See Mommy Snowboard

Yesterday, I cashed in on a birthday promise from Daddy B: Kelly swooped by and hijacked me away for a half day of snowboarding up at Mt Hood Meadows, while B held the fort back at home. It was an amazing day - - clear, cold, calm, with the kind of puffy white snow that sparkles in the sun as you're gliding on by. The Cascade chairlift was open, meaning we could head on up to the highest and longest runs for our level, starting out in a wide open powdery snowfield, with a spectacular view.

I was definitely worried that, with the cesarean and all, I'd be in the kind of physical agony after just a handful of runs that characterized my early days in the sport - - but I held up surprisingly well, and am even not too overwhelmingly sore the day after. I credit this to dead-lifting 15 pounds about 50 times a day. Although my abs and quads may not look it at the moment, underneath it all, they are apparently in pretty good shape.

Anyway, it was a great day, and although we cut out on the early side, we got in some really fun runs. B and Hope also had a terrific time here at home - - all the laundry got done, and Hope was peacefully napping when we returned. Hooray!

(at left: stanley stock photo, top of Cascade, circa 2005)