balance regained

When Daniel was little I first got the courage to do Sirsasana in the middle of the room. I did it triumphantly a few times, then I fell. I was too much in the head, and not enough in the pose. When I fell, I fell on some of Daniel's toys and hurt my back. It took a while to recover. That was back in 2012/2013. Now 4-5 years later, as a much different Yoga student and teacher I have again been able to do that pose in the middle of the room, and Daniel has taken pictures of me getting into the pose.

It is fun seeing what yoga looks like from my son's point of view, imperfect is what comes to mind. But as Geeta Iyengar, in Yoga: a Gem for Women, says "Motherhood is woman's ordained duty. It is not merely a physical state, but a divine state." There Yoga and my faith have no separation. In 1935 the 1st Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints stated, "Motherhood is near to divinity, it is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind. It places her who honors its holy calling and service next to the angels."

So as I look at yoga and see my milestones begin to grow. I am grateful to have my children document and photobomb my pictures.

Going Up!

I submitted my application for Iyengar Assessment. This has been a goal of mine since I understood what Iyengar Yoga means. I started teaching in 2013, when I was basically a baby in yoga. I made mistakes, taught from what little knowledge I could gleam from my Iyengar books, and my teachers, and knew that I needed more.

I set a goal to become a certified Iyengar Teacher by 2017. In the Iyengar system you have to be practicing only the Iyengar method for at least 3 years, and committed to teaching only the Iyengar method. You must either:
  a. graduate from a certified 2-3 year Iyengar Teacher Training program, or have accumulated
  b. have 90 hours of teacher education from a Certified Iyengar Teacher and 90 hours of mentor ship with a Certified Iyengar Teacher
  c. 180 hours of mentor ship with a Certified Iyengar mentor.

mentoring includes:
- attending classes
- observing classes
- assisting classes
- supervised teaching
- email and phone contact
- supervised practice
- apprenticeship

I chose a 2 year teacher training program, which turned into 3 years between surgery and a baby.  After having my baby I was expecting to need a full year of recovery to get my body ready for assessment, but my body surprised me and jumped back. It said "I am ready" and I got permission from my Senior Teacher, Carolyn Belko, to go up for assessment this year.

I have submitted my application and am just waiting to hear if I will be assess in September or November, in LA or Palm Desert. I am excited and can't wait.

My assessment will take place over 2 days. I will be assessed on Yoga Philosophy, Pranayama, my own Yoga Asana practice, and Teaching. Senior Teachers from around the US will make up the assessment board and they will choose if I get to become a Certified Iyengar Yoga Teacher.

While I wait for that day, I get to count down the days to show my peers and teachers what I mom of 3, who has been through 2 surgeries can do, and how I have benefited from the method of Iyengar Yoga. Bring it on!

Children's Yoga

I teach my children yoga through modeling. I let them see me practice, hear I am going to yoga, see where I practice and practice with me. We have yoga games. I have kid yoga books. There are Iyengar books for teaching children. Basically you teach the body and later the mind.

As a child you don't worry about form. Think about playing as a child. Handstands, back bends, arm balances, rolling  your feet backwards over your head. All of that is yoga. The poses are not strange new creations, but for many instinctual part of growing up. We teach the fun of yoga. Keep it quick paced, light-hearted. Only make corrections when there is a immediate dire need- bent arm or leg, leave it. I make it a habit to never correct, as it ruins the magic of the pose for children. A child wants to be in the pose more than adults do. So let them get in the pose and experience it.

In the Iyengar system children can start yoga at the age of 8. That is when instruction in poses begins. In the US we like to start much younger, but we start with a model/ mirror, parent/child relationship. Toddler yoga is a way to bond to mom- and run around creating awesome trains.

 My favorite children yoga book is by Bobby Clennell "Watch me do Yoga" and it describes how I hope one day yoga will be integrated so easily into my daily life with my kids.

