This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you.’ Aways grateful for the support through community. I only promote products I have tested and believe in. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
When I had my second child I remember lying in bed one morning thinking, wow, is my soul purpose in life being a milk making, nappy changing, sleep deprived zombie?
I had been teaching Pilates for 5 years at that point. I absolutely loved teaching, I loved my family, my partner - but I needed something just for me. Something that took me out of the nappy changing, multiple night wake up zone. An hour where I was not giving to my children, my clients or my partner. An hour I could spend just with myself. Filling my cup so I could fill the cup of others.
That is where my love affair with yoga started.
I had been to various yoga classes starting in my 20's, nothing ever 'stuck'.
I remember meeting up with a Pilates instructor friend. We sat at a coffee shop outside a yoga studio. The smells if incense and the sounds of the harmonium. It was a Jivamukti studio. It was fate. We agreed to meet the following week to do a class together. He never joined but I stuck to my guns, did a 6am class and have never turned back.
Oh glorious Shavasana. I had come home.
Pilates and Yoga have so much in common but are yet so different. My Pilates had instilled a sense of poise and awareness that I could filter into my yoga practice. Pilates centered my body and Yoga filled my soul.
For all the moms out there - you so selflessly give of yourself to those around you - make sure you fill your cup.
Here's a few of my favourite things from Etsy. Incense, yoga blocks, pilates rings, acupressure mats and some other treats if you need to find something for yourself or for your mom for Mother's day. I know what I will be spoiling myself with.
My favourite indulgence is Oudh incense from Mother's India and a Pure Scent Candle from the Pure Scent Shop on Etsy. I am definitely stocking up on these for my Mother's Day treats.
Have to add a few others that I have on my list...
Acupressure Mat from Yoke Wellness - this is magic for your whole body. Looks torterous at first but 5 minutes on this baby and you will float off to bliss.
Muscle & Joint Ease Balm from LouisaBApothecary - I always have Arnica cream handy and the combo with comfrey is great for muscle and bone recovery.
OnGaurd Doterra Oil from PrettyJewelryCharms. I burn this in my studio all the time. This is my go to oil for health and wellbeing.
MindCards from LSWLondon - I love these, they are fab for morning rituals with meditation and reflection.
Cork yoga block - My cork yoga blocks not only offer me more stable support but I love the fact that these are more earth friendly from GrowFromNature.
I looooove these wooden acupressure balls, at the moment I have the plastic version of these acupressure balls but will definitely invest in some of these. Earth Friendly and so amazing to release tight muscles and knots from MoonDragonInc.
To all the amazing Mothers out there - Namaste!
"Mama, you told me That motherhood would be wonderful. But Mama, you never told me What it would do to me. How it would take the woman that I was; The woman who thought she knew everything And could control everything And break her down and Teach her that She had so much to learn.
Mama, you told me There would be sleepless nights. But Mama, you never told me Just how tired I would be; How sleep would become a luxury, and not something To which I am entitled; But that there was nothing sweeter Than hearing the sound Of their steady breath while they slept; And that even when all I wanted Was to close my eyes For five more minutes, Small, soft, chubby arms Around my neck, Singing me songs, Telling me stories, Giggling and squealing, Would make me forget how badly I needed to sleep.
Mama, you told me That I would figure it out one day at a time. But Mama, you never told me That motherhood would take the perfectionist in me, And whittle her down to someone that Has no choice but to accept That sometimes, "Good enough" Is enough.
Mama, you told me That motherhood would change the way I think. But Mama, you never told me How my sharp memory would be torn into shreds, And that I would forget, Misplace, And confuse things; But that I would remember nothing more clearly Than the way the weight of their Small, warm bodies felt In my longing arms, The first time I held them.
Mama, you told me That motherhood would teach me selflessness. But Mama, you never told me How sometimes I would feel like my independence, My freedom, My time, My sense of self, Had all been taken away And that I would feel guilty sometimes wishing I could have it all back; But that in fact, it is a privilege to be needed by someone So deeply And that motherhood would gift me With so many exhilaratingly precious moments That take my breath away.
Mama, you told me That motherhood would change my priorities. But Mama, you never told me About the worrying; How much I would worry. Are they happy? Are they healthy? Are they okay? Am I enough? I didn't know that someone else's needs could So wholly and completely Consume my every thought And that everything else would become Unimportant, Secondary, As long as my children were happy.
Mama, you told me That it would be a joy to watch them grow up. But Mama, you never told me How quickly the time would pass; How the hours, the days, the weeks and the months Would slip through My fingers So fast That I would suddenly find myself looking at a child instead of a baby; A baby instead of a newborn; And beg time to be a little bit kinder and wait for me to catch up.
Mama, you told me That motherhood would teach me things. But Mama, you never told me How becoming a mother would test me And push me And make me doubt myself And lead me to think that I was doing everything wrong; But that with each test, each push, each trying moment It would teach me How to be better How to be stronger And just how much I was capable of.
Mama, you told me You loved me. But Mama, you never told me How that love would run so fiercely through my veins; How every other kind of love I have ever felt Would be nothing like this. How it would be a love that teaches me To give more than I ever thought I could give, To somehow want to give even more when I think I have nothing left, And to be grateful for the simplest of joys."
Written by Rasha Rushdy for her blog The Tuna Chronicles - a wonderful place for moms to find inspiration. She's also on Facebook.
Comments