Money Free Weekend with No Age Limit

Damla, Director of Marketing for Yogiños,
is working on her MBA at
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.
Damla is trilingual in Turkish—
her home language—German and English.

by Damla Eytemiz

Last week after a great Yoga class, I came together with my friends. We sat and some of us thought, “fun is pricey”. I am definitely thinking in the opposite way. Since I was a kid, I loved the activities which I didn’t put too much money on, but enjoyed way more than ones that cost coins. 

All activities don’t necessitate any equipments, right ? 

For this weekend, forget about activities which require spending money and opt for ones that nurture experiences together....

Here are my 5 activities for this weekend which you can enjoy with your whole family.. 

1-Car wash: Parents, you will definitely love this activity. Set some work for the kids and for yourself of course. Washing the family car and of course each other. Just a bucket, soap, sponges... Leave kids 10 minutes for the car cleaning and the rest probably they will be washing each other and after that your turn starts for the real cleaning.

MC Yogi and Amanda Giacomini
choose to walk than grab a cab
after dinner in Dallas last week.

2-Go for a walk. We are all close to beaches in Corpus Christi. Even though you are in another city, you can still enjoy the weather, some small mountains or great parks. Walking is one of the best activities to be healthy, fit and also to get rid of stress. 

3-Sidewalk chalk. Drawing is always fun, whether you are 9 or 59. You can let the kids make pictures and let yourself do the same. The result will show what is going through your minds. 

4-Bubble art. I used to do it a lot when I was a kid and I still enjoy it. Making bubbles are always fun but the kids sometimes can get bored of it. Here is an art. Add a few drops of food coloring into the plastic and let them blow the bubbles onto white paper. You will enjoy this artictic masterpiece.

5-Sunday.... Yoga... After getting tired of all those activities, before breakfast, spend at least 15 minutes on doing Yoga. That will help you become more active for the day, and it will wash away the Blue Monday.. 

See you next Thursday! 

Poised for Possibility: Peace-In

A regular Yogiño student helps me teach
Arbol/Tree/Vrksasana.

by Beth Reese


Peace begins with a smile.
~ Mother Teresa

Today is International Peace Day. To celebrate, I spent my morning with the OHMazing™ students, faculty and families of Mi Casita Montessori School. My youngest daughter, Andersen, attends the school and I was honored to be invited to participate.

We played with two simple ideas. First, like Mother Teresa is noted for saying, peace begins with a smile. Next, Peace or paz in Spanish, starts with each of us making good—or OHMazing™—choices. Toward those goals, we donned blue to "wear our peace proudly" then danced, laughed, looked, listened, held hands, and, of course, struck a few poses.

60+ students, teachers and parents celebrated peace
with a smile, as seen here in our
jardin/garden or variation of navasana.

There are numerous poses we explored in honor of the peaceful gifts the earth gives us—even right in the school-yard! Here we sculpted our bodies into trees, flowers, gardens, grasshoppers, bumble bees, butterflies, frogs and more. Perhaps one of the most memorable parts was performing through our kinesthetic intelligence that the first OHMazing™ choice we can make towards peace is to love ourselves.

One way I teach this concept is a very simple, concrete, timeless pose: self-bear-hug. In our song used for many Sun Salutations, Toco el Sol, we hug ourselves when we hear the word, Shanti.

Shanti means peace in Sanskrit, the ancient and melodic language of yoga. Shanti also is the name of our elephant-headed "mascot," as seen to the right of this blog post.

 

Toco el Sol/Touch the Sun

Yo soy OHMazing™    I am OHMazing™
Yo soy OHMazing™    I am OHMazing™
Namasté            Namasté
Namasté            Namasté
Toco la tierra            Touch the earth
Yo soy fuerte            I am strong
Soy alegre             I am fun
Shanti, shanti        Shanti, shanti
¡Toco el sol!            Touch the sun!
 

Guruji Gandi once said, If we are to teach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children.

How will you teach peace today? How will you share a peaceful practice with the children?

You are beautiful, yes, I'm talkin to you!

