Bethany Hamilton is experiencing baby happiness. The victim of a shark attack, Bethany shared her joy over her new son on social media, reported the New York Daily News .
At 25, Hamilton has remained in the public spotlight since she lost an arm to a shark when she was 13 but continued bravely surfing, Her baby, born June 1, is the first child for the surfer and Adam Dirks.
“Blessed to welcome our son, Tobias, into the world,” wrote Bethany.
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Hamilton chose the baby name based on his great grandfather’s and its Biblical meaning, she shared.
“He is named after his great grandpa Tobias meaning ‘The goodness of God.’ Adam and I so in love with our lil guy and are stoked to share life with him!”
Bethany and Adam, married since 2013, used a video to announce her pregnancy. However, some slammed the surfing diva for continuing her desire to ride the waves with baby bump on board, potentially putting Bethany off balance.
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Hamilton defended her baby bump fitness, pointing out that she felt it was important to exercise as part of her pre-birth preparations.
But Bethany’s baby bump comments attracted some backlash when she confessed she fell more often, reported People .
“It’s such a weird feeling to be surfing in the ocean while my baby is moving around inside me,” said Hamilton at the time. “It’s a cool feeling, but I noticed my balance is a little off and I fall more.”
When she does fall, Bethany also revealed that she tries to keep going rather than use pregnancy as a reason to stop.
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“[I try] not to use pregnancy as an excuse. But there are times when I say to myself, ‘Oh gosh, that was a pregnancy surfing moment!’ ”
As the Inquisitr reported, since age 13, Bethany has focused on staying physically and emotionally strong after the shark attack. And Hamilton, from baby bump to surf board, shared that she had an amazing role model to follow when it came to surfing during her pregnancy.
“My mom surfed all through her pregnancy. I’ll probably keep riding until about eight months,” she predicted.
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However, before the baby was born, Bethany admitted that it felt odd sometimes to feel the baby moving in her body while she was riding the waves.
And Hamilton revealed that she does not think of herself as disabled, sometimes even forgetting that she has only one arm.
“I’ve been kind of thinking about it, but I often forget that I have one arm,” declared the new mom.
“When I think about it, a squirming baby and changing the diaper … could be really challenging. I think how I live life now I just adjust and adapt to different things, especially things that are a lot easier with two arms. I’ll just have to find my own way to take care of the baby.”
[Image via Bethany Hamilton ]