I got an email from BFF Lolo today with a bunch of questions I’m supposed to answer. You know, an email meme, AS IT WERE (a phrase I haven’t used since grad school, blergbergbeglerrrrrrrrg). So, I thought it might be fun to ACTUALLY do this meme, edit a few of the questions a WEEEEE bit to suit the BLOG GENRE, and post it here. I also thought maybe YOU GORGEOUSES would want to do it — either in the comments or on your blog, if you have one (but post your link in the comments). It’s a fun one and a good way for us to get to know each other better. You in? CHECK IT!

(NOTE: Click HERE to get the list of questions you can cut and paste — EASY — into your blog or the comments. LOVE!)

1. What time did you get up this morning? 5am and 7am….
2. Diamonds or pearls? Pearls….
3. What was the first film you saw at the cinema? I fully cannot remember. I think the first one I remember seeing in the theatre was ET, but there had to have been earlier ones….
4. What is your favorite TV show? Just one?? Right now, I’m loving THE TUDORS because I SO lived another life in that time, was probably a peasant…, and because HELLO (caution: the following preview is HHHHHOTT):

And, in case you were wondering? I’m a Jeremy Northam girl, but I definitely see the SEXual appeal of Jonathan Rys Meyers. DEFINITELY. Also, Natalie Dormer? PERFECT Anne Boleyn. PERFECT. I mean, WOW. You MUST watch this, Gorgeouses?

Also? Because it’s my blog and I’m a TV WHORE and a claim-to-fame WHORE, I love SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA because my first cousin MILES FABER, MADE IT TO THE TOP 20! HOLLAHHHHH!

I could not be PROUDER! Soooo, if you haven’t seen it already, check him in this vid — this was the first audition that got him to the Toronto finals…. He’s the second one in….

The judges LOVE HIM!

Okay! And, we’re only on question 4…. Moving right along….

5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Errrrrmmmm, Starbucks soy no-water chai tea latte….
6. What is your middle name(s)? Rachel….
7. What food do you dislike? Any food that involves cruelty to animals….
8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Oh gosh. I think the yoga mix I created for the classes I teach (they’re totally KEY for me to keep track of the time). It’s LOVERLY and calming and so pretty…. Here’s a song from it (since so many of you loved the other songs from the CD that I posted a while back)…. Enjoy….

That’s “Paramaysareh,” by Snatam Kaur, from her album Anand (Bliss).

9. What kind of car do you drive? Silver SUV….
10. Favorite sandwich? Grilled Vegetable….
11. What characteristic do you despise? Passive Aggressiveness….
12. Favorite item of clothing? My Lululemon pants, of course…
13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Right now, I’d really like to go to a Yoga retreat — maybe one in Costa Rica….
14. Favorite brand of clothing? Would have to be Lululemon — only the pants, though….
15. Where would you retire to? I think I’d like to travel the world when I retire, and keep my residence in Toronto (my parents are doing that, and it’s a beautiful, exciting life)….
16. What was your most recent memorable birthday? Oh gosh. This last one. Because it SUCKED BEYOND. Heh….
17. Favorite sport to watch? Gymnastics, then diving, then basketball….
18. Furtherest place you are sending this? Probably Gorgeous Ellen (aka GOOFBALL) in BELGIUM!
19. Person you expect to do this first? I have NO IDEA! And, I have this uncomfortable feeling that NO ONE’s going to do this, and that I’m going to look like a big LOO-HOOOO-SER! You know what, though? I’m coo widdat….
20. When is your birthday? September 10, 1974….
21. Are you a morning person or a night person? Night person (also, apparently, an ellipses person…………….., in case you haven’t noticed by now…….LOVE…….!)….
22. What is your shoe size? I just learned that since I had Rascal I went UP A HALF A SIZE! I’m now, officially, a 7 and a half.
23. Pets? One Three cats.

Yes, that’s a banana. I had to dance with a banana because my maraca was too dangerous…, ahem……

Take it from Monkey, you do NOT want to get THWACKED in the head with THAT thing. You want to STAY AWAY FROM your CARAZAY dancing, maraca-shaking mama!