Another OHMazing™ Journey

by guest OHMusings blogger Melissa Smith

Anyone willing to go back to their teen years for a do-over? I didn't think so. Those junior high and high school days for me were challenging as I tried to navigate the popularity food chain, figure out if I was good enough to make "this" team or fit in with "that" group. I put on a confident front but inside, I was often filled with self doubt. I think most kids (and adults) are like that, afraid to step out and rock the boat, be unique or a leader.  One thing that was a constant growing up: I had someone in my life who told me repeatedly, almost daily, how beautiful I was and how I could accomplish anything I set my mind to. 

My 3rd season with a group of high schoolers to train and mentor them through yoga brings another opportunity to hold up a mirror for them to see how beautiful they already are. These special kids each with their own unique set of hardships, were nominated by a teacher to participate in the program with end goal of completing a half marathon in 6 months. I started yoga with them in the off season the first year and by the second season, we incorporated yoga post run and witnessed kids who normally wouldn't sit still begin to see how it improved their breath, flexibility and offered them a sense of calm. 

At our first coaches meeting this year, we were asked to write down a phrase that encouraged us. I chose this mantra to share with them: "You are beautiful, Yes, I'm talking to you!" Inspired by the signs tacked on sacred trees in a temple in Thailand this summer, the Buddhist monks use these messages or mantras as a form of meditation. A mantra can be a word, phrase, sound or even yoga Sutra that is repeated to invoke inner strength and power. It simply allows your best, Truest self to shine. 

The Sanskrit word mantra comes from "manas", meaning mind. And, "trai" which means, "to protect" or "free from". Literally meaning "to free from the mind." It's a tool for our minds to liberate us from that self doubt and propel us to places we never thought we were "good enough" for or even dreamed possible.  

What mantra have you incorporated in your life that stirs your soul or reveals your beauty? Can you empower a child in your life with one? This gift of mantra is far better than a do-over, it ripples into the lives of our youth here and now.  

Melissa Smith, traveler, mentor, momma, acroyoga-fairy and 500 RYT 

200 RYT from Inspyrayoga in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2005 where Melissa specialized in pre/post natal for over 3 years. Moving back to the US, Melissa's grown in her practice and training by earning her 500 RYT and blogging about her experiences as a student and teacher. She leads teacher trainings for Leeann Carey YaapanaYoga (200 and 300 hour), specializing Prenatal and Partner Practice. Extending gratitude and appreciation for her teachers & influences including: Leeann Carey (Yaapana Yoga, California), Chrys Kub (Yoga Therapy, North Carolina), Sadhvi Abha (Kriya, India), Judith Lasater (Anatomy, California), Lance Schuler (Hatha, Australia), Stephanie Adams (mentor, Oregon), Jennifer Yarro (Thai Yoga Massage, Massachusetts), Elizabeth Reese (Yoginos for Yoth, Texas) and Mandy Eubanks (Anusara, Texas).

Melissa Smith
melissainkl@yahoo.com
713.357.8817


Leeann Carey Yoga
http://www.leeanncareyyoga.com/
melissa@leeanncareyyoga.com
http://www.facebook.com/LeeannCareyYoga


Grace Yoga & Pilates
Blog: http://graceyoga-live-move-breathe.blogspot.com/
Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/27qk3hf

Support our family in the Walk to End Alzheimer's: http://tinyurl.com/4gdsc56 

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”
―Oscar Wilde

Creating Connections: MC Yogi

by Meredith Paterson

MC Yogi with some of the stars
from the new Yogiños DVD

This past Friday, we had the long-awaited premiere of our new DVD Vishnu's OHMazing™ Journeys at the Crow Collection of Asian Art in Dallas. The event was everything we could ever have wished for and more. The Yogiños, the stars of the DVD, got to walk down the red carpet, and then they got to see themselves on the big screen for the first time. I could not stop watching them watch the film. And the best part was watching them reconnect with each other after nine months.

Amanda prepares for
the concert

The night culminated perfectly with a unforgettable concert by MC Yogi with Amanda Giacomini and Robin Livingston. We had planned to hold the concert outside on the street in front of the museum, but a glorious, much-needed rainstorm hung over Dallas that night, so we moved inside. MC Yogi started the concert by saying that the gods and goddesses that surrounded us in the gallery had conspired to move the concert inside so that they could see it, too. He was absolutely right. What a privilege to sing and dance to the stories of the deities as they watched over us. I think every person in that gallery was moved on Friday night.

