Starting from scratch-ish

It's now been six weeks since Leah was born. I was explicitly told (multiple times) not to workout for six weeks.

So... I waited until today to run. I'm not counting the 1000m test jog last Friday morning because that was not a run.

I managed a 5K run this morning. Although it was not speedy I can honestly say it could have been worse, I haven't run in over 3 months. Yes, I am glad I waited to run. I've heard many stories about the altercations from running quickly after giving birth so I was pretty set on waiting for that. I think the waiting made it a lot more enjoyable to struggle through the short run today.

Here I am post run, thrilled that I did not stop to walk and did not feel the need to use the bathroom mid-run:


Hopefully this trend will continue.

I will admit I have ridden my bike a few times already but today was the first time I hopped on this week. Which means today was the first time I used my new DA 7900 (thank you Felt Bicycles!).

Lucky for me, Michael stayed home today and it was perfect weather outside. Otherwise, this is the set-up I use to ride my bike during Leah's nap time:


I've also gone to the pool a couple of times but I mostly just fight with the water so we won't call that swimming. I have not yet done any weights, abs, or yoga. The doctor was also real forceful in her rules about not using the abs which they sliced last month.

A year ago I was down in PCB getting ready for IM FL. That was quite possibly the best shape I've ever been in. As I was running and riding today I realized something, I am not in the worst shape of my adult life. The day I gave birth to Leah I weighed less than I did at the end of my freshman year of college. Six weeks later, after a c-section and the needed recovery, I am exhausted but I still managed to run and ride today. Plus, I've got a happy and healthy little girl at home. Overall, I'd say Life is Good :)

CSP

Is there an acronym for Cumulative Sleep Deprivation (CSP)? If not, I think there should be because I'm pretty sure it's common for all new parents.

Over the past few weeks Michael and I have been told we look pretty good, just a little tired and not completely exhausted. If this is what it feels like to be a little tired I am really hopeful we don't experience utter exhaustion!

There have been times in my life when I've been tired but nothing really compares to how I feel after 6 weeks without a night of uninterrupted sleep. College and Ironman training have nothing on this. Somehow this week I have managed to loose the keyring with my house key, almost lost my phone, and just called to cancel my credit card. I have no idea how this has happened, I somehow lost my credit card while returning it to my pocket at the grocery store.

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After months of emailing WTC, I finally got the rest of my refund for IM AZ.

Michael and I were joking about how the race would go if I were actually going to attempt it...

Q: why were Michelle's transitions so long?
A: she had to feed Leah

The following would be the race plan for a mother of an 8 week old.

Pre-race: wake up, eat breakfast, feed baby right before heading over to get body marking. Apply body glide in usual locations and some new locations.
Swim: try not to drown. Ignore how tight the wetsuit is.
T1: get baby from husband, feed her in transition tent
Bike: must finish eat loop in 3 hrs, feed baby at special needs. Ignore the saddle sores.
T2: feed baby again, don't forget to put on 2nd sports bra for support
Run: meet dad at mile 20 for feeding unless it's a really good day and you can make it to the finish before baby needs to eat again. Ignore the hip pain.
Finish: collapse at the line and do 10 push-ups. Later tell people you were trying to make P.T. proud instead of admitting utter exhaustion.
Post race: get massage, put on dry clothes, tell dad to give her a bottle instead b/c you're toasted.

Of course, I'm sure it would be a piece of cake for any mother who is using formula instead (that's a joke! it's still a crazy idea).

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Note: As I edited the above post I realized my blunder of the hour... typed CSP instead of CSD as my acronym. Confirmed, I am tired.

Go Daddy

1 am race morning, as we are sitting up with Leah:

Michael, "At least it's the sleep two nights before the race that matters."

Michelle replies with a laugh, "You didn't sleep last night either."

...

3 pm race afternoon:

Michael comments on his race, "You know you are tired when you don't even realize you put on shorts with a hole in them."

Michelle asks, "When did you realize you had a hole in your shorts?"

Michael, "About mile 70 of the bike."

Michelle, "Michael, this was only a half. The bike was 56 miles."

...

Most of us who race have had those days when we toe the start line with a little fitness than we'd hoped for. Sometimes there's an injury or a bit less training in preparation and we wish it had gone a little differently beforehand. But, when you make the decision to start you have to put the past aside and just go do the best you can for that day. You do what you can with the cards you are dealt.


There were some impressive race performances out there yesterday but there were two that Leah is most proud of; her dad and her friend Beaux. Neither one had optimal training this year but they both gutted it out yesterday and crossed the finish line. As you can see from the picture above, Leah had fun watching them.

Some of you may wonder why Michael would sign up to do a half Ironman a month after his daughter is born. Haven't you ever done something that sounded like a good idea at the time? In the grand scheme of things our stupid ideas are probably a lot less detrimental than some other options for stupid ideas.

Monogram

We've had a few people joke that we might spoil Leah.

Personally, I don't know if it's all about Leah. I am convinced that Michael wants all those toys to play with himself and needs an excuse to have them.

But... I can't help but wonder when your child is considered spoiled.

Maybe it happens when she begins to get personalized monogrammed onsies for one day of her life...

