Winter weekend yoga

Well it went from being 75* at the beginning of the week to being 25* at the end. It looks like the colder temps are here to stay for, oh, the next 5 or 6 months. Oh well. I can't really say that it comes as a surprise, a shock maybe but not a surprise. This is Wisconsin after all.

Last Thursday I had the great pleasure of doing a nice long practice with my friend Jessica. No one has come to the open practice slot thus far so it is generally me in there doing my own thing. Jess and I did a practice that I have from Desiree which was great fun and also got to work a little bit on what is going on with her back. Practicing with friends is really up there with my most favorite things to to.

Yesterday, Kae and I headed down to Madison to spend the day doing yoga with another of my all time favorite people, Noah Maze. We were welcomed by a big group from Viroqua that had come down for the session the night before. It was really a fantastic representation of yogis from Viroqua: Shelia, Shelia, Valorie, Lydia, Heidi, and Kristina were all there in addition to the 2 of us. Noah was himself to a tee, he told beautiful Ganapati stories interwoven with personal anticdotes. He and his wife have just recently become parents and so he is in that whirlwind of beginnings that involves a ton of love and feeling and not a lot of sleep. He was very well recieved by Wisconsinites, who generally speaking are parents themselves.

In the morning we did a fun backbend practice, focusing a lot on creating a boundary with the shins and working the inner thighs like crazy (sound familiar?). It was a solid sequence with a few unexpected surprises which I thought were great. At the break I shared lunch with Kae and Noah and Kristina and some of the lovely Madison ladies. That was great and i was really reminded of how long I have known Noah for and how he has really seen the full trajectory of me. From my most vulnerable and raw to my most built up. He has been a solid and consistent force in my life for a long time and I value his friendship highly.

In the afternoon we started things out with a lovely meditation on all of the senses to start off a lively hip opening class. I didn't personally feel as warmed up as I like to for hip work, but that may have just been that I was a tired ol' pregnant lady. Who knows. But it was great fun and I was definitely in the flow of everyone elses practices. My friend Tracy from Hartland was also there so it was fun to connect with her for a bit and I feel inspired to take a trip to my mom's and get in a practice or 2 with her. It really must be said that since I have moved back to Wisconsin she has been my main practice partner and a huge source of inspiration for me. We have seen each other through multiple pregnancies and supported each other in the challenges of the householder. Love her.

Before heading back to V town, Kae and I stopped into Dobhan's for a bite to eat (OK, many bites...) and were happily surprised when Noah, Iris and her husband, and Barbara showed up for dinner. So that was lovely and a nice end to the evening. Well, almost an end. We did have a 2 hour drive home following.

Today I am hanging with the family. Chris is headed out for a ride in the frigid out of doors and then we are all here. Hooray!