time flies...

I'm not even sure where to start.....

Our world has changed in the most amazing and beautiful (and sleep deprived!) of ways. Emma is finally here.....and has been for the past (almost) 9 weeks. I've been too busy soaking her up to blog! And, who am I kidding.....she's been keeping us a weeeeeee bit busy ;) What I will say is that nothing anyone ever told me about what it would be like when she was here even came close to preparing us. I don't know what it is about not having gone through the experience of bringing home a baby that makes you totally and completely unable to truly grasp what it will be like.....but, in my case, despite all the wonderful tips and advice, it knocked me off my feet. I describe it to Ryan as like getting the job of your dreams and then suddenly realizing you are sorely underqualified! The first 2 weeks of Emma's life I felt completely inadequate! But, something happened around the 2 week mark.....things clicked.....and we suddenly found ourselves in a beautiful groove with our precious little girl. Her patterns emerged, we began to understand her cries and what they meant, and we looked at each other through tired eyes and said, "This is AWESOME!".

I never knew I'd feel a love like this. She is perfect in every way we could imagine and we are so blessed to be her parents. It's so fun watching her grow so fast.....she is a big girl!! She was 7lb 12 oz at birth and at her 6.5 week checkup, she was 11lb 4oz! Woah! She's also long....having already grown 4 inches from birth....so I'm hoping she's tall like her daddy. Well, maybe not THAT tall ;) Also at that checkup she had already met all of her 2 month milestones. She has a megawatt smile that will stop you dead in your tracks and I often find myself doing weird and crazy things JUST to see that toothless grin. Thank god for curtains because I dance around the house like a fool on a daily basis :) She wiggles like a champ and loves to sit up in her bumbo. She is pretty much obsessed with ceiling fans and anything that moves in a circular fashion. She loves being held and thinks bathtime is just about the greatest thing ever. She loves to stand (with assistance of course) and she squeals in delight when we get her naked......look out! She has quite the little personality.....I tell Ryan all the time....she's just the right about of sweetness and the right amount of spunk :)

She is by far and away the accomplishment we are proudest of (I feel confident speaking for Ryan on this one!).

We are SMITTEN!!!!!!

Who IS that pretty girl in the mirror??

Unfortunately for me, maternity leave is over.....that was quick!!! Emma started daycare on March 1st and is thankfully located VERY close to me all day long. She attends Baby Gator which is literally attached to the hospital so I can run and see her anytime I want......and I do! On a daily basis! I swear they must think I am crazy, and I am....for my little ladybug! :)

Being back at work is HARD, I won't lie. Balancing all the responsibilities of being a physician, wife, friend, and mommy is tough. Way tougher than I could have ever imagined. "Multitasking" is now my middle name!

But, getting to be Emma's mommy is sooooooooo worth all the hard work. She's amazing and life is good :)

9 months!

We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our little Murphy nugget as we've started calling her :) Emma is growing larger by the day......5 1/2 pounds by last measure at an ultrasound done in the middle of last week. We are now 36 weeks and change and are dying with anticipation. Why does it seem like the closer we get, the longer it will be before she's here?? :) I guess you could say I'm nesting. Between completely organizing her closet and dresser by clothing size, type, and color to cleaning the house from top to bottom and baking for my co-workers, I'm trying to get the time to pass more quickly. We'll be full term (38 weeks) on Christmas day so maybe Santa will bless us with the greatest of all gifts. I'm a little worried that she's having too much fun in there and that she'll want to stay inside.....twisting, rolling, and dancing away!

This photo was snapped at our recent maternity session with the amazingly talented Jenn Hopkins (www.jenhopkinsphotography.com). She is a whiz behind the camera and such a sweetheart. We can't wait to see her again for Emma's first photo shoot :)

under the weather :(

yuck! the murphy family is home sick this weekend.  ryan has been feeling crummy since monday and i started up mid-week.  we both have that sensation that our heads are going to pop off.....so congested!!! we have a symphony of coughs and sneezes going on around here! our house has turned into a pharmacy as i bought out the shelves at publix the other day. need zicam? we have a lifetime supply ;) we got a little worried that it might be the flu and finally broke down and headed to the doctor together on Friday morning to get flu swabs done (not before we had to sit in the waiting room with super attractive facemasks on like a couple on quarantine!).  we got good news though.....no flu for either of us, thankfully! i don't think it would have worried us so much if we didn't have little emma in tow - she's a trooper, though....kicking and dancing away through it all.  we haven't had the opportunity to get our flu shots yet and we just wanted to be extra careful.....or neurotic depending on how you look at it ;)

 flu or not, we both feel like stink so we headed to the movie store for some movies and to publix for some chicken noodle soup and have been on the couch all weekend hoping that a long weekend of resting will be just the ticket!  

 as i type our wonderful Gators are making QUITE the season debut, up 53 points going into the 4th quarter! we're enjoying taking in the game from the confines of our couch :)  ryan made homemade spinach-artichoke dip (he is turning into my martha stewart man) and i am snuggled up with no place i'd rather be!  here's to a speedy recovery.  hope everyone is having a wonderful labor day weekend. GO GATORS!!!!

what a month!

