Life Postpartum

I have to acknowledge how incredibly blessed I am.  I have a healthy baby boy, a wonderfully supportive husband, a great job, and place to call home.  Staying home with our little guy these past seven weeks has been nothing short of amazing, and I am so lucky to have had this opportunity to be home with him.  I never thought being a mother would be so fulfilling, but it really is.  Baby C just started interacting with Mr. Fury and I, and it has been such a trip to watch him track lights, study our faces, "talk", and "play" with his toys.  It has been an amazing experience to watch him learn and grow...and he is practically growing before our very eyes.  I have already had to pack up most of his newborn sized clothing which is crazy considering he only weighed 5lbs 14oz at birth.

Stay-at-home motherhood the past seven weeks has been so wonderful, but I definitely have needed to work in breaks (mentally and physically) for myself.  Thankfully, that's where my wonderfully supportive husband, Mr. Fury, has stepped in and either forced me to take a break or has been more than happy to let me escape for a run.  We have been introducing one bottle feeding to the little bugger this week so I have been able to escape and have some time to myself with a little less consideration to feeding times.

Getting out for a run has never felt so great, and that's not because I'm running fast or anything like that.  I just don't take my time out on the road for granted like I did before.  I know that I have to make every workout count now because it means time spent away from C-man and Mr. Fury, and free time isn't as abundant as it once was.  It's amazing how quickly life is put in perspective as soon as baby is born.  Given all the logistics that Mr. Fury and I have to work out to get free time to work out or spend time with our friends, I wouldn't change a thing.  All the joy, laughs, and love are worth all the extra planning to fit in the activities we once participated with ease.

From Ironman to Ironmom

Life has been a whirlwind since Ironman CDA. It seems like the race was only a month or two ago, so looking back, it's hard to believe that it's been almost four months. Mr. Fury and I didn't accomplish all the things on our summer 'to-do' list, but we did have a lot of fun running Ragnar together with some great people, celebrated his dad's new marriage, vacationed with family in Duluth, went to the cabin a time or two, got a few home projects started and some finished, and rounded it all out by getting pregnant. So, all-in-all, it's been a pretty eventful summer and fall since Ironman.

It's been a crazy transition from Ironman-in-training to mommy-in-training, and downright tough on my ego and self-esteem at times. The first thing I crossed off my list of things I'm able to do is speed work. I was really getting into doing speed work this training season and actually kind of liked it. There's something about your lungs burning that makes you feel alive. Well, no more of that until after baby comes. It's just too hard on baby, my belly and with all the heartburn I have had, I really didn't need to help the acid creep up my throat any further. The fatigue and nausea hit me pretty hard during my first trimester. Whenever I could muster enough energy for a run or didn't feel like I needed to hang out by the toilet, I tried to get out for a run. Unfortunately, those times have been far and few between since I found out I was pregnant, but now that I'm going into my second trimester, I'm feeling a lot better and looking forward to getting out on the trails again.

I really am aiming to stay active as long as my body and baby allows me. I have read some serious benefits to continuing weight bearing exercise throughout pregnancy for both mom and baby, and I can not sit still for very long until I go stir crazy. So, I look to you, my few lady readers, what pregnancy tricks and knowledge do you have to share? And to my partners of a pregnant lady readers, any partner knowledge to share for Mr. Fury or I? We're newbies at this whole thing and welcome any advice!