So happy together

Blooma re-opened Saturday with a burst of amazing energy! Our classes were full and it was wonderful to see all of you with your blooming bellies or with kiddos in tow. My Saturday 11 a.m. BYOB (Bring Your Own Baby) yoga class was a blast with 16 mom and baby pairs filling the room with breath, movement, and songs for baby.
      If you haven't tried BYOB yet, give it a go! It's so much fun to develop a yoga practice that rebuilds your strength, is fun for baby, and bonds the two of you even closer together. Plus, BYOB classes are a great place to reconnect with familiar faces from your prenatal yoga classes and to share what's happening in these first months with baby. 
      Whether your baby is 2 months old or crawling, there are a bunch of class times and days to choose from. (And  yes! BYOB is open to dads and other caregivers, too!)
Tuesdays 11am -12 pm - Allison Cunningham
Tuesdays 6-7 pm - Lisa Bergley (YogaBonding founder— she's back at Blooma! If you haven't had the pleasure of a class with Lisa yet, be sure to drop in.)
Thursdays 11 am-12 pm - Jennifer Colletti
Thursdays (Crawlers), 11 am-12 pm - Allison Cunningham
Saturdays 11 am-12 pm - Alisa Blackwood/Jamee Yung
Sunday (Crawlers) 11 am-12:30 pm - Allison Cunningham


St. Paul moms, please start spreading the word that I'll also be teaching BYOB at our new St. Paul location (968 Grand Ave.)—Wednesdays at 11 a.m., beginning February 3.


Love,
Alisa, Sarah the women of Blooma

Beyond the baby blues...

It’s a given that we all love our babies and children to the moon and back (and beyond). But let’s be honest: the transition to motherhood and the adjustment to caring for a new baby isn’t always easy. Sometimes it can be downright overwhelming. New moms can feel confused, lonely, and vulnerable.

Know that you don’t have to experience these emotions alone, and that there are plenty of resources in the Twin Cities (including Blooma) to find help, feel heard, create community, and get support.

I’ll admit that I was one of these women. Starting at 8 weeks postpartum, I was inconsolably depressed, though sprinkled in were really good days, too. Yes, I sought out counseling. I had to. It helped, along with getting out of the house, meeting other new mothers, breathing deeply, and practicing yoga.

If you’ve experienced postpartum depression or “baby blues” and want to share a word of encouragement for new mamas, leave a comment and let us know what helped you. If you want to learn more, read on.

Last month, Blooma staffers Sarina LaMarche (that's her, in the photo) and Amber Kay attended the Beyond the Baby Blues conference in St. Paul. Here are a few things Sarina passed along from the conference:

• 50 to 80 percent of new mothers experience the “baby blues,” which are gone by day 14 after baby’s birth
• 10 percent experience something deeper and more lasting Postpartum depression (PPD) can emerge three to 14 months after baby’s arrival and can include negative self-talk about themselves or the baby, lack of interest, and difficulty making decisions
• 22 percent experience postpartum anxiety (PPA), anxiety that includes intrusive thoughts and an inability to be reassured

Myths of motherhood:
• Motherhood happiest time in your life
• That it is instinctual and seems easy to everyone else
• You are bad mother if you aren't happy, can't breastfeed, or if caring for the baby is hard
• If I say “I am unhappy” it means I don't love my child
• I need to be a “perfect” mom
• Asking for help is a sign of weakness

Research suggests that women can find incredible power through connecting in groups pre- and postnatally. Blooma strives to provide options to make this happen. This includes Personal Renewal Groups and Moms' Nights Out (led by life + wellness coach Sarina LaMarche) and classes like BYOB Yoga and Yoga For You.

If you’re a new mom in need of support (or if you have a friend who you think needs help), ask any of the Blooma staff for resources. You can also click here to learn more about the postnatal workshops offered at Blooma.

Other wonderful resources include:
• The Parenting Oasis, a local center where you can go with your kids to relax, play, meet other families, have lunch, and participate in social and educational opportunities.
• Postpartum Support International
• Postpartum Support MN
• Jenny's Light
• MedEd PPD

Thanks for this information, Sarina.

