray book called How to get what you want and want what you have. First, I get comfortable, usually on my back with my hands open to the sky and I start to say, “God (or whomever you want to talk to) my heart is open to you, please come into my heart.” I say it on every finger of my hands until they start to tingle and I feel physically connected. Then I state how I want my day to unfold and the following:
* What I’m happy about
* Who / what I love
* What I’m confident about
* What I’m grateful for
* And I always end with saying I’m grateful to you God for EVERYTHING!

Well I haven’t set my intentions or really prayed for a while. I hate to admit that, but when things are going well in my life, I tend to feel like it’s not necessary and then things start to fall apart. So this morning in savasana, I set my intentions, and I really do think it helps my day go more smoothly and brings to fruition what I want to happen.

Thank you GRATITUDE!

Sundays are so RAMA!

So I'm starting my blog, which I have been procrastinating for MONTHS! I never think I have enough to write about, but I guess one has to start somewhere ... so here it goes. I found this quote to illustrate what I mean (I love quotes and will probably share them a lot.)

"A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step." --Lao Tzu

Sundays have such possibility to them, but then I always feel like I didn't accomplish enough and dread the coming Monday back to work. Although today I think I did do enough and my body is agreeing with me. First I walked Charlie (our lab/border collie), and then I did some yoga - since I just began my second trimester, I've been exploring various prenatal DVDs. I gave Penatal Vinyasa Yoga with Jennifer Wolfe to my sister-in-law when she was pregnant last year, and she gave it back to me. I wasn't sure how long the DVD ran because my first time I only did about 20 minutes of it... this time I did an hour and ended up fast forwarding the last 10-15 minutes to the guided relaxation so it must be about 75 minutes long. It's a good series of asanas or poses if you enjoy Vinyasa-style yoga where you're linking the breath with the movement, but I wish it was broken down into bite-size pieces, like 20-minute segments.

After cooking some sad looking hashbrowns for me and my husband, we ended up raking the yard together. Our street is beautifully lined with old Elm trees and I love looking at them every time I turn onto our street, except for this time of year. Neither of us enjoy doing yard work, but at least we got it done. My legs and arms are definitely feeling a little sore; hope I'm not stiff tomorrow. I should do a few poses before I go to bed - yoga is always the answer.

Let me know if you have any prental yoga DVDs, CDs and books you'd like to share. I'll keep sharing as well.