2 Brothers Layne

Not really sure what to write about tonight. Jonah seems to be doing better today. When I left for work this morning I wasn't sure what was going to happen. Jonah was up above 1 liter on his O's, and not sounding very well in his lungs, had two nebulized albuterol treatments, and an extra dose of dex all in a matter of an hour. When I got to work I told my supervisor that I may need to leave work early if my wife calls, and explained Jonah's situation to him. Around lunch time he asked me if I had checked in with home to see how things are going. I said no, but told him how I thought things were going. After I called home to find out things were ok. He asked me if I needed to go. I said no things were ok. He replied, "How about you go home anyway." So it was an early day for me. It was needed though!! Much appreciated!! Not that It was a hold and rock Jonah day, but I think Tanya needed some time to unwind from the stress of last night. I made a mista...

When I got home Jonah was sleeping. After a few minutes Jonah woke up. I walk in his room to pick him up to play, and mommy asks Jonah, "Do you have something you want to ask daddy?" Jonah responds, "Baby Please?" I guess you can say Tanya is working on me from every angle, she wants to have another child; while I am dragging my feet on the idea. On to another subject: Jonah. He had developed a painful sounding cough. We all have had that cough, the ones that hurt so bad we want to cry. That is the one Jonah has. Mommy was very frazzled tonight when she spent an hour with Jonah and he would not sat above 85. When she came out and said I have had enough tag your it; she had given an albuterol treatment, turned up his oxygen and still no help. I came in and was holding Jonah. When asked what I wanted to do, we talked and decided the hospital is the last place we want to be. We gave another albuterol treatment, checked his O's against an oxygen tank, hi...

Yes it is as we had not hoped for, Jonah has come down with a slight case of the croup. He and Tanya stayed home from church today. I had a lesson to teach in the priests quorum so I went for all three hours. Jonah slept in today, until about 730. He took a nap from about 1230, to roughly 330. and then back down around 830 for the night. I received a text from Tanya shortly before church was out asking if I could bring some one home to help give Jonah a blessing. After the blessing Jonah has been in high spirits and a laugh to be around. He watched football with me today for the first time. I am not sure if he was interested in the game, the tv, or just chilling with dad. Any way, I sure enjoyed it!!! I have been waiting for that to happen for a long time. Tanya has been working on several projects right now, a christmas card, and christmas decorations are on the top of her list. We enjoyed the home made decorations a lot, Tanya even said it helped with missing teaching and...

Jonah has become quite the little night owl. The last 2 nights he has somehow managed to stay awake in his crib until after 9. The norm has been that he is in bed at 7 and asleep no later than 7:30 or 8. Other than that there isn't much to report. We did get the tree decorated today and a few decorations up. Amazingly enough Daddy was a huge help in that whole process. He is usually Mr. Grinch about setting up Christmas this "Early". When I asked him why the change of heart he said that he knows it will make me happy and maybe a little less homesick to get the holiday started early! What a guy! I am so BLESSED!

Jonah is really growing up! We have not had to change a DIRTY diaper since Sunday at noon! He is consistantly asking to use the bathroom and doing so successfully! This mommy is elated and so proud. Jonah is saying things like Shoes On, and Hi Daddy. He is signing like mad and picking up on things left and right. Jonah is Not a Baby anymore.

Today was a lot of fun. Football in the morning, cooking all day, dinner with every one. Happy Thanks Giving every one!!!! Turkey Bowl Jonah at the turkey bowl. He stayed warm. It has been a very busy day for Mommy today. The mess in the kitchen Doing dishes. Dave and James The videos. Danny and Dave having a guitar lesson. The other one is of people playing on the Wii. Dave got a little excited while playing.

This evening was very enjoyable for our little family. We have made friends with a family in the ward who has a little boy just younger than Jonah. Our car had a squeak that I didn't like so I pulled the rear brakes off to see what was wrong. After getting a list of the parts I needed it was time to get some help for a parts run, as some of the necessary parts for the car to stop were malfunctioning. I called my friend, but he couldn't help, so Tanya called her friend. She was available and came right over. After the part run was made, we were invited over for dinner. I put the car back together, showered and left for dinner. It was a lot of fun!!! We are so very grateful for the people in our ward and the friendships we are building. Tomorrow the ward is having a turkey bowl, flag football. I am pretty excited to go and play. Tanya is excited to go and watch. Jonah is doing well. He is continuously learning more signs and words. He is learning to ask instead of sc...