24. Any new and exciting news you’d like to share with us? MY COUSIN MILES FABER MADE IT TO THE TOP 20 OF SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA!
25. What did you want to be when you were little? An artist. With special powers.
26. How are you today? Happy.
27. What is your favorite candy? Anything chocolate. With peanuts. (It’s been a while, come to think of it!)
28. What is your favorite flower? The rose — any colour.
29. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? HALLOWEEN!
30. What is your favorite pastime? Yoga….
31. What are you listening to right now? Josh-O tapping away on his computer….
32. What was the last thing you ate? Homemade Chai Tea with milk and agave nectar….
33. Do you wish on stars? Yes….
34. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Purple….
35. How is the weather right now? Cold and damp….
36. The first person you spoke to on the phone today? Josh-O….
37. Favorite restaurant? Cravings (because Lolo and I just went there and I loved every minute of it — it’d been a LO-HO-HONG time since I’d been to a restaurant)….
38. Real hair color? auburn-ish (I don’t dye it)….
39. What was your favorite toy as a child? sighhhh, Barbie, and my Cabbage Patch Kids (and Dog “Kasey”)….
40. Summer or winter? Neither! I love the more moderate temperatures of Fall and Spring….
41. Hugs or kisses? Hugs….
42. Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate….
43. Coffee or tea? Duuuhhhhh…. Freakin’ tea (dang Starbucks!)….
44. Do you want your friends to do this in the comments or their blogs? Why? YES! Because I want to get to know them better, and because I think memes are fun and healthy and not for bloggers alone!
45. When was the last time you cried? My birthday (but I could cry if I wanted to…)…
46. What is under your bed? A yoga bolster and a meditation pillow….
47. What did you do last night? Got home from the country, dinner at it’sgrandma’s and papa’shere, and WATCHED MY CUZ MILES FABER (VOTE FOR HIM) MAKE IT TO THE TOP 20 OF SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA.
48. What are you afraid of? On a bad day? Everything. On a good day? Nothing.
49. How many keys on your key ring? I’m SO not getting my sorry arse off this couch to check, but I think 4….
50. How many years at your current job? I’ve been blogging for 2.5 years, selling art for 2.6 years, teaching yoga for 4.5 years….
51. Favorite day of the week? Saturday….
52. How many towns have you lived in? including as a kid? 4 (Toronto, Montreal, Hamilton, London)….
53. Do you make friends easily? Yes….
54. How many people will you send this to? Ummm…. Hundreds? (But, I don’t like to think about that because OVERWHELMS.)
55. How many will respond? I’m hoping at least 10ish? STEP UP TO THE PLATE, THOUGH, GORGEOUSES! We want to KNOW YOU!
56. Salty or sweet? Lately salty! Which is SO UNLIKE ME! But, I never say no to sweet. And, HELLO CHAI TEA LATTE? AKA, my CRACK? Could NOT be any sweeter….
57. Favorite soft drink? None. I don’t drink zee soft drink.

YOU’RE UP, GORGEOUSES!

Look! Rascal throwing a tantrum in LEG WARMERS….

SLIPPER!!!!!!! (Paul Frank, of course! They are awesome….)

You know what this reminds me of? BUT, OF COURSE (dance with me!)….

Love it. Love it. Love it. Love it.

CONGRATULATIONS to SCIFI DAD AND MULTITASKING MOMMY on the BIRTH OF THEIR NEW SON!!! Yaaayyyy!

This week has been INSANE for me. I can’t remember a busier week. And, SO, the minute Josh-O comes home — like, in 10 minutes — I’m going upstairs with a chai-tea latte (second of the day, thank-you-very-much, but it IS dinner), and shutting myself in my room for the night…. Or, at least until it’s time to give Rascal his bedtime feed. And, yes, you thought right: he is, indeed, SUPPOSED to be breast-free right now; but, no, weaning is SUCKING ARSE right now.

It was so easy weaning monkey. Just around her first birthday — when I had planned to stop breastfeeding — she stopped asking for it. I’d offer, and she’d take it. But, for the most part, she STOPPED ASKING, so I stopped offering, and that was it! EASY. With the Rascal, though, nothing’s easy. He’s VERY attached to me, and LOVES the two feeding times (three today, and I barely managed to escape a fourth) I give him a day. Now that I’m weaning him, HE’S BEEN ASKING FOR MORRRRE than ever. HAAAAAALP!

I guess I have to face the fact that Rascal and I aren’t on the same schedule, like Monkey and I were. He’s just not ready to wean. BUT, HE’S ONE! And, and, HE HAS TEEEEEEEEETH! I mean, what would happen if I just cut him off — like that? Won’t that give him a complex or something. But, then again, he may NEVER be ready. So, maybe it’s up to me to just tell him he’s ready and cut him off…. Cut the cord. Always cutting that cord.

Monkey. Monkey peed in her pants twice THRICE today. I’m not sure what she’s trying to tell me with that BUT IT SUCKS. It especially sucks that she peed in her pants RIGHT before our first parent-and-child/baby yoga class this afternoon, WHICH she took in the BIZARRE pair of hot-pink BLOOMERS I found at the bottom of my purse — reserved for the REMOTE chance she’d pee in her pants again. BLERRRRRRG.

