Jennifer Gates is expecting her first child with husband Nayel Nassar.
The 26-year-old daughter of billionaire Bill Gates and his ex-wife Melinda revealed the happy news on Thanksgiving as she debuted her bump while posing with fellow equestrian Nayel, 31.
The star captioned the snap “Grateful” while cradling her growing bump in an emerald green dress.
Baby joy: Jennifer Gates is expecting her first child with husband Nayel Nassar
The couple posed in the backyard of the family’s 142-acre home in North Salem, New York.
A second snap featured a beaming snap of Jennifer staring at her blossoming belly while posing in a garden.
Proud grandmother-to-be Melinda, 58, wrote: “I couldn’t be more excited to meet this little one and see you both become parents.”
Jennifer and Nayel’s baby will be the first grandchild of Bill and Melinda, who divorced in 2021 after 27 years of marriage.
Cute: Jennifer looked doting on her unborn child as she held on to her stomach
Both Bill and Melinda were there to walk Jennifer down the aisle on her big day last fall and put differences aside amid their high-profile divorce.
Melinda shared one of the first photos shortly after the wedding, showing the moment she and Nayel walked down the aisle on Oct. 16, 2021, shortly after being declared husband and wife.
The photo was taken after the couple’s second vows, which followed a smaller religious Muslim ceremony in the garden of the family’s 142-acre estate in North Salem, New York.
Jennifer proudly posted the wedding photo to Instagram early Monday afternoon, adding the caption: “My universe 10/16/21.”
First grandchild; Proud grandmother-to-be Melinda, 58, wrote: “I couldn’t be more excited to meet this little one and see you both become parents.”
So happy: Melinda said she “hadn’t stopped smiling” since the pregnancy announcement.
Meanwhile, Jennifer’s mom also shared a new photo from the special day.
“What a joy to celebrate the light and love of @jenniferkgates and @nayelnassar this past weekend. So grateful we found a way to gather safely for this special day,” she wrote, captioning a photo of Jennifer and Nayel posing together outdoors.
The couple hosted 300 guests for the occasion.
In paparazzi photos, Jennifer could be seen clutching a bouquet of flowers before the ceremony, her veil lifted over her face. She wore her auburn hair part-up and part-down and wore a pair of earrings to accentuate her dress.
Family: Jennifer (centre) is the eldest child of Microsoft mogul Bill and Melinda (pictured with sister Phoebe, 20, and brother Rory, 23)
The wedding weekend also included a relaxed brunch, catering from renowned New York restaurants and performances by Coldplay. Event planner Marcy Blum took the reins for the weekend.
The bride had nine bridesmaids dressed in periwinkle. Everyone seemed to be smiling and laughing as they posed for photos, and one of the bridesmaids held up Gate’s long veil.
The ceremony was performed by a longtime family friend, and the bride and groom wrote their own vows.
Jennifer and Nayel before their wedding
After the ceremony, the couple, who began dating in 2017, took a quick trip to snap some private wedding photos at the property while guests headed to a specially landscaped “botanical garden” where the cocktail hour was held.
Jennifer and Bill danced to Elton John’s Can You Feel The Love Tonight, while her first dance with her new husband was Yellow Lights, a song “written and performed by her friend and artist, Harry Hudson.”
Coldplay also performed at the reception.
The guest list consisted mostly of friends and family, with few invited celebrities or politicians. Georgina Bloomberg, the daughter of billionaire Michael Bloomberg and a fellow professional equestrian who owns a nearby horse farm.
The rehearsal dinner – which was secretly used as a reception for the private religious ceremony – was prepared by Jean-Georges and included a lobster dish and pasta.
The extravagant two-day event, estimated to cost $2 million, was orchestrated by celebrity wedding planner Marcy Blum, whose elite client list includes Kevin Bacon, LeBron James and Billy Joel.
In an interview with Vogue, Jenn said it was “challenging” planning the event during the pandemic and while her family was “going through transitions.”
“It’s been a challenging year, both collectively with the pandemic and for our families going through transitions. But our love for each other was a constant. Being able to celebrate our wedding with our closest friends and family was a dream come true,” she said.
