In the spirit of documenting this process, this is what I looked like the day I went into the hospital (March 12th, left) and what I look like now after H’s birth (March 26th, right).

I loved being pregnant, that’s no secret. I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes right at the beginning of the 2nd trimester, which was definitely a curveball. So I was on a fairly strict diet to help make sure H wasn’t one of those giant babies that CNN always does stories about, and I managed really well. I didn’t need to go on medication until later in the pregnancy, and then it was a fairly small dose. I was surprised how well I adapted to the whole business, pricking my finger 4x a day for blood sugar testing and cutting out a lot of carbs. My body (mostly) stopped craving them, the way it stopped craving all the other stuff you’re not supposed to eat while pregnant.

And it was worth it for H. She was perfectly within the average for birth weight, and since I lost some weight due to 1st trimester queasiness I was only 5 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight when she was born. Somehow I have since lost about 25 pounds, so at the moment I’m smaller than I was before we even began thinking about starting our family. Which I was not expecting at all. I go back for sugar testing at the 6 week mark, but so far my body has sprung back to its normal sugar tolerance without incident. But I’m still watching the carbs. I have given myself a few indulgences, though. I’d be lying if I said I’m not happy to stop eating cheese and peanut butter every day for breakfast. I have a newfound appreciation for cereal. It’s the little things.