Over the holidays, Heath did more roughhousing, tickling, bouncing, sliding, sledding, and maniacal laughing than he ever has in his life. His grandparents and cousins were whirlwinds of energy during our visit to Montana and all made sure that Heath got in on every bit of the fun. This video gives a taste of the action....
I posted lots of photos of the holidays on Flickr and Facebook, so I won't repeat myself, but wow! We had such a good time with family here in Seattle and in Montana. We ate delicious food (Grandma Chris' cinnamon rolls were very popular with Heath!), visited old friends, participated in a dance contest, unwrapped thoughtfully chosen gifts, watched movies our PJs, and played outside in the snow-covered valley where Peanut grew up.
Heath was lavished with love and snuggled to his heart's delight!
Fast-forward to preschool this week, where Heath hit the indoor gym with a glint in his eye. With a little help, he log-rolled down a vinyl mountain, insisted on riding an inflatable horse (that he had just watched another kid get bucked off of), kicked like crazy in the ball pit, rode a stand-up scooter, rocked in a toy boat, and went down two different slides over and over with dramatic grins and squeals. I just love that he feels so physically confident in an environment where the other kids are literally bouncing off the walls.
Heath's yoga practice is taking off as well!
He received a deck of kid's yoga cards awhile back from friend Dhyana and now asks to get them out three or four times a day. They have turned out to be a huge motivator for him and tons of fun for everybody. We spread the cards out on the floor and make a game out of choosing which pose to do. Here he is trying to work out Frog....
He goes down on his tummy to try Bow Pose, reaching back with his arms to find his toes. He sticks his chest out in Lion pose and gives a subdued roar. With a little help, he balances on one leg in Tree and tentatively raises his arms. Here he is doing Child's pose with a block....
And checking out life upside down....
He even showed his babysitter Angela how to do a few poses while I was out!
I've been working at a glacial pace to complete yoga teacher training certification since 2008. Being Heath's mom has given me a whole new understanding of yoga and its capacity to be adapted to anyone's needs, both as a means to healing and tuning-up the body and a means to enjoyment and fun for their own sake. As I finish up my training, I've been doing some practice teaching and assisting in a class for special needs teens at Taj Yoga. This is probably the giggliest yoga class I've ever been a part of and one of the most instructive for me. Nobody is stressing about doing things perfectly and every student is doing the pose with unique adjustments, working at their own edge, finding out a little bit more each week about what feels right and where to experiment next.
One student who doesn't stand independently without support does great work on her knees or against the wall, with great focus and stamina. Her favorite pose is Downward Dog, an elegant way to be stable and extend everything on all fours. Another who stoops (from her valiant and successful efforts to develop balance over the years), is opening her shoulders and rib cage, leading with her heart as she chants "OM," her favorite part of class.
I learn so much from these kids, not only about how non-standard-issue bodies work, but about how some kinds of so-called disability really demand a kind of athleticism. You need discipline and mental toughness to operate physically in a world that was not designed for you. Now when I see someone walking in public with a hitch in their giddyup, I don't think, "Oh, that's too bad." I think, "Way to go." Maybe it was the equivalent of Olympic training that allowed that person to get up on their feet at all. True grit.
Anyway, I'm grateful for my new yoga friends, and Heath. And so excited that he is enjoying everything his body can do -- to the hilt!
Including eating. A month ago, I was happy he had an average toddler diet with a decent range of pretty healthy favorites. Now, he is turning into a midget foodie. He eats the same sandwich for lunch that I do: sundried-tomato pesto, avocado, Jamaican-jerk cheese, and salami on whole wheat! I can take him to a restaurant with no special kid foods in my bag and be confident that he'll eat off the menu and drink milk from a big-boy cup. He's starting to eat much faster now too (err, just like his ma), so we can spend more time doing other things or squeeze in a quick meal before going someplace. I am so grateful Heath eats well, and can only suspect that it's partly due to having had a wide variety of "real foods" when he was tube-fed, sensing and feeling many different fruits, veggies, proteins, etc. which gave him a varied palate before he even had a palate. (Thanks to the Seattle tube feeding moms for getting us started with blended diet last year.) Then again, it might just be that he takes after his mom, who will eat anything in sight.
We spent a lot of time over the holidays reflecting on how far we came last year, and 2011 will bring even more amazing changes. We are busy packing for our move to Missoula next month and getting the distillery up and running. What an adventure! I can only imagine what I'll be writing here a year from now. Hopefully I'll be doing it with a wee bit of our own gin in hand...
I hope everyone else had a wonderful holiday with blessings to celebrate. Wishing you a great year to come!
