Hypothalamic Amenorrhea Vets - Take 2! PREG, M/C, CHILDREN MENT'D

[klc2007]

Resa - There is always going to be contradictory statements as far as the issue of weight gain/twin pregnancies. I saw it too. BUT, with twins, you may not go full term and even full term is 35 weeks. So, you really do want to do what you can to get them as big and healthy as possible as early as possible, kwim? Remember Ngolden who delivered her quads at like 26?? ish weeks? She said that she gained a lot early and she really credited that for the reason that they were all good sizes (considering the very premature state). Of course, you will not go that early but, it could be as early as 33, 35 weeks, so think about getting them as much nutrition to grow in the beginning so that as you get bigger and can't physically eat as much without feeling sick (because that WILL happen!), you can rest assured because you fed them so well at the beginning. Honestly, if you are eating around 3000 calories a day and still only gain 40, that is just fine! No one said you needed to gain 65 like me And, FYI, I lost 45 of the 65 by my 6 week post preg appt.
As far as doing things with the older kids after the twins are born... just wait and see how it goes. And, they have each other, so if you are tending to the twins a lot, at least you know that they have each other to play with

I joined a local moms group that costs $20 per year. It is a National Organization with local groups all over the country. See if there is anything near you Just click on Chapters and look for your state and see if any of the cities are near you.

http://www.momsclub.org/links.html

[cyclegirl]

resa- I'm a member of MOPS and have been for over 2 years now, I love it! Aiden is in kindergarten and the twins go to Mother's Day out like the one you're on the list for. I don't think by any means it's necessary or essential for development but for me, I'm able to be very efficient with errand running and the store along with a little down time. I also think I'm a better mom when I'm with them b/c I have more energy and my time is more quality since I've been so productive while they're at school. For the twins, they love it and it gives them a bit of variety in their day since they're with me 24-7 otherwise! I saw a peri throughout my entire pregnancy and he delivered the twins. Oh, and I would love to be preggo with the twins again and be given permission to eat that much! Embrace it, it's probably the last time 3000 calories a day is ideal. Twin pregnancies are different than singletons- weight gain is VERY VERY important. Gaining 20 lbs by 20 weeks decreases your risk of preterm labor dramatically.

[writerkms]

Resa- HUGE congrats to you!! How many cycles of clomid did you have to do? Was it monitored and did you need an HCG shot? As far as weight gain goes, I have to agree with KLC. I know we ladies tend to overexaggerate how much we eat (in our heads it seems like a lot but it is usually normal!). I would just make sure that you err on the side of too much gain because you WILL lose it (you always did!). Keep in touch with us!

KLC-what are your plans for your child free night? Do you have any problems with tantrums? Just curious how you discipline because from what you post on facebook, your girls seem SOO behaved!

Nico- I hope it's your month!!

tras- we are doing the early steps too (but it is called early intervention). Only, we are getting PT because Isaac is 17 months and can't crawl, pull up, or walk. He just scoots on his bottom all over the place. I hope we both see some improvement!

bebe- I hope your mom does well with the chemo! Does she get very sick? It seems like the drugs are really good at helping with that for Noah. How are you handling it all?

Kat- Miss you on here!!

Things are going okay here. We are headed back to Texas for an MRI on Oct 26th and I am really nervous. Just PRAYING for a clear scan!

I could use some eating advice. I still need to gain about 10-15 pounds to be at a healthy weight. I have a HUGE sweet tooth and I crave junk all the time (donuts, cake, cookies). I used to eat almost no fat during the day and still eat pretty low fat (cereal for breakfast, turkey sandwich and fruit for lunch and chicken/pasta for dinner). However, I am eating a lot of sweets! Is it bad to get most of my fat calories from sweets?

[spindoctor]

Writer - Nice to hear from you! How are you holding up? Do the doctors have any ideas why Isaac isn't crawling/walking, etc.? My DH's younger brother apparently didn't move at all until he was 18 months and there was nothing wrong with him.

