How many of you have children?  Do your kids like to laugh, play, be wild, be crazy, jump, roll, kick, flip, and so on?  I know my kids love all of these things, and with kids yoga they can do it all and with a purpose!

For a few years now my kids have joined my husband and I in our yoga practice, they haven’t been on a daily practice like us but when ever they want to do it it’s available.  In the past few weeks I’ve encouraged them to do it more often and I can see the positive effects.

My daughter Kayleen sometimes has a very hard time focusing in her school work but when I turn on the yoga video she’s fully present.  She moves through each pose, sometimes giggling, sometimes singing, and other times quiet and meditative.  I’ve tried a little experiment with her, right after she’s done we go right into school work and I’ve noticed she can focus much better.  I would expect that since I know I focus much better after I’ve done a really good yoga set.

First of all  Yoga is awesome, it’s so good for you, and when done often it’s positive effects are abundant.  I really encourage all of you to look into it not only for yourself but for your kids too.  It is so cool to be in the next room and hear my kids chanting, “I am bountiful, I am blissful, I am beautiful.”  This is something they do in Snatam Kaurs Kid’s Yoga video, my favorite video for the.  And I love watching them act like different kinds of animals in the yoga video, “From Silly To Calm.”

So to sum this up I can only say, “Kid’s Yoga Rocks!”

When I was pregnant with my third child Bodhi, I decided to have a very conscious pregnancy.  I began reading all I could about Pregnancy Yoga, natural birth, and so on.  I was most impressed by Gurmuks book, “Bountiful, Beautiful, Blissful.”  Her book is a step by step guide through a a pregnancy while practicing Kundalini Yoga.  Each trimester has a set of special meditations to connect with yourself and your baby, and I learned so many new things that.

I learned that in  the ancient tradition of yoga and meditation there is a special celebration during pregnancy to honor the soul who arrives on the 120th day after conception (the fourth month). It is believed when the soul enters the body, a baby’s subconscious mind begins to develop and absorb a multitude of messages. This is marked as a very important time to protect and pay keen attention to the messages we feed ourselves and we allow in (from the conversations we have, the music we listen to, and to the over exposure to electromagnetic fields like cell phones, computers, microwave ovens, etc.)

With this knowledge my husband and I set off to have the best pregnancy we could have.  I ate no animal products, only listened to calm and soothing music, did morning yoga each day, meditated, went on walks each day during the sun set (it was my only real quiet time because the kids were finally asleep.)

In my point of view we have a responsibility to our un born children.  Our baby’s depend on us to step up and do our best for ourselves and for them.  I love how many women are taking steps towards having a conscious pregnancy, and they carry this with them into mother hood.  And for those of us who are practicing these kinds of things we can educate other women who haven’t been blessed with this knowledge yet.  But remember to do it in a compassionate and none judging way, sometimes it’s easy to shake our heads at what other moms are doing with their kids but we’ve all been there so let’s try to remember that.

Love you all,

Guru Shakti

A week ago I was blessed enough to be invited to a home schooling group, my good friend Katherine has home schooled her children for a few years now and has been involved in many different groups.  I have home schooled for many years my self but had not ventured out to seek other home schooling groups.

Now I get why it is so important to have a community of women, Of people, with a common ground to walk upon.  Not only did the children have a blast running all over that park, yelling, chasing each other, playing, spinning, climbing trees, tie dying T Shirts, Communicating, Eating, You name it.  But we had such a great time talking and laughing among other mothers who home school their children too.  As we sat under a shaded tree surrounded by out little babies and toddlers, we talked, nursed, ate snacks, laughed, and enjoyed the splendor of getting to know each other.

I loved sitting back and admiring the different styles of parenting, the added character that each mother brought to the group.  Yes we have so much in common but we are all so unique so each person brought something special to the group.  I was reminded of my trip to Fiji with my husband Dan.  As we drove from the air port and to our resort we had to pass through many small villages.  The Local Fijians live in small villages with about 200 people.  Everyone is so kind, and everyone knows one another.

What struck me was how the men spent the day with other men, they worked and took care of their responsibilities.  We passed by a group of women, all from the village.  They washed their clothes in a running creek, the kids played near by swimming, splashing, laughing, and enjoying being kids.  I loved seeing how all the women helped each other.  Yes they were hard at work, taking care of their responsibilities, but they socialized and helped one another.  I could feel the sense of respect and care they had for one another.

That is what I relate our day at the park too.  I felt like we were those women, we have our own community of women, supporting one another, learning from one another, and so on.

I feel blessed to have these new friends!