Feeling Connected – Namaste

At the start of the year I went on a 30 day yoga journey with Adriene. For the past couple of years I have had a major girl crush on YouTube sensation Adriene Mishler.

Adriene Mishler, from Austin, Texas hosts the YouTube channel Yoga With Adriene, an online community of over 4 million subscribers.

I have rolled out my mat a couple of times a week at home, first thing in the morning and felt a sense of calmness that came over me throughout the day afterwards.

Adriene combines studies of traditional yoga with developmental movement, storytelling and mindfulness. Her approach to regular self-care embodies a playfulness, wisdom and humor. She doesn’t take herself too seriously and yet somehow throws out of the TV screen, such warmth, love and connection.

At the start of the year I decided to follow her on her, now yearly, 30 days of yoga journey. This year was called ‘Dedicate’. I had done her 30 days of yoga previously, but never over 30 days and often started sometime during the year.

This year, my year, it was going to be different and I wanted to pay attention to my energy and how I could improve the way I felt and what I achieved. I wanted to feel more connected and I was hoping that this yoga journey would do exactly that.

Even though I was going to be traveling overseas, I was dedicated to trying to complete the journey within the 30 days and I decide to journal every day.

So how did I go? I completed the 30 days in about 40 days, because of illness. But throughout the 30 days (when I wasn’t sick) I felt amazing. Connected. Balanced. 100% in tune with myself and what makes me feel good. I absolutely felt a sense of calmness, within the busy rush of life. I felt more present.

Adriene through her yoga, tells a story. The practices can be a maximum of about 45 minutes and they range in  time frame with the majority of them being about 20 minutes. It’s a perfect amount of time in the morning to connect with yourself and take a small amount of time to ‘find what feels good’ within.

I’m currently rolling out the mat, each morning to complete Day 25 over and over again. It’s only 13 minutes and is a wonderful way to start my day. Each day tells a different story within the journey and Day 25 is ‘Feel Alive’.

I read an article the other day that discussed that it doesn’t matter how long you spend on the mat each day, it’s with consistent practice that the real benefits of regular yoga practice bring.

Yoga With Adriene (YWA) was recognized by Google as the most searched workout of 2015, has been recognized by The Wall Street Journal and was awarded a Streamy in Health and Wellness in 2016.

So that’s my tip for being connected. If your looking for something that you haven’t found, I would start looking within. Here’s a great place to start: https://yogawithadriene.com/

“Yoga is not about touching your toes, it is what you learn on the way down.” – Jiagr Gor

 

 

 

 

 

Candles and music always helps

After a decade of parenting I have learnt a thing or two. My theory that candles and music always helps, still stands true to this day. As a Mum you are always learning. From that first moment you find out that you are expecting, to the first glance at your precious bundle of joy. Baby books can only teach you so much, because the real learning actually comes from experience and in my experience the sharing of stories with other Mums and Dads.

A decade on for me and I can honestly say that the learning continues, changes and only seems to get more complicated when you start to tackle the issues of life, death and love. The balancing act of wanting to empower your children, educate them and yet protect them from the harsh reality of the world around them seems to be a never ending juggling act. Keeping those balls up in the air and moving in a happy way is an ongoing task.

Sometimes that task can be overwhelming. And that’s perfectly normal and ok. But, one thing that I have learnt over the years, is that no matter what, candles and music always make things better. I strongly believe that this is true no matter the age of the person involved.

Imagine you are slightly upset with your partner, or not, you walk into the room and you see some candles lit, music playing, a glass of wine – the mood in the room changes you immediately. You really appreciate the effort and feel more relaxed, open to discussion or relax into the moment.

The other night my little man came to the dinner table and his first response when seeing the thoughtfully prepared Spanish Omelette was “Yuck”! Just what you want to hear after a day at work, right? So, instead of loosing my mind, I headed straight for my trusty theory that ‘candles and music always helps’. The little guy selected his favourite song, which at the moment is Bruno Mars, Count on Me. A great song for kids to be obsessed about. I headed for a beautifully fragrant candle and BOOM the mood has changed and he gobbled up his dinner.

Double bonus is that he wasn’t allowed to blow out the candle until his dinner is finished. What kid doesn’t like to blow out a candle? #winning!

Another ritual that we have started in our family is for the kids to tell us three stories at every mealtime. Two things that they really liked about the day and one thing that they didn’t.

Making the time for family storytelling is a great way to build connections with your children. It helps them to develop their communication skills and the information you receive during this relaxed dinner table conversation can be priceless.

So this is my tip to any tired Mum or Dad trying to feed kids who are just as tired and cranky as you are. Light some candles, put on some awesome music and make family mealtime a special time.