If your only goal is to gain weight, you can eat whatever kind of calories you want. Healthwise though, it is better to stick with calorie and nutrient dense foods, such as those that contain the "good" fats. Do you like nut butters? There are a good sourse of fat that you can makes sweets with. If so, make cookies with them or I can give you my peanut butter and jelly fudge recipe which is really yummy

[klc2007]

Writer - For you, I would say that whatever you need to do to put on the weight.. do it! I agree that of course "healthy" fats are more desirable BUT, in your case, it may be eating the sweets and getting some fat or eating really low fat or no snacks at all. And, for your case, some fat is probably better. And, if your other eating tends to be low fat, I'd say eat what you enjoy. BTW, I wish I had the problem of needed to gain! I have gained 25 pounds since last year this time.. gross!
The girls are pretty well behaved. But, of course like all toddlers, they have their moments. Grace throws tantrums/screams at night because she wants me to stay in her room until she falls asleep. Hannah throws a fit if I don't let her have her binky at all times, etc... I *try* to stand my ground but, I do give in a lot (bad, I know). I'm working on that. My problem is that I want then to be happy all of the time and if it is within my ability and is not going to hurt them, they usually do get what they want. Sometimes I feel like I'm the aunt that spoils them instead of the mom!
This Saturday is U of M vs Michigan State weekend for college football. We are pretty big college football fans/MSU fans, so I always ask my mom to take the girls for this weekend... GO GREEN, GO WHITE. Sorry to any Wolverine friends... Jamie

[resa1]

writer- two rounds of clomid, unmonitored and no HCG. We realy didn't htink it would work, it hadn't in the way past, but we thought we would try it until we could afford another cycle. We had decided we wanted three kids, with surprise twins we get an added bonus!! For sweets there are lots of sweet things that you can make fairly healthy and not feel so badly about eating them. What is your weight goal? I LOVE the very berry smoothies from mickey d's but they are pretty expensive, they have been my latest splurge. I also like these pumkin muffins that my mom makes with real pumpkin in them, and I feel like I am eating something healthyish, pumpkin is good for us right? I have attempted some healthy smoothies, trying to make them really healthy ( like just ff milk, berries and a little splenda) but not very yummy yet, I think they require yogurt or ice cream. I have also been baking a big dish of fresh apples sliced up with an oatmeal, ff butter, cinnamon and splenda mixture. The warm apples with cinnamon really hit the spot and I feel like I am being guilty but its really not. I did the same thing with fresk peaches, minus the cinnamon.

spin- can I get your peanut butter and jelly fudge recipe, that sounds sooooo good and I have this special omega 3 peanut butter I am dying to eat up!

KLC- go state!!!! We are so excited about the game. We want to go out to the pumkpin patch/ hayride on saturday so we have to plan accordingly!!

cycle- I loved this MOPS group, I went to one that was way across town on Monday and them discovered this one that meets just 8 miles away and so I attended that one as well, and I really liked this group!! The were passing arounda sign up sheet to prepare meals for a girl that had just delivered a baby, how cool is that?! I am trying to get my head on straight and get on the "gain train", but it feels like as soon as I do my thoughts in my head remind me of people to whom minimal weight gain was just fine. Its a struggle I have to overcome for my babies. Like KLC has said to me, more than just having healthy babies, I need to take this opportunity to love food again!

[spindoctor]

Resa - How old are your two little ones now? What is your due date?

Here is the fudge recipe:

2 bags pure white chocolate chips (about 1 lb)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup jelly (I use Crofters organic superfruit flavour but regular grape is fine)

Melt chocolate and peanut butter together over double boiler (or put bowl over pot of simmering water. Stir until smooth. Pour into a 9x9 pan. Spoon dollops of jelly over top and then swirl in with knife. Refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.