Big day: Jennifer is pictured on her wedding day – she had Kim Kardashian’s makeup artist Mario Dedivanovic do her makeup
Jennifer, who is studying medicine, said it was “no small feat” to bring it all together.
“Planning a wedding while I was in medical school and Nayel was preparing for the Olympics was no small feat,” she said. Nassar represented Egypt at this year’s Olympics.
Jennifer also told Vogue that she requires all 300 of her wedding guests to be vaccinated and take COVID tests, she said, to keep everyone safe.
“We have decided that all guests must be fully vaccinated and tested negative prior to the wedding. We also provided masks. We feel incredibly fortunate that we can safely gather with our loved ones. We know others are not so fortunate, especially as the pandemic continues to devastate communities across the United States and around the world,” she said.
“An advice we were given [throughout the planning process] remember that this day is about us and our love,” she continued.
The ex-boyfriends also appear to be on good terms as parents together as they reunited to walk daughter Jennifer down the aisle at her wedding to Nayel Nassar in October 2021 (pictured).
“I think we really kept that at the center of our considerations when we were planning, and we’ve also tried to make sure our family and friends can enjoy themselves.”
Following Bill and Melinda’s divorce, the two reportedly split their combined net worth of $130 billion, but it hasn’t been released exactly how they split their many assets and vast fortune.
The couple owned homes in five different states, a fleet of cars including a rare $2 million Porsche, an art collection that includes a $30 million book of writings and sketches by Leonardo Da Vinci, and a number of private jets .
The Gates owned a number of luxury homes across the United States — including Florida, California and Wyoming — but their main family home was in Washington, near the Gates Foundation headquarters.
Last month, Melinda opened up about her “incredibly painful” divorce from Microsoft billionaire Bill, declaring that she “just couldn’t stay in this marriage anymore” while sharing her struggle to continue working with her ex-spouse even when they were in the middle separate.
Now the computer scientist has been candid about her decision to leave her husband of almost three decades, telling Fortune magazine in a new interview that the COVID-19 pandemic has helped her “have the privacy to do that.” ‘ what she had to do .’
“I had some reasons why I just couldn’t stay in this marriage anymore,” she explained. “But the weird thing about COVID is that it gave me the privacy to do what I had to do.
“It’s incredibly painful, in countless ways, but I’ve had the privacy to get through it.”
During the interview, Melinda also slammed Bill for his questionable friendship with pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, revealing he continued to date him despite having “nightmares” about him.
“I didn’t like that he had meetings with Jeffrey Epstein. I made that clear to him,” she said, adding that she met Epstein once because she “wanted to see who he was.”
“I regretted it from the second I stepped in the door,” she continued. “He was hideous, evil personified. I had nightmares about it afterwards.
“Any of the remaining questions about what Bill’s relationship with him was like… that’s for Bill to answer. I made it very clear how I feel about him.’
Bill called his meetings with Epstein a “big” mistake in a statement to CBS. He said: “Meeting with Epstein was a mistake that I deeply regret. It was a serious error in judgment.’
When asked about his past infidelities in May, the business mogul told Today: “I’ve certainly made mistakes and I take responsibility.
“I don’t think it’s constructive to get into the details at this point, but yes I’ve caused pain and I feel terrible about it. I am responsible for causing much suffering to my family.’
He added of their split, “Divorce is definitely a sad thing. It’s been a tough year. I feel good that we are all moving forward now.
“Melinda and I continue to work together. It was sad and tragic, but now we’re moving in together.”
They also founded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation together in 2000, and even after they went their separate ways, the former couple continued to run the foundation together — which Melinda said helped her get through it.
“I kept working with the person I moved away from and I had to show up every day and be my best self,” she continued.
“Even though I might cry at 9 a.m. and then have to video conference at 10 a.m. with the person I’m leaving, I have to show up and do my best.”
She added that her “main concern” has always been “protecting her children” and that she is grateful that she and Bill have now “come to the other side”.
Happier times: Following Bill and Melinda’s divorce, the pair reportedly split their combined net worth of $130 billion, but it hasn’t been released exactly how they split their many assets and vast fortune (pictured in 2019)