Your Name

Dearest Harper,

We always had a boy name picked out, but our girl name was never set in stone. If you were a boy you would have been Xavier. We were having a hard time agreeing on a middle name, but as it turns out, the tests showed you didn't have those parts, and we didn't need one after all.

We were originally going to name you Piper, but discovered that Piper was becoming more and more popular. My name was one of the most popular names for the year I was born, and I was always one of at least two, sometimes three, Jessicas in class. I didn't want that for you, so we switched to Harper. I have no idea where we came up with it. Had we looked it up before we decided, we would have discovered that it is also rising in popularity, but even after finding that out we stuck with it because Daddy and I both really liked it.

As for your middle name, that always requires an explanation... Daddy is a huge movie fan, so one day, while discussing names, he threw out Ripley. He did it thinking I'd never go for it, but I liked the logic behind it:
In the 1979 movie Alien, an actress named Signourney Weaver played a character named Ellen Ripley. Throughout the movie she proves time and time again that she is a smart, tough, no nonsense woman who doesn't take shit from anyone - exactly the kind of strong woman we want you to grow up to be.

And so you became Harper Ripley Valle.

I love you,

Mommy

Viability

Dearest Harper,

Today marks 24 weeks of pregnancy and the sweet relief of viability, meaning that every day from today forward, you have a stronger and stronger chance of surviving on our side of the world. While we hope and pray every single day that we won't meet you until October, doing what I do for a living, I know all too well that shit happens. Today is a HUGE milestone in our peace of mind for your survival in this world.

I love you,

Mommy

Why This Blog?

Dearest Harper,

You are, without a doubt, the most anticipated, long awaited, much desired baby in our circle of family and friends. To commemorate you, this amazing gift Daddy and I have been given, we decided to start a blog that you can come back and read when you're old enough to understand and appreciate it. It's a commitment on our part, to write about our families, our history, you growing in my womb, your delivery, and our adventures in life together as a family, but you're worth it. I think this will be an amazing gift to you later in life.

I love you,

Mommy