January Intentions and 2023 Calendar

January 9, 2023January 26, 2023 by Dominique ♥ 1 Comment

Edit: it is now TWO WEEKS LATER AHHH but let me just post this and you can tell me has January flown past you as well having fun or is it dragging along for you.

To be perfectly frank, I have been STRUGGLING to wake up at my usual 5.30 or 6 am time. More amazingly my alarm clock i.e. my 5 year old has not been waking me!

Not newsworthy for some but everyday is a slow news day in this household thank goodness hehe.

But with waking up late at 8 or 9 has left me without the extra hour in the morning I usually rely on. It makes a difference for me even if it is a weekend. I have been meaning to finish up designing a few things (including a calendar) and without those morning hours I have struggled. And in a chicken and the egg kind of story I felt like I could not plan out things I wanted to work on in January (it’s almost a third of the way through the month) and January is just flashing past. You would think it would wait for me but nope hehe.

This morning in an astounding (I told you this is a slow news household) turn of events, we are up at 7. Oh my goshness, what a thrill. Made coffees for Mum and I, brought it over to her she was in the middle of a web meditation event (I didn’t realise she was so quiet, understandably as she was meditating), prepared food for little one in case it felt hungry (fruit salad left from yesterday and a babycino, took seconds) and got on with the calendar designing.

I’ve decided on a minimalist design, well, minimalist for me… featuring things I saw that stopped me in my tracks on my walks. There is a space on the side to record intentions for the month.

There is a moving version of it and the variations of light and colours was lovely. I’m looking forward to looking back at the end of the month where I got to with my intentions.

Wishing you a lovely January!

Last Minute Christmas Sweets Platter

December 25, 2022December 25, 2022 by Dominique

Hello! What a rush the last few weeks have been. I’m back in Sydney and we need to head over to a cousin’s house for Christmas lunch. It’s a potluck lunch and I thought lawd… what can I make that will travel well and be you know, nice to look at? Luckily I’m doing dessert which is easier than say, a whopping great big turkey which is certainly impressive but you probably want to make that inhouse.

A cake would be nice although, by the time you eat a huge meal, how much cake does one need? More pleasant might be a small nibble with a coffee.

I’ve been seeing these very fanciful platters but until now I have always felt timid and unsure how to do one. For my kid’s birthday I had my friend make one. She’s veryyyyyy good at it. We both wept a little that we didn’t take photos of that one haha.

She’s not here with me in Sydney so I’m on my own. Here is what I came up with. I had to go to the supermarket but you might have things in your cupboard you can use?

If you have anything last minute coming up give it a go. Even if all you have is a box of chocolates, with some fruit sprinkled around, it’s pretty to look at whilst you sit around having a chat (or putting your feet up). Also I’ll paste my recipe for egg nog. If I remember rightly, it’s vegan… it’s one of my most popular posts (?!?!!!!) but here it is again in case you would enjoy ithttps://ourzenaissance.com/2016/12/24/nog-vegan-egg-nog-in-less-time-than-it-takes-to-say-bah-humbug-a-christmas-miracle-recipe/

If you have some remember to drink loads of water! Hehe… and I wish you a beautiful day everyday xox

A 10 minute Yoga Sequence for Quiet, Calm and Gentle Strength. Bend Not Break

October 12, 2022 by Dominique

Hi friend,

Here is a short sequence that will be good to do if you have been having a rough time. We’ll start in standing tall like a tree and then come down to the ground for some heart opening moves so you feel grounded yet flexible.

Bend don’t break.

I wish you a peaceful day and evening.

Thank you for joining me. Namaste.

DISCLAIMER: Please consult your doctor or health care professional before starting this workout. If you experience pain or discomfort at any time during this workout, you should stop immediately. By performing these exercises, you do so at your own risk. By using this video, you understand and agree that the creator of this video will not be held responsible or liable for any injury or loss you may suffer as a result of this workout video.

75 Minute Yoga Full Class with Dominique (All Levels)

October 2, 2022October 3, 2022 by Dominique

This is a 75 minute yoga workout I filmed especially for a friend of mine. You are welcome to try this out.

If you are after a yoga workout or WORKIN covering a bit of everything (core, leg strengthening, balance and arm balance) this will be nice for you to do. It’s challenging but not impossible, I give alternatives and options so it is a good one for beginners and if you are a pro, well it will feel like a refreshing bit of movement.

Equipment: If you can have a large towel or blanket handy, that will be helpful. I hope you enjoy.

(I’m sorry about the sound, I don’t have a microphone at the moment but will work on sorting sound out for the next video)

Music suggestions:

Anugama – Sweetness Of The Earth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x6WTjdiAKs Anugama – Healing Earth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xoo0vX308DY&ab_channel=MysticalVibes Joseph Beg – Wake Me Softly https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mEkCof4El6XfMfER4FzbTz0AWpWFuyoWo

40 Minute Pilates Workout Video – All Levels, Total Body Strengthen and Tone

September 27, 2022 by Dominique ♥ 1 Comment

This is a 40 minute Pilates workout I filmed for a friend of mine.

If you are after a Pilates workout covering a bit of everything (arms, back, legs, glutes and core) this will be nice for you to do. It’s not too hard so it is a good one for beginners and if you are a pro, well it will feel like a refreshing bit of movement.

I hope you enjoy.