The best word I know to describe the experience of the concert is inspiration-- the old meaning of the word. To breathe life into. Thank you thank you to MC Yogi, Amanda, and Robin for breathing new life into me. 

 

I dare you not to dance. 

The last group of fourth graders that I taught always had one question at the beginning of class. "When do we get to hear that Elephant song?" And yes. I played it every time.

Which song most inspires you?

Check out the sequence from MC Yogi and Amanda in September's Yoga Journal!
See the trailer for the new Yogiños: Yoga for Youth DVD featuring MC Yogi's song "Give Love"

Hero at Home: Big Wheels Keep on Turning, part II

For the second Sunday in our 108 Days of OHMazing™ Journeys in honor of the release of our new DVD, Vishnu's OHMazing™ Journeys, I will continue to reflect on the internal wheels in our bodies, also known as chakras. Here I would like to expand on our conversation with you about how we can activate these centers to make heroic—or OHMazing™—choices. These ideas are appropriate for heroes of all ages.

Last week we explored the first chakra, Muladhara. This week our focus is on the second energy center, also known as Swadhisthana or Sacral Chakra. It is located in the last bone in spinal cord or the coccyx.

Swadisthana is connected with basic emotional needs and pleasure. It governs reproduction, creativity, and joy. Sharon Gannon, co-founder of Juvamukti Yoga, says that our second chakra is connected to our outter body below our navel at our hips and pelvis.  

"Forward bending gives us the opportunity to move into our past for

The second chakra is represented
by a crescent moon, with six
orange petals, within a lotus.

reflection and healing through the letting go of resentful feelings we may be holding against past sexual or creative partners," writes Gannon on the Jivamukti Yoga Center website.

While there are numerous forward bends to cultivate awareness and healing within the Swadisthana chakra, one of our favorite poses—or asanas— is a forward bending Butterfly/Mariposa/Baddha Konasana.

Andersen, age 4, demonstrates one of her
favorite poses, baddha konasana.

• Sit with legs stretched out in front of you.
• Inhale.
  Exhale, bending knees and bring soles of feet together, bringing heels as close to your seat or pelvis as possible
• Press your fingertips or "spider fingers" into the earth by your hips.
• Root your tailbone or coccyx down into the earth, extend your heart forward and rise up through the crown of your head.
  Hold onto feet with a straight back. 
• Inhale
• Exhale, hinging at hips and moving your extended heart toward the earth.
• Hold asana for several breaths, inhaling and exhaling slowly.
• As you inhale, use your mind's eye to pull your prana (breath) into your Sacral area and hips. As you exhale, allow your breath to release any tightness and resentful feelings. 

  

There are many components of the 8 Limbs of yoga that encourage us to explore  our second chakra. Share your practice below!

Beth and Meredith on the red carpet at the
world premiere of the 2nd DVD,
Vishnu's OHMazing™ Journeys,
created in partnership with the
Crow Collection of Asian Art.

Elizabeth "Beth" Reese, Ph.D., RYT, RCYT, is the founder and executive director of Yogiños: Yoga for Youth®. She is a teacher with over 20 years of experiences leading learners of all ages in creative problem solving, self-reflection and empowerment.

Together at the Table: Cooking for the $5 Challenge

by Meredith Paterson

A teaser from the premiere: Beth, Jordan, Cole, and
Andersen on the red carpet. More photos coming soon!

Happy Saturday! The $5 Challenge that I blogged about last week is here! We are in Dallas this weekend for the premiere of the Yogiños DVD (see Beth's post below), and I am staying with my family up here in Richardson, so I had the opportunity to hang out with my mom and shop at the Richardson Farmers' Market.

The idea of the $5 Challenge from Slow Food USA was to help people understand that they can eat in a sustainable (local, organic) way without breaking the bank. 

