“We must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren and children yet to be born. We must protect the forests for those who can’t speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish and trees.”

I can still remember my first experience with Kundalini yoga.  I had always worked out and taken care of myself but this was something completely different.  I knew immediately that I had discovered something that would change my life, and it has.
I personally chose to practice Kundalini Yoga.  I love one of the most simple yet profound teachings, “The highest for of enlightenment is to be an enlightened house holder.  Anyone can escape to the mountains to meditate but if you can live a meditative life amongst the hustle and bustle of this modern world then that is ture mastery.”  We need more people who live mediative life styles and help to teach all the other humans how to do so.  It’s living through example.

With this practice,  I’ve seen my life and my family life transform in so many ways.  It’s become a way of life for my husband and I.  And each morning we rise before the sun comes up with our children to do some yoga and meditation.  It’s the best way to start every day.  Yoga gets your energy moving, balances your body, and helps you to be in a state of clarity. You gain inner vitality to compensate for the effects of stress so you can grow in life.

Kundalini Yoga can be done any time of the day, but when done first thing in the morning before the sun rises, it sets your body and mind straight before the hustle and bustle of the day.  It’s your time to connect with yourself when the Earth feels peaceful and quiet.   Instead of starting off your day jumping out of bed and topping it off with a jolt of coffee, you can use this powerful tool you were blessed with (your body) to awaken the energy that is your life force.  It brings out the best of you and helps you deal with the day ahead of you.

I encourage you to pick up a good book or research on the web.  You can find so much information about Kundalini Yoga online.  You can even find a great local class. There are yoga studios all over.  Check out SpiritVoyage.com  for some really great audios and books.

Our son Bodhi will be one on Tuesday.  As I reflect back upon this year I can only smile.  This year has flown by, we’ve watched him transform from a small fragile baby and into a active and energetic toddler, curious about the world and everything in it.

We decided to raise Bodhi differently, we had learned some very special lessons over the years and couldn’t wait to use them during the pregnancy and over the first years.  I think the three most important lessons are these.

1.  The family bed and use of baby slings:  The family bed is where you keep your baby in bed with you at night.  Forget buying a fancy crib, you don’t need it because the best place for baby is right in bed with you cuddling in your arms.  If you think about it this really makes sense.  A baby is warm inside your womb for nine months, then the baby is born and expected to sleep happy and securely in a crib, all alone.  This kinds of sounds like baby torture.  We also used a baby sling from day 1.  I’ve used our stroller a few times, Bodhi loves to be wrapped up in the sling and cozy by my body.  In fact in most countries you never see a baby pushed around in a stroller, baby is always somewhere on moms body, either on the back or on the front.

2.  The 40 day blessing:  This is a Kundalini Yoga Practice.  Once a baby is born the baby is not done baking.  It takes 40 days for their energetic aura to be established.  Because of this the baby will thrive like you don’t believe if kept close to mom for the 40 days after birth.  We kept Bodhi close to me, within 20 feet of my body so he was within my own bodies energetic Aura.  We did our best to have quiet, I didn’t leave the house at all with him instep for a quiet walk in the afternoon.  As far as family, we made it know to all our family and friends that we were doing THIS.  Only our closest family came to see him, my mom and dad, my brother, and my in laws.  Only after doing it was I able to see first hand the positive affects of this.  Not only was it good for me and my recovery after birth, but his security and comfort with the world flourished after being kept so close and safe for those 40 days.  I suggest any pregnant mama to try this, it’s so worth it.

3.  breast feeding with love:  No excuses, breast feeding is the best thing for a baby.  In Kundalini Yoga there is a practice to nurse your baby for 2 years and so that is what we are doing.  There’s nothing like cuddling up with Bodhi and feeding him, knowing that my body is providing all the nutrition he needs.  Of course he’s eating food now too, in fact right now he’s toddling around the house with a big apple in his little hands. Yesterday he had a cookie for the first time and his eyes were wide open the whole time, he was so happy!!!

So again I reflect on the past year, the choices made to provide the best life for our Bodhi.  I’m so happy that we chose to do what we did becasue a year has gone by, so fast, and we will never get it back.  Staying home for 40 days was worth it, sleeping with him in between my husband and I is worth it, and taking th time to nurse him is so woth it.

Thank God for the chance to be a mother of a son.

Being a mother is so many things.  At times it’s glorious, blissful, tender, and sometimes challenging, confusing, and frustrating.  My husband and I have three healthy and happy children, two girls and one baby boy.  Each child is as unique and different as the next, isn’t God great!  I think one of the most important and challenging things is to be a conscious and grown up parent.  For instance, I know it’s not good to yell at our children but what about those days that your exhausted, the house is a mess, and your kids still find a way to make even more of a mess by getting into the fridge to have a tea party, and leave a mess of crumbs behind them.  I will admit I do my very best to hold my tounge, be the adult, talk calmly to them about the situations, but there are those times that with all my practice I still burst out with holaring.

Truly when a mother hollers it’s really a cry for, “please someone come and help me.”  Yes being a mom is quit an experience, it manages to teach us and stretch is in so many ways.  I heard a quote once that I might be getting wrong here but it went something like this, “Parents don’t raise children into adults, children raise their parents into adults.”  I feel this to be true!  When I reflect back on the growth my husband and I have gone through in the past 8 years of parenting it is clear that they have taught us almost more about life than we have taught them, LOL!!!

Today was particularly a challenging day for me as a mother, we all just got over the flue so I was still very tired, we just began a more stricked home school schedule so the pressure was on with that too, and I just felt out of sorts.  It wasn’t until I sat down and did a meditation that is was able to see and feel clearly.  My intuition says, “One step at a time, be still, and just be with your children.”  And so I will take my own advice.  I will just allow myself to be with my kids, no expectations.

I suppose that is the best advice I could give myself on those challaning days as a mother.  Instead of holding so many expectations, just let go and give attention and love to those little ones surrounding me.