The Murphys

Facebook

2009-03-05T13:51:00.003-05:00

The future is facebook.

I have come to terms with that.

My profile is here.

Heather's profile is here.

Facebook is the best place from now on for updates!

Our Cruise

2008-06-08T11:34:00.003-05:00

Bahamas

We just came back from an amazing cruise to the Bahamas. We left from Norfolk Sunday June 1st and came back Saturday June 7th. We visited Nassau and Freeport in the Bahamas.

We had a blast and I've put up lots of pictures. We bought an underwater case for our camera and took some great pictures in the crystal clear Caribbean water.

The ship itself was massive. 2,700 passengers 1,100 crew. There was a movie theater on the Lido deck which you could watch from the deck chairs. There was also a water slide, saltwater pools and hot tubs. There was a large indoor theater inside which had shows every night. I got pulled up on stage one night to be part of a 'silent movie' skit which we have on DVD. There were activities each day like trivia games, comedy shows, bingo, dance lessons, and much more. There was buffet food available 24 hours - we must have hit the ice cream at least 3 times a day. In the evening, there was a sit down dinner. Twice on the cruise this was a formal dress occasion. We had the same wait staff each night, so they knew what we would like each night (tea/coffee, beverages etc).

Every night our room steward would leave us a towel animal on the bed, which was cute. Our balcony was awesome. We spent a lot of time on it watching the ocean, the stars, arriving and departing ports etc. I fell asleep on it twice. The balcony was worth the extra money as I knew that we would enjoy the time away from the crowds to enjoy the beauty of the Caribbean alone.

When we got to Nassau, we battled our way through the local vendors who are posted just outside the cruise dock. It was a colorful town and the port was right in the middle of it. We searched out a local beach and brought some goggles and the camera. We saw so much life in the shallow water - urchins, crabs, colorful fish.

The highlight of our trip came the second day in Nassau. 'Stuart Cove's' brought us to 3 reef spots on their boat the 'Zambizi'. They organize snorkeling and scuba excursions. Stuart Cove's is famous - they have been highlighted in Discovery Channel's shark week, helped film 2 James Bond movies, Flipper, Jaws 4, and much more. They had pictures of every star you could imagine that went down to dive with them, including Patrick Stewart, Matt Damon, Pierce Brosnan, Sean Connery, Salma Hayek and lots more.

The first site was a shallow reef where we spotted lots of fish. There was so much to look at it was hard to take it all in. I wish we were there for hours. The best part of the first site was a stingray that swam under us shortly after we got in.

The second site was at a plane wreck. We brought fish food with us this time and it sent the fish crazy! I got bitten twice by some feisty yellow tail snapper! The wreck was about 25 feet below the surface and Heather showed me how to free dive down to it. She also grabbed a huge starfish off the bottom for a great picture.

The third site was with some Caribbean Reef Sharks. They get to about 12 feet and are scavengers eating mostly dead or dying fish. We had to hold on to a rope from the back of the boat for this one, as the palms of our hands are the same color as the chum that attracts them to the site. They came within kicking distance of us. What an experience! When we got out, the ship's crew threw some feed into the water for the yellow tail snapper. The snapper then went crazy, which in turn sent the sharks into a feeding frenzy as the snapper thrashing for the feed acted like dying fish. The sharks that had been swimming peacefully with the snapper moments before were now frantically gobbling them down. It was an amazing 'show' which made it clear why they call it a feeding 'frenzy'.

After that we went back to our beach in Nassau for one more dip in the ocean there. We saw a huge hermit crab, angelfish, parrotfish and what we think is a nudibranch - a slug like creature about 15 inches long.

When we got to Freeport, we had to get a cab out of the port which was industrial. We went to Port Lucaya and went banana boating there. There was just the 2 of us on board. The water was choppy there so no good underwater pictures from there.

Once we left the Bahamas, it was nice to get back. Even though we couldn't have done half of the activites with her, we missed Ciara a lot. It was great to see her reaction when we got back "Mommy!.....an' Daddy!"

To see all of our pictures click on the picture above. Make sure you read all the captions. The best way to view them is to click the "SLIDESHOW" button in the gallery. The pictures will all be full size and the captions will appear at the bottom of the screen.

Graduation - Bronnadh Céimeanna

2008-05-16T18:09:00.004-05:00

Daniel's Graduation

This album has pictures of when I went down to Mississippi for Daniel's graduation. He graduated Summa Cum Laude - with a 3.95 GPA. One of only 2 in the Business School and top of the Marketing/Management class. You go girl!

We met up with the Lowerys when we were down there. That was great as most of you know they're all extended family to us. Also I got étouffée when I was at their house. mmmm.

