New Studios.
I was so grateful to be able to attend a class today at Balance. I went to the 10:15 class as it was in studio, and to be honest I don't really enjoy taking a class ON the beach. I can work through my own practice or goof around with the kids, but I find the shifting sand, the sun glare, the passing walkers and runners to be distracting. I much prefer to be led through a practice inside the serenity and sanctity of a studio. My alarm went off at 5:30 as it had the two previous days, I cracked an eyelid, and swiftly decided that IT IS VACATION WHAT AM I DOING and rolled back over into my blissful bed. Ceiling fan blowing, room dim, big fluffy cool down comforter……I was out. I dreamt so deeply, it was wild. Have you ever had that experience where you wake yourself up from a dream because you are laughing out loud? That happened to me this morning. At around 7 a brown mostly naked little boy wandered into my room saying "Mama, you didn't lay my clothes out"……I simply lifted up the covers, he climbed in, and we fell back asleep in each others arms till 8:45. 8:45! I couldn't believe it! Julia was still asleep ~ looks like we are officially in vacation mode down here :)
I made everyone a big breakfast and got the kids dressed. We headed out back for yoga on the deck. The kids worked through a 30 minute gentle yoga practice with me in the shade of the back verandah, it was perfect. By 10 I was off to my class on my bike (We pretty much never have to use the car in Cape May, one of the beauties of this town), and was at class in under 5 minutes. I bought a 5 class package, plopped my mat down in the small space, and looked up to see my friend Disha sitting across from me! She is a teacher at the studio in WC where I did my teacher training program! They own a home down here and she takes the summer off from teaching and stays down here, taking classes at Balance! Small world! We are getting together with the kids tomorrow afternoon for a bit.
It was a wonderful class. I have to say I'm greedily anticipating becoming a total yoga studio slut and hitting up as many different studios and classes as I can this fall. I plan to drop our ACAC membership, and plan to use every penny of that money I'm saving towards experiencing as many different classes and teachers as I can. Todays class was superb. I learned some new tricks and thought some about my pacing and some new ways to work through a vinyasa flow class. It was really, really nice. I felt so lucky to be there that I just sank deeply into my practice from the word "breathe" and didn't "wake up" until I was back in the parking lot. After class it was off to the beach. My Dad had gotten down, and we had a great lunch up on the beach, lots of wiffle ball and foot ball, and my girl kid and I spent about an hour on our hands and knees creating this.
Jules is incredibly detail oriented and task oriented. I don't know if you can see it, but in the bottom right rise towards the back there are 5 little black mussel shells, that is our family, we are playing soccer with a tiny white pebble. This is our castle. Being on my hands and knees, sand all over, belly hanging in the way it simply does after carrying three children…..I felt so lucky. I felt so lucky to feel comfortable enough in my own skin to be there able to care more about what my girl kid needed than about how silly I may have looked. Years ago I would have had to have had a cover up on. But ~ we were right on the waters edge, there was a moat involved, seaweed galore, and it was a MESS. It would have been totally illogical to have clothes on, we kept having to go in and out of the water to get more rocks and shells etc. I felt so grateful to have gotten to the place over the past decade or so that I'm happy to look less than best if it means being practical, if it means having fun, if it means just not taking this all so damn seriously. I've hardly worked out this summer between teaching and playing golf ~ we seem to go out for ice cream 4 times a week or so, due to swim meets and golf outings my usual eating dinner out average of about twice a week became about 4 times……and you know what? Its all good. Its all because of happy stuff, thriving stuff, living stuff, community and involvement and GOOD THINGS. And if that means that the suit isn't quite fitting just *so* this summer? When you are really busy working on that drippy castle and you see total joy in your daughters eyes and you hear her ideas about a seaweed road and how to make fish in the moat out of shells ~ guess what? You love the way your suit fits. And you love being there for her instead of being inside some gym, or being hiding away inside your cover up under the tent, or being anywhere else on earth except for right there, right then. Because if we are going to teach our sons and daughters how to love themselves, we damn sure better be doing it ourselves, don't you think? Kids aren't dumb, and you can tell kids that they are valuable and worthy and deserving and all of that ~ but if your actions say that YOU are not, they are going to believe what you show them, not what you tell them. Every time.
Golf tomorrow. Nate gets down for the coming week around lunch. Dinner with some of our best friends tomorrow at my favorite restaurant in town. Its going to be a good day. I can't wait to get back to that yoga studio. Or to our next drippy castle.
Namaste, friends.
