Last month, we were thrilled to be able to meet up with our friend and fantastic photographer, Dawn Geraghty, for an updated family photo session. You all know that I am a photo freak, so there is nothing better than having updated family pics! For us, it had definitely been a while, and we could not have asked for a better afternoon!
She is a wonderful photographer & we are in love with these pics ❤
You can find her at: dawngeraghtyphotography@aol.com // facebook: Dawn Geraghty Photography
Since we did this right before the holidays, we got in a few Christmas shots, too 🙂
This year, I wanted to make Mr Elf’s return special, and also be more of a re-introduction, as I suspected, Liam wouldn’t entirely remember him due to his age. We pretty much guessed that part right, which is totally fine, and again, just like last year, we keep Mr Elf pretty light-hearted and fun. It’s not really that he’s “watching” and waiting to catch him doing anything bad. I love me some Pinterest inspiration, and found this great FREE Santa stationary here. After looking at a few different examples of peoples letters that were posted on various sites, I came up with our own. So, Liam’s letter was brought by Mr Elf on his 1st morning back to our house (the day after Thanksgiving), but it was from Santa. It basically told him why he sent Mr Elf to hang out with us until Christmas, that he knew a few things he had been telling us he wanted for Christmas & he would do his best to try to get them for him, and to remember the REAL reason for the season ❤ ….we also left the Elf on the Shelf book on his table that 1st morning so we could read it together.
Overall, Mr Elf doesn’t get into too much mischief at our house. I particularly liked his choice to play with Liam’s Toy Story pals, but neglected to realize that Liam would immediately try to pick Mr Elf up and also try to play with him as soon as he saw him in the morning…..LOL!! Ooops! 🙂
Occasionally, Mr Elf is known to bring Liam a small present. Liam is LOVING Rudolph this year, so he was super excited to find them both in the tree one morning!
They say elves love sugar, so it should be no surprise of this, right?!?! ….I was cracking up 🙂
The next day, after the syrup incident, Mr Elf was found taking a bubble bath 🙂
Hanging around like Spider-man….
Liam was super excited when he found Mr Elf hanging around on the wine rack with this awesome shirt from the Incredibles!
Again, with the sugar….
tiny clothes line of tiny clothes……surely, he thought he could fit 😉
We have been having a lot of fun with Mr Elf and can’t believe it’s just 5 more days until Christmas! Since Christmas Eve is the last morning Liam will wake up to “find” Mr Elf this year, I am working on a good-bye letter for him to have with him, as he will go back to the North Pole with Santa that night. I’m working on a version that will let his magic be lifted for the day, so he can give him a hug, as he keeps asking….I think he would really like that 🙂
I can still remember going to the Ringling Circus, as a child, with my dad & brother, and it brings back such fond memories for me. I cannot wait to have my little man experience the circus for the first time. It’s going to be exciting for all of us! 🙂
For a limited time, there is an AMAZING offer to save ‘XTREME!’ with 40% off tickets using promo code PRESENT. Offer valid only for Friday 7:30 p.m., and Saturday 11:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. performances. Code only valid December 8-24. Not valid on Front Row and Premium seats. Not valid day of show. Excludes opening night performance on Thursday, January 8.
Purchase tickets and view show times at http://www.ringling.com or www.ticketmaster.com, at any Ticketmaster outlet, by calling 800-745-3000, or at the Amway Center box office (phone: 407-440-7900).
Photo Credit: Feld Media
From Feld Entertainment:
Prepare to be astonished and amazed by some of the coolest acts that can only be seen at The Greatest Show On Earth.® Children Of All Ages can let their imagination go wild in an exhilarating adventure with extraordinary circus artists and exotic animals.
In Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents CIRCUS XTREME, Ringmaster Andre McClain guides audiences on a quest around the world with the help of hilarious adventure seekers, Alex and Irina Emelin.
