An interview with: KERRI WALSH, two-time Olympic gold medalist and AVP Crocs Tour star. Walsh has announced she will return to the AVP Tour on Aug. 7 for the Hermosa Beach Open and play with Rachel Wacholder. She had her first child, Joseph, in May and has not played on Tour this season. On July 18, Walsh spoke with the media for the first time since giving birth.

Question: Which trainers have you been working with?

Answer: We started with Holly McPeak, and when she could no longer do it, we started with Marcio Sicoli, who was Holly's trainer and has trained (Walsh's husband) Casey (Jennings) in the past. He's the coach at Pepperdine. He's just a stud. And we have our other trainers outside of volleyball, who are kicking our butts.

Q: So how's it going?

A: Awesome, it's so awesome - except for the fact that I'm late everywhere I go, which is a first for me. Aside from that, it's pretty wonderful. He's a good baby. It all seems really natural and wonderful. I feel like I've been ready for this my whole life. I come from a really big family and have a lot of support, so it hasn't been overwhelming at all.

Q: How did you pick Hermosa for a time to come back?

A: The time frame just felt right. I had the baby at the end of May, and I figured a month and a half to get out there and give it a go.

Q: When you got pregnant, did you have a timetable as far as trying to come back this year?

A: I thought I'd take a full year off - I really did. It's silly, because I knew I'd get the itch to play. I always get it around December. Even though I was pregnant, I still got it in December. I really thought I'd give it a full year off, but it's been such a long time off, and it's been good for my head and good for my soul, and I'm ready. We wanted to start a family, but the dream was to have it all - have this baby and bring him around the world, and do it as a team, Casey and I. We're going to start that dream in Hermosa.

Q: Do you expect to play full-time next year?

A: As far as international and everything? Yeah, yeah, I'm planning on it. We're going to have a lot of help. I have two little sisters who have volunteered (to help with the baby), and my mom and Casey's family. A lot of people are going to help us juggle all this. (Joey) is going to come with us wherever we go, and if I start to feel uncomfortable or Casey starts to get uncomfortable or it's too much, we won't do it. But I don't think that's going to be the case.

Q: So would you travel with someone to help?

A: Yeah, for sure.

Q: What's going on with (long-time playing partner) Misty (May-Treanor, who injured her Achilles tendon participating in "Dancing With the Stars" earlier this year and hasn't played this season)?

A: She's doing great.  She looks beautiful. She's very healthy. She's cleared to do everything - she's just missing a little strength. But she has full confidence in her movements and her agility, so it's just a matter of getting strength and all that, and she'll be back. She's playing volleyball. I think she's training with the Lindquists (Tracy and Katie). She offered to help Rachel and I train. She can run; she can do all the tricky things.

Q: But she won't be back this year?

A: No. When she said she wasn't going to play for a year, she definitely meant it. She was born into this culture, and she definitely needs a break. She's really enjoying her time off, and I think she's "breathing" for the first time in a long time.

Q: What would you say about your partnership?

A: It remains to be seen. I hope to God that she comes back and that we'll play together. I assume we will. She needs to make that decision for herself, about coming back. I know she wants a family and she's working on that. I'm not really worried about that - I think it's all going to take care of itself. Whatever her choice is, I respect it and support it. It's going to be exciting to see what comes - I have no idea.

Q: How's Rachel (Wacholder) doing?

A: She's great. Her boy (new son Koa) is so cute. She's such a beautiful mom. She's doing great. She had a cesarean section, so it took her a little longer to recover and she had to take some time off. But she's really strong and really competitive, so we'll get there.

Q: In Hermosa, is this just kind of a test phase for you guys?

A: It's the real deal. We're going out there with high expectations and high hopes. That being said, it's our first tournament back since having babies, so I guess there's a little bit of stress, but we're planning on doing well.

Q: Have you guys been training together in the sand?

A: You're not supposed to work out for about four weeks after you have a baby, and I cut that short by about two or three days. So I guess it was mid June. She was down on the beach a couple times with Holly before that, just getting her legs going, but very minimal.

Q: How's your conditioning?

A: That's the tough part. I feel like this is preseason and we're working toward our first tournament of the year. Usually when you go into preseason, you have a foundation of strength. We don't have that at all, which is crazy, because I worked out pretty hard. I think endurance and fatigue will be factors. That being said, we're doing everything we can to make those non-factors. Thank goodness I'm tall, because I can't jump and am going to need every inch of my height. We're doing a lot of pilates right now. There's a lot of work to mold us into what we're supposed to be, because we're starting from ground zero, in volleyball and with our bodies.