I took the mommy-and-baby yoga class this afternoon because I often teach mommy-and-baby yoga classes myself. I wanted to make sure that what I was doing with the moms and babies in my own class wasn’t lacking or unusual. I thought it MIGHT be lacking because some moms come to my class expecting LO-HO-HOTS of baby yoga, and that’s not my thing. My thing is very mommy-centred. My goal is always to teach them how to practice yoga with a baby crawling around. How to practice yoga with lots of interruption. And, in some cases, how to use the weight of baby’s body as a tool (while bonding with baby, of course) in the practice. My class begins with a warm up that usually involves the baby: the mother’s either lying down or seated. Then, we do an hour of yoga with or without the baby. And, then we do baby massage, baby yoga and some songs and BUBBLES. So, it’s a well-rounded class. Something for everyone — with a HEAVY focus on yoga asanas (poses) and pranayama (breathing).

This afternoon’s class was very different from what I teach. It was PERFECT for yoginis like me. It was MOM-centred and focused on REPAIRING the body after pregnancy, and not necessarily “getting back in shape.” It focused on loosening our tight necks, opening up the back, bringing the uterus back to the spine, etc…. I loved it. And, the monkey LOVED it because the teacher gave her lots of fun poses to try.

Next week, I’m teaching in front of the owner of the mommy/baby program I teach for (she’s wonderful). I hope she likes my style, and the way I format my class. I also hope her students (who are used to her more baby- and fitness-centred yoga) enjoy it! It’ll be really nerve-wracking because it’ll be so different from what she’s used to and from what she teaches. I can only do WHAT I DO, though — which is different every class, and which is guided by my own practice, training, beliefs and intuition.

ANYWAY! I didn’t expect to talk about that! But, I guess it’s on my mind. I’m looking for more places and people to teach. Not looking ACTIVELY, really — because, sadly, I still have a lot of weight to lose to approach potential places/peeps with confidence, but, with my daily 1-hour walk (MINUS the extra chai latte, ‘course), I’m well on my way. I’m more like thinking…. Thinking about MORE teaching, thinking about a book….

I love teaching mothers. But, I’d also like to teach people who are ill, people who are anxious and/or depressed, people with special needs, and/or the elderly. The desire is coming on strong these days. And, I think I’m JUST about to seek out synagogues and churches who might be interested in my program. We’ll see….

Going to the country this weekend. And, the timing couldn’t be better!

Have a WONDERFUL weekend, Gorgeouses!

Namaste….

xo Haley-O

I had a really intense day today, Gorgeouses. I went to Yorkville, which is arguably the chichi-est area of Toronto.

I could not believe that my typical outfit — lululemons, a black Roots T-shirt and running shoes — was BEYOND unacceptable attire in Yorkville, while it’s TYPICAL in my neck of the woods. Seriously! Where I live in Toronto, EVERYONE is wearing lululemons and running shoes. In Yorkville, everyone wears stilettos or FANCY knee-high boots, DESIGNER blouses, chandelier earings, up dos, and an unpenetrable air of confidence…. And, the MEN! Picture it: GORJ Brad-Pitt-type guy on motorcycle with DESIGNER mirrored sunglasses…. I couldn’t stop staring….

It’s not like I’VE NEVER BEEN TO YORKVILLE. I HAVE! But, I’ve never felt so out of place. I felt like I was walking the street in my PAJAMAS in the middle of New York City Fashion Week! No. Kidding. Eeek!

Anyway, I went to Yorkville by myself, in what felt like pajamas, with bits of Rascal’s lunch caked on my shirt, and, of course, cat hair on my lulus…. I’m not sure I want to talk about what I was DOING in Yorkville. It’s just not bloggable yet. Very personal. I mean, I’d tell you, and you, and MAYBE you, and, of course, YOU. But, I’m not sure I want her or her or him or that other Gorgeous to know because it’s TRAY personal, and because sometimes it’s empowering to keep a thing or two to oneself (as a seasoned blogger, I would know!). And, I could use a little self-empowerment right now…. But, I WILL say, it’s a good thing I didn’t wear my crocs. And socks.

By the way? America’s Next Top Model? Just watching it now? Thinking if SHE doesn’t get booted tonight for getting “stuck” in her poses, Elina has this competition in the bag….

This girl is HAWT. I mean HAWT. And a VEGAN and animal activist to boot.

Sigh…. I need a vacation. I told Rascal that today. I said, “Rascal, mommy needs more than 2 hours in Yorkville to herself…. Mommy needs a FULL-ON vacation.” He didn’t appear to care.

I think it’s because this week has been so crazy. SO much going on. Lots of yoga teaching, appointments, birthdays, Rascal screaming through the night again, and at/after naptime. Nutty. Frustrating.

Tomorrow will be hectic again. But, s’all good. I’ll just go to bed early so I can wake up and practice yoga — something I’m finding increasingly difficult to find time for with these two cheaty little monkeys! In fact, hmmm, maybe I’ll do some right…now. Namaste….
xo Haley-O