Emily's story:

I found out around 24 weeks that my daughter had a heart defect called transposition of the great vessels. Basically, the bottom heart vessel was on the top and the top was on the bottom. I went for ultrasounds 2-3 times a week at Hopkins. Shout out to my dad who took me to most of them. Emi was safe as long as she stayed in my belly. On June 12, 2017, Emily was born. No cry, no sound; they immediately took her and tubed her so she could breathe. We did not even see her until about 2 hours later. We were allowed about 2 minutes in the NICU with her. She was moved to CICU where we could stay with her. On June 14th at 7 am, they performed open-heart surgery on my 2-day-old baby girl. Scared is not the word for it. Hours later, my baby girl was in her room, heart still exposed as she was so tiny the swelling would not allow them to close her up until 2 days later. She spent about 3 weeks at Hopkins like a champ; she did amazing. Now, 7 years later, her vessels have weakened and it's time to go back and replace them. She will go in for surgery on May 12, 2025. We will be at Washington Children's Center for about 2-3 weeks. There will be about another 4 weeks at home to recover. All donations will go to supporting while Emily is in the hospital. Purchasing food and drinks, making sure all bills are paid, and feeding my son while we're gone. Every penny helps. Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.