Oh's the places we will go!

One of the first things that Cindy and I talked about when we decided on starting a family was what we would do if we wanted to go somewhere. We have some very good friends that gave us some great advice after we were married. "Get the kids use to going with you if you want to go places. They will adjust and it will be better for you when they get older and you go on longer trips." Carolyn has already been out and about, but not that many public gatherings and no trip over an hour long. This past week we took two trips that were longer. First to see my 92 year old grandma in Lebanon, IN. She has been waiting for us to bring Carolyn by she was very excited to see and hold her. It can be a little scary to watch someone that old try to hold a baby but Great Grandma Hershman just fell in to her old ways when we put Carolyn into her arms. Carolyn did really well with this five hour total trip.

Last Saturday we drove to Lafayette, IN for a wedding and visit with our friends Ryan and Julie, and daughter, Taylor. Carolyn decided to take a nap on the way over, which in turn set us up for a good evening. This was an overnight trip and one of the things that I am figuring out that I think of myself and an experienced traveler due to my job. I tend to over pack just in case I need one thing. Athletic training has nothing on baby's traveling. At one point I wondered if we were going to have to wear the same clothes for the weekend because we were running out of room to put our overnight bag. Pack-n-play, swing, sling, stroller, car seat(of course) diaper bag, and Carolyn's overnight bag. This also includes every outfit, burp rags, baby wipes, Tylenol, gas medicine, one case of diapers, and of course, our camera. I did forget one thing, the sound machine for the pack-n-play. Thank goodness for radio static.

Carolyn did great at the wedding despite us getting there a half an hour early and was really good at the reception. She reached her max patience after the cutting of the cake. At Ryan and Julie's it did take a little coaxing but she did go to sleep and actually slept for a good five hours before getting hungry. The next day we went back to the church Cindy and I were married in 12 years ago and had a family photo taken in the entry way. It doesn't seem like it was 12 years ago and this new adventure that we are going on as already flown by. We made it home with no problems and I think that we just wore Carolyn out enough that we didn't have any trouble getting her to sleep Sunday night. Now if we can just get her the baby earphones for next years Brickyard 400.

This week has been Daddy and me week with me off and Cindy going back to work for a week. I had already had this week off with a plan of doing a few things around the house and some fishing and golf. So far, my week has not included those events, and I have had a great time regardless. Yesterday we went to visit everyone at CIO, the orthopedic clinic where I use to work and many of the folks there have provided us with some tremendous support. Carolyn did really well and did all of the baby stuff while there(eat, pee, poop, look cute). Today it is a short visit at the athletic department for those who missed her last week and then on to the Cindy's department, the Career Center for her first official visit there. So we are on the go. Grandma and Grandpa Hershman will be up here in the next few day for the start of the Indiana State Fair and Grandma's birthday is Saturday so we will have to come up with some fun stuff for her on the weekend.


And that's the way it was. (that one is for Walter)




Take care,

Troy

Open House!

Hi everyone! I am sorry it has been a few weeks since the last update. As I have said before I will update when I can or if something significant comes up. We had Carolyn's open house this past Sunday at the First Baptist Church in Muncie. I told her it was her party and she could cry if she wanted to, she did. We had about 40 visitors and a good balance of people through out the afternoon. Gayle and Mary Ann did a wonderful job of getting things ready despite just finishing Vacation Bible School two hours before. The women of the church baked cookies for the open house. They did outstanding job and we had more cookies than expected. But lucky for me I like cookies! Carolyn did well for most of the time but 30 minutes left in the open house she was wiped out. So we put her in her sling and she went right to sleep.It was good to see people that we had not had a chance to see since we got Carolyn. Especially surprising was to see my Aunt Tina and Uncle Dean with my cousin Julie and husband Matt with their nephew Levi. It was great to have them there to meet Carolyn.

We are especially grateful to Cindy's

parent's, Terry and Carol and Cindy's sister Mylissa for their help in setting up. Our friends Ryan and Julie and their daughter, Taylor were unbelievable in their support by bringing a registry for guests to sign, taking pictures and keeping our niece, Lauren and nephew, Parker entertained!

We are now getting into a schedule of eating, sleeping, and pooping. But Carolyn seems to demand our attention at times, so we have learned how to prioritize what needs to get done. It is amazing how you use to value something so much only to found out with kids that tasks or items are not that important anymore. She is growing everyday and there has been something new each week that she is starting to figure out.

