Started yoga class--so happy!!!

For a long time I've been thinking about taking yoga classes. I've always had an interest in it and have dabbled in it for a long time, although my commitment to the practice has been sporadic. When things get stressful, it seems like that's when I do yoga the least, even though that's when I need to be doing it the most!

Chris has known about my desire to take classes, too, and given our new "situation," he insisted that I call and see about classes. (Now let me clarify something--Chris is by no means a bossy person (or at least he's not with me! :). We respect each other and communicate very well, so when I say that he "insisted," what I'm saying is that he knows me so well and knew that if he didn't push me to do it, I'd say, "No, it's ok, I'm fine...") So we went online and looked in the phone book for a yoga studio. I knew that there used to be a yoga studio in Fredonia called Yoga Bija, so I looked it up online and that appeared to be the studio that I was thinking about. When I called, however, someone (male) answered the phone with a simple "Hello," and I was a little surprised. I asked if it was a private residence and apologized when he said that it was. I told him that I was looking for a yoga studio and he explained to me that his wife teaches yoga in their basement on Mondays and Thursdays, etc... Whew! A few days later, I received a call back and got the scoop on the classes.

I feel like my timing is kind of poor--waiting until I'm 5 1/2 months pregnant to start these classes--but it is what it is. I went to my first class on Monday and I just loved it. Besides the instructor, there were three other ladies at my first class. Two are professors at SUNY Fredonia, our local university, and one is an ESL teacher in Dunkirk. I really look forward to getting to know these ladies. They're so intelligent and warm and I feel like being around them will help me grow as a person.

I will be attending two more classes for now, then Carolyn will be taking a trip. She was going to take the month of July off, but she mentioned the possibility of continuing to teach on Mondays through July, but not on Thursdays. (I have to admit, my mind was a jumbled mess on Monday--long, stressful day at work followed by an appt with my midwife, home long enough to grab my yoga pants, then back out the door to meet our friend Amy for dinner, then directly from dinner to yoga--so I was feeling a little overwhelmed, and my listening skills were a little "off," so I may have to get clarification at class on Thursday!)

So let me tell you about the class!!! We chatted for a few minutes and I became acquainted with the ladies in the class, then we started doing some poses. I was feeling a little stiff as I had done a lot of walking the day before and had quite a charlie horse, but I'm *so thankful* to have someone who can guide me through the poses and make sure I'm doing them right. Starting this class has made me feel really renewed and refreshed, not only because I'm doing something great for my body, but because I'm learning about something that has fascinated me for a very long time.

I'm sure that many of my future posts will be about yoga because I feel very accomplished when I learn a new pose or when I get better at something.

So excited!!!!