Right now in Texas, we're just about to enter our best produce season. Fall brings lots of variety in terms of veggies. Today we started seeing pumpkins and new squashes at the farmers' market which fit perfectly with the lovely gray rainclouds in the sky hinting at fall. (We really need the rain down here.) However, we decided we wanted to cook some of the last of the summer veggies, so zucchini was the centerpiece of today's meal.

Quinoa dish
(Apologies for the picture.
I'm no food photographer)

We made this recipe that I found on the gorgeous blog 101 Cookbooks:  Quinoa with Currants, Dill, and Zucchini. It was my first time to try this recipe. I thought it turned out really well. I subbed goat cheese for the feta because that's what was available, and I thought it was pretty tasty. I want to try it with the feta, too, though.

Zucchini, yellow squash, and onion
before hitting the grill.

We also grilled some veggies from the Farmers' Market. We were going to a dinner with family friends, so I didn't have the opportunity to complete a full meal on this challenge, but we had some money left over that could have gone towards foods to round out the meal.

Here is the cost breakdown:

Organic green onions: $0.99
Dried currants: $0.40
Sesame seeds: $0.22
Organic quinoa: $0.50
Local zucchini: $3 (used in both dishes
Local fresh dill: $0.75
Local goat cheese: $3.99
Local yellow squash: $0.72
Local white onion: $1
Grand Total: $11.57 / Per person (feeding 4): $2.87



This challenge was a lot of fun, and I encourage you to experiment with what you can do for under $5 with produce from your farmers' markets. Let us know what you prepare, and we would love to feature your recipes.

Red-Carpet Premiere Tonight with MC Yogi!

Red-Carpet Premiere
Tonight with MC Yogi!

Amanda Giacomini and husband, MC Yogi,
enjoying playful art in the
Dallas Arts District.

Tonight, 6pm-12am: It's almost here! Join us for a concert with hip-hip yogi-musician MC YOGI at the Crow Collection of Asian Art in Dallas to celebrate the release of our 2nd DVD, Vishnu's OHMazing™ Journeys!
The party includes:

• 6-6:45pm: Kids' Yoga from the DVD
• 7pm: DVD premiere! (reservations required)
• 8pm: Hip-Hop yoga with Priya Jhawar
• 9pm: Concert with MC Yogi
• 10:30: After Dark Karaoke
• 11pm: Candlelight Meditation

Throughout the evening

• Art activities: OHMazing™ fans and Tibetan flag t-shirts
• Make your own healthy granola
• Asanas in Art: explore the galleries to find the different works of art featuring the various asanas highlighted in the new DVD

More information about the PARTY!



It's Here! It's Here! Our New DVD: Vishnu's OHMazing™ Journeys 

So many of you have been with us on this journey as we crafted, molded, tweaked, edited, giggled, cried, and marveled at the process, learning at each step along the way what the word journey really means. And here we are at the start of something entirely new with the release of Vishnu's OHMazing™ Journeys, created in partnership between Yogiños: Yoga for Youth® and The Crow Collection of Asian Art in Dallas. View the DVD trailer.

You can finally purchase your very own copy here!
Vishnu's OHMazing™ Journeys weaves together original art, music, yoga, and ancient narratives about the hero Vishnu and the heroine Lakshmi.  The DVD celebrates our own journeys and the choices we make as we build relationships and extend our love to ourselves, others and the environment.
Come celebrate the release of the DVD at our red-carpet premiere with MC Yogi! See the details below.

This DVD is the culmination of so much love and dedication from so many people. We send heart-exploding thanks out to each and every one of the Yogiños and their families who brought so much personality and vibrancy to the filming. We're so excited to see where your journeys take you! To the crew and production team, Sean, Brendan, Sam, Drew, Nate, Larry, and Rachel, for astounding us in every moment by your talent, creativity, and ability to problem-solve everything. To Ahila, for bringing the story to life through your artistry and grace. To Zoe, Chase, and Audrey for making our hearts sing. And finally to Amy, Caron, Kristina, Tracy, and Elizabeth and each and every person at the Crow Collection of Asian Art for your unflagging professionalism, your devotion, your keen knowledge, your flexibility, and for your vision in seeing the museum space as place of wellness and health for all generations. We bow in gratitude to each of you and to the countless others who have made this journey possible. Namasté.