A mom who tragically lost her daughter after she drowned in the family’s backyard spa has revealed a creepy yet heartwarming detail in a photo from her wedding day.
Tahlia Murphy and her husband Cecil, 28, had their lives turned upside down in September 2022 when their 17-month-old daughter Taidyn ‘Totty’ Murphy lost her life at their home in Gracemere, Queensland’s Rockhampton region.
Tahlia – who is also the mother of Paityn, 12, Laikyn, 6, and Haivyn, 4 – married Cecil three months after she lost her baby daughter to honor her life.
She told Daily Mail Australia that the couple’s entire wedding day was all about their Totty, but she cherishes one particular photo from the celebration in particular.
The photo of Tahlia and Cecil, which showed the couple kissing in the sun, shows a shadowy figure hiding behind a tree in the background.
Tahlia and Cecil Murphy appeared to have their daughter watch over them on their wedding day earlier this month (pictured is Tahlia with her husband Cecil and the shadowy figure can be seen behind a tree)
The photo showed a shadowy figure who they say is their daughter Totty
Tahlia says they have a yellow butterfly on their daughter’s urn and the couple have seen yellow butterflies every day since she passed away
“Our whole day was hers, we had a big beautiful A3 photo of her, she had her own seat assigned and a bouquet was prepared for her, our eldest daughter walked down the aisle with her ashes and a portion was also of her ashes into mine and my husband’s ring,” she told Daily Mail Australia.
Tahlia said she was so upset that her daughter couldn’t be there on their special day until her friend pointed out the tiny figure in one of their wedding photos.
“One of my friends found it and they sent it to me with the number circled and they said your little girl was on your wedding day after all,” she said.
“I was in bed at the time and my friend had a screenshot of the photo and I was like “oh my god she was literally there”.
“I ran straight to my husband and we both had goosebumps and cried and said, ‘Look, it’s our Totty, watching from behind a tree in a white dress.'”
The doting mother said the couple even got married on a specific day to best symbolize Totty.
“We got married on December 22 because she was born in March 2021 and passed away in 2022,” Tahlia said.
“Also, our anniversary is June 22, and the number 22 is the combined age of my three other kids, so the date was so perfect.”
Tahlia Murphy and her husband Cecil, 28, had their lives turned upside down in September 2022 when their 17-month-old daughter Taidyn ‘Totty’ Murphy lost her life at their family home in Gracemere, Queensland’s Rockhampton region.
Tahlia said the whole day was dedicated to Totty
The couple said they also bought a puppy after Totty’s death, which they named Tella after their toddler’s favorite food, Nutella.
Tahlia said that while she had always been skeptical of anything supernatural, the photo confirmed that her little girl was standing there watching.
“I found out my dad died when I was eight and over the years I’ve always tried to pick up on little things like if he left me any signs or anything like that,” she said.
“I’ve always believed, but never to the extent that I do now, as since she passed away, there have been signs and this is just another one.”
Tahlia said their daughter’s urn is yellow and shaped like a butterfly, and the couple have seen yellow butterflies every day since her death.
“Without fail, we’ve seen at least one every day and sometimes 10, 20 or even 50,” Tahlia said.
“We see them around our house, in the backyard, in front of our car, when we’re on the road, everywhere.”
Tahlia said that while she had always been skeptical of anything supernatural, the photo just confirmed that her little girl was there watching
Tahlia uploaded a video showing the shadowy figure on TikTok, which has been spotted more than 1.4 million times, with users commenting that their baby girl was definitely there that day.
‘OMG. That is the best footage that will be her for sure,” one person wrote.
“This happened on my formal photos!! Now I believe my sister was there,” another commented.
“This gave me goosebumps, sorry for your loss. Your little girl was there that day,” said a third.