Love,
Alisa, Sarah & the women of Blooma

Welcome to the Blooma blog!

Today we’re relaunching the Blooma blog, and we’d love for you to think of this blog-o-sphere as an extension of the community you’re a part of when you’re at Blooma in person. Welcome!

Since Sarah Longacre opened Blooma in October 2007 with her loving arms, talent for inspiring moms and moms-to-be, and cadre of gifted teachers and body workers, I have come to feel a special affection for Blooma. (We hope you feel that way, too.)

First I came as a newly pregnant mama who found a nurturing, supportive community where I learned to embrace my blooming belly and made new friends. Sampling the various prenatal classes gave me the chance to figure out which teachers would challenge me (sometimes seriously challenge me!) and which would give me a relaxing wind-down at the end of an intense day. I also adored my prenatal Maya abdominal massages (and that awesome massage table with the holes for my belly and boobs that actually allowed me to lie face down—bliss!).

After my son Graham—now 13 months old—was born, we hurried back to Blooma, looking for familiar faces. In our BYOB (Bring Your Own Baby) classes, Graham and I reconnected with mamas I’d done sun salutations next to when he was in my belly. We also got to admire my prenatal yoga friends’ beautiful babies who were on the outside now. We shared stories, new mama woes, and some of us began to meet outside of class, too. It’ll be just a few more months until we’re ready for Tot Yoga, and meanwhile I’m back into my own yoga groove with Yoga For You! classes. Not all cities have a place like this and I am grateful that I can boast otherwise.

As a birth doula and certified infant massage instructor, I’m into all this mama + baby stuff anyway. But when I was pregnant, and now as a mother, I came to appreciate even more what Blooma offers to my family. My husband has come to partner workshops with me, and my mother-in-law has practiced with me side-by-side, learning how to do simple yoga poses with her grandson at home. I’ve since trained with Lisa Bergley, developer of YogaBonding, and now teach BYOB at Blooma on alternating Mondays and Saturdays. I teach an occasional infant massage class, too. If I haven’t already, I hope to meet you soon!

Please subscribe to the blog, too. I’ll be blogging regularly about everything mama- and family-related including:

• upcoming Blooma workshops + classes
• the latest pregnancy + parent-related health news
• links to hip, funny, or informative parenting stories
• pregnancy + parenting blog postings (send me your own blog links!)
• guest blogs from Blooma teachers and body workers, midwives + OBs
• postings from Sarah and other doulas, who will share their favorite tips + tricks for labor
• "Blooma Bookclub" reading recommendations
• and of course we’ll keep you in the loop with the ever popular “Blossoms” updates: photos of Blooma babies (and preferably their mamas, too) as they make their grand entrance into this big, beautiful world.

So that’s a little something about me, your Blooma blogger. I’d love to learn about you, too. Leave a comment and tell us what Blooma means to you—we’d love to hear your thoughts!


Love,
Alisa, Sarah, & the women of Blooma

"During my labor, I pictured myself on my yoga mat."

Talk about music to our ears! If you're wondering how yoga fits into pregnancy and then again when baby arrives, check out this lovely blog from Blooma mama Melissa. We do love our Blooma cheerleaders! Thanks, M!!

A Day in the BYOB Life

New Blooma mama Alisa posted this wonderful slice-of-life tale about our BYOB classes. If you haven't tried a class with your little bundle just yet, check this out, then get yourself to Blooma!

Our BYOB classes, ideal for newborns to wigglers, are offered four days a week:
Mondays, 12:30 to 1:30pm
Tuesdays, 11am-Noon
Thursdays, 11am-Noon
Saturdays, 11am-Noon

We offer child care during all of our BYOB classes for your older child, too!

NEW CLASS: BYOB now on Mondays

Life with an infant? Amazing, miraculous ... but not always easy! That's why we're adding a class to our BYOB*Bring Your Own Baby yoga bonding schedule: so you have more easy opportunities to get to Blooma with your little one, when it's convenient for you!

