Couples Prenatal Yoga – Thursday March 21 5:45-6:45 p.m. at The Family Garden!

On the heels of St. Patrick’s Day, join Jennifer for an evening of connecting to the abundant offering you share as a couple that will carry into parenthood.  The class will include partner poses, meditations to bond with your baby as a family, and an opportunity to share space with other couples.  Learn playful ways to nurture your relationship and support one another during pregnancy and your birthing experience.  No experience needed for mama or partner. FREE child care is available. You can use your Family Garden punch card ($45 for 5 classes or $80 for 10 classes) or $10/person drop-in.

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This 6-hour workshop is designed for yoga teachers who want to learn more about teaching yoga to pregnant women. Come and learn about safe and un-safe yoga poses for pregnancy and accommodating pregnant women in your classes. Explore yoga breathing techniques and sequences that you can use with pregnant women to support them in all stages of pregnancy. As part of the workshop, you will get to experience a 90 minute prenatal yoga class with pregnant women in all stages of pregnancy.
Facilitated by Yaga Richter PhD, PYT
Sunday March 10
9am to 3pm
$100

Here are some articles that Debbie Mayer has suggested as additional helpful resources:

I feel the article below does a good job of covering a wide variety of points.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/15/health/tips-for-talking-to-children-about-the-elementary-school-mass-shooting.html?_r=4&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1355521410-nkTBhktJ2Tab0WRiB2MHyg&

There are many wonderful resources via the National Child Traumatic Stress Network – their facebook page is below.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Debbie-Mayer-MSW-LCSW/306773456087987?sk=messages_inbox&action=read&tid=id.529008317115913#!/NCTSN

We hope you can join us this Thursday at The Family Garden.  Feel free to invite any friends who you think may benefit from this gathering.  Call 303-678-1144 with any questions.

Love and Logic Spanish flyer

The holidays can bring a sense of excitement, but can also be a stressful time for some children and families. Here are a few tips to make the most of this time with your family.

Time around the holidays can elicit many emotions, not only for parents, but children too.  Acknowledging these emotions can go a long way in supporting your child and easing family dynamics when everyone is together under one roof for extended periods of time.

• If the holidays are a reminder of sadness in missing loved ones you used to spend time with, acknowledge this aloud and make time for processing the loss of not having them with you. Make a favorite meal you used to eat together, or have younger children draw pictures of a time they remember everyone being together.
• Start, or continue, a family tradition. Whether it’s a certain meal you make, spending time volunteering, or going for a winter hike; this is something special for your family.
• Schedule time together. Set aside time to do family activities such as board games, charades, listening to music, or decorating your home.

Children function best when life is predictable, this increases a sense of safety where they are better able to understand what to expect.

• Try to keep a general routine to your day. If you have children who are involved in school, this time may not be as structured when school is in session, but it still helps kids know what the plan is.
• If you have a special event you’re going to, let your child know you can write it on the calendar so they can check to see if there’s something coming up.
• Return to regular bed time routines a few days before school/day care starts again.

Get outside! Nothing is worse than being cooped up for days on end. The body releases endorphins (happy hormones) when outside, so getting outdoors can naturally help ease tension building at home.

• Go for a hike and allow time for exploration.
• Do a scavenger hunt in the back yard or neighborhood park – how many different colors can you find? What sounds do you hear?

These days will pass quickly. Take time to slow down and enjoy one another’s company.

Happy holidays!

Debbie Mayer, MSW, LCSW

Psychotherapist and Parent Educator

www.debbiemayer.com

A Holiday Gift for You! Overcoming Holiday Overwhelm Podcasts

by Liz on November 27, 2012

Thanksgiving is over and you know what that means.

The insanity of the holiday season is upon us!  And what is billed as a time of peace, joy, love and celebration too often becomes a season of frustration, anxiety, hurry, conflict and overwhelm. It’s not a pretty picture!

When expectations of a Norman Rockwell holiday clash with the reality of tightened budgets, the hassles of travel, difficult family members and way too much to do in too little time, things can get ugly in a hurry.

Fortunately it doesn’t have to be this way. It is possible to bring a lot more peace and joy into your holiday preparations- even if you didn’t start shopping for gifts in July!

If you’re looking to take some of the overwhelm out of the holiday season to make space for more peace and joy, I’d like to help!

Overcoming Holiday Overwhelm Podcasts

In this series of podcasts (about 10 minutes each) posted every couple of days, you will learn a 7 step process that will take you from frantic activity to focused action.

By the end of our time together, you will have a new set of tools to ease the overwhelm that can overcome anyone this time of year.

The first thing we’ll do is spend some time exploring what the holidays mean to you and identifying the qualities of experience you want for yourself and your family.

There is always too much to do and not enough time to do it all, so we’ll talk about how to make choices based on what really matters to you.

And because making these choices is hard- we’ll discuss how to communicate your choices to others- especially when they might not be happy about them!

By the end of these podcasts, you’ll have a concrete plan, know exactly what your next steps are and be ready to enjoy the holiday season instead of merely trying to survive it!

Specifically, these audio recordings will help you:

• Recognize and address the physiological effects of overwhelm
• Connect with the holiday traditions and activities that matter most to you and feel OK about dropping the rest
• End the martyr syndrome and get comfortable asking for help (We’ll cover the details of what, why, when, and most importantly HOW to ask for help!)
• Create a do-able game plan for the next few weeks

This is the third year I’ve offered these tools specially designed to take the overwhelm out of holiday preparations and every year it’s made a big difference in helping busy moms (like you!) get a grip on all the demands of the season in a way that feels good to them and their families.

In the past, it has been a paid class, but last year I was moved to offer it as a gift to every mom who is ready to take some of the overwhelm out of the holiday season to make room for more peace and joy.

I got such great feedback, that I’ve decided to continue the tradition!

So with that, here are the  first two podcasts (click to play the recording now, or right click to ‘save link as’ to download to your computer.)

Step 1 Check in and Slow it Down (11 minutes)

Step 2 Write it Down (8 minutes)

Please let me know if you have any comments or questions!

And also- please share this with any other moms you know who could use a little more peace and joy and a little less overwhelm this month!

May your days be filled with peace and joy until next time!

P.S. If you’re in the Boulder area, join me at the Family Garden from 10:00-11:00 am on Friday, December 7.  This month’s Chaos to Calm class will be devoted to Overcoming Holiday Overwhelm.  This is your chance to get some in-person advice!

Liz Emmett-Mattox can be found at The Family Garden the first Friday of each month from 10-11 a.m. or you can contact her through her website at www.dreamgardencoaching.com

Sunday Oct 21, 2012 – 2:30pm to 4:00pm
at the Boulder College of Massage Therapy in Gunbarrel.

If you are interested, please reply back to me ASAP if you can commit to attending our clinic and receiving a free 75 minute postpartum massage given by a trained and supervised student.

Those interested should call Kala Spangler at 720-938-3697, or send e-mail to kala@kalaspangler.com

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