Carolyn has had many visitors over the past two weeks and a couple of visits to the athletic training room. She even came to my athletic training camp a couple of times and was welcomed by my athletic training students. Babysitters will not be a problem. We are trying to get her out as much as possible and get her use to the world that she will be living in. During this time we have also secured daycare for when Cindy goes back to work at the end of August. It was easier than we thought but have figured out that it is a bit of a racket in how you are charged. They hit you at your weakest point: What is best for your child! But the daycare we selected is an infant to non-potty trained toddlers only facility so she will have plenty of opportunities to work on her social skills

Tomorrow we have our final home visit from the adoption agency and then a big outing to see Great Grandma Hershman in Lebanon on Thursday. Saturday to Lafayette to our first wedding, if things go well, if not just Cindy and I will be attending while Julie and Ryan babysit.

These past few weeks have been a great learning experience. Learning to function without sleep, learning to be patient with someone screaming in your ear, learning not to bite your spouse's head off when she asks you for a simple task that was not that big of deal a month ago.

Cindy and I have been married for 12 years this past Sunday. I can think of no other events that has been as challenging or rewarding since we have been married. It has been everything that everyone described to us and more.

Troy

7 days

Well it has been seven days since we brought Carolyn home. We had a very busy week! First we had a relative filled weekend. With my side of the family here on Saturday and Cindy's on Sunday. Carolyn was pretty tired by Sunday night. We are getting use to trying to figure out cries, sleep and eating patterns, and how to function with four hours of sleep. I am up right now waiting on Carolyn to wake up and eat so I can go to bed. I am also finding out that nothing gets done on my schedule now unless I am at work. On the other hand I have found myself taking time to play, nap, and have a conversation with her while she is eating. I would not trade these times for anything. We found out today that the adoption with be finalized on September 3rd. That puts us closer to having her officially be ours. Cindy has been on the search for daycare and we are quickly finding out that they may be a bit of a racket. You defiantly have to play by their rules. But now a necessity since we both need to work. We have an open house next week at the church we attend so people will have a chance to get to meet her. It should be interesting since we are figuring out that she is more of a morning person and the open house is 2-4 pm. Well she is starting to wake up. I need to snap into dad mode!

God Bless,

Troy

Home!

Six weeks to the day that Carolyn was born she is finally home. We left the hospital today around 10:30 am. We first had to spend the night at Wishard in a room on the old pediatrics ward. We had a chair hide-a-bed, a recliner and a table and two chairs. They moved Carolyn's crib from the NICU into the room. We had a big window with a roof view but that did not deter Carolyn to take a big long look out the window, since she had never seen the outside. It was a long night and it was not until 4:30 am until she fell completely asleep. We were awakened at 6:30 for a check from our shift nurse. I think we got about three hours of sleep total. She had been sleeping about four to six hours a night prior to last night. We think it was sensory overload from the change of scenery. This morning we did the normal things of feeding and diaper change and then just waited for the orders to allow us to leave. Kathy, our main nurse, took some photos for herself and for us. We packed up all of her stuff that she had accumulated in the last six weeks and headed for the door. Kathy indicated that she will be missed in the NICU but was happy to see us head home. We did stop off at Bethany to say thanks again and show Carolyn off to the adoption staff. Irene, our main counselor, made it into the office in time to get to feed her. She played it up for the crowd with smiles and coos. She slept most of the way home which let us know that she may like rides in the car to calm down and go to sleep. When we got home T.S. was the first to greet her. He was not sure what to make out of her and just took a couple of sniffs. Jasmine stayed in the back bedroom and Louie was indifferent. She has seen enough stuff drug home by us in the last 17 years that a baby is not that big of a deal. She got a tour of the house and a ride in her new swing, but for the most part it was a rough afternoon. Being tired and overstimulated is not a good combination. By the evening and another ride in the swing she fell asleep. She is still sleeping as I am writing this which has been for almost two hours. Now the fun begins. I am a huge Brad Paisley fan and bought his new CD on Tuesday. On the CD is a song called "Welcome to the Future" That is the way I think that Cindy and I both feel now. This is our new future I am not sure where this will take us but I know it will be a blessed and intriguing journey. I will try to keep everyone updated on our adventures on this blog. It won't be as frequent as the past six weeks but just enough to keep you coming back.

Now I am going to try to get some sleep. Wish me luck!

Troy