Hot, humid long summer days give way to the cool, crisp shortened days of fall.  As the season change, mama needs to stay grounded.  Find the Om at hOMe this Fall:

Carpoolmamasana – Take each carpool as it comes.  Break it down one day/hour at a time.  Pack extra snacks, hot tea, and layers for cold pick ups that go overtime at 6:00.

Gardenmamasana – Take time to bask in the last of the flowers and brilliant colors.  Pick those veggies before the big freeze.

Shoemamasana – Back to school means new shoes and boots.  Take this time to give away old clothes/shoes to those in need such as, Refugee One and Family Promise.

Soccermamasana – The leaves are striking against a blue sky.  Take note and ground in tree pose, however, don’t get tangled in dog’s leash while taking it all in.

Spamamasana – Take time for yourself with a grounding massage or skin treatment to get rid of dead skin cells from summer.  Renew and soothe dry skin with a nourishing facial.

Happyhourmamasana – Cool, crisp light white wine gives way to bold, reds.  Nothing more to say here.

Gourmetmamasana – Nurture yourself and your family with comforting soups and grilled veggies (see gardenmamasana), or get from the local  farmer’s market.

What’s your mamasana? Lori

In the last few weeks most kids have returned to school. My youngest sister sent her oldest off to Kindergarten with a new lunchbox in his hand and a box of tissues in hers. My sister-in-law sent her first off to college in another state. I am somewhere in the middle, having recently seen the oldest two graduate from college and still on daily duty with twin Juniors in High School.

I will admit that I was never that mom sniffing at the school bus stop at the beginning of every school year. I was usually doing my “happy dance” in relief over a bit of open time in my day. Some moms looked at me askance when I confessed to this. I returned the arched eyebrow: “Hey, I love my kids, too, but I need a break!”

And so, I am now two years away from a really big break. My boys will get on that really big school bus that takes them to another town, or state, or country even. My happy dance has become a bit of a slow waltz, gliding between nostalgia and anticipation in the awareness of fleeting time. These days when the boys argue or get rowdy and threaten to pull down the rafters, I try to soak it in for a bit before I invoke my parental threats. Only two more years…I may miss this decibel level too soon. I will not have to worry about soccer game schedules or carpools or having enough milk in the fridge. I will have my “break” and I will embrace “metimemamasana.”  There will be no need to rush off the yoga mat to another school play or orthodontia appointment.

In fact, I may have to leave my cell phone on during yoga class…hoping that it will ring with some mundane request and rouse me from savasana.

As a mom of two teenage boys, I’d be the first to tell you that I don’t think I’m ready to have kids.  I’m not even sure I like kids.  I definitely feel that way about dogs.  That is, until we got one.  Like kids, you do tend to tolerate yours more than anyone else’s.  The weird thing is that I’ve learned more about yoga from my dog than in my 20 years of practice.  Soccermamasana  wisdoms:

Slow down and enjoy being lazy.  Lists are overrated only a way to engage monkey mind.  Stop swinging and give it a rest.

Cop to your downfalls.  Own it.  You can’t hide a chewed shoe.

Pulling or working against yourself will get you nowhere.  When the dog pulls, we stop and sit.

Sometimes you just have to let some poses go.  You can keep trying, but at some point the squirrel can climb higher and faster than you.  Know when to walk away.

When the kids aren’t listening and driving me crazy, I can control the dog.

Look at where you are not where you are going.  Best way to avoid getting feet tangled in a leash.

Go with your gut.  Know when to cross the street away from an oncoming dog.

Wet, muddy puppies running through the house are funny.  The same does not apply to wet, muddy shoes.

Be present and stop at every corner to sit and assess.

Walking down the same street, is not the same at all.

Rewards, or reinforcers are good.  See Spamamasana.

Picking up poop is humbling.

Enjoy simple pleasures.  Often a good belly rub is enough.

No matter how many times you hear something, it’s worth repeating until it clicks.  Take “sit” for example.

When I was the novice, sleep deprived mother of twin babies a friend would constantly reassure me that things would change and I would not always be the diaper changing zombie that I was. Only a few years later, as we shared constant parenting trials and tribulations, she confessed to me that what she had not told me was that while things would change, there was always going to be something…some phase the kids were going through, some challenge. Now we‘re potty training…adjusting to Kindergarten social dynamics…getting driver’s permits…now we just found the illicit substance in our kid’s room. You survive one phase to move to another. Somewhere between losing the first tooth and pre-pubescent mood tremors (theirs, not mine) I discovered yoga. I should say that I knew about yoga from friends and neighbors but it took me an inordinate amount of time to embrace that I might find some benefit in the practice. Guess what? Turns out having someone remind you to breathe is a good thing. Spending an hour in a quiet place rediscovering how your body serves you (or doesn’t) is also good. Savasana rocks! And after a few months of adjustment it really sank in why all these neighborhood moms were religious about getting to yoga class. The yoga was…keeping them sane. OK, liberal quantities of Chardonnay help as well but they went to classes and then took the yoga with them when they left. They felt like more centered, capable, competent moms. They started reminding themselves to breathe. They didn’t sweat the small stuff as much. Their bodies and their minds benefitted.

I will never be an advanced practitioner; I watch in wonder at those who can twist themselves into pretzels that balance upside down on their fingertips. But I am forever grateful that I have a found that small little rectangle of personal real estate known as my yoga mat…and that the mat is not in a fixed place. Just like our Javamamasana, I can take the yoga to go.