Mindfulness is a meditation practice that trains the practitioner to be completely immersed in the moment, with all five senses. With practice, we learn to bring our scattered attention and energy back to what we are experiencing right now, without judgment, without...
Yoga and Team Building
One thing we say quite frequently in our home is “What team are you on?” This question gets asked during times of bickering, but also general discontent. The correct answer is “I am on team Ruggieri.” We have teams in all areas of our life: family, friends, sports,...
R-E-S-P-E-C-T (Find Out What It Means to Me)
With a nod to the great Aretha Franklin, we all need a little respect ("just a little bit"): respect for others, for the earth, for ourselves. As a children's yoga teacher, I have found that teaching about respect in its various forms takes more than a quick...
Splish Splash Yoga
Want a new challenge for you and your young yogis? Try moving your Kids Yoga practice off the mat and into a swimming pool! Here are some easy ideas for games and activities to really make a splash! Cannonball: Assign a pose and have each child jump into the pool in...
5 Games to Improve Coordination
Coordination can be tricky, even for some adults! We all know, and perhaps we were, that kid who is just uncoordinated or klutzy. Yet coordination is something we can build as a young child and improve through the lifespan. Coordination building games can be great fun...
Full-Blown Pranayama Putt-Putt
I grew up loving miniature golf. My grandparents have had a camper at Alleghany Mountain Resort at Rainbow Lake since my mother and her brothers and sister were young enough to enjoy the fresh air and open spaces. Much of summer’s free time was spent with aunts,...
Healthy Mom Means Healthy Child
Are you one of those people that are committed to making sure your child is healthy and has access to some of the best programs out there for inspiring creativity or promoting cognitive, social, and emotional development? If you are like most parents, the answer is...
Mother’s Day Yoga
It's almost Mother's Day here in the United States, and if you're like most people you are wracking your brain trying to come up with a unique, fun way to celebrate moms that the whole family wants to participate in. I know that I am over dragging the kids to an...
Risk-Taking in Children’s Yoga Classes
We've all heard the terms: Helicopter Parent, Zamboni Mom, Lawnmower Parent. These derogatory labels are slapped onto folks who want to pave the way for their children. They hover near their kids and smooth their journey so as not to be injured, upset, or frustrated....
Reuse Those Plastic Eggs!
It's that time of year, again. The Easter Bunny has come and gone, leaving tons (literally tons) of plastic eggs behind. Rather than throwing the plastic eggs away to inevitably end up in a landfill or in the stomach of a bird or critter, let's yoga-fy the eggs with...
Meditation Rehab for a Recovering Perfectionist
Confession: I am an office supply junkie. The Container Store is the closest I've ever been to imagining what Heaven looks like. Back-to-School sales of sharpened #2 Ticonderoga pencils and never-opened glue bottles make me swoon. There's a closet in my bathroom,...
Yoga Brings Generations Together
Most all Jewish folks know the tune “Hava Nagila.” If you don’t remember the words, you’ll definitely remember the rhythm of the song. And if you’re not Jewish, you’ll catch on really, really quickly! Kidding Around Yoga made a delightful Yoga spin of the song, Yoga...
Little Yogi’s Spring Cleaning: Saucha
Saucha, or purity, is one of the key ideas Patanjali wrote about in the Yoga Sutras. It is vital in clearing the mind and creating a strong, healthy body. Most kids are probably not concerned with purity, especially when making messes is so much more fun! Of course,...
Dear Parents: Stop and Smell the Flowers!
This is a letter to all parents of children who attend yoga, written from the perspective of the children. I taught hundreds of Kids Yoga classes for over 4 years before slowing down, and these are things I often heard from my students. I hope your heartstrings are...
Changing of Seasons: A Spring Equinox Themed Class
Many in the northern hemisphere look forward to the month of March. This is when the spring or vernal equinox occurs, usually around March 19-21. The spring equinox signals the transition from a long, dark winter to a light-filled spring. Of course, in the southern...