Where to learn ASL

The other month I gave ideas of how you can learn ASL. Now I am going to give you specifics, for the Bakersfield area, the pros and cons of each location/ modality and the total cost that each option offers.

I have been trying to learn ASL for about 5 years now, after having taken a class about 15 years ago in High School, and kicking myself for not taking it in College. So now a mother of 3 I have been trying to find the best way to learn ASL. I have studied the different modalities for the last 3 years and this is what I have come up with, for Bakersfield specifically.
1. BC classes - $968+ books
    - ASL 1-4: (4 credits each at $46/unit (if resident of CA) +$13 Health care +$4 Student Center + $1 Student Rep +$40 Parking (optional)) 4= $968
   - In person classes
   - Local teachers well known in Deaf community in Bakersfield, local signs
   - on East Side, commute 2 days a week. Class offering times get limited the higher you go
2. Eissler - $25 - cash only
  - Parent organization
  - local Deaf teacher
  - focuses on signs you use in everyday life
  - every few months they restart the class
  - can take kids to class
  - only one level offered
3. BGLAD $40 - cash only
  - Local Deaf Community class
  - Deaf Teachers
  - ASL 1 class
  - offered every few months
  - cheaper than BC
  - only one level offered
4. Gallaudet University $2583 +Books
   - Online
   - ASL 1-3 $861/course
   - Premier Deaf College in country
   - looking at adding more advanced ASL classes in future (4-6)
   - do a placement screening before you start a course to make sure you are in the right class
   - Classes done at your own pace, to be completed in a set amount of time
   - offer Online certificate programs as well
5. ASL University- free or $966
   - Online, his taped university classes for free
   - options for University credit at $483/ course (ASL 1&2)
   - does have basic outline for ASL 3 &4 but not at organized as ASL 1&2
   - Teacher answers questions from students
   - has a facebook page
   - has a You Tube channel that he updates
   - site is full of link, you can get lost
6. BYU Indpendent Study- $1000
   - HS level courses splits Year 1 & 2 into 4 courses $250/ course
   - Teacher led course
   - one on one signing appointments
   - student discussion boards
   - instructor hosted wiki
   - UC approved for this academic year
6. SignIt! $80/ Units 1&2
   - Online
   - From creators of Signing Time, teaches ASL 1
   - different than all other online and video Signing Lessons I have seen
   - offer free sample lesson to give you an feel for format
   - working on being credentialed with a University
   - Not finished, currently 2 of 10 Units are completed
   - Free for those with children Deaf or Hard of Hearing under age of 3 through My Deaf Child
7. DCMP- free
   - online library, has an App
   - must sign up as a student of ASL
   - check out videos, online
   - have many different subjects to watch, different lengths of videos
   - children's- professionals, can sort by grade level of ASL knowledge
   - different ASL video lessons including the 'classic' "Meet the Bravo's"
8. Signing Time- $350 -online/ $700- Video
   - Online $10/ea , Video $17/ea
   - Aimed at teaching children under 8
   -ST Series 1&2 Teaches over 1,000 signs
   - Includes Baby Signing Time focused on children under 3
   - ST Sentences teaches basics of ASL grammar
   - Sales are offered throughout the year, videos sold individually, and 2-3/ year have a $10            sale. The full set often goes on sale a few times throughout the year, esp around Black Friday.

I hope this gives you some ideas on what will be a good choice for you and your family. I know which I want to do, and what I will probably do.

I personally have tried Signing Time, DCMP, SignIt, ASL University, and (started) BC- was too pregnant to continue. I look forward to continuing my education with more formal training.

Yoga at home

My home practice area, with my daughter's mat

The best way to learn a new art is practice. I will be the first to admit attending yoga classes can be expensive. It is one reason why I started teaching. But you do need to attend classes with a well trained teacher to learn the art of yoga, and so you don't hurt yourself, or create bad habits.

