We are getting excited about finding out whether Baby Harper is a he or she this Saturday, so in preparation, we wanted to poll the crowds to see what the consensus is.  To help you make the best guess possible, here is all of the info:

1) Chinese Gender Calendar: predicts that we’re having a boy!
2) Heart-rate:  They say that over 140 bpm = girl and under 140 = boy.  Baby Harper has been measured 3 times, each one clocking in above 140 so that’s 1 strong point for girl.
3) Even/Odd: Legend has it that if the mother’s age and year of conception are the same (both even or both odd) then it is a girl, if they are different it is a boy. Well I was 25 and it was 2012…so that would mean boy.
4) Nausea and Sickness: They say that nausea and morning sickness indicates you’re having a girl.  Although I never actually threw up much, I have definitely felt these symptoms, so going with girl on this one.
5) Cravings: Cravings for sweets = girl and savory = boy.  I would say I’ve definitely had stronger cravings for savory so boy!
6) Complexion: They say that a boy will give you glowing, radient skin and a girl will contribute to skin problems and acne.  Mine has pretty much stayed the same so I’m calling this one a draw.

All that being said, it’s really 50/50…so what do you think?  Leave us your votes!

and there’s the baby!

So, clearly I missed the boat on 16 weeks, but between the trip to Turkey and traveling for Carnaval, it just didn’t happen.  Sorry!

How far along: 17 weeks today
Baby updates: Baby Harper is around 5 inches long – about the size of a turnip!  I haven’t felt any kicks or movement yet but I am hoping that comes soon!  Also, we’ll be finding out Baby Harper’s gender next weekend so stay tuned!!
Mamma updates: Definitely feeling better and my appetite has returned, although I am still tired a lot and love when I can get a good nap in.
Things I miss: Still missing sushi.  Like, I think about it every. single. day.  Giving up alcohol hasn’t been too hard (especially since I was feeling sick for the first few months), but lately I have really been wanting a nice, cold glass of Sauvignon Blanc.
Cravings: Nothing too unusual so far, although I have started drinking Coke every now and then which is something I never used to do.
Weight: +4.5 was the highest number of the week, so I’m going with that!  The weight gain has happened pretty quickly, but I have felt like I had some catch-up to do so I’m very happy with it.  I still haven’t broken into my maternity clothes, however I feel like it’s not too far away.
Best moments of the week: The past week was wonderful.  I had a great trip to Turkey, but it felt so great to get home and escape with Michael for the most relaxing Carnaval of all time.  🙂  This week we also celebrated Valentine’s Day and our 1 year anniversary of moving to Brazil, along with a good friend’s birthday!  So lots of joy and celebrations to be thankful for.

*Picture taken at 14 weeks, 5 days*

How far along: 15 weeks & 1 day today
Baby updates: Baby Harper is around 4 1/2 inches long – about the size of an apple or an orange!
Mamma updates: I think I’m on the road to feeling better soon — not 100% but noticeably improving!
Cravings: On the negative side, sushi is and has been the major craving that I can’t give into.  On the positive side, I wake up every morning craving fresh fruit smoothies and without fail, Michael always makes me one.
Weight: -2.0  was the average for the week, however I can see that I am starting to gain weight back and my body is definitely changing.  It really felt like this week I just popped out which kind of makes this whole thing feel more real!
Best moments of the week: This past week I have been especially thankful for friends.
** A couple of girls knew I hadn’t been feeling well so they came by my apartment to hang out and brought beautiful tea and amazing vegetarian sushi (since that has been my #1 forbidden craving!) — so sweet of them!

Sushi w/ mango, tofu, broccoli, carrots… yum!

** Some of the American moms in São Paulo included me on a lunch last week and it was nice to meet some new friends who were able to share some wisdom on what it’s like to raise a baby in this city.
** Another friend hosted a girl’s night at her apartment and hanging out with over 20 girlfriends over yummy food and drinks is just good for the soul.
Tough times: I’m posting this week from Istanbul, Turkey!  I’m here for the week for work as WINGS is having our annual in-person Board of Directors meeting.  It is so great to be here and the meeting is very interesting as our 18 Board members come from 13 different countries across the world and therefore bring a wide variety of perspectives on what is happening in the world – specifically with regards to global philanthropy.
That being said, I was feeling especially emotional leaving Michael for the week.  I actually cried before I left, then watched 3 sappy movies on the plane and cried through each one.  I felt sorry for the guy sitting next to me!

