In our last +1, we blew up some belly balloons with our kids. We breathed in through our noses, down into our bellies (can you make that balloon pop?!) then we breathed back out through our noses (slightly longer than the inhale). Ah… Repeat. ESPECIALLY when things start to get a little out of control!!! Which leads us to another little practice we've been playing around with at the Johnson House. (Note to self: This is a REALLY effective practice. Do it more!) So… You know those times when your kids start to get a little, shall we say, frazzled, which leads to you (and/or your spouse) (in my case: ME!), getting equally, shall we say, frazzled? Ahem. I know that reasonably well. Hah. So… Rather than let it all devolve into a circus, when I'm being Mr. Wise and Mindful Philosopher Guy, I remember to do wise and mindful things to smooth out the rough seas. This practice has proven to be particularly powerful. Step 1. Emerson and I leave the scene of the chaos by going to a different room in the house. Step 2. We sit knee to knee in what's wonderfully known as "hero's pose." (To strike this pose: Kneel on the floor and drop your butt on your ankles. Use bolsters if necessary. Check out Yoga Journal for tips.) Step 3. We sit up nice and tall and look each other in the eye as we pull the thread through our head, breathing in deeply (through our noses) into our bellies, then exhaling (through our noses) slightly longer than our inhale. Repeat. In just a few breaths, our nervous systems are calmed down and we're connected. Circus has left town. It's actually SHOCKING how powerful this is. The hard part (as always!) is remembering to do it in the moment we need to do it. Note to self: Do it more often. That's Today's +1. Circus come to town? Try some hero breathing!!! T O D A Y !!!