May 2014 Murphy Family Update!

AH!!! There have been SO many awesome things happening with the Murphy family recently! The silence here on the blog is mostly due to the insane amount of change and amazingness that is coming to be our reality.

Let's start with our new HOUSE!! It was no small miracle that we were finally able to find something, ANYTHING, that even remotely fit even some of our wish list. The Nashville market is seriously fierce right now, and properties are selling within hours of hitting the market. Seriously, hours. We thought we'd found that perfect spot, and I posted about it on the tiny house blog, but it wouldn't pass the inspection and the owner couldn't afford to make the repairs and refused to drop the price, so we backed out and prayed we'd find something else quickly. God provided and one fine day during my lunch break I took a quick 3 minute drive from my office to drive by a little 1940's house that had been mostly renovated and had been put on the market a short 2 days prior. It was adorable, with a nice big fenced in yard. I told John it was worth a look, and the next day we were walking the house and 20 minutes later we were making an offer. The rest is history!!

Here's our new house!

Back (with fire pit!)

Front

There aren't any pics of the inside yet, because we haven't finished painting and decorating, and when we do I'll be sure to post lots of pics.

If a new house isn't exciting enough, let's add to the list that John starts his first day tomorrow working for a lovely new not-for-profit who uses whole foods to help feed impoverished cancer patients, on the belief that whole foods are healing to their illness. It's an organization after my own heart <3. If you're interested, feel free to take a looksie at their page here: https://www.heimerdingerfoundation.com/

It makes my heart so happy that John can continue to use his powers for good.

New house, new job, what else could possibly be going on? How about a new Murphy??

Meet Knox!!

Knox came into the Murphy family very suddenly, and unexpectedly, but we're giving it a go. In the 36 hours that he's been with us, he's already learned two new commands, and he's stopped scarfing down his food like he won't ever get any more or it. He's a sweet soul, he's good with Kaiya (though his puppy enthusiasm knocks her over more often than not), and Cooper is tolerating him like the champ that he is.

And... it wouldn't be a Murphy family update if I didn't flood you with adorable photos of Kaiya :)

Kaiya's first baseball game!

Kaiya's 1st Birthday Party!!

 My baby girl is A YEAR old!! The first part of the month I couldn't really wrap my head around it, but now that we're half way through it, I am not only ready to embrace it, but I can confidently say it is my FAVORITE stage yet!!

Kaiya is walking and talking and fully expressing all her Kaiyaness and it's AMAZING. John is blessed to be home with her full time at the moment (though he would also say he'd love to be employed already) and I am soaking in every single moment of this stage. 

I'm sure those of you who were unable to share her birthday with her are eager to see some pictures, so let me indulge you:)

The Outfit (courtesy of Ahma)

The Decor

Kaiya with some of her guests

Her Gift from Mommy & Daddy! (The bike trailer and the helmet)

What a wonderful day. She won't remember it, but I will remember how awesome it was to be so close to family that so many of them were able to share in the special event. <3

Kaiya- 11 Months!

Once again, I'm sending out Kaiya's monthly update in the 11th hour. It's no secret that John and I have had a busy month. We moved to Nashville, put our condo on the market and are now in contract on it, tried over and over again to purchase some land in the Nashville area and finally found something we loved AND was available (see here) and are now in the final stages before closing, were delayed on our tiny house, I started a new job, John has been on probably 100 interviews and informational interviews, and now, to cap off our baby girl turns one tomorrow. ONE! It blows my mind that just 364 days ago instead of our now almost one old we had this:

and now we have this:

How does that happen in only 364 days?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I'm getting ahead of myself though. This is about her 11th month. Here are this month's stats:

My Favorite Toy: Ahma's ipad

My Favorite New Word: "Hot"

My Favorite Food: Beef

My Favorite Song: 10 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

Newly Learned Skill: I'm a full-time walker now! She can also count to 2 :)

The Strangest Thing I Do: She refuses to stay covered at night. She could be freezing and still kick off the covers. Mommy has to make sure she dresses me just a touch too warm before I go to bed.

Mommy's Favorite Thing that I Do: Mommy still loves that I dance to everything.

Daddy's Favorite Thing that I Do: Daddy loves how talkative I am these days!

Mommy's Least Favorite Thing that I Do: Mommy isn't a fan of this new scream-cry that I've started doing when I don't get my way.

Daddy's Least Favorite Thing that I Do: Sometimes, when I decide I don't want to sleep, I toss and turn and wiggle to keep myself awake.

Thing Mommy Wants to Remember About This Month: Mommy wants to remember how independent and personable I was. I learned so much so fast this month. It was a month of great growth and great fun.

First Predators Game!

She's buckled, but it's still a parenting fail:)

Kaiya's 10 Month Photo Shoot!

Kaiya- 10 Months!

Tomorrow our baby turns 11 months old, and in typical mommy fashion, I'm sending out her 10 month review at the last possible moment. Kaiya's 10th month of life has been a busy one. Just two days ago we arrived in our new home state, Tennessee. We're temporarily staying with family while we wait for our tiny home to be completed and for us to locate some land for us to park it on. Despite all the upheaval and change that's occurred this month, Kaiya has been an absolute rockstar!

My Favorite Toy: My new baby doll that Aunt KK bought me!

My Favorite New Word: "What?!"

My Favorite Food: Sushi!

My Favorite Song: The Itsy Bitsy Spider. I love the way Mommy's hands crawl "up the water spout."

Newly Learned Skill: I've walked 6 steps all by my self, I've learned to pull my own socks off, and I've successfully managed to descend from the couch all by myself a couple times without falling and I can say both Hi and Bye Bye!

The Strangest Thing I Do: When I'm nursing and really sleepy, I run my fingers through my own hair to sooth myself to sleep.

Mommy's Favorite Thing that I Do: Mommy loves that I clap whenever I hear other people clapping, even if it's on the television or radio. 

Daddy's Favorite Thing that I Do: When I give people different looks, these mannerisms can be everything from a cheesy-toothy-love-me smile to why-the-heck-did-you-take-the-controller-out-of-my-hands smile.

Mommy's Least Favorite Thing that I Do: Mommy wishes that I wouldn't get so aggressive when I get frustrated. I like to dig my nails into mommy's skin when I'm mad.

Daddy's Least Favorite Thing that I Do: Daddy hopes that this "clingy" phase passes soon. He looks forward to the day he can cook with two hands again.

Thing Mommy Wants to Remember About This Month: Mommy wants to remember how cuddly I am when I'm tired, how much I love the kitty (even though she doesn't much like me), and how much of a ham I am. 

Thing Daddy Wants to Remember About This Month: How it feels to have my head hit his shoulder when I get tired and go straight to sleep.

Fun Fact: I slept 11 of the 13 hours that it took for us to drive down to Tennessee! I'm such a good girl:)