Erin Murphy moved to Champaign-Urbana in 2006 for a job — in television. As an anchor for WICD Channel 15, Murphy has come across the airwaves and into many of our living rooms at 5, 6 and 10 p.m.. A graduate of Indiana University, Murphy became the mom of twin baby boys, Jayden Bram and Ashten Angelo in October 2009. She and her husband, Gerrit, are also the proud owners of two dogs.
See why we think Erin Murphy is a Chambana mom to know.
Q: How did you and your husband react when you found out you were having twins?
Um…. shocked is an understatement. I was actually alone at the ultrasound. I was getting blood drawn to make sure my levels were going in the right direction, the problem is I bruise horribly. So after probably the 5th time, the Doctor decided on the spot, to just do an ultrasound at about 6 weeks. Right when the ultrasound technician told me, I just cried. My husband and I had such a hard time getting pregnant, so it was more than I could have hoped and dreamed for. I went home and I wanted to tell my husband in a special way, but right when I opened the door he was standing in the kitchen, and I just couldn’t keep it in. He was shocked, while I know he was happy, he did go right to worry, after all that’s 2 mouths to feed and take care of at once!
Q: What has surprised you about motherhood?
Honestly, how HARD it is!! When you’re pregnant everyone loves to tell you how little sleep you’re going to get, and how hard it’s going to be, but you really can’t imagine it until you’re actually experiencing it. I thought it would be hard, but the whole time I was pregnant I just kept thinking I’ve wanted this for so long, I’m going to be so happy, but that wasn’t the case. Of course, I was happy and smitten by my little babies, but it’s definitely not all sunshine and rainbows. For us, the big turning point was getting them to sleep through the night. Once we did that, it was like putting on a pair of glasses for the first time.. now that I had consistent sleep, I really could love and appreciate them more.
Q: You are airing a piece on WICD at 10 p.m. on Feb. 10 about moms and their bodies. Why did you decide to examine this topic?
From personal experience, I really did believe if I just lose the baby weight my body will bounce back. Well… it didn’t. There’s definitely more lumps and rolls than I had before. So I started talking to my friends, who recently had babies, and it was definitely a hot topic.
You get so many different reactions. Then on Facebook I saw Chambanamoms had it as a topic of conversation, and I thought this is something women have to deal with, their bodies after pregnancy. Whether its’ finding a way to love it again, or doing something about it.
Also, there are women who do get Mommy Makeovers (breast lift/implants, tummy tuck, and liposuction), but just don’t talk about it. I think if that’s what makes a Mom happy, then she should do it, there shouldn’t be that judgment there. I mean a happy Mom is a happy family, right?!
Q: Why did you go into Broadcast Journalism?
I would love to say, its something I’ve always wanted to do since I was a little girl, but that’s not the case. For me, I was a performer growing up, I did anything from dance to acting. Once high school was over, I was a bit lost. After getting a little off course, I finally transferred to Indiana University (sorry Illini country!), once there I found my calling. I knew I wanted to do something in journalism, I just didn’t know in what capacity. So, I went through all the introductory courses newspaper, magazine, internet, and then finally broadcasting. I still remember watching my first stand up on tape. It was like something clicked for me.
While being on air is very similar to performing, its not just about that for me. I love stories. I love hearing stories, telling stories, and I love happy endings. While not all news stories end with a happy ending, its definitely something we strive to do.
Q: What are the challenges of being a mom in your business?
For one its the schedule, I work 1:45-10:45 at night. While I get to spend quality time with my babies in the morning, I don’t get to put them to bed at night. Really the schedule isn’t so bad right now, but once they get into school, it will be a lot harder to manage.
Another hard thing is the stories we cover, some of the most horrific stories are what people do to kids. Before having the babies, I didn’t have any sort of reaction, because that’s my job, remain objective. Although now its not so easy. I’ll have to read about a suspect molesting a child on air, and its hard not to go to that awful place in my head, and think of that innocent child. It takes extra effort on my part to remove myself from that emotion. However, it probably makes me a better journalist because I can relate to those parents or the guardians.
Q: How do your sons react when they see you on TV?
They’re still so young now, its more just staring at the T.V. when they see me. We have an adorable picture of them in their Bumbos about 6 months old, and they’re looking at the TV while I’m on air. It’s pretty cute. I am pretty excited when they get to that point of watching and acknowledging that it’s me on TV, that will be a pretty cool feeling.
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