How far along: 14 weeks today
Baby updates: Baby Harper is 3 1/2 inches long – about the size of a lemon!
Mamma updates: I’m still not feeling great, although Michael says he thinks I’m doing much better.  Maybe I just don’t quite remember how bad it was, but I’m still feeling tired and a little sick to my stomach.
Weight: -2.3  Although putting on weight has still been pretty difficult, Michael and I are definitely noticing that my body is changing which is exciting.  In the meantime, I am eating as much as possible and sneaking in supplements (like Ensure powder) to try to add on calories whenever I can.
Best moments of the week: This week was nice and relaxing — Friday was a São Paulo holiday so Michael and I had the day off!  We spent a lot of time this weekend researching baby gear and trying to decipher what will be worth bringing back from the US and what we have space for in our little apartment.  We made some major headway, but I still welcome any & all suggestions — especially on the little things, tips & tricks, books, etc. so mamas – let me know if there was a certain thing (or list of things) that you loved for your baby!  

Since I have just started documenting the pregnancy journey, I wanted to get down a few notes about what the first trimester has been like before we jump too quickly into the second.

Top 5 – Highlights:
1) Obviously, the first highlight of pregnancy was finding out that we were pregnant.  We were hoping to get pregnant so I was paying pretty close attention to the calendar and took my first test on day 29 of that cycle.  The first test looked pretty negative (the faintest of faint second lines could barely be detected), but I proceded to take 1 each morning until we got a sure positive, 4 days later…on the morning of my first day of work.  🙂  So that was quite the day.
2) The next major highlight was our first ultrasound at 7 weeks, 5 days, where we got to see the baby for the first time and hear the heartbeat.

Waiting to go in for ultrasound #1!

This was still before we had shared the news with anyone and it was a moment that Michael and I will always remember and cherish together.
3) Another huge highlight is that we were able to tell our families in person over Christmas break.  I always assumed that living here, we would probably have to share news like that over the phone or something, so we were especially thankful that God orchestrated the timing which allowed us to tell them in person.  I’ll post about the holidays soon and include more details on it then, but that was very special for us.
4) The next fun blessing was last Thursday’s ultrasound that I posted about before.  It’s hard to explain but part of me was wondering if there was even still a baby in there!  It’s weird when you can’t really see anything growing so it was a relief to be able to see it again, hear the heartbeat, and learn that it’s doing just fine in there.

The technician wrote “Hi Daddy!!” on this one.

5) Finally, it was so much fun getting to share the news.  Everyone has been tremendously encouraging has just made us feel totally surrounded by love and support.  So thank you!!

Symptoms:
I do count myself as fortunate because I have only thrown up once so far.  That being said, it has not been an easy couple of months.  I didn’t really feel anything at all until about mid-way through my 6th week, and then it all started to hit.  I have had major exhaustion where I just wanted to sleep all day.  I felt nauseous, sick to my stomach, I had no appetite whatsoever and had strong aversions to lots of foods that had previously been some of my favorites!  Further, I started getting daily headaches around 5 or 6pm when my body would just start shutting down and all I would want to do is sleep.  All of this has not been awesome and has rendered me pretty much useless.  And to be honest, I’m still kind of in that useless stage.
Thankfully I have a husband who is the opposite of useless and has been beyond incredible.  Michael has cooked almost every meal (including making me morning smoothies!) and has basically done all of the dishes, grocery shopping, and generally everything else to allow me to rest and focus on taking care of myself.  I can’t imagine how tired he must be of this first-trimester sickness business, but he’s been so kind to me and made me feel very lucky and loved.

Emotional Experience:
Of course the overriding emotion throughout the pregnancy so far has been thankfulness and excitement.  However, there have definitely been times where other things have crept in as well.  First of all, it was a little emotional to be starting a new career at the very same time that we learned about the pregnancy.  Then, the sickness and exhaustion are a little emotionally taxing, but it never felt too badly because it has always seemed like a temporary condition that was sure to change eventually (right?!).
Also, I don’t know if other people go through this, but there was a period of about 48 hours where I felt very nervous about the way our life will soon be changing.  The truth is that I love our life.  I like it just being Michael and me, doing whatever we want, sleeping in late on the weekends, going off on fun trips at the drop of a hat, enjoying date nights together…and I felt a little panic-y about the idea of all of that changing.  And it’s weird to have thoughts like that when you know that the decision has already been made and the baby is already…there.  Naturally, these thoughts made me feel mega-guilty and embarrassed so of course I didn’t want to tell anyone, but I did tell Michael.  He was super comforting and told me that it’s normal to be a little freaked out about it, but that it will be so great and just add to the adventure of our lives together.  Honestly, just talking about it made me feel better and I haven’t felt this way since, however I wanted to share it just in case anyone else ever finds themselves feeling this way.

OK – well this has been a LOT already so I’ll stop here!  Here’s to the 2nd Trimester being better than the 1st.