What a whirlwind of a month!!  Both Ryan and I have been so ridiculously busy that it isn't even funny! I have been working on average 80 hours a week in the Intensive Care Unit and Ryan has been busting his butt finishing up the expansion project at Southwest Rec.  We had dinner with my parents last night to celebrate the end of my rotation (which, I might add entailed spending the night at the hospital every 4th night!) and we both just couldn't help but breathe big sighs of relief.  I feel like I'm crawling out of a hole! My life for the past 4 weeks has been work, eat, sleep....pretty much in that order!  It feels AMAZING to be done....and to know that I won't have to be away from my Ryan like that again for a long while.  Phew!  I feel my life coming back and it feels good!

The month started out with the most amazing of treats.  On July 31st, we learned that we will be welcoming a beautiful baby GIRL into the world.....Emma Claire Murphy.  We truly could not be any more excited that we are right now.  Going for that last ultrasound was, second to our wedding day, the most magical day of our lives.  The experience was surreal and amazing in its entirety.  At first glimpse, the most obvious thing was just how much BIGGER she had gotten in just a few short weeks.  The last time we saw her, she was still relatively constricted....her neck had not finished developing enough to be fully extended and her hands and feet were curled up close to her body.  This time, however, it was like looking at a fully formed child.....her neck was extended and her arms and legs were flailing about :) She was kicking with reckless abandon and opening and closing her hands like a champ.  We watched as she waved to us and swallowed and we got to see every single last inch of her.  We got amazing views of her heart, her face (tiny nose and lips and all!), her lungs/stomach/kidneys and every single last vertebrae.  It was totally stunning....all in all she is completely developed.  Everything is there and she just has to mature now! So cool.  We seriously could have watched this all day.

Now at 21 weeks and just 1 lb, her little flutters have transitioned into full fledged kicks and jabs......she must know I'm typing about her because she's going at it right now!  The absolute best part is that she is strong enough that Ryan can feel her now too.....he can finally make tangible contact with this amazing little life that I've have the pleasure of coming to know in the past weeks.  I have never been so happy in my whole life and while I had everything I could ever need in my relationship with Ryan.....this just makes our life so much sweeter.  We cannot wait to meet HER! :)

nightfloater

I am happy to report that residency is officially up and running! After a weeklong orientation of getting to know my new colleagues and getting re-familiarized with this hospital I know so well after 4 years of med school…..I am officially living my professional role as Dr. Murphy! Craziness! I really like my fellow interns and the first week of residency has gone off really really well. I’ve started with my nightfloat rotation which basically means that from the hours of 7p-7a, I am responsible for about 80 patients on the Medicine services at Shands. It’s exhausting and exhilarating all at once….but I’ve convinced myself I can do anything for 2 weeks J My program has been totally amazing with respect to front loading my schedule (while I front load my belly!) so that I will get ample time off come the arrival of our little Murphy munchkin in January. The hardest part of nights is that it’s….well, nights. The schedule is weird…everything seems off kilter. It’s lonely in the hospital during those hours….and I only get to see my hubby fleetingly. I don't know what I did to deserve such an understanding and loving husband. I feel like a little zombie sometimes but again….anything is possible for 2 weeks. And, I’m learning so so much which makes the experience that much better. It’s hard to believe that after years and years of schooling, I’m actually finally living my dream.

Ryan and I were able to take one last final little vacation just prior to the start of residency. We headed over to the beach for a long relaxing weekend over Father’s Day. It was so nice to just soak up some sun, play in the waves, and reflect on the times both behind and ahead of us. Ryan’s dad and brother joined us later in the weekend and made for some really great company. We all came back really rested and really tan!

Not much else to report. We are in the process of buying the house so we will soon be homeowners!! One more exciting thing to add to our plate….why not! We got to see baby again and it is amazing to see how much he or she has grown in just a few short weeks. Ryan and I are both dying to know if we’ll be having a girl or a boy and we are counting down the days until we find out…..July 30th can’t come fast enough!! We both have our suspicions about the sex but we'll see soon enough. Then….the shopping can commence...the wait is killing me!

This is our 12 week 5 day scan....you can see baby's fingertips resting on his/her face! Just kickin back looking up at the stars....I pray this means we are having a child blessed with Ryan's perfect laid back temperament. Fingers crossed!

....the rumors are true!! :)

....baby Murphy is coming 1/9/2010 :) We are overwhelmed with excitement and amazement for this new development in our lives. We will be 11 weeks along on Friday and never knew it was possible to be so happy! Ryan is amazing and has, totally and completely, carried me through the wild ride of crazy symptoms that is the first trimester. YAY!!!!

The images below are of our 9 week ultrasound, proud daddy holding baby's first photos, and of my bloated 9 week belly :) We already love our little gummi bear :)

is this for real?

so apparently i am graduating from medical school on SATURDAY. which means that in less than a weeks time, i will be a doctor.  it doesn't even seem real....people keep asking me if i'm excited and all i can do is nod and say "uh huh!" like a goon.  at this point, i'm just going through the motions hoping that at some point....preferably before i walk across the stage on Saturday....it will hit me.  the flood of emotions is kind of interesting. i'm definitely excited.  but i'm also admittedly terrified.  i KNOW how to be a student. i've done it rather well for the last 20+ years of my life, thank you.  becoming a doctor and starting intern year on july 1 is totally and completely uncharted territory for me.  it means fumbling, looking stupid, asking the proverbial dumb questions, being inept......but more than anything, having the absolute time of my life.  i keep pinching myself and asking...is this for real??? :)