The little dog you see is Seamus, Daniel and Chasity's new family member. He's unbelievably tiny and cute. The lad in the brazil jersey you see is Dwayne and beside him is Scarlet. They are friends of Daniel and Chasity - which means they're friends of ours. The wee girl is Aidan, Scarlet's daughter. I had a great laugh with them, they're a lot of fun.

I was only gone for a few days, but it was amazing how much I missed Heather and Ciara. I was glad to see them again when I got back, though I hate leaving family behind. Seems no matter where I go I leave someone behind. We'll have to work on all moving to the one area sometime in the future!

Oh and I threw in a few more pictures of Ciara.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Of couches, buttercups and football

2008-05-01T19:56:00.004-05:00

More of Ciara

There are 2 sets of pictures here. One is Ciara destroying our living room, er, I mean lining all (I mean all) of her toys on the couch. The other is of her discovering the joys of football and buttercups on a freshly cut summer lawn, with Pooh of course.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Shawn and Krista's Wedding

2008-05-01T19:45:00.002-05:00

Shawn and Krista's wedding

April 5th Shawn and Krista got married in Gloucester, Virginia. Shawn is Heather's cousin, who's more like a brother. The pictures were (expertly) taken by our friend Elizabeth Judson. The other wee baby that you'll see in the pictures is Keagan, Shawn and Krista's son, Ciara's first first cousin (not a typo - think about it).

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Tornadoes

2008-04-29T08:10:00.005-05:00

*Photo not taken by me

More Pictures

Yesterday a few tornadoes hit Virginia. Two were in the Suffolk area, about an hour south of us. Also one hit Richmond, about an hour north. One of the tornadoes was, according to early reports, at least an F4 that left a 25 mile long trail of devastation (F4 = Winds 207-260 mph). Thousands are without power as you can imagine.

200 people were injured and miraculously there are no reported fatalities.

Busch Gardens - na Gairdíní Bhusch

2008-04-14T17:43:00.007-05:00

Busch Gardens!

Here we are at Busch Gardens on the 13th April. Ciara had a blast on the rides and got soaked in the kids' water park. She met some new friends along the way and flirted with some boys on the boat ride!

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

January - March - Eanáir - Márta

2008-04-14T17:38:00.005-05:00

January - March

Some of the best pictures between January and now. There's some of her in her new house, doing laundry, at Grandaddy's 50th, and with her cousin Keagan.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Dad's camera in January

2008-04-14T17:27:00.003-05:00

Dad's Camera in January

Here are some of the best pictures from Dad's camera when they were in Virginia in January.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Christmas is here! - Tá an Nollaig anseo!

2007-12-25T10:53:00.004-05:00

Christmas!

Here are some photos of Ciara opening her few hundred presents! The first ones are with our friends Holly and Jeremy (she loves the My Little Pony) and the rest are from this morning. She loves her new Cabbage Patch Kid, "Da Baby!". She has been pushing it around all morning with her purse in her hand. When she gets a little tired she sits down in her new chair to feed "Da Baby". She got lots of presents from Santa and her family. Heather got Music, Candy, Digital Picture Frame, and new n.a.p. slippers. Stephen got a paintball gun and lots of candy!!

Hope everybody has a Merry Christmas! Love you all!

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Catching Up!

2007-12-08T19:32:00.000-05:00

I have a new job at Christopher Newport University in Newport News Virginia. Both Heather and I work there now, so we get to ride to work together. Daniel and Chasity are coming up here in late December and Mam and Dad are coming over from Ireland New Year's Eve - we're so excited about that.

Ciara is running around the house these days. The words that she has some grasp of are: More!, Daddy, Mamma, doggy, da Baby!, Ball (baw), Show (goo), light (lie), Night Night (nie nie), Bye, Yeah, Uh Oh, Oh No (no no), Tree, Kitty (itty), Down, Get Down, Hot (ha), Fish (geesh), Thank you (tid-too, sometimes tid-yoo), diaper (giper), Pooh (as in Winnie the), Book (boo), boo (as in peek-a-), jump (um!), Banana (nana), vroom vroom (rum rum).

Right now she has bronchitis, so she's not feeling the best. It should clear up early next week with the medication she's on.

All the craziness of the last few months has died down, so I'm going to try and get back into the swing of the blog. The last few posts I did tonight are an attempt to catch up on all the photos since we were in Ireland last. Enjoy them and don't forget to click on the photo to go to the full gallery!

