Still Here!

Holy moly, where has the time gone?!

Here's a breakdown of what's been going on in the Murphy household these past couple of months:

August

As you know, McKenna started school

McKenna's First Day of VPK, 8/25/14

And she's still loving it and doing so well! Daddy was able to go into work a little late on her first day so that we could all walk her up there together.

She was so excited while we were getting ready that morning and did GREAT at drop off. (Mommy did, too, if you were wondering! ;-)) After visiting her classroom and teacher at Open House that evening, we headed over to our favorite ice cream spot, Del's Freez, to kick off our back to school tradition with THE BEST soft serve ice cream around - YUM!

We closed out the month in Orange Park celebrating my Dad's 51st birthday.

It was a pretty great weekend just kicking back with the family :-)

September

Kendall and I have been enjoying our one-on-one time together

But do I dare say that it is a little too quiet around here now during the day? We've been keeping ourselves busy with lots of MOMS Club play dates -- On September 11 for our Fall service project, we headed up to the fire station with a pot luck lunch to thank the firefighters for all that they do for our community; we were able to tour the station, the fire truck and shoot the hose!

At the end of the month, we found ourselves back in Orange Park for my Mom's 51st birthday, Brew at the Zoo, and a family photo session (our first ever!) with Pink Pelican Photography.

That's my talented sister-in-law behind the camera! I couldn't be more proud and excited for her as she so fervently pursues her dream in photography. Check her out, Jacksonville!

October

October was ca-razy busy!

I opened up a little handmade card shop on Etsy called Cards Luv and Happiness :-) I casually expressed interest in card-making to Alex one weekend, and a couple of days later he came home with a Cricut that he found from someone on Craigslist and a TON of craft supplies began arriving in the mail after he was up late one night doing some pretty in-depth research into my new hobby. I'm so grateful for a husband that supports and encourages my creative whims!

Then there was the MOMS Club Annual Halloween Party and Open House event, volunteering in McKenna's classroom, another trip to Orange Park for Jotoberfest (my MIL'S annual everything-pumpkin birthday bash),

And finally we had a Halloween Party of our own here at the house with friends.

It was hectic month, for sure, but a fun one!

November

Alex was out of town for the majority of September and October, and had only been home for a few hours on the 1st before I was on my way to the emergency room with McKenna - she had a fever of 104.6! It turns out that she had PNEUMONIA (!) and was admitted to the hospital for four days.

I felt like a  t e r r i b l e  parent for sending her to school that entire week and having our Halloween Party, but other than a lingering cough from a cold that we both had caught the previous weekend, she was fine - no fever, lack of energy, shortness of breath; nothing at all until that Saturday...

I'm so grateful for all of the wonderful nurses and doctors who took such good care of McKenna in the hospital... And that Alex was in town and able to stay home from work to take care of Kendall... And for my mother-in-law for putting her life on pause for a few days to come down and help out around the house (she bleached my bathrooms, you guys!)... And for all of the kind words and thoughtful gestures from all of our family and friends. It's a scary thing being in the hospital with your child and we were all so touched by those that reached out.

The following couple of weeks, we were in and out of the vet with Hanley - he was completely immobile for a few days and blood test results showed that his liver enzymes were 3 times higher than normal. He's on medication and a special diet now until at least the beginning of January with a bill upwards of $1000 already, but his health has seen a major improvement and he's back to his goofy ol' self - thank GOODNESS!

On the road again at the end of the month, but this time it was Georgia or bust! It was a short, but always sweet visit with Alex's Dad's side of the family in the Brooklet and Statesboro areas for Thanksgiving.

Thirty-seven people - all family - made it for dinner this year. I look forward to this trip every other year (we alternate spending Thanksgiving in Orange Park and Georgia) and I really wish that we could make it up there more often; things are so laid back and peaceful there, everybody is incredibly warm and welcoming; you can really feel the love.

December

We found ourselves in the pediatrician's office everyday for the first three days of December - both of the girls had double ear infections and then they got pink eye! We had to keep McKenna home from school again today as she woke up with a really bad cough. She seemed to be feeling better by bedtime, but I am sooo tempted to start our Christmas break a few days early -- I really miss mornings like these:

No alarm clocks, no place for us to be at a certain time; simply enjoying the day as it unfolds before us. Coffee and crafts, just like the good ol' days before school started :-)

Alex found a cute bedroom set for the girls at a garage sale that we just couldn't pass up, so we decided to redo their ENTIRE room (much to his chagrin).

Bye, bye nursery yellow! My "Coral Passion" was outvoted 3 to 1 for this "Hint of Cherry," but after a couple of coats and drying, I've gotta admit that it's growing on me... We're Alex is still working on refinishing the furniture, so the girls have been bunking with us at night. I don't mind the slumber party, though; I'm really loving the snuggles! Hanley and Baloo usually end up in bed with all of us by morning, too, so talk about mommy heaven!

I was able to escape for an evening with some of the ladies from MOMS Club for our holiday party and White Elephant Gift Exchange, followed by drinks and dancing downtown - what a great time! Then, last weekend, we celebrated our sweet little monkey turning THREE (!!!) with friends and family at the park and I got to host the always epic Cookie Day again at our house this year.