The Halloween one is not so strange since most kids have a costume they only wear for one day.

The Thanksgiving one is a little humorous but not to much of a stretch. After all, I've seen Thanksgiving bibs. If they make Hallmark cards for a particular day I'm assuming there are plenty of onsies on the market for said holiday.

The one that might seem a little over the edge is this one:

What... you mean to tell me everyone doesn't have an outfit solely designed for their first plane flight? How else is she going to look cute enough to get a peek at the cockpit of the 777?

Personally, I don't think it's considered spoiled until you have 12 matching bags with your initials embroidered on them. Yes, I do know a couple of people who have a few of those ;)

Too bad I don't get a t-shirt for all my firsts. If so today I'd be wearing, "Michelle's first text." Yes, I finally broke down and decided to send a text message. It was pretty lame, I sent Michael a message that read, "is this a text" His reply, "Yeah" Apparently he was a bit confused when he received it.

BTW, if anyone is interested, my mother monogrammed the onsies and made the dozen bags that have "MG" monogrammed on them. Let me know if you ever need something to spoil someone else.

Good thing we did not name our girl Laverne, that might have lead to a lot of monogrammed shirts.

Of course, this is all good. I've read in a few books that you can not spoil your child in the first 6 months. This comment is usually in reference to picking them up the instant they begin to cry or allowing them to stay in your bed but I'm going to assume it applies to everything.

Look You're a Cow

Someone once told me his memory was like a colander and mine is like a metal box. Of course, if he happens to read this I'm sure he wouldn't remember that he said that.

Michael (not the one who made the comparison) also seems to get a little frustrated by my memory. Back in the winter of 1996 he was joking around with my fleece glove on my belly and said, "Look you're a cow." I have no clue how many times I have reminded him of that, "At least I didn't call you a cow."

Now I actually do feel like a cow. If the regular nursing isn't enough to make someone feel that way, utilization of the pump(s) is. Yes, that's plural... to maximize pumping efficiency some of the pumps have a dual capacity. You simply pull from both sides at the same time. Kudos to all those women who have twins. Triplets just sounds insane!

Good news is, the milk seems to be working out well for Leah's growth. We had another pediatrician appointment this morning. Leah weighed in at 8 lb 11 oz.

Here's a quick size reference using the highly calibrated hippo mat comparison...

Leah at 1/2 week:


Leah at 4 1/2 weeks:
As we note from the pictures above, Leah is now almost an entire hippo mouth in size.

This puts her in the 40 th percentile for weight. This entire growth percentile humors me, after all some babies are born larger than Leah is now. I've heard there is comparison (competition/bragging) for these size percentiles throughout childhood. Personally I think it would be more interesting to plot percentage of growth over time instead of an absolute size scale. How is the daughter of a 5" girl ever going to be in the upper end of the growth chart, and who cares if she is?!

Of course, I do have a copy of the growth chart and Leah's measurements will be plotted on there. We need to be tracking progress in true enginerd style to set a good example for her.

Hold Me!

Apparently there's an iPhone application to translate baby cries. We deemed it "not worth it," when we saw it's $30. It claims it can distinguish between I'm hungry / My diaper is full / I want attention / I've had too much stimulation / I want a pacifier.

The other day I was reading a book that said by 1 month you might be able to distinguish your baby's cries. Personally I find this hard to believe. I've been listening to Leah and the only way I seem to know what the cry means is by knowing when she be hungry or need a diaper change. Thing is, she's got my metabolism so if I guess one of those choices I'm rarely wrong.

After feeding and changing her it's a little more difficult to tell what she wants but this motion seems to be pretty obvious:

"I'm so cute! ...

Hold me (not the camera)...

or I'll start to cry (faster than you can take another picture)!!"

Believe it or not, she does cry. Luckily we have found a you tube video which she loves to listen too. Sometimes she even cries when being held. At that point we begin to sing:



We have deemed the iPhone application overpriced. How are we supposed to know if she's in the mood to listen to Red Hot Chili Peppers or The Sound of Music?

Austin Tea Party

Today marks an important day for Leah, she spectated her first running race this morning, IBM 10K. I think she was scoping out the competition. There were a couple of baby joggers moving at a good pace so we might have some work to do before her first race.

After the race we joined Clea & Stephanie for breakfast. They are both pregnant, expecting a boy and girl respectively. In the middle of breakfast Clea told me to look over at the table nearby, "Is that going to be you two in a few years?"

When we got up from the table I realized why it was so funny. Half the wall of tables had been pushed together for the huge gathering sitting near us. It was about 8 pairs of mothers and daughters, all dressed up, having tea and scones. We'll have to see what happens in the next few years... will Stephanie and I have tom-boy daughters who play with Leggos and run around outside? Or will we have two little princesses who play with barbies and enjoy shopping for outfits to wear at the next Austin tea party?

It's 34 days until IMAZ '09. My name still appears on the start list but I won't be toeing the start line next month. Although I have heard of people finishing marathons or Ironman two months after giving birth, I honestly don't know if I'd be able to finish and if I did I'm sure it would be a brutal recovery!

But... I am contemplating signing up for one next year. After all, we have this cute onsie for a 12 month old that Leah will need to wear some time next fall: