First and foremost for today’s blog is the winner of the Light on Eyes Giveaway post.

May I have a drum roll please, the winner is……..Tina Herbst! Congratulations Tina!

Believe it or not, since I knew so many of you it would not have been possible for me to make a fair and impartial choice so I  asked my 6th Period Web Design students to read my post, then each of the comments and then chose the winner. This was a great reading comprehension tool for them, but also provided them experience in the world of web design and blogging. They were excited to be a part of choosing the real life winner.  Thanks to my students for all your help!

As usual, I have been really busy lately, taught a Yin class last week at Serenity Stream in Brandon and it was amazing. Thanks to all of you who came and enjoyed the juiciness of a Yin practice. Even though I didn’t practice, but taught it, I was on cloud nine for a little while afterwards, just the aurora of yoga makes me relaxed and sharing what I love with others of course.

If you want to come, I am teaching another one this Sunday 2/21 at 2 at Asana Yoga of Brandon!

I had the day off from work yesterday and headed over to Yogani, to take Ashley’s Shakti Flow class. She returned a few weeks ago from a long trip in California where she beefed up her tool bag with new teaching skills while there. I have always enjoyed her classes.

I am reading several books now. I just can’t read one at a time, I am a little bit ADHD if you hadn’t already noticed, or if I hadn’t already told you. The ones I am reading now are:

My Stroke of Insight- by Jill Bolte Taylor	Meditations from the Mat - by Rolf Gates
This book is about a lady who just happened to be a brain surgeon that had a stroke and she documented her experience from the time the stroke happened, through her recovery. It is amazing and I really love reading about how much our brain sides have so much to do with the way with think and do.	This book is a daily guide to Sutra based meditations for one year. I wasn’t expecting this when I bought it but I have since fallen in love with it. So, far I am reading one meditation each day and trying not to read ahead so as just to digest the current days meditation.

Are you reading any great books now? If so please share, what are they about?

What are your favorite studios in your area?

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You may recall the book, Light on Yoga, but today’s post is about light on our eyes.

One of my favorite things to spoil my students with in class is an eye pillow during Savasana. In my own practice, it just seems to settle me in to my relaxation a bit deeper, but it also assists in resting my hard working eyes.

Our eyes work really hard for us on a daily basis. They are small but mighty organs! Here is a list of things our eyes do for us each and every day, all day while they are open that you might not even think about:

• Work with our brains to tell us the size, shape, color and texture of an object
• Tell us how close the object is, whether it is still or moving
• They work with each other, but also with the brain, muscles, and nerves to provide us visual images and messages
• They constantly adapt to our changing environment; i.e. light or darkness

When you place an eye bag on your eyes, either during Savasana or any other time, you are helping your eyes rest with ease, helping to relax the muscles of the eyes and activating your parasympathetic nervous system. It’s a Win-Win!

So, now the big, fun news! Many of you ask me where do I get the eye bags I use in class from. And (drum roll please)…..the answer is Deb Smith in Memphis, TN. A couple of years ago, I was traveling to see my mom in Memphis and of course, checked out a yoga studio that I hadn’t been to while I was there. I was on the major look out for a new eye bag because I lost my other one, but I am very picky. They can’t be too big, have to have a great, relaxing smell, the whole package. While at Better Bodies Yoga I found a wonderful, amazing eye bag and of course bought it. When I returned to Florida, I loved it so much that I called the studio and asked them where they got it from and they gave me Deb’s contact information.

I called her and she was so excited, I ended up buying 15 eye bags to use when I teach yoga. Just for each of you.

She calls her eye bags The Repose Healing Eye Pillow and describes it as a sensory relaxation tool used for easing stress and tension, while allowing you to rest, recharge or sleep. Filled with flaxseed, lavender, pineapple, sage, thyme, mint, eucalyptus and/or rosemary. This pillow applies gentle acupressure to tired eyes and facial muscles, while the aromatherapy induces an aura of comfort and calm. The luxurious fabric is cool to the touch allowing the Eye Pillow to drape and conform to the contours of your face, providing welcome relief for headaches, sleeping difficulties and stress or eye puffiness.  Deb actually really grows all of her herbs she uses to make the eye pillows in her own garden. You can’t get any fresher than that.

Take a peek —>

If you want to buy an eye bag from her you can contact her at: dsmith@wkno.org

Or Facebook – Deb E. Smith or call her @ 901-413-9572 Here is a list of her prices as well:

Eye Pillow

$12 – each

$10 – for two or more

$9 – for five or more

$8.50- for ten or more

Spray Cleaner

$9.00 each

Note – She has even recently added mat spray cleaner. Yippee!!!

Don’t you wish you had a new Repose Eye Pillow? Don’t you wish you had some great (non-toxic) mat spray too?

Well you can, and guess what you may not even have to buy it.

You could win a free eye pillow and free bottle of mat spray. All you  have to do is respond with a comment to this post, by February 14th (Valentine’s Day) and tell me why and how you will use and appreciate an eye pillow of your very own as much as I  do and of course, how new, fresh mat spray is just what you need to clean your yoga mat. May the most creative post win! I will announce the winner as soon as they are chosen and award them with their prize.

Thanks to Deb for making the best eye pillows ever, creating and adding great new mat spray to your inventory too, and for giving one of each away for free. You Rock!

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