Notes about upcoming meetings - August & September

Fun and different meetings are planned for August and September!

August 19 is a social meeting all about pleasing our palates and strengthening our community. It's an Ice Cream Social! Please bring a pint of your fave flave (or just something you've been wanting to try out) and a scoop. By no means is this party limited to traditional moo-cow ice cream. There are tons of non-dairy options out there including coconut, almond, hemp, soy, rice, and cashew, not to mention sorbets! You might even find some goat's milk yogurt somewhere. Let's have a variety!

It would also be great if everyone could bring a bowl and a spoon so we can use a minimum of back-up disposable supplies. As always, feel free to bring the kiddos, or leave them home if you don't want them around so much sweet, even if it is agave or honey. Speaking of sweeteners, it would be great to have a discussion about types of sweeteners if anyone wants to bring opinions or info, and I'm sure we all could benefit from swapping stories about how we deal with "treats" with our children.

Weather permitting, this social meeting on August 19 will take place on the patio and front lawn of our regular location, the AUMC church at 716 S. Glebe in Arlington. If it's too hot or raining, we'll be inside.

For the September 16 meeting on local birth options, we will be inviting birth professionals -- midwives, OBs, doulas, childbirth educators, etc. -- to attend for something of an open house (after a short presentation and some group Q&A). We are still working out the details for this event, but because of the large crowd we anticipate, this meeting will be held at a different location: Mason Regional Library at 7001 Little River Turnpike, Annandale, VA 22003. We will probably open doors at 6:00 or 6:30 to have ample time. More details to come, but please note the location change and that we'll have an earlier start.

Hope to see you there!

Bellydancing Moms Night Out!

What a lot of fun we had at Zalya's Studio in the Woods for our Bellydancing Moms Night Out! Even though last-minute missing babysitters meant we had a small group, it was great to learn to shimmy together! It was a fabulous workout and a blissful community event all in one, followed by fresh blackberries and apricots our instructor, Jeneen (aka Zalya), had just picked from the farm. We learned about -- and experienced! -- the many benefits of bellydancing and enjoyed playing dress-up with the fun scarves and skirts Jeneen made available to us.

Thanks to Jeneen for hosting us and to her assistants for inspiring us, and thanks to Natalie for organizing such a wonderful event. Even just being in the beautiful woodsy neighborhood felt like a retreat, and I think we'll all be checking out more of Zalya's yoga, bellydancing and art classes for ourselves and for our children!

July meeting: Intro to Acupuncture

Thanks to Sarah Shupe, L.Ac. of Acupuncture Alexandria and Allison Kitchen, L.Ac., M.Ac., NCCAOM, of DC MindBody who shared with us the basics of acupuncture. Both practitioners work with a variety of conditions, including fertility and women's issues.

We discussed the differences in various acupuncture traditions, talked about what ailments and conditions acupuncture can treat, looked at diagrams and models of the body's energy meridians and answered a whole bunch of questions. We also had a demonstration as Sarah did a mini treatment on HMN co-leader Leigha

Community Service Options for Holistic Families -- June meeting

Thank you to representatives from Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment (ACE), Volunteer Arlington, and Fairfax Family Services Department for providing us with a number of wonderful ways to get involved in our community! From volunteer opportunities we can do with families to information about ways to get involved with local environmental efforts, we all left with a wealth of information and a bunch of great ideas for giving back to our community. Thanks for an inspiring June meeting!

Inspiring Mother Blessing

Thank you to the organizers of our group mother blessing! Three of our members who are due mid-July to early August were honored at a lovely ceremony hosted by Sharon Stevenson of Yoga, Birth and Beyond. The evening included a centering exercise by Jennifer Moore of Moore than Yoga and the blessing of beads for a birth bracelet. A traditional activity at birth blessing is to wind yarn around the wrists of each participant around a circle to symbolize community; participants wear the bracelets until the baby is born. With three babies coming, we decided three bracelets would be a little much (especially through summer months!), so we decorated mama dolls who are now wearing three different bracelets until we get the word that each baby has come, when that string will be cut. Until then, we can all look at our doll and remember our bond as mothers and our support of one another, especially of the three VBAC-hopeful mamas.

The evening concluded with pampering (massage and hair decoration) and feasting on berries and muffins.

All three mamas -- and, it seemed, the participants -- left feeling inspired and supported!

Finding our Center: Yoga Meeting in May

Our May meeting was a wonderful night of discussion about finding our center in our yoga practices -- and in our parenting -- followed by practice in two separate demonstration sessions.

Autumn Wilson of Yoga Chai and Pleasance Lowengard Silicki of Lil Omm began the evening with an overview of different yoga styles and the many of the benefits of practicing yoga with a special emphasis on yoga's connection to parenting.

After the discussion, Autumn led a class for parents with babies and tots while Stair Calhoun of Little River Yoga led a group of moms in a lovely gentle practice.

Thanks to our speakers for their time (and donations of free classes and some great gear!) and thanks to everyone who came out to "turn inward."

Yoga Night in May

Are you feeling stressed out? Need a way to unwind and clear your head?
Are you searching for a way to stay healthy and active that fits with your busy schedule as a mom?
Do you want to learn more about the different types of yoga and to figure out which one is best for you?

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, then this meeting is for you! Come join us on Thursday, May 20, 7-9 p.m. at 716 S. Glebe Road, Arlington, VA 22204 (in AUMC church. Donations for the church's food pantry are always welcome at HMN meetings. HMN is not affiliated with any church and appreciates the use of AUMC's space).

Autumn Wilson of Yoga Chai and Pleasance Lowengard Silicki of Lil Omm will begin the evening with a presentation and discussion of different yoga styles, yoga's connection to parenting, and many of the benefits of practicing yoga.

After the discussion we will have two separate opportunities to practice yoga: A Moms/Dads & Tots Practice led by Autumn Wilson and a Gentle Adults-Only Practice lead by Stair Calhoun of Little River Yoga.

Bring a mat or towel to this meeting.

HMN meetings are open to members and first-time visitors. Children are always welcome. Come see what we're about!