Right now, I'm working on finishing up my last special order of the season for Cards Luv and Happiness, and then this momma's going on break, too!

Wordless Wednesday - Mom Life

<3 <3 <3

Murphy Baby

First things first: No, I'm not pregnant. Hah! A couple of months ago, a cat showed up on our front porch.

While I have always claimed to not be a cat person, I do have a huge soft spot for animals. Especially super friendly, little baby animals. Especially super friendly, little baby animals loving up on my little baby anim... er, babies.

So, when "Baloo" - so named by McKenna - first showed up on our front porch, the girls and I sat out there playing with him for a good hour after what was supposed to be bedtime. He was rubbing up on us and purring the entire time, and my heart melted watching him and the girls play so sweetly together. After a bit more curious exploring - us and him - Baloo climbed up onto the ledge of our courtyard area and then jumped onto the roof! McKenna and Kendall were worried about how he was going to get down, but I told them very matter-of-factly that "Cats are very good jumpers and they always land on their feet." ...Right? Well, our new little friend just meowed and meowed at us and paced back and forth trying to figure out how the heck he was going to get down. Don't worry, kitty! I'll save you! So, I valiantly climbed up onto the ledge and rescued this poor thing that so desperately needed me ;-) Finally, we went inside for the night.

The girls and I called Alex (he was out of town at the time) to tell him about our new friend and when they (I?) asked if we could keep him, he said, "Absolutely not. We don't need anything else that eats or shits." Woh, woh. But there Baloo was at the back door! Meowing and scratching to come in. Alex caved a little after I sent him the pictures of Baloo playing with the girls and told us that IF he was there in the morning THEN we could bring him in. Yessss! We were so getting a kitty, you guys.

But, alas, our friend was not there in the morning and my heart was broken into a million, bajillion pieces. Oh well, cats are assholes, I told myself. I should have known better than to get too attached too quickly...

Every day for about a week or two after that, McKenna, Kendall and I were still calling out, "Here, kitty-kitty!" as we walked around the neighborhood with Hanley, but to no avail. One morning, though, there he was! We were starting down our driveway for our walk and Baloo came running up to us from across the street. This self-proclaimed cat hater was pretty elated, and the girls were, too; I'll never forget that sweet moment. I scooped him up, brought him inside the garage and dialed Alex at work.

"Damn it. Well, I did say that if he came back we could keep him. You gotta take him to the vet, though, to make sure he's healthy and doesn't already belong to somebody." Woo hoo!!!

I called the vet, scheduled an appointment for 3:30 in the afternoon, and the girls and I went to Walmart to get a litter box, some food and two collars... You see, I wasn't exactly sure if Baloo really was a 'he' or a 'she.' Alex got off of work early, we borrowed a cat carrier from a friend and took "Sophia" - temporarily renamed by McKenna - to the vet.

I was stumped by a few of the questions on the new patient form; What breed? Um, cat? What do you feed him/her? Food? I don't know a single thing about cats other than they really, really like lasagna... ;-) Baloo/Sophia had no fleas, some ear mites that could be easily treated, no microchip, and no balls. Yep, "he" was a he that had already been neutered, and was only about 8 or 9 months old...

We took Baloo home with his new skull and crossbones collar, asked around the neighborhood if anyone was missing a sweet kitty, put Hanley on a leash in the house and kept this secret to ourselves for a while, i.e. did not post anything on Facebook, until a) We knew for sure that Baloo didn't belong to anybody (he was never claimed) and b) Baloo and Hanley could live together in harmony. Hanley is great with the girls - couldn't be better, actually - but he's... quite a handful; super territorial and protective over McKenna and Kendall, and just a big ol' pain the in ass. (But I love him, 'cause he da best.) After closing the door to our bedroom the next night - keeping Hanley in with us to give Baloo some freedom while we slept as he was spending most of his time during the day closed up in Alex's office - I collapsed into bed and thought to myself, "What the hell did I get myself into? I don't know if this is going to work..." I didn't see an end in sight to the leash-thing with Hanley, and he SUUUUCKS at being on a leash. Especially being on a leash inside the house (What the heck, mom!?).

Especially being on a leash inside the house with another animal (a freaking cat, you guys!) all up in his territory and loving up on his girls.

Ugh, I was pooped.

When my mother- and sister-in-law came down to visit for a long weekend, DeeAnna (SIL) really helped to ease my tension with the animals. I was so afraid that I'd let Hanley off the leash and then him and Baloo would get into it and somebody - one of them or the girls - would get hurt. She said, though, that Baloo has been in the house long enough for Hanley to know now that he has to behave (it had been about two weeks at that point since we brought him in) and that I really just have to chill out because they can sense my uneasiness. All went well and a few days later after our company left and I was out and about moseying around town by myself for a few hours, Alex sent me this:

Peace, love and harmony in the Murphy Animal Kingdom! Hallelujah! Since then, Baloo has really made himself at home here.

And him and Hanley are totally best buds.

I never thought I'd fall in love with a cat!

<3 <3 <3