Happy 11 Month Birthday Lily

Thanksgiving Parade

Lily, are you really 11 months old today? My goodness, our baby is almost 1!
Lily's personality is shining through and she's becoming quite a character. It seems like we're laughing all day. What could be better?
Her first words besides Mama and Dada are "Happy" and "Baby". How appropriate?
We have a wonderful Thanksgiving spent at Lee's sister's, Lisa, and my Aunt Kathy's house. We are so thankful.

Happy 10 Month Birthday Lily!

Camden and the Bee

Big Hearts to Little Hearts Walk 2010

Two Heart Babies- Lily and Jack

Bubbles are Lily's favorite part of Gymboree

Who wants baby food when there's Mack and Manco's Pizza to be eaten?

Eagles Fans

Pumpkin Patch

Happy 10 Month Birthday Lily!

Lily is 10 months old today and is really keeping us on our toes. She's into everything! Some of her favorite activities are reading her stories, going to Gymboree, pushing her shopping cart, swinging at the park, strolling around town, and attempting to walk. She now has 5 teeth with a 6th about to break through. Teething has been difficult for Lily and she's been pretty irritable and unlike her usual pleasant self.

In the past month, we've been pretty busy. Lily walked in her first Big Hearts to Little Hearts Walk on the boardwalk in Belmar, NJ. Our team, The Lovely Lily's, raised the most money ($4,750) that goes directly to the Cardiac Center at CHOP. We are very thankful for all of our friends and family that supported us that day. Lily was a bumble bee for Halloween and a Corn on the Cob thanks to my friend Jane. She looked adorable. She went on her first hayride and pumpkin picking at Springdale Farms in Cherry Hill, NJ. We were able to start the Halloween weekend with a visit to the Rocky Steps with our dear heart friend, Camden. Camden was Rocky for Halloween and he and the bee had to visit the steps in true Stallone fashion. We went to Lily's cousin Michael's 6th birthday party, a baby Halloween party at Charlotte's house, and a neighborhood party at the Cherry Street Playground. The weekend was a blast!

Enjoy the pics and videos!

Happy 9 Month Birthday Lily

I love to swing

My first reading lesson at Bala Cynwyd Middle School

Lily Colleen in 9 months old today. It's hard to believe that Lee and I have a ninth month old baby. Time is really flying.
We celebrated her 9 month birthday a day early at our second annual Big Hearts to Little Hearts Walk. Last year when we walked, I was pregnant and just learned about Lily's CHD. What a difference a year makes. We walked with family and friends on a blustery day (sorry it was soooo windy). It was such a special day as Lily is healthy and doing so well. Our team, The Lovely Lily's, raised the most money too. (If you didn't know this about Lee, he is very very competitive and the thought of another team beating The Lovely Lily's was unthinkable) Thank you to everyone who donated and/or walked with us. We are truly blessed. We were able to meet Baby Jack, another TGA baby that is just 2 months old. He was born at CHOP and Dr. Spray performed his open-heart surgery. Lee and I have been cheering on Jack's progress so it was very special to meet him.
A special thank you to the Nazareth Academy High School Girls' Tennis Team and Katie Chapman who organized their donation.

Lily is up to a lot of tricks such as playing peek-a-boo, pushing her shopping cart to practice walking, eating people food, pulling all of her books off of her bookshelf to practice reading, going to gymboree class with her friends Will, Laura, and Vincent, and getting more teeth! She's a doll baby and really is the most pleasant baby.
We love our LILY!!!!

More pictures tomorrow of the Heart Walk.

Happy 8 Month Birthday Lily Colleen!

Daddy's office

Aunt Wee

Pop D

Lily is 8 months old today! Her new favorite thing to do is pull herself up to standing on just about anything. Up and down, up and down, that's the name of the game. She's started pushing and walking her grocery cart. Lily's realized that "ma ma" means me and she uses it every time she wants my attention. It's really cute. We continue to go to the beach and she just can't get enough of the water. I'm taking this school year off to spend time with Lily. This is the first time in my life that I'm not going "Back to School" is seems very strange. But... I continue to love every minute with my Lil!

Big Hearts to Little Hearts Walk

Dear Family & Friends,

A little over a year ago, Lee and I learned of our baby's complex
congenital heart defect. We felt like our world came crashing down.
Through endless conversations with family, friends, doctors, nurses,
and other heart families, we began our journey of hope. Last October, on a beautiful day, we joined family and friends to walk in an effort to raise money for the Cardiac Center at CHOP. Fast forward a year and we are
SO proud to walk with our angel Lily. Please consider joining us as
we walk for a cause that is so dear to our hearts.

~Congenital Heart Defects are the #1 birth defect in the United States
~About 1 out of every 100 babies are born each year with some type of Congenital Heart Defect. (approx. 40,000/year)
~Nearly twice as many children die from Congenital Heart Defects in the US each year as from all forms of childhood cancers combined, yet funding for pediatric cancer research is five times higher than funding for CHD. Source: Children’s Heart Foundation


Follow the link to register or donate.
Big Hearts to Little Hearts Walk- October 3, 2010

http://www.bigheartstolittlehearts.com/

See you on the boardwalk!

Much love,
Laura, Lee, and Lily

If you can't join us for the walk, please consider donating to this worthy cause!

Thank you

http://www.firstgiving.com/lauramcmanus1

Happy 7 Month Birthday Lily!

Lily's first trip to the rides

"I will not nap, I will not nap, standing up is so much fun!"

"I'm practicing standing and pushing my shopping cart"

Lily and her girlfriend Charlotte

Standing in my crib

I am sure this sounds so cliche but Lily is growing so very quickly. Let the baby proofing begin as she's crawling all over the place. We've had to lower her crib two different times in the last month because now her favorite thing to do is stand up in there. Lily's like the Leaning Tower of Pisa as she leans then crashes into her crib. It's actually quite funny to watch her on the video monitor. She continues to thrive and be a happy little baby.

From a cardiac viewpoint Lily is doing very well. She had an echocardiogram this summer but because she was squirming so much her cardiologist couldn't get the best pictures. We'll be back for her 9 month appointment where he'll do a sedated echo. She does have some narrowing of the vessels which is fairly common after surgery. This is something that will be monitored.
Lee and I attended The Heart and Mind Education Day at CHOP this month. It was very informative. CHOP is a pioneer in research. We tried our best to educate ourselves about CHD's and the surgery before Lily was born but now that she's here we wanted to learn more. What is it like to live with a Complex Congenital Heart Defect? What is the latest in research, treatments, and outcomes for these children? We'd like to think that Lily had her surgery, she's fixed, and everything is fine. Unfortunately, this is not something that is fixed and goes away. Lily has a complex congenital heart defect and we need to understand the long-term effects such as behavioral problems and academic performances that may arise. She's three times more likely to experience the above than a child with a structurally normal heart. Lee says that we'll cross that bridge when we get there and I have to agree. As a 19 year old, choosing my major in college was just that, a choice. I became a special education teacher and then a literacy specialist. I knew I'd have a positive effect on other people's children but now I believe I was guided toward this field. I'd like to think that if Lily does have difficulties in these areas that I'm one of the best people to help her. We'll cross that bridge when we get there. For now we are just enjoying our little angel.

Our beach house

Our deck and it was a great view of the fireworks!

Mommom, I know you are waiting to see our new house at the beach! We can't wait for you and Granddad to come and visit. Lee and I bought a house on Pennlyn Place, just two streets away from Saint Charles Place. Lily is one lucky baby with not one, not two, but three beach houses. She really has no choice but to love the beach!