Gingerbread Yogis!

All snowed in! The studio is closed! It's a fine day to make some Gingerbread Yogis!!!!

Lotus, Tree, Wheel, Downdog, and Warrior 3 - all cut out by hand! Love it!

A Happy 10 Year Old!

Make your child’s next birthday party truly unique with Alluem Yoga!

Located on the beautiful Rahway River in the historic Droescher’s Mill, the peaceful atmosphere sets the stage for a birthday party your child will never forget.

We celebrated Alex's 10th Birthday today and had a blast!!!!

No two snowflakes are alike!

There is scientific proof that states no 2 snowflakes are alike....this holds true for people as well. This weekend in my Alluem Kids 8-12 class we talked about the many differences between people....different shapes and sizes, different color hair and eyes, different skin tones, different voices, different likes and dislikes, different personalities...the list is endless. The kids know that these difference are what makes us unique - we each are different in our own special ways and we can embrace the beauty in that!

I had the kids think about what makes them different from other people, what makes them unique. I wanted them to go deeper just the surface differences and to really look at what makes themspecial, what makes them who they are. I had them narrow it down to one word. One word to describe what makes them special. After they meditated on this, I laid out foam snowflakes all over the room. I was sure to make them all different...yes, I made adjustments to 25 little foam snowflakes so they would ALL be different! Each child picked one and wrote their word on the snowflake - Unique, Charitable, Enthusiastic, Friendly, Loving, Miracle, etc. When all the snowflakes were hung, they chose a pose that best related to the word they picked - Candlestick for Miracle, Tree for Charitable, Frog Jumps for Enthusiastic....I love watching them think so carefully about what they can do to best represent who they were. It really said a lot about their personalities. A great lesson for all!

Your Children

From "The Prophet" by Kahlil Gibran

"Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you.

And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,

For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies, but not their souls,

For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,

Which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you,

For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,

and He bends you with His might that His arrows might go swift and far.

Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;

For even as He loves the arrow that flies,

so He loves also the bow that is stable."

New Year's Workshop

The Alluem Kid's New Year's Workshop is now open for registration!

Ring in the New Year (slightly early) at Alluem Yoga!

Wednesday, December 30th

10:45am-11:45am

ages 7-12

Sign up in person or online by clicking Schedules & Events at AlluemYoga.com (page over to December 30th and look for Kid's Yoga). Space is limited, so sign up today!

Meditation Owl

I believe it's never too early to start teaching kids about Meditation. In the Alluem Kids 4-7 year olds class today, I had the kids do an arts and crafts project to help them learn about what Meditation is all about. I started by having them tell me what Meditation means to them. One told me, "It means you clear your head.". Another told me, "It's just like praying." Kids get it. They may not be able to sit still for too long with their thoughts, but they don't have to! They don't need a dark room with a candle and quiet music. A meditative state is natural for a young child. They are naturally more imaginative and creative. For instance, they get what it means to relate a color to a feeling. As adults we sometimes forget to activate this imaginative part of our brain, and over time it becomes harder and harder to do so. Which is why I am a strong believer of keeping an active imagination and always staying young at heart!

So, why Owls? Owls are wise animals. It just seemed right to pick an Owl. Using the construction paper, I cut out the shapes for the kids to glue together. They then traced their hands to use as the wings. On each of the fingers we wrote a common Mantra, "Sa, Ta, Ma, Na" (See Bog Post: Yoga Mudras). On the belly of the owl, I wrote a little poem for them:

(To the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star)

Sit up tall. Close your eyes.

Hands on knees. Heart to the sky.

Deep breath out. Deep breath in.

Just relax and look with in.

(then incorporate the mantra)

Sa, Ta, Ma, Na,

Sa, Ta, Ma, Na

Hearing them sing this was just adorable. Knowing they took home a skill that may help them throughout their lives, is even more beautiful.

Sing Your Own Song

I found a great reading for tomorrow's class by Ashley Rice. She has some great inspirational books for kids that are definitely worth checking out. Her positive messages are full of encouragement!

This one is called "Sing Your Own Song":

Wherever you are is the place you're in.

It's the way things are. It's where you're standing right now.

You're learning to follow your own bright star.

And even if things seems a little strange to you now,

you'll work your way through it somehow.

Just take a little step, reach out further,

get a little closer to the place you belong.

In your own skin, in your own way...

you're singing your own song.

To see more of Ashley's work, visit her website: http://www.ashleyrice.com

You can also purchase her product designs that she has created for Blue Mountain Arts: http://www.sps.com/p+ashley/authors/show.html