Q: How does your strategy change playing with Rachel, as opposed to playing with Misty?

A: Rachel is a strategist. She's played these teams a million times, as have I, and she's had success doing certain things. I think we'll just combine our insights and see how it goes.

Q: What's been the toughest thing so far - trying to take care of Joey or trying to get in shape for volleyball?

A: Probably just trying to juggle both of them. I've got a nanny twice a week, and the first day leaving him I cried. Leaving him every day is really difficult. When I have to leave him and go focus on my job, that's probably the most challenging part. I was serving balls, and I was like, 'I wonder what Joey's doing right now? I wonder if he's happy?'

Q: You haven't played since last November, correct? And what was the last event?

A: Yes, Dubai. With Nicole Branagh. It was a long time ago.

Q: Is (Joey) always this good?

A: He's a good boy - he really is. He's so cute. He has my left ear and my legs, I think, but otherwise he's Casey's boy. He's usually really good, unless he has a dirty diaper or is hungry.

Q: What was his size at birth?

A: He was 8 pounds, 10 ounces and 20 ½ inches.

Q: Did you talk to Jenny (Johnson Jordan) and Annett (Davis) or anybody else about going through this?

A: We've had little conversations here and there; it's more just watching how they do it all. They make it seem so effortless and so seamless, and I think the way they do that is that they have such an amazing support system. Jenny has her family out a lot, her parents, her husband. They just ask for help, and I think that's what Casey and I are going to do.

As far as the fitness part of it, I talked to Gabrielle Reece and a lot of soccer players - Mia (Hamm). They're like, 'It's possible. Just give yourself time and be patient,' which is truly the hardest part, being patient. I want to be fit yesterday.

Q: I was talking to Sean Scott (Wacholder's husband) the other day, and he said that with a baby now, he doesn't sweat the small stuff. Is that how you're approaching things?

A: You realize what's truly important. Life is really simple. My priorities are straight.

Q: Have you plotted out the next few years at all, or is there any thought on whether you want to have another child?

A: Initially, we want to have a baby right away, and we're talking about that. London (the 2012 Olympics) is definitely a goal right now. We don't know the qualification process, so once we figure that out, I think we'll go from there. Right now, we're just doing baby stuff, and we're trying to figure out how we're going to travel with him this year; we still have to fit Joey in all of this. I think once we kind of know what's ahead of us, we'll start planning it.

Q: What was his first trip?

A: We've been to Reno. I've had a couple trips with him while Casey was gone. He flies like a champ, so we'll be good.

Q: Do you have any plans for expanding the family?

A: I want more kids. I'm thinking two boys and a girl, so we'll see how that goes. But, yeah, as far as timing, I really don't know. The initial plan was to have them back-to-back. My brother and I are 11 months apart, and I always wanted that for my kids, because he's my best friend, but we'll see. We're working through some stuff, kind of trying to figure life out. It's scary how much I love this little kid, so going down that road again is so exciting.

Q: How different is Kerri Walsh now from Kerri Walsh in Beijing?

A: I don't know; I'm just happier. The stress of my job is gone. I've been carrying that stress since I stepped out onto the beach with Misty eight and a half years ago. I put so much into my job, and I just kind of put my head down and loved it, but I didn't really take advantage of my lifestyle enough, and now I'm ready to do it all, really enjoy my job and my career and really enjoy my family and really enjoy the lifestyle because it's a beautiful lifestyle. I've had my head down and charging too long, and I'll do that, but I'll have my head up a little bit more.

Q: You mentioned earlier when (Joey) rolled over earlier, it was a special moment. Were there any other moments that have stuck out in your mind in the first couple months?

A: Yesterday, we woke up, and he was a little grumpy and kind of fussy, and I flipped him over, and he looked at me and kind of gave me a half smile, and then it just turned into this big, full sunshine smile, and that was pretty special. It's kind of like he was messing with me: 'I'm not really fussy; I love you.' His smile is so beautiful, and he has two big dimples like his daddy.

Q: You have a chance to make some Olympic history with three straight - is that important? How much will you chase that?

A: When I think about going to the next Olympics, I want to go and win a gold medal as a mom. That, to me, sounds like it would be such an amazing thing and such an inspirational thing in my life and to other women, because I'm very proud to be a mom. I feel like I've joined this elite club.

Q: So that would be more important to you than winning the three (straight golds)?

A: Yeah, for sure. Because I'm achieving my dreams as far as having a beautiful family and being able to make it all work.