New York, New York - Nua-Eabhrac

2007-12-08T19:21:00.003-05:00

New York, New York

We went with Angela to New York for Heather's birthday (Nov 4). It was a lot of fun and it was great to see Ciara old enough to take in some of the sights herself. She truly was amazed at the top of the GE building at Rockafellar Plaza. You'll see how she helped herself to some of our snacks.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

1st Birthday August 16 2007

2007-12-08T19:05:00.006-05:00

1st Birthday August 16 2007

Ciaras 1st Birthday was at our friends Holly and Jeremy's house. Some of you have met them, there's a picture of the pair in the gallery. The theme was Care Bears, seen as Ciara-Bear tends to be Ciara's most used nickname. We all had a blast and Heather made a Care Bear cake that Ciara made short work of.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

August - October - Lúnasa - Deireadh Fómhair

2007-12-08T19:05:00.005-05:00

August to October

Ok, lots in this one. One of her in a Virginia Tech jersey, asleep. Some of her with Grandaddy Barney and her new baby cousin Keegan. There's one of Keegan with his mommy and daddy, Shawn and Krista. Some cute bath time pictures. Some pictures of us at the Living Museum in Newport News. One of myself and Heather enjoying a sunset over the Shenandoah on a camping trip. Some of our pumpkins, before and after we tried our hand at carving them.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Water Country July

2007-12-08T19:00:00.002-05:00

Water Country July

This was Ciara's first trip to Water Country in Williamsburg, where her Aunty Angela works.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

June Ireland Trip

2007-12-08T18:49:00.001-05:00

Ireland Trip June

Here are pictures of our June trip to Ireland. It was great for everyone to finally meet Ciara. Family means so much to us and we can't wait to get back over again. When we were in Ireland Ciara was just learning to stand.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Keys - Eochair

2007-05-16T11:25:00.000-05:00

Ciara's crawling and climbing over everything in the house. Here she was angry I took my car keys off her and she flew over to the table, grabbed them and shook them at me. She's pretty confident - it won't be long until she's walking.

The Zoo - An Tsú

2007-04-14T19:42:00.001-05:00

The Zoo

The Saturday before Easter we went with our friends Holly and Jeremy to the Norfolk Zoo. The weather was a little cool but we had a great time. We were some of the only ones there because of the weather forecast. It was Ciara's first time at the zoo and she was fascinated with some of the animals, especially some of the fast moving monkeys. We just put new batteries in the camera that morning and forgot to reset the datestamp on the pictures, so apparently we actually went in January 2006.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

More Pictures - Tuilleadh Pictiúir

2007-03-26T10:29:00.000-05:00

March 26

New pictures of Ciara. As you'll see, she's almost crawling and getting into plenty of trouble. She can stand on her own but still needs help pulling herself up. There's also some pictures of her at a church bbq with our friend's (John and Vida) Yorkie Mcgregor.

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

Plane Tickets - Aerthicéid

2007-03-23T09:32:00.000-05:00

Well we finally got tickets to go to Ireland. We will be arriving Wednesday June 6th in Ireland and departing Tuesday June 19th. We'll be flying on a US Airways 757 (as seen above) so give us a wave on the way over. We're really excited and glad to finally have dates set in stone. Daniel and Chasity will be there for the whole summer so all 7 of us will be there together, which is nice.

More Pictures - Tuilleadh Pictiúir

2007-03-21T13:00:00.000-05:00

March 21

Some new pictures of the little one getting up to devilment (especially playing nintendo and eating choco ice pops - shhhh don't tell mom).

Click on the picture above to see the album. You can then click on each image for an enlarged version.

The Swing - An Luascán

2007-03-21T12:44:00.000-05:00

Barney and Alicia put up a swing in their back yard for Ciara. She loved it! There'll be many days spent pushing her on that no doubt.

If you're wondering why I placed a "Ciara TV" logo smack in the middle of the viewing space, there is a reason. I finally managed to find a program that would allow me to play sound with the video from my phone, but they put their logo on the video as I was using the free version. I covered their logo with Ciara's kisser so it would look a lot nicer!

As a result I uploaded the previous video again to include sound. Have another look.

Coke - Coke

2007-03-16T17:49:00.000-05:00

Coke

She was supposed to be a Pepsi girl...where did we go wrong? I'm sure Niall is happy. Cokehead.

Click on the picture to see the rest.

Video - Físeán

2007-03-16T12:33:00.000-05:00

She's flying around the house in her walker now; toys and household pets are no obstacle. She's a danger to us all!

Our New Blog - Ár Láithreán Gréasáin Nua

2007-03-14T21:38:00.000-05:00

I've been meaning to do a blog or a website for our family for ages. Seen as we live in Virginia and have family and friends in Ireland, Mississippi, Chicago, California, England, Australia, South Africa and elsewhere, it would seem to be a great way for people to keep up with what's happening in our lives.

Being that I do websites as an occupation, you'd think I'd have done this by now. I guess I can compare myself to the chef who works all day in the kitchen and then goes home and puts some noodles in the microwave for dinner.

What finally got me to go ahead and do it was following Jeff's blog and Niall's travel blog and realizing how much I enjoyed it when I read something new from them.

So now that I finished designing the blog, I will start posting what's going on in Virginia, our tall tales, and the much requested pictures of Ciara and her adventures.

Enjoy and don't forget to leave us your comments to let us know you were reading!

The Murphys