I made everyone a big breakfast and got the kids dressed. We headed out back for yoga on the deck. The kids worked through a 30 minute gentle yoga practice with me in the shade of the back verandah, it was perfect. By 10 I was off to my class on my bike (We pretty much never have to use the car in Cape May, one of the beauties of this town), and was at class in under 5 minutes. I bought a 5 class package, plopped my mat down in the small space, and looked up to see my friend Disha sitting across from me! She is a teacher at the studio in WC where I did my teacher training program! They own a home down here and she takes the summer off from teaching and stays down here, taking classes at Balance! Small world! We are getting together with the kids tomorrow afternoon for a bit.
It was a wonderful class. I have to say I'm greedily anticipating becoming a total yoga studio slut and hitting up as many different studios and classes as I can this fall. I plan to drop our ACAC membership, and plan to use every penny of that money I'm saving towards experiencing as many different classes and teachers as I can. Todays class was superb. I learned some new tricks and thought some about my pacing and some new ways to work through a vinyasa flow class. It was really, really nice. I felt so lucky to be there that I just sank deeply into my practice from the word "breathe" and didn't "wake up" until I was back in the parking lot. After class it was off to the beach. My Dad had gotten down, and we had a great lunch up on the beach, lots of wiffle ball and foot ball, and my girl kid and I spent about an hour on our hands and knees creating this.
Jules is incredibly detail oriented and task oriented. I don't know if you can see it, but in the bottom right rise towards the back there are 5 little black mussel shells, that is our family, we are playing soccer with a tiny white pebble. This is our castle. Being on my hands and knees, sand all over, belly hanging in the way it simply does after carrying three children…..I felt so lucky. I felt so lucky to feel comfortable enough in my own skin to be there able to care more about what my girl kid needed than about how silly I may have looked. Years ago I would have had to have had a cover up on. But ~ we were right on the waters edge, there was a moat involved, seaweed galore, and it was a MESS. It would have been totally illogical to have clothes on, we kept having to go in and out of the water to get more rocks and shells etc. I felt so grateful to have gotten to the place over the past decade or so that I'm happy to look less than best if it means being practical, if it means having fun, if it means just not taking this all so damn seriously. I've hardly worked out this summer between teaching and playing golf ~ we seem to go out for ice cream 4 times a week or so, due to swim meets and golf outings my usual eating dinner out average of about twice a week became about 4 times……and you know what? Its all good. Its all because of happy stuff, thriving stuff, living stuff, community and involvement and GOOD THINGS. And if that means that the suit isn't quite fitting just *so* this summer? When you are really busy working on that drippy castle and you see total joy in your daughters eyes and you hear her ideas about a seaweed road and how to make fish in the moat out of shells ~ guess what? You love the way your suit fits. And you love being there for her instead of being inside some gym, or being hiding away inside your cover up under the tent, or being anywhere else on earth except for right there, right then. Because if we are going to teach our sons and daughters how to love themselves, we damn sure better be doing it ourselves, don't you think? Kids aren't dumb, and you can tell kids that they are valuable and worthy and deserving and all of that ~ but if your actions say that YOU are not, they are going to believe what you show them, not what you tell them. Every time.
Golf tomorrow. Nate gets down for the coming week around lunch. Dinner with some of our best friends tomorrow at my favorite restaurant in town. Its going to be a good day. I can't wait to get back to that yoga studio. Or to our next drippy castle.
Namaste, friends.
(I know, right? I have clothes on! Big sigh of relief from you all I'm sure ;)
First off, I don't think you look bad at all and would never be able to tell you'd had three children if not for them being in the pictures. Secondly, this is inspirational to hear. I am currently in the "covering up" stage of things because I don't feel like my ever-growing pregnant stomach is something I feel comfortable flaunting in a bikini, but I also see myself wanting to continue wearing the baggy tankini style bathing suit top afterward (or a cover-up like you mention). I guess I'm just sort of preparing for the worst. While I doubt it's possible to look as good as you do without putting in some effort (and I'll need to do that afterward), I think you definitely have the right idea being comfortable in your own skin. I'm going to have to remember what you say about being there for your kids rather than being in a gym too, because you're also right about that!! Thanks for being an inspiration amongst the sea of negative messages about losing your body entirely once you have children!
ReplyDeletePregnancy is so weird because you just DON't feel like yourself for a while! That said you have a great due date ~ by the time you have had the baby and spring rolls around again you will be shocked at how much like yourself you do feel. It seems impossible to believe in those first few weeks, but with some normal workouts, eating well, and time, it happens. :) You look incredible and I'm excited to follow along with the end of your pregnancy journey! The most amazing part of it all isn't how you look, its the appreciation inherent in knowing that the body is capable of such amazing (and productive) change. It changes to accommodate the growing of a human, then changes to go back to normal. I mean, that is some seriously crazy shit, right?
ReplyDeleteYou look beautiful. Like summer and life are good.
ReplyDelete