With 91F on the radar for the next couple days, we are anxious to get out of the city.

It’s actually quite pleasant in our flat, all things considered, with the windows open, cross breeze maximized and industrial fan on lowest setting (at higher settings it starts traveling across the room). Without an accessible garden to escape to though, it’s a bit unfair to Lake. He was more than ready to eat and sleep the heat of the day away, but there wasn’t a lot of happy-baby playtime going on. So today we are going to become climate refugees.

We will be hiding out at the inlaws forested retreat on Bainbridge Island. We are going to take advantage of the ocean breeze and being on Puget Sound and say 

Yes!

to the proffered hospitality of family. 

First we will enjoy the journey to get there. We are busing it to Ballard for lunch with our PEPS pals. We are checking out No Bones Beach Club which is apparently a vegan tiki bar specializing in no-fake-meat vegan nibbles. One word: delicious! The sauces are amazing!

Such nice surprise to run into a few old coworkers along the way, too. Hello friends! I am still working as well, just a different kind of job. Lake is my primary client. He runs a tight ship with some pretty mean hours. The benefits and quality of life are entirely worth it!

The three of us went up to yoga this morning for a postnatal “mom and baby” type class. That’s a trick. We looked really cute, all matching with light blue shirts and black yoga pants. Michael dropped us off and went to the neighboring catopia café while we commenced to lubricate our aching joints. “Motion is lotion” Darshana, my rockstar physical therapist said at our last appointment. 

Lake was content for about 85% of the class. That left 15% discontent. The 15% loomed large though, especially considering it came near the end. By the end I was breastfeeding him in Shivasana. 

These days he’s still sleeping through the night eight hours, which I’m incredibly thankful for. Then he has a near constant appetite while he’s awake. And he’s appreciative of attention and play. None of these attributes are particularly conducive to synchronized mom-baby yoga. It seems to work better if I go to adult yoga class after he’s had a good meal and I can leave him to have some quality daddy downtime. He really doesn’t need a class to get his yoga on. He’s a relaxation expert, stretching constantly, holds no grudges, very flexible. He’s a born yogi. 

Lake sure had fun sharing the Woodland Park Zoo with his old friend Clarence today! His favorite part was lunch where he got to break out of the Baby Björn and bust a move! He’s getting so smiley and engaging! 

The animals were impressively active too, given our midday visit and the heat. Reticulated giraffes. Wolf Pack. Brother Bears. Komodo dragon lizards. Hippos. 

The hippos were keeping it real. Reminding us the breathe and chill. And cuddle. 

The big felines were all caught mid-siesta: sleeping jaguar, lion, three tigers and a snow leopard.  At the end we watched Yola be hearded off by her mum. Succinctly prodded patted and nudged off stage left. No question about her maternal confidence! All in all a great zoo day!

Afterwards Lake and I met Daddy for a movie date. We checked out another philosophy of parenting style and watched Captain Fantastic at the Guild 45th. There we got to check out the sound proofing in the baby room. 

(Tolle asked that I finish the entry today. So… after a long leisurely zoo stroll, she accomplished movie-out baby management at the theatre, then nigh passed out after dinner with BBC Olympics on the projector telly. 6 miles on her phone counter, a low day — yesterday it counted 11. Tolle loves the zoo, long walks, movies, dinners, and watching volleyball. And Lake. So, a perfect day then. -ed)

Michael has recently been appointed the newest Regional Supervisor for his pharmaceutical fraternity: Lambda Kappa Sigma. Their mascot is the Lamb and their colors are blue and gold. Or so I believe. It’s one of those closely guarded secrets. I’m in the rival pharmaceutical fraternity Kappa Psi so I wouldn’t know for sure. 

I didn’t let that get in our way though today! This morning we composed a photograph to send out to his regional chapter presidents. By way of introduction. How cute is that?

Lake is getting to be such a smiler. 

I have been working hard and enthusiastically to tone and shape up my body after pregnancy and birth. Turns out it’s not enough. Circumstantial developments continue to throw new challenges. 

