HypnoBirthing in January

Words that have been used to describe the birth experiences of women who have completed the Hypnobirthing program include: comfortable, enjoyable, gentle, empowering, beautiful, calm, bonding, even painless! Learn how your birthing body can be freed from the debilitating effects of fear by understanding how the body responds to stress, developing self relaxation techniques and working together with your birth partner to create the beautiful birth you were meant to have. If you are pregnant and would like to reframe your perception of birth and in turn transform your birth experience, click here for more information and details on how you can enroll in the next session, starting January 8th. Space is limited for this pre-registered 5 week session.

What could be a better gift idea for a new mom than a yoga class for mom and baby. Moms get to strengthen, tone and calm the post-partum body and mind in a supportive environment that allows for diaper changes and milk breaks. For moms with babies six weeks to pre-crawling.

Date: Jan 26th-Mar 1st Time: 1:00-2:00pm (6 weeks) Cost: $72 + tax/ pair

Yogic Gifts for the Holiday Season

Looking for balance during the holidays can be challenging. In looking for ways to follow the gift giving traditons of Christmas without losing touch with the essence of the holiday we asked the yoga teachers at Shakti Yoga Studio to share their holiday gift giving practices.

It seems that great yogic minds think alike as there was lots of overlap. Handmade items seemed to be close to the top of most lists. Listed below in no particular order are some of the ways that the Shakti teachers will be celebrating and sharing the holidays with their loved ones this year.

1. Give nourishing foods such as cakes, muffins, soup or anything freezable that can be pulled out for unexpected guests or at the end of a busy day. A gift that is both tasty and practical.  

2. If you knit, paint, hook rugs, sew you can pour this creativity into gift items that are personal and made with love. How about homemade bath salts? finger puppets? Peanut Butter Brittle? For how-to instructions for these and many other handmade gift ideas go to www.marthastewart.com and get inspired.

3. Consider making your own Christmas cards. You can draw, paint or even print cards with pictures of special moments with the receiver. How could Hallmark possibly provide this kind of personal touch!

4. Give the gift of time and effort. Shovel snow for your neighbours. Give gift certificates for baby sitting, dog walking, house cleaning, etc to be redeemed at a future date. You can expand this kind of gift giving to a community scale and volunteer at a soup kitchen or deliver food hampers.

5. Books that have inspired you are wonderful gifts with personal sentiment attached. If you don't have a particular favourite, anything by the Dalai Lama or Thich Naht Hanh is sure to be full of loving, positive messages. Or just share a quote that has inspired you in your handmade Christmas card.

6. Some of the most meaningful gifts suggested were a result of opting out of regular gift giving habits, either as individuals or as a group. For example, you can donate to a cause in the name of a friend or family member and give them a card letting them know what was given. Whole families or groups can also agree to opt out of exchanging gifts and either individually or by pooling money donate to a fund. 

Another organization that is doing wonderful work is the Shanti Uganda Society. This is where we get the batik yoga mat bags that we sell at the studio. The Shanti Uganda Society improves infant and maternal health, provides safe women-centered care and supports the well-being of birthing mothers and women living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda. You can buy products such as mats and jewellery or purchase bith kits to help decrease HIV infection rates from mother to child.

 

7. Think local. Drop off a turkey for the CBC Turkey Drive 

 

8. Drop off a box of groceries to The Gathering Place, a local downtown program that provides meals for 80 - 125 men and women per day in a caring and nurturing environment  that encourages social development.  

 

9. Nourish and support a friend's personal development. Give a subscription to a magazine on a topic of interest to the receiver. Or a how-to book/DVD on a subject that you know your friend would like to learn more about.

 

10.  Do you have photos of a special event, a wedding, a birth, a holiday spent with a special person on your digital camera? Use an online book publisher (like Blurb for example) to create one-of-a-kind bound, professionally printed books using those pictures and adding your own narrative.

 

11. Give consumable gifts such as massages, spa services, yoga classes or gift certificates for a favourite restaurant. These kinds of gifts improve the quality of the receiver's life rather than filling their homes with stuff.

 

12. Buy and wrap gifts for kids and drop them off at the happy tree in the Avalon Mall to make Christmas a little more magical for kids who may not otherwise have much to open on Christmas morning.

 

  Roasted Cauliflower & Blue Cheese

If you have ever thought that there were not enough great ways to enjoy cauliflower you will love this beautiful, nutritous appetizer that doubles as a centerpiece.

Cauliflower contains several anti cancer phyto-chemicals, is an excellent source of Vitamin C and a source of many essential B-complex vitamins. What a wonderful way to incorporate some vegetables into your holiday gatherings this year.

Ingredients:

1 large Cauliflower head
6 Sprigs of fresh sage
3 small onions diced
3 garlic heads, sliced in half horozontally (skin left on)
3 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp butter @ room temperature
1/2 tbsp nutmeg
1/2 tbsp salt and pepper
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
6 tbsp of finely sliced chives

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425F. Put the Cauliflower stem down in a large saucepan with 1/2 inch of water in the bottom and simmer at medium to high heat for 5 minutes covered. Remove from heat and allow to steam for a few minutes longer until tender.

2. Chop 2 tbsp of sage and save for later. Put the rest of the sage, onion & garlic in a roasting pan and drizzle with olive oil.

3. Place Cauliflower in the roasting pan stem down with the sage mixture. Then mix butter, nutmeg, salt and pepper and spread over the cauliflower.

4. Roast in the top third of the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until cauliflower is golden.

5. Put the cauliflower on a serving tray

6. Squeeze the roasted garlic pieces out of the skins into the mixture at the bottom of the roasting pan along with the reserved sage and then spoon this mixture all around the cauliflower.

7. Sprinkle the crumbled cheese and chives over and around the cauliflower.

8. Place on your table next to a pile of small dessert plates and forks. Cut the cauliflower into wedges (Like cutting thin slices from a round cake) and place on plate with a scoop of the surrounding mixture on top. 

This recipe is a somewhat altered version of that found in a recent Inspired magazine. The mixture around the cauliflower has been tripled to ensure there is enough for a scoop on every slice of cauliflower.

Enjoy!