The show will thrill you as the Mongolian riders send arrows flying across the arena sky. This all-female troupe displays their skills in one of the most unique acts this year, performing a series of tricks and maneuvers atop elegant two-hump camels. Jaw-dropping freestyle BMX riders and free running tumblers fill the arena floor performing crazy-stunts mixed with acrobats leaping through a 15-foot transparent tower – and this is just one act!
During this energetic show, personal introductions to our performing pachyderms will allow audiences to be on a first name basis with our magnificent animals. All this and more happens during the most unexpected circus experience at Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents CIRCUS XTREME
Photo Credit: Feld Media
How cool will it be to see all the animals, the performers, and let’s not forget those clowns, right?!?! What’s the circus without clowns? Haha! I can’t wait to see little man’s reaction and, I am not going to lie, I am super excited, myself. It’s been years since I have been to the circus, so this will be a real treat.
The story I am about to tell is true. No names have been changed to protect the innocent. The guilty party is the cute, furry boy below. Perhaps, he was mad at me for putting him in the santa suit??? 😉
Last Wednesday, I told you all about our gingerbread house decorating adventures from the weekend prior. If you didn’t get a chance to see our pics, be sure to check it out here. Let’s just say that I am SO HAPPY that we took pictures of Liam with his masterpiece that night because what transpired a few days later could NEVER have been imagined by us 😉
Stephen stopped home for lunch on Tuesday…..opened the front door & saw a gingerbread masacre all over the entryway. O.M.G.!!
You see, we had to move our loveseat couch in order to put up the Christmas tree, and so it ended up underneath the bar {as you can see below}. When we came home with the gingerbread house on Saturday night, I put it on a glass plate and placed it on the corner of the bar {for decoration}. It honestly never, ever crossed my mind that our little stinker of a fur baby would literally walk up from the arm of the loveseat and PULL THE GINGERBREAD OFF THE BAR!! hahahahahahaha! I am sorry, but when Stephen texted me these pictures, I laughed so hard, I cried. I guess it just smelled too good to resist for him. Too much temptation for the little guy.
Miraculously, the plate did NOT fall off the couch. Also, let me just tell you that Timber is FINE ….he had an upset belly and went potty A LOT that night but I am sure he thought it was totes worth it 😉
This pic below is lovely candy cane stuck to my couch. Gotta luv it!
Stephen’s observations reported that a good majority of a wall of the house was gone. We had also put a ton of frosting on the roof and covered that with shredded coconut to make it look like snow….Timber did a number to that 😉 ….we think he also ate a half a candy cane.
The sweetest part of the story is that Liam wasn’t even mad when he found out later that afternoon. For a very short time, we tried to not tell him, but he’s too smart { and observant} for that. He quickly asked, “and, where is my gingerbread house” ….so, we were honest and told him the truth. He was more concerned about Timber having an upset belly and wanted to give him a hug. Such a sweet boy ❤
Oh, gingerbread house…..you were cute while you lasted!! I am sure Timber enjoyed how you tasted, though! Never a dull moment in Casademurphy, folks! We are definitely feeling the Christmas spirit around here 😉
Hey friends! Hope you had a wonderful weekend 🙂 — my post is up on Orlando Mom’s Blog tonight with our pictures from the Marvel Universe LIVE! show last weekend, as well as a review of the show.
Saturday, we were excited for our Annual Gingerbread House Decorating Party with our gang! I can’t believe this is the 5th year we’ve gotten together to do this. So fun!
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For a look back on last year’s festivities, check out our post here.
BEFORE the craziness
Lisa is AMAZING because she collects ALL the gingerbread house kits from us beforehand and works hard to build them & puts together this beautiful spread for the families. All we have to do is show up & have fun 🙂
the AFTERMATH 🙂
Daddy & Liam kicked off the decorating.
Someone might have been eating more candy than what was going on the house, at one point 😉
Lisa & Stephen continued their crazy {yet hilarious} tradition of decorating their own house after the kids wrapped things up. Let me tell you….it was serious business. They even recruited Haven this time around to help them.