So let's say you attend class once a week. My class on Tues nights is a great place to start 😜. Then, at the beginning, pick 2 other days a week, find a place in your house, and practice what we did in class. If you want I will write out the sequence... hint we will do the 5 poses I explained here, plus a few seated.

It is like my band teacher in elementary school always said, "practice makes permanent" if you practice something wrong you will always do it wrong. If you come to class once or twice a week, then practice at home what we covered in class you won't learn bad habits and I promise you will see yourself grow immensely in your yoga practice.

2018 here I come

Back to basics. These previous 5 poses have been my standing poses for the two months. They are the bedrock of my practice and have rebuilt my practice. They are what I will be teaching my students in March. I am amazed at how strong I feel and how quickly my practice is coming back with only doing these 5 poses standing poses each night.

As my practice builds so does my voice and confidence. I have seen my Senior Teacher. The first time I taught in front of her was... well rough to put it nicely. I had just started practicing the week before. I felt weak and my voice was unsure if it could teach again. Then my teacher in Bakersfield gave me another chance to help her teach. My voice started weary, but found its rhythm. I felt the desire to teach again, and I knew that my body would come along.

A few weeks ago I went back to San Diego to see my Senior Teacher again. Again the first time I taught was shaky, but better, but the second time I knew I taught well. I felt as if the room was mine and those in front of me were not my peers and my teacher that I get nervous around, but my students that I love and am eager to help.

At the end of that weekend my teacher and I talked about my certification. I have graduated from her two year training program. My teaching is strong and par with an Introductory II Certified Teacher. But since I just had a baby my body is not ready to go up for assessment. I knew that this meant putting off my assessment for another year. 2018. At least this time I didn't want to cry when she told me I had to wait for assessment. I don't want to push my body into something it is not ready for.  I am a mother of 3 beautiful children, and my yoga practice is caring for them. Learning how to help them grow up. I am not a perfect mother, I yell more than I want. I give ultimatiums, and don't let the kids play in the front yard as much as I want. But I try to take the time to thank them for things they do well. I try to sit with them and read, play, and how to learn. I am trying to continue to learn patience and compassion. These things are my yoga. My practice is what I am able to do at the end of the day. I aim for 1-2 hrs, but if my kids need me, then my practice can wait.

I taught my first class last night, and my second class today (with a baby tucked under my arm). I am grateful for the chance to teach and help others gain what they need from yoga.

Michael and Mom in San Diego for training

Prasarita Padottanasana

Prasarita Padottanasana

Expanded Foot Intense Stretch Pose
Standing Asana

Phase 2

Phase 3

Key Benefits

• The hamstring and abductor muscles are fully developed while blood flows to the trunk and head
• those who cannot do Sirsasana can benefit from this pose
• increases digestive powers
• removes fatigue
• reduce body weight

How to get into Prasarita Padottanasana

1. Stand in Tadasana and jump 4 1/2 feet wide, now spread your feet wider.
2. Place your hands on your waist and extend your frontal spine while keeping the thighs back and tailbone in. Open the chest and  look up.
3. Extend your trunk forward. Place the hands on the ground in between your feet shoulder width.
4. Bend the elbows back, relax the head, and extend the torso down.  Bring the crown of the head to the ground.
5. Straighten the arms and extend the sternum forward. Keep the legs firm, as you press in the edges of the feet, take the hands on the waist, come up first parallel to the floor, then up to standing. Wiggle the feet slightly together and jump the feet to Tadasana, then take the arms down.

Modifications:

• Keep palms slightly forward, the head can be forward and not in line with the feet
• Rest your head on a block

Notes:

• This pose can be done in phases as your hamstrings start to open and you can extend the torso down keeping trunk concave from the hips to the neck. 
• Phase 1- Extend the torso upward to the ceiling, opening the chest and lifting the spine. 
• Phase 2- torso parallel to floor, hands either on hips or on either side of foot, concave back.
• Phase 3- extend torso down resting your head on the floor, slightly rounded back.