I went to hot Hatha yoga class today. Michael was home and could hang with Lake. Some men’s morning time. I’m feeling pretty good. I’m on my own. I’m going to a yoga class. I’ll get to do a whole yoga session. I’ve been doing my homework, my daily yoga practice, my planks. I’m looking good. I’m feeling strong. I’m balancing on one leg and getting good lift out of my core. I may not be at my pre-pregnancy weight, but I’m fitting back into my pre-pregnancy wardrobe and doing great with all the poses. 

Then, it turns out I put my yoga mat in the one place where the sun moved from between the curtains to light up my mat. Everyone else seemed to know better and situated their mats further back into the room, or even up against the cool-retaining concrete walls. Not me, I was over by the window. I started out in the shade, but before too long I was in the sun beam. It was super hot. I moved my mat.  The sunbeam moved to follow me. It was burning hot. It was at least 10F hotter where I was in the sun compared to the rest of the room. And the room was hot to begin with. It was hot yoga. Hot Hatha yoga. I begin to weep. 
Hot yoga. Isn’t the hot of hot yoga enough? Nope. It’s über hot yoga for me! At the end of class my mat is the one mat in the entire room with a beautiful sun beam right smack dab in the middle of it. Filling my mat up with light. And hot heat. My sweat soaked mat. Tears are streaming down my face. My hot red face. My sunshine face. My sweat soaked face. Body. Clothes. 

My clothes. So just when I can fit back into all my old jeans and I’m feeling pretty good about myself Life ups the ante. I wished things felt as good on the inside as they are beginning to look and feel on the outside. So, yesterday I went to see a physical therapist who specializes in pelvic floor rehabilitation. Turns out I have a lot of work to do. I have a little bit of every kind of thing wrong with me that a person can have after a long and arduous but ultimately uncomplicated vaginal childbirth. Sprains, strains, tears, scar tissue, laxity and spasms. I feel broken even as I’m having a great physical yoga practice. It’s the mental-emotional component that’s resisting the depth and magnitude of the recovery work. I seriously underestimated the total impact that carrying and birthing our beautiful Lake would have. And I’m completely filled with gratitude to have helped to create and share in his existence. I love you Lake. Alright, let’s do this!

Like many discoveries, I hadn’t put a lot of thought into the different aspects beforehand. As it turns out, having a baby changes your life. Ha! Well, I had that basic principle down, but the myriad ways in which it specifically manifests itself is not completely self-evident ahead of time. Surprising challenges arise in the logistical navigation through the world. Like how hard it is to eat an orange with one hand, because that’s usually all that’s left after holding a baby to your breast. And especially the first few months he’s always eating. Practically every waking hour. Apricots, berries and even apples are my preferred breastfeeding friendly fruits.  Sheath dresses, which were so elegant during pregnancy, are totally useless when trying to breastfeed. My denim jumper suddenly became a nightmare when trying to use the toilet before getting off the ferry while wearing Lake. We were all tangled up and trapped and the security guards were trying to clear off the last of the passengers (us). Shirt dresses are the answer. 

With respect to these various tactical developments, cold brew rises up as a coffee champion. Cold brew is a water extraction process where freshly ground beans are steeped in cold water at room temperature for an extended period of time (like left on the windowsill overnight, or from one morning to the next). Not only does it taste so sweet and smooth with less acid extracted, but it is extremely baby friendly!

Cold brewed coffee can be made ahead of time. When it’s convenient for you and baby. It can be made in large batches and keeps well in the refrigerator. It’s refreshing! It doesn’t get cold if baby requires attending to and suddenly takes precedence over coffee. It’s already cold. It doesn’t present a danger to baby. It’s not hot and doesn’t involve any boiling liquid at any point. It’s already all ready to go when you are having a coffee emergency. There’s no need to endure baby wailing away while grinding, brewing, and pressing coffee. No suffering through a fog or a headache because you haven’t had a chance to get your coffee yet. It’s safe, yummy and there for you! Enjoy!