The Bengel’s neighborhood has a fun tradition in December of a surprise visit by Santa. We were thrilled that he came by after the party…great timing!! Liam was SO surprised that he came all the way down from the North Pole just to say hi to them! 🙂
After that, he discovered the Bengel’s Polar Express choo-choo train {again} & that was all she wrote, folks. If you recall, he found this last year & we couldn’t pull him away. He LOVES trains!
It was a fantastic evening at our Gingerbread Party with friends!! We laughed that we’ll be doing this each year until at some point, the kids will be sick of it and it will be just the adults on the patio decorating the houses 😉 …
Yes, I know…I am a solid week late with posting this 😉 ….Busy times, peeps, buuuut, but better late than never, right?!?! LOL!
We had a great day & I wanted to share some highlights. What Turkey Day isn’t complete without the Macy’s Parade? Liam was thrilled to see Thomas! I believe the announcer said this was the biggest balloon to ever make it’s debut in the parade.
We spent the afternoon at Stephen’s uncle’s house with his family, which included Stephen’s Grandma {Liam’s Great Grandma}. More family was in town from out of state, so that was an added bonus. Liam really enjoyed himself.
Stephen’s uncle is super creative with the food spread, as you can see. He is also a wonderful cook. Everything was delish!
I found this shirt for little man at Old Navy and thought it was hilarious. Never thought he would actually REALLY LOVE turkey, but he totally did! That’s almost all he ate 😉
The weekend was dedicated to getting the house full of Christmas cheer! To say that Liam was excited is an understatement. He was a big help with decorating the tree. We also had our elf {Mr. Elf} come back from the North Pole to visit us, but I’ll post more about that soon.
On Black Friday morning, Stephen & Liam headed out to Lowe’s to snatch up this great deal for just dollars. Liam has affectionately named him, “Donner” because he knows that’s Rudolph’s Daddy’s name 😉 ….so stinkin’ cute!
We have a few fun things planned as we get ready for Christmas & can’t wait to share them with you! Really love this time of the year. It’s a magical time!!
Today, we celebrate the 12th birthday of our fur baby, Timber ❤
It’s honestly hard to believe we have shared so many smiles, laughter & love with this awesome little guy. We are definitely looking forward to several more years to come of the same! To see a brief account of his story with us, you can check out his page on the blog HERE.
This picture below is from several years ago. His hair is much longer than what we keep it now, but he still LOVES to play outside like that on any given day. He is an avid chaser of lizards & squirrels 🙂
Although, he spent 9 years as an only child, he has been the best big brother we could ask for. These two really love one another….cutest.thing.ever!
And, he is one dog that is NOT afraid to get comfy. Hahaha! Most nights, you find him asleep on the couch like this before any of us have even sat down yet 😉
We love you so much Timber!! Our “boo boo man” xoxo ~~ Happy Birthday, little dude!!
Today, we pause & reflect on how much we have to be thankful for, and all that we are blessed with. While I realize we should do this each & every day, today, we give it just a little bit of extra thanks ❤
My heart is full from each & every one of you, my family & friends. Thank you for caring about us and investing yourselves in our lives, and especially in the life of our sweet little man. That honestly, means more than I could ever express to you.
I am thankful today for all the little things that we sometimes take for granted…..the little things that are actually BIG things to many people…..a roof over our heads, our jobs, our health, laughter, & love.
Feeling a bit nostalgic on this beautiful morning, so here’s a look back on the last few year’s of Thanksgiving with our sweet little dude 🙂 — can’t wait to add a new pic to this group later today!
[2011] – baby’s 1st thanksgiving!
look at those toes!
[2012] — check out the 2 teeth on the bottom! — he also took his 1st two steps on this day!
[2013]
[2014] — obviously, this is taken pre- Turkey day, so we’ll be doing more photos today 😉
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Casa de Murphy 