[BC-Nico]

Resa, it's so nice to hear from you again :-) I have to say, your "healthy" smoothie doesn't sound very healthy to me at all! Artificial sweetners are really NOT healthy, I don't think they're the worst thing in the world, but I don't think they're the best either. And we do NEED fat in our diets, so fat free milk probably not the greatest either. What percentage of your diet would you say is fat? That's also something that's important right now, you should be aiming for around 30% (or more if that's what Dr. Luke says!). Take this opportunity to enjoy things like whole milk (I know we have been trained not to like it but I have recently switched from ff to whole, and actually really enjoy it now - and interestingly my skin has improved SO much with the change). "Let" yourself eat ice cream, and all the "bad" things that we have trained ourselves to avoid. Same thing with your apple dish - go ahead and use REAL butter and sugar! Because honestly the way you're making it right now doesn't have many calories in it at all, and that's what you and your babies need. The others are right - with twins it's so much more important to gain weight early to help prevent pre-term delivery, and also to help the babies be a good size if they are born early. It kinda sounds to me like you're doing well with your eating now - maybe you should just avoid the scale, rather than tracking so carefully?

writer, I'm glad that you have Isaac in EI, let us know how that goes! As far as your gaining, I think you should also switch to whole milk and other full-fat dairy. You shouldn't be eating *anything* that's low-fat - let yourself enjoy the (much better) taste of the fatty stuff What did you decide to do regarding adoption, are you going forward with that?

klc, I'm with you - if my kids want something that has no effect on me, I say why not? I recently read a blog post from a mom who took her kid to a children's museum but didn't have a good time because her kid wanted to play with one thing and she wanted to take him all around and try different things. My attitude is if the kid wants to just do one activity, what's wrong with that? I'm happy to go with the flow and let them lead the way (as long as things are safe and I don't have something to do!). What drives me up a wall though, is when they whine asking for something that I'm perfectly happy to give them. Then I feel like I'm rewarding the whining which I hate to do and just causes more!

[cyclegirl]

spin- I just read your blog...I so feel for you b/c many times I feel like we need some sort of intervention, mostly with Aiden. The little ones I can handle b/c I've been through it. Aiden is extremely attention-seeking and believe me, he gets a ton of individual time. Sometimes I feel like the more we try the worse it gets. From every thing I know of you from here and your blog, I think you're a very invested, caring mother. I'm willing to bet you would know more than most professionals! Hang in there!

resa, writer- Ditto everything Nico said. I think there was a study a while back indicating that full-fat dairy actually improved fertility. I don't think I could ever go back to ff anything after having the full-fat stuff for 9 months plus longer since I nursed. When I was preggo with the twins, I typically double-lunched and double-dinnered. Meaning I would eat a regular sized lunch, follow it with an egg and cheese sandwich with fruit 2 hours later, eat a solid dinner and then have a full bowl of cereal with more fruit before bed. I love eating! And then there was nursing where I could continue to eat. It was awesome....ahhhh, those were the days.

klc- how's the eating going? I think you posted on fb about it?? I've been actually trying to tighten up on my eating...could use some motivation...I'm trying to stay around 1700-1800 calories in hopes of losing this last 4-5 pounds. Not easy...it's been 5 days but feels like FOREVER!

[klc2007]

Cycle - Oh Lord, I am so jealous of your 5 pounds to lose! Last year at this time, I needed to lose just 5-7 pounds. Now, it is up to 30!! Seriously just to be back to my okay weight, not HA weight. It seems the more I really want to get serious about losing it, I do the opposite. I went from gaining 5, to 10 to 15... I totally let myself go, to be cliche about it. I am technically overweight right now. I'm doing walks with the girls, nothing too intense at the moment and eating 1500 - 1600. I lost 2 pounds last week, hoping to continue at a 1 - 2 pounds a week pace and lose it slowly. This is not thin Katie saying "oh, I'm so fat". I am honestly fat right now. There is no way around it. I did not go super crazy to gain the weight either. I've always gained really easily..... Taking Saturday off of course

Nico - That is crazy about the museum. I just want my kids to enjoy life, ya know? Of course, short of running down the street alone and eating a diet of only brownies and french fries.

Resa - I agree with Nico. Do not be afraid of fat!! That is a pitfall of most of us HAers. And, yes, enjoy food again!!