Short And Sweet Yoga Tips To Deepen Your Practice – Chaturanga Dandasana (2 min)

September 21, 2022September 21, 2022 by Dominique

Here is the video I mentioned earlier. You will need a block, or a thick book (do they still make telephone books? I miss them. I used to browse them casually haha.) or a sturdy cushion. If you have none of those then a couple of folded towels/blankets will do the trick.

Remember it is okay to use props in fact using props can help you deepen your experience so don’t feel like you’re going backwards in your practice if you use one.

I hope this is helpful!

Just Quickly

September 21, 2022 by Dominique ♥ 1 Comment

Sometimes I’ll be meditating or you know doing something super ascendant (you know I’m kidding right) and someone will rock over already talking to me.

“Oh, were you meditating (or insert some other high minded activity I might possibly be doing)?“

“Yes I was” spiritually patient tone (ha, not really)

“Oh… ok” reluctant tone

“No it’s alright what were you saying?“

“Ok just quickly then…” and insert important (to them) information.

I wonder if it was really that important.

And in that same way I am rocking up to just quickly tell you just quickly that I will upload another yoga tip video sometime later today, or tomorrow, but maybe today.

Now you can wonder was this really that important.

It’s weird, over time, a lot of time, the less I minded those “just quickly” interruptions the less they happened?

Whilst teaching yesterday a student asked me “did you do yoga on the weekend?” and as a matter of fact I did. But with multiple interruptions so a 45 minute session ended up taking 2 and a bit hours because someone wanted breakfast, then someone was hungry again and wanted lunch, and also I had to help someone open a water bottle also where was that book they were reading and I did not even mind.

So maybe the interruptions do continue but I just don’t mind as much. Is this… ascension?!

Just kidding.

Ten Minute Yoga Sequence – Quick and Complete Practice for busy people

September 17, 2022 by Dominique ♥ 1 Comment

This is a ten minute sequence I filmed (awkwardly!) on my Instagram so that my overseas client would be able to do it whilst we figure out the time zones to schedule our next session together.

Do you feel like practice has to be a certain length or else it’s not really a practice? If you don’t have an hour you feel as though you’ll just have to wait until a later time? If you had the choice between

One hour of practice a week, or

Ten minutes a day everyday

What would you go for?

That full hour still looks appealing haha but you’re left with six days a week without that mindful movement.

When you are in the early days of setting up your practice, try adding these small habits of moving consistently and regularly, however briefly. It’s only a suggestion and if you find it turns out you have more time, add on. If you don’t have more than ten minutes, no big deal, you’ve already done something and you can go back out in the world.

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Tidy Space Tidy Mind

August 30, 2022 by Dominique

Clutter is a real mind messer arounder. I get it now. It is so easy to fall into a trap thinking you need a bigger space for all your stuff. To some extent yes, of course we need a cupboard to put things into but a penthouse? A five bedroom house? Probably not.

One of the things about our living space is the lack of cabinetry, so I bought some to make up for the lack of storage space. But how about that, I still had a crap load of stuff all over the place that needed to be put away, yet there was no where to put it. What now mighty mind?!

Obviously it was a case of me not using the space I had intelligently and also there being WAY TOO MANY THINGS. It has been very obvious what needed to be done but it was a case of finding the time to do it and overcoming the sensation of overwhelm that left me feeling too exhausted to get started.

Over the last month something overcame me and it was a funny time that I suddenly felt this urge considering it was one of the busiest months in our life yet I was just brimming with energy ready to tackle things.

Today I tackled a small but pretty important space, the kitchen counter, specifically the space above my little toaster oven and just next to it, and the spice cabinet above it.

One of my goals is to clear the dining table and have enough counter space to do things on it. I don’t have a proper workspace so the dining table is my little art studio/office space. So every meal time we have to shovel everything off down one end so we have enough space for our elbows. Yeesh. B is very kind and doesn’t say a word about it but how much better would it be if we had a clear table. Also my altar faces our dining table so it would be good to clear the clutter.

Looking into the spice cabinet I can see I haven’t used the space properly, I tried with those little Ikea metal shelves but it wasn’t organised enough so I couldn’t fit alot of stuff in and things overflowed out onto the dining table and kitchen counter.

Let me show you, I hope you feel the same physical relief I felt after getting this done! It’s incredible how clearing clutter can affect your mental state. It felt so wonderful that now I might even bake some banana bread! (It felt like a pain in the arse to clear things out the way and get things out of the cabinet to do any baking. And I used to sell baked goods so how hilarious is that?)

I highly recommend it if you also have clutter hanging around that you have been meaning to get to.

Hi there friend

August 29, 2022 by Dominique

How are you?!

I’ve seen a guy address his audience “Hi there friends and lovers”. Can I pull that off without people thinking I’m serious? Anyway, I missed being here! The last couple of years have been busy and the last year has been a lot of growth. Every year we grow but the last year I have done things like tidy up and organise stuff. I mean…. that’s GROWTH. Place still a mess though but there are spots of tidiness.

I’ve been teaching quite a bit too (for someone with no promotion and unattached to any studio), people have floated towards me and it has been such a blessing.

In fact, it is now almost 10am on a Monday and I just finished teaching someone. How good is it to be freshly showered after yoga?!

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Now ready to cook some soup for the day whilst listening to Louise Hay.

How good is it to feel happy?

I wish you a blessed and happy day.

xox

Our Zenaissance

we are changing

Author: Dominique