Another Baby Yogi!

Vedic Yoga Ashram welcomes Fiona Chan's darling little Oscar Lau.  He came for a visit to Tuesday Night class.  Congratulations to all the family!

 A  New Baby Yogi

Celeste Meredith Archer arrived quickly and safely on Sept. 2nd weighing 9 pounds 2 ounces.  She and her mom Brenda are doing great!  Fiona is very excited about her baby sister and plans to start teaching her some yoga very soon.  So far Celeste is enjoying some baby massage.

A Little Yogi's Journey...

Fiona is now 3 1/2 years old and very soon she will have a baby brother or sister to be her yoga student. 

 Recent belly dancing classes were a great success.  Thanks Teresa!  If you missed them, more are planned for the future.  Let Laura know if you are interested.

Thanks to Marguie for the many times she has made our blankets so beautifully fresh.

Baby Yoga - Fall 2008

Still Working Hard on Her Yoga: Fiona

Fiona is two and a half now.  She attended a yoga class at a community centre near her home in Langley, but does most of her practising at home.  She also loves to teach yoga to her friends and dolls.

 Yoga Practice at the Ashram: Summer 2008

Special Meditation Visitors: Todd and Ceci 

The meditation group welcomed back Todd and Ceci (Laura's son and daughter-in-law) who recently spent 3 weeks in Richmond on a break from studying and working in Taiwan during the past year.  Todd resumed his leadership of the meditation group and shared his wisdom and knowledge. 

 Men in the Kitchen: a Great Success

The men worked hard cooking up a storm, while the women and children relaxed and enjoyed the delicious offerings.

	Thanks to Rahim for making us a BBQ

Terry received many requests for the following recipe for Cornmeal Casserole:

Saute 3-4 large leeks (chopped) in 1/4 cup olive oil until tender.  Season to taste with 1 tbsp sugar, salt,  pepper and 1 tsp tumeric.  Scald 2 cups of  water and add 1 cup of cornmeal.  Cook until thick.  Stir in sauteed leeks and 3 eggs (or egg substitute).  Add 1/2 cup parmesan cheese.  Mix well and pour in greased loaf or square pan.  Bake 350 degree F uncovered for 30 minutes until firm in center.

Griffin: Perfecting Shavasana 

After 9 months of yoga practice with Jen Hunter,  Griffin was born on June 23rd.  Now we can all see him perfecting his shavasana.  Congratulations to the Hunters!  See you 'on the mat' soon Griffin!

  Snatam Kaur Concert:

Recently some of our Ashram family attended a wonderful concert.  The beautiful music of Snatam Kaur is often used in yoga classes.   You can read about her and listen to a sampling of her music at http://www.snatamkaur.com/     She has also recorded a children's cd which will be available soon.       Snatam's mother joined her on harmonium for the encore.  Snatum is playing violin.  Guruganesha Singh who has his own cds is playing guitar.   

Ashram students Brenda and Fiona Archer got to meet Snatam at the end of the concert.   

Fiona:  singing mantras

Fiona Archer is already two.  She has been working hard on her yoga asanas with her mom Brenda and sometimes to Wai Lana dvds.  But now that she is talking she really loves singing mantras to Snatam Kaur's cds.  Sometimes she sits in quiet meditation for a very short time.  She lives in Langley now so we don't see her very often.  Here is a picture of her singing so you can see how she has grown:     

Steve: Yoga Teacher in Training

We're so fortunate that Steve has decided to work on his 200 hours of yoga teacher training at the Ashram with Laura and Meera as his teachers.  He'll be helping and teaching at lots of classes during his training.  

Yoga Practice at the Ashram -  February 2008  

More International Cooking Classes

Recently Manjit Virdi and her Mother demonstrated Indian soups and snacks.  Everyone enjoyed the delicious results.

Also Chinese Herbalist  Dr. Jennifer Gao and her husband Raymond taught a class called "Let Your Food Be Your Medicine".  They used special Chinese herbs and berries.   

Special thanks to these talented cooks and everyone who attended.  

Thanks to Bev  for introducing us to Dru Yoga

~Experience stillness in motion through gentle yet powerful flowing movements that bring balance and tranquility~

"Dru" means "still point" in Sanskrit.  It is the North Star, the point around which the universe revolves, the calm in the eye of the storm, the refuge we all seek to be free from stresses and strains in our lives.  Through balancing the energies of the body, Dry Yoga transforms physical, emotional, and mental health.  Unique to Dru Yoga are its Energy Block Releases - flowing sequences that release trapped energy in joints, muscles and organs, allowing the body to open to its natural state of well being.  Also called "Yoga of the Heart", the movements and breath work activate the healing energy of the heart.   Dru Yoga can benefit anyone regardless of age, strength or flexibility. 

Bev is now helping out when our regular teachers are not available.  Try to attend one of her classes to experience this very special yoga.

 Retreat to Whytecliff Park in West Vancouver

The one day bus trip and retreat in August to Whytelcliff was enjoyed by everyone who attended.  The day included meditation, yoga, relaxation and lots of great food.  Students enjoyed the challenge of getting to the island and the beautiful setting for meditation.  The yoga class was lots of fun. It was great to have our former teacher Waylon join us for the day. 

Practise in the Sunshine

Our youngest yogini 15 month old Fiona enjoyed practising outside this summer.   "Open Heart" is one of her favourites, but she's working hard on many other asanas.  Namaste Fiona!

Drumming Workshop

On June 3rd Ken Anoff, a master percussionist with 30 years experience, led an informative and fun workshop in hand drumming.  Basic techniques were demonstrated and through clear, simple explanations all the participants enjoyed the magic of group drumming. 

Fiona's New Website

Fiona teaches Wednesday mornings at the Ashram.   If you haven't enjoyed one of her classes yet, please drop by soon. 

 Have a look at her great new website: 

http://www.freewebs.com/fionayoga/

International Cooking Classes

Manjit's delicious dish	Special thanks to Manjit V.,  Nosrat, Isabelle and Hein for sharing their special ethnic vegetarian cooking skills with everyone.
Nosrat

Polar Bear Yoga  

 The Second Annual Polar Bear Yoga took place at King George Park on a very rainy, windy January 1st. 

Despite the weather, almost 20 dedicated yogis and yoginis met to focus their hearts and minds on good health and peace for the coming year. Some friends and family around the world joined us at noon and also pledged to do random acts of kindness during 2007.  Tasty snacks were enjoyed under the gazebo and with a fire and a heater it was lots of fun.    

Seva at Sea to Sky

On November 5th, teachers and students from the Ashram returned to the Sea to Sky Retreat Centre to cook lunch and dinner to thank the staff of the Centre for the wonderful weekend last summer.  Manjit V. and Laura organized the delicious food.  Participants hiked, meditated and practiced yoga, as well as enjoying two great meals.

 Lama Marut at the Ashram

We were so fortunate that Laura arranged for Lama Marut of the Yoga Studies Institute to teach at our Ashram  in September.  He taught  10 two hour sessions about the eight- fold path of yoga as written about in the Yoga Sutra by Patanjali over 2000 years ago.  

Tibetan Heart Yoga Teacher Training: by Rishma

A workshop was held at the Vedic Yoga Ashram.  Laura, Meera, Teresa, Fiona, Manjit V., Brenda and I attended.   It taught us how to teach from our hearts. We chanted, worked on our breathing and meditated.  With wisdom and compassion at our hearts we carried out our asanas with the intention of destroying the pain of others.
The Yoga Sutras on ethics, meditation and wisdom by Patanjali provided the basis for the yoga practice.  Our teacher, Yvonne, Deedee and Mardi were an inspiration to us all.

  2006 Sea to Sky Retreat: by Teresa

     As our caravan turned off the highway and made our way into the peacefulness of the mountains towards the Sea to Sky Retreat Centre you could tell we were entering a special place.  

      Besides the scheduled activities of yoga, meditation, hiking and the information sessions taught by Laura and Meera, there were many interesting discussions evaluating all aspects of life or just visiting and getting to know our yoga friends.  Sunday morning brought about a silent half day with everything from yoga and meditation to meals and hiking in complete silence.  
     You could do everything or nothing while you were there and I am sure everyone who attended would agree a perfect weekend was had by all.

Baby Yoga

Thanks to Brenda and Fiona for their help with Baby Yoga.  It was lots of fun.