Life got really busy all of the sudden at the end of last year and then all of the sudden here it is, February 2009! Here’s the quick rundown of the major events since our last post:

Steph successfully completed Bikram’s Teacher Training and returned home - November 2008.

The O’Hora’s hosted another fantastic multi-family Thanksgiving - November 2008.

Kerry and Steve welcomed their twin daughters; Harper & Lylla - December 2008.

We all celebrated Christmas and New Year’s - December 2008.

We inaugurated a new President - January 2009.

Parker turned 24 and Steph and I turned 30 - January 2009.
Holly and Keith are busy planning their September wedding.
Stacey passed the exam and obtained her CISA certification.
Steph is now teaching Bikram Yoga in Reston and Falls Church.

I think that is it and I resolve to post to this blog more regularly!

Hola Amigos y Familia de Acapulco,

**In tribute to Stace and my traditon of theme songs for summer running training at the track..
Theme Song Week 1:  Wilson Phillips, “Hold On for One More Day”
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This is a picture from my balcony, it is starting to rain right now, usually breathtaking at sunset.

I arrived here last Sunday and it has been a whirlwind ever since. My luggage was lost and that was biggest deal for the first few days.  Then my backpack with money and digital camera was stolen and that was the big deal. Then the classes started and i FINALLY redefined what a big deal is . :) 

I have so much to say that I will do it in categories. Who doesn’t love a good outline?

Bikram:
I am proud of the choosing to go to this training. I know Bikram can be controversial but I think if you actually take this class or interact with him you will see a true yogi. Bikram’s Yoga College of India is actually a lot like a college. There is a stellar faculty with noteworthy dr.’s in many fields, coordinated research with affiliated universities, and an very experienced teaching staff. Yoga is the unity of body, mind and spirit; and Bikram asks how you are going to unite when you have “junkyard body, screw-loose brain and lost soul”. It sounds hilarious when it comes out of his mouth but then you think about it a little bit…..
Rajashree
She is an Earth Mother. Her energy is so supporting and positive. I can’t wait to learn more from her. She briefly went into the body’s stress response and detailed how it effects all systems of the body by way of the nervous system. I was hooked. I would like to study from her. Her classes are my favorite.
The Training:
Saturday at 8:00AM we had our last of 10 classes for the week. Sunday is a day of rest. We wake up at 6AM everyday class, lecture, eat, class, lecture, sleep. Most days we are done by 12ish but it has been after 2 as well. There are a lot of people who were very sick this week, myself included. I would go into that but I think it would be better to be left as folklore….and the stories will be better in person.

The beauty is that this yoga is a great equalizer. There are people of all ages, nationalities, religions and within a few hours we are all family. We are all the same.  I couldn’t walk out of the yoga studio one day and there are two friends who carry me by my elbows. Pass it around. Next day, sweet German woman behind me in class passes out and I give her the last of my liquids. Pass it around. And so it goes. I see it everywhere, everyday. Everyone here is at square one, the most basic station in life.  Survival mode.  It is so encouraging and inspiring to see that this behavior, this support, is innate in all of us.

I have learned so much already. I have studied the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali but depending on your version and translation from Sanskrit, things can be read differently. Asana does not just mean posture. It means posture holding still, breathing is normal. I am learning to observe the patterns of the mind and release those that don’t serve me. I am learning to let the mental drama go. I am learning that my body can’t handle the water after all and that if you like avocados this is the place to be!!!

Please comment to this post and I will update again next week.  Much Love

Hi Blog Readers…. if there are any of you still out there. Summer 2007 was such a crazy time, being the “summer of a thousand weddings”, including my own. Things are finally settling down and I’d like to make a promise. I promise to return to blogging and even go back in time and blog about some awesome summer events - like Cat’s wedding, Lauren’s wedding, Megan’s wedding, O’Hora Beach Week, wedding preparation and more.

To keep you interested for now, here’s a cool site, T-Shirt Hell, a friend showed me last week. It made me laugh.

Where do I draw the line between stephandstace.com subject matter and ohorafamily.com subject matter? That is the dilemma. I previously determined that ohorafamily would be “family” stuff and stephandstace would be “interests/hobbies/food/friends”. But Steph and I are so into our fams that it is hard to separate the two sometimes. So last weekend was Father’s Day and I think it could probably go on either blog but it’s here because it has a food picture and because I just posted Robby’s Bachelor party pics and I don’t want to steal attention from that!

Last weekend, Father’s Day weekend ended up being of the best weekends I’ve had in a while. I am mad at myself because I brought my camera with me the entire time but I didn’t take any pictures except the two below.

Robby and I managed to catch up with the 3 dads in our lives and spend some quality time with each one. On Friday night, we worked on our wedding registries until 3am, then Saturday we went out to dinner with Mary, Bob, Holly, and Keith for Father’s Day. We ate at Cantina and it was delicious as always (you’re talking to the clean plate award winner). Then we headed over to Carpool and had few cocktails and then went home. Sunday we headed out the ‘Burg and had brunch with Mom & Chris. I made VwaV’s Lemon Corn Waffles with Blueberry Sauce yum. We hung out, walked around the yard, checking out all of the cool things Mom & Chris have done to it this year. Then we headed to Dad & Georgia’s and had crabs by the pool with Sarah, Becca, Stuart, GB, and Dad. We ate crabs, caught up, talked wedding, and soaked up the rays. What a great weekend.

VwaV’s Lemon Corn Waffles with Blueberry Sauce
Here’s a picture of the waffles. I made these because I know Chris loves blueberries. It was really funny to hear him say “I don’t eat that vegan stuff” and I said “How do you know it isn’t vegan?” and he said “It isn’t vegetables! It’s fruit. It is f-egan!”. These were delicious. I am really into the Lemon/Blueberry combination lately, plus I love anything with cornmeal in it, cornbread, corn muffins, call me Bubba Gump Corn.

I’ve also been wondering what kind of plant I have in my yard. It is growing so fast, and it is so pretty. It has big blue and yellow puffs on it. Here are some of the flowers I cut and put into a vase. Anyone know what these are? Hydrangeas?

I have finally making some progress on my to-do list. I am disappointed in myself for waiting so long on pictures, since printing, publishing, and sharing brings me so much joy. Pictures soon to follow for Utah, Aspen, Slideshow of Bay House renovation, etc. Here is a teaser because this is STEPHANDSTACE.COM!!!!!!!!!!

Baked Eggplant (Vegetarian)
Last night I made Baked Eggplant with Mushroom-and-Tomato Sauce, one of my favorite winter repeater recipes! I actually didn’t “cook” anything last night. On Wednesday night, after Robby cooked dinner, I prepped this eggplant recipe so it would be all ready to go for Thursday. All I had to do was pop it in the oven and wait for it to be done. This is a good “make ahead” recipe for nights when you know you don’t have time to cook, like when you have a soccer game, yoga class, favorite TV show, working on taxes, etc.

Right out of the oven - piping hot!

Comments Broken (Now Fixed)
So I made a few changes to the blog last week, like adding the events plugin and made changes to the sidebar. Somehow the comments functionality broke! I’m working on fixing it so please remember your comments and post them when I get it fixed. I know Robby and Christy both think the Cauliflower pictures looks like “brains”! Funny that you both had the same comment on the same day.

***Update*** I fixed the comments. User error (User = Stacey).