Starting next week on Monday, June 9, Jennifer Wetherall will be offering BYOB from 12:30pm to 1:30pm! Check out the complete BYOB and BYOB*Crawlers schedule:

** BYOB and BYOB*CRAWLERS CLASSES**

Mondays, BYOB: 12:30-1:30pm with Jennifer Wetherall
Tuesdays, BYOB: 11am-12pm with Jennifer Wetherall
Thursdays, BYOB: 11am-12pm with Jennifer Colletti
Saturdays, BYOB: 11am-12pm with Jennifer Wetherall
~and~
Thursdays, BYOB*CRAWLERS: 12:30pm-1:15pm
with Susan Colvin/Emily MacLaury

The BYOB class is ideal for babies who are aged newborn to wiggly. Once babe starts to feel like more than a handful in BYOB, join us for BYOB*Crawlers, ideal for little ones who are eager to be on the move, up to about 18 months old.

** QUESTIONS? REGISTRATION?**

Learn more about BYOB*Bring Your Own Baby and BYOB*Crawlers
Sign up at www.Blooma.com (click on Schedule)

What BYOB Means to Me

We thought we'd share a little love note we got from new-to-Blooma mama Meredith T. She tells us:

I recently stumbled upon your studio and just love it. I attended my first BYOB Crawlers class there yesterday (Thursday, 12:30) with my son Sam and left there feeling so excited that I finally found the class I've been looking for for so long. But as I was leaving, I heard that this class might be discontinued as of April because no one is signing up! Please reconsider discontinuing this class. I guarantee the reason people aren't signing up is because not enough people know about it. I personally cannot attend next week because I have family in town, but plan to attend the last Thursday in March.

I have a whole new appreciation for these types of parent/child classes because I lived in Iowa for a brief period last year and I had a very difficult time trying to find interesting classes or activities to do with my infant son. When we came back here I realized how fortunate we are to live in a community that offers such a variety of things to do for parents with infants and toddlers. I developed a real liking of yoga when I was pregnant and kept looking for a class I could take with my son since he was about 6 months old but never found it until Blooma came along.

So thank you for this great class! I hope you will keep it on your schedule!

Blooma & Belinda!

Belinda featured Blooma on her Saturday morning show on KARE-11. Take a look!

BYOB*Crawlers

We started a new class at Blooma today: BYOB*Crawlers: Bring Your Own Baby Yoga Bonding 2 ... a class for crawling babies and their caregivers. If you're familiar with the Yoga Bonding classes created by Lisa Bergly, then you'll instantly recognize the Crawlers class as YB-2, for babies who are on the move (up to about 18 to 20 or so months). Six babies brought their parents -- 4 mamas, 2 papas. Yay dads! The little ones and their parents did some yoga together at the beginning of the class, then while moms & dads did Sun Salutations, the babies played together, crawling all over the studio, checking out each other's mats, and exploring their little bit of newfound freedom. And then the babies got back in on the action for some standing poses before the moms and dads put their core and legs to work. The babies left eager for lunch and ready for naptime; the parents reported they got a great, short workout, too. The class is Sunday mornings, from 11am to 11:45am. Blooma teachers Shelly Shern (who led the way in creating the Crawlers sequence) and Jennifer Derryberry Mann lead the class on alternating weekends. Come join us sometime! Late-comers and drop-ins are always welcome, and of course, you can sign up in advance online.

Blooma OnLIVE!

Sunny, glorious Friday, October 26, was a special day for Blooma! We made a little TV appearance on the Kare 11 OnLIVE weekday show. (Check out the story on their web site!) Mama-to-be Marissa; Mandy & baby Brady; along with Jenni and just-turned-1 Anabel joined me on the show to do some prenatal yoga and to demo some BYOB* (bring your own baby!) yoga poses. The babies were so mellow -- small screen stars in the making! And of course, we got to share the good news about Blooma: the Twin Cities' first prenatal and postnatal studio dedicated to women & their families, offering all kinds of classes, wellness services, and on-site child care. Can't wait to see you here!