Back in the saddle again!

Almost seven weeks post delivery of my Little Lady Sofia and I finally did a real mountain bike ride! I was afraid I might have forgotten how to push the climbs or maneuver the techy downhills but I found that the old saying really is true..."You don't forget; it's just like riding a bike."

No, this is not me now. It was me last year because I'm really not keen on posting any "baby PHat" pics of myself.

I took a spin around my favorite training trails for an hour and fifteen minutes. I huffed and puffed up the easiest climb, but I made it without stopping. This ride was very encouraging and every day I'm feeling more and more like my old self except now I have a gorgeous Little Lady to go home to.

Battling the Bulge!

After the birth of my gorgeous Little Lady Sofia, the docs told me not to do any physical labor for six weeks. SIX MORE WEEKS!?!?? After "taking it easy" for nine months, how did they expect me to take it easy for six more weeks?

Fellow singlespeed mountain biker Fuzzy John and his 14 month old son Ian came by to visit Sofia.

Well, it wasn't hard to take it easy for four weeks because my body really did need the recovery. But at the fourth week, I set up my road bike on the trainer and started riding. As Lady Sofia slept, I hopped on the trainer and took off. Unfortunately, my bottom could only take 12 minutes on the seat. So that was it; my first workout--12 minutes. It will be a while before I will ride for 24 hours straight again, but I'm working on it... one day at a time.

Sofia's First Month

Sofia at 5 days old

Sleeping beauty;
Sofia sleeps A LOT (during the day!) Every once in a while she will wake up to look around and that's when we talk to her and show her some colorful books and picture cards. During the night she sleeps anywhere from 1.5 to 3 hours at a time. I'm always checking her while she sleeps to make sure she's still breathing. Yes, I'm paranoid.

Sofia's second week of life and she's already making funny faces

Growing like a weed;
Sofia's skinny little body is getting chunkier every day. She's also very long. At her two week doctor visit, she was measured in the 100th percentile of length for babies her age! Looks like she'll be a tall gal!

Sofia's third week

Hungry Hippo;
Sofia is a great eater! She loves to snack all day long. I opted for strict breastfeeding at first but by week three, I had to start supplementing her with formula. I just couldn't handle the constant feeding with no sleep and no breaks. Giving her formula allows Greg to feed her too so that I can get out once in a while, get some sleep, and be less stressed out. She's very funny. When Greg takes the bottle away so he can burp her she'll make cute little growling noises until he gives her the bottle again.

Sofia at 4 weeks old and ready for her favorite holiday -- Halloween!

Poopie diapers;
How did anyone use cloth diapers back in the day? I would really like to use cloth for the environment's sake, but newborns poop all the time and it's very liquidy! Maybe I'll try the cloth diapers when she gets a little older.

October 7; Sofia's one month birthday

State of her Mommy;
I ended up gaining 56 pounds through the pregnancy! I lost 20 pounds immediately without doing anything but it looks like I'm going to have to work hard to get rid of the rest. The docs said I shouldn't do anything for six weeks, but I just couldn't wait that long. At three weeks, I started some short, easy walks. At four weeks I set up my bike on my trainer in the back yard and started riding. My limiting factor is not my legs, but my seat! The first day I could only sit on the bike for 12 minutes! Now I'm up to 16 minutes. I guess it will be a while before I can ride for 24 hours again, but I'm working up to it.


"La Ruta Lou" Kobin sent Sofia a darling little Stars & Stripes riding jersey to match Mommy's 24 hour National Championship Jersey! Sofia will probably fit in her jersey in a few months and maybe by then Mommy will fit back into her's too!