Today Tanya got a small jump on Thanksgiving Day preparations, small but she did get the pies knocked out. Other than this Jonah was a mommy's boy today. Not sure what is causing this behavior, maybe we will find out soon enough. We all are healthy and happy. What else can we say?

This beautiful young girl is Bridget. She came to play with Jonah today (more like Tanya wanted to play with her). Bridget is 3 and as full of life as one can be. Jonah has a toy pig that stands on one foot and jiggles. Bridget was mimicking this when Jonah showed interest that he wanted to stand on one foot and jiggle too!! So Tanya helped him stand. He lifted one foot off the floor, just barely, and did a little jiggle dance. It was cute!!! Jonah also signed silly today. He is continuously learning more and more signs from Tanya.

Today was a pretty relaxing day for the most part. Jonah is getting very clinging to mommy, I wonder if he is getting sick. We had an enjoyable visit with the guys who came over for dinner. We now have the ability to watch the news!!! HOORAY!!! I am not sure what to anticipate for this week. Tanya will be doing a good share of the cooking to get ready for the holiday feast. Then on Thursday we will consume in a short time period all the many hours of preparation for the feast. Tanya is very excited for tomorrow because she has a friend from the ward coming over to visit. Her name is Bridget, and she is 3. One of the ladies Tanya visiting teaches just had a brand new baby and is getting very worn down with lack of sleep. Tanya invited Bridget to play tomorrow to help out everyone. The mom to be able to take a nap, Jonah to have a friend to play with a friend, Bridget to be able to play with Tanya and Jonah, and Tanya to mimic the play with the nieces and nephews.

Today was a pretty neat day for our little family. It started off with a person knocking on the door and saying, "We were just thinking of you, and wanted to give you a ham." We think it was someone from our ward. A big ham. Then a little while later another knock came at the door. Tanya was home with Jonah while I was at work. It was a couple delivering an eleven pound turkey from my command. Later when the guys came over to make a list and do some shopping, Jason walks in holding a tv. A rotten day for me turned out to be a pretty humbling day after all. Jonah and Tanya had a pretty big day, besides all of the a fore mentioned stuff. I had the car at work, so Tanya and Jonah rode with Jason. They went shopping for a few hours. I met up with them at Walmart after I got off work, around 5 pm. It didn't take long for Jonah to want to go to bed for the night after we got home. Tanya and I enjoyed a nice movie, The Karate Kid II, and found our way to bed as well...

Today Tanya walked down to visit a friend who lives about 1.5 miles away, she and Jonah. But when they arrived the little boy was asleep. Jonah had to play by himself. What a bummer. Tanya said she had a nice visit, and went back to a girls night a few hours after I picked her up. Jonah continues to amaze us at his willingness to work and learn. Have a great weekend!!

The fall is really beautiful here. There are so many trees in our neighborhood and the fall colors are so vibrant this week! LOVE IT! Today Jonah has picked up a few new things. He can say Bubble, and sign candy and kitchen. What a guy! He has also taken to eating suckers. He sucked on thee Dum-Dums today until the stick was so soggy the candy was about to fall off! Super! Daddy had a very long day at work, then was home long enough to shower and eat dinner then he was off to the weekly young men's activity. As for Mommy, I had a complete breakdown yesterday because of a lot of things, but I'm doing much better today! Sure am grateful for priesthood blessings!

Today Jonah showed us he can jump out side of his jumper. It is funny to see our little monkey jump in tune with Monkeys on the bed. A visit from PT today. Jonah also demonstrated he can cruise along the couch for about 3 feet. His left side is weaker than his right so he struggles going left. He also is working on standing from a sitting position. The Therapist had nothing but praise for our little guy. She loves to come and play with Jonah because he always has something new for her. Tanya and I were talking about Jonah and how astounded were are with him. Since we have moved to VA he has made monumental progress. He has surpassed all of my expectations and most is on the road to normality in the mainstream socialistic manner of speaking.

Not really sure what went on today. I know that the Therapist came by, gave Jonah some Cotton Candy to taste. Because it dissolves in the mouth it shouldn't be a gagging hazard, we hope. We are working with Jonah on not screaming. He has developed this bad habit. Now I understand how annoying and aggravating it was to my parents when we as children screamed and yelled. Sorry 'bout that. Jonah is having a hard time using more appropriate words that he has previously could use. Like Kitchen. He would make a sound with his mouth to go to the kitchen. Now that we expect him to use a more correct sign, he really struggles. I think this is why he is screaming so much. But it too shall pass. Hard work and perseverance always pay off, right??? Tanya is at a much needed and deserved relief society get together tonight. It is a show and tell for projects accