Welcome to the Jungle

This past Saturday was rainy, cold, damp and dreary. I felt like I was in Seattle, not Sioux Falls. However, at East Bank Yoga, where I teach Yogi Junior, I was on safari in the jungle. We had an exciting adventure!

I start my classes out with breathing exercises. Since we were in the jungle, I decided to use Lion Breath as our focus.

The best instructions I’ve found for kids was here (http://kidsrelaxation.com/2011/06/15/lions-breath/)

Suggest: “Imagine that you are a mighty lion. You have a giant roar. Sit cross-legged and sit up tall like a proud lion. And get ready to let your roar go.”

Model: “I’m going to think of a feeling that I would like to let go, or a thought that I want to release. Now I squeeze my hands in fists, holding tight that feeling or thought and scrunch up my face getting ready to roar. I take a deep breath in and let my roar out, sticking my tongue out at the same time and stretching my arms out wide in front of me, opening my hands wide.”

Guide: “Now it is your turn. Sit up tall. Think of the feeling or thought that you would like to roar out. Scrunch that feeling or thought into your hands and pull them up tight in front of you. Now scrunch up your face tight. Take a deep breath in. And. . . ROAR!!!!! it out, sticking your tongue out and letting your arms and hand stretch out wide in front of you. Excellent!!!! Let’s try it a few more times. Really ROAR!! it out!!!!!

Then we played a game of Yogi Says. Its like Simon Says, only with yoga asanas (poses). Little Man loves playing this game at home too! The kids had so much fun.

We read Yoga for Elephants-a Babar book. I love Babar the Elephant, and those stories take me back to my child hood. While I loved the story, I don’t think that the kids were as excited about it as I was.

Our flow was all about jungle animals. We went around the room as monkeys and gorillas, swinging from vine to vine and running around. Then we did Tarzan yells, which were a big hit. Elephants washing themselves at the river, being a river rock (child’s pose), a cobra on a tree branch, giraffe (reaching for the sky from mountain pose) and tree being eaten by giraffe rounded out our menagerie.

We ended with the peace tree guided meditation from here http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-3942/3-Ways-to-Get-Your-Kids-Living-MindBodyGreen.html

Child's Meditation: As you lay down with your eyes closed, feel the coolness of the air going through your nose, filling your chest and belly. As you breathe out, feel the warmth of your breath as you exhale any sad or frustrating things that may have happened during your day. Breathe in and out softly and quietly. See yourself in your most favorite, happy place: the beach, a mountaintop, a green field, or floating on a cloud. When you get there, see yourself lying under the most beautiful, strong and gigantic Peace Tree. This Peace Tree extends its branches over you and invites you to trade your worries for peace. (With older kids, you can explain how trees give off oxygen and how oxygen is life giving. As they exhale their worries, they release toxic carbon dioxide.) You can express your worries by writing, drawing or telling it to your Peace Tree. This Tree has so much peace there is nothing you can’t share with it. After you release your concerns, see yourself being filled with peace, love and happiness. You have a huge smile on your face. Get up and dance around in your mind. Twirl, laugh, jump, fly or take a walk around your happy place. Freeze wherever you are and breathe in and out softly through your nose. Bring one hand to your heart and one hand to your belly. Say, “I am thankful for this moment.”



I handed out a really cool lion’s pose coloring sheet and some jungle animal instant animals.



Too bad it was still cold and damp when we left…

fishing in the dark

Friendly’s was a local diner/ice cream parlor along the East Coast. It is an indeliable part of my childhood. I remember going to the Friendly’s on the main street in my home town and having a fish-a-majig (yes, that was the sandwich’s name) and ice cream with my aunt and grandmother. This is back in the 1970’s, when going out to eat was a big deal, especially in my family.


I remember being in Hyannis Port, MA when I was older and ordering the same darn thing. It was an instant reminder of my childhood. I love how sometimes food can do that. There was a Friendly’s in Quaker Bridge Mall, which was a pleasant alternative to Food Court food, and always a nice bonus of ice cream sundaes following a long day shopping with the Princess and her friends.

That chain didn’t exist in the Midwest, so when we would go “home”, it included a stop to Friendly’s in Hamilton, NJ for of course, fish-a-majig and ice cream sundaes.

Alas, that will be no more.

According to the Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/glance-a-list-of-63-friendlys-stores-closed-ahead-of-chapter-11-filing/2011/10/05/gIQAtNlNNL_story.html) the Hamilton restaurant and 62 others are closing ahead of the company filing Chapter 11. It’s the end of an era, and I am surprised at how sad I feel by it. I think because a big chunk of my childhood food memories are tied up to that place, and these are memories I shared with the Princess when she was growing up, I feel like a piece of me is gone. Another nail in the coffin of my childhood, I guess.





Homemade fish-a-majig sammy



2 slices whole wheat bread

2 slices soy or rice milk cheese, yellow American

1 fish fillet (I like the lemon pepper one from Gorton’s or you can use a fish substitute) cooked

2 tbsp homemade tartar sauce (recipe follows)

1 tsp coconut oil



Heat coconut oil in a skillet. Put a slice of cheese on a slice of bread, place the fish fillet on top of that and top with tartar sauce, the remaining cheese and bread. Put in skillet and cook, slightly covered over medium heat until the cheese melts and the bread is somewhat browned.



Tartar sauce

½ c Mayonnaise or veganaise

1 kosher dill pickle, diced

½ tsp harissa sauce

1 tsp lemon juice



Mix together and serve with fish

Happy birthday

Today is my son's 9th birthday. I can't believe how fast he's growing up & how much he's changed. I wasn't the one who carried him for 8 months, who nourished him or gave him life. I am, however, the one who is raising him.
My little guy started life as a preemie, and spent some time in the NICU. He had some respiratory issues, that are finally getting resolved as he has gotten older.
Today, that inauspicious beginning has had little impact on who he is. I love proving the "experts" wrong, especially in what an aspie is capable of. Originally, he was placed much further down the spectrum, as he had more stereotypical behaviors. He was, in autism speak, non verbal. He rocked and walked on his toes. He flapped his arms and self injured. There were incredible tantrums that went on for hours.
We all were chronically exhausted.
His sleep pattern was disturbed.
First we got ear tubes, as he suffered from chronic ear infections. That eliminated many of the behaviors.
We did sensory integration therapy. We practiced yoga together. We explored the world together.
Our lives intertwined.
I savor every victory and grieve every loss. I work very hard to give my son every opportunity there is to be successful.
He wants to be a doctor when he grows up.
He wants to make the world a better place, and make a positive difference.
But that's in the future. right now, our life as a 9 year old is all about riding bikes and video games. Its about legos and hot wheels. We love our pets and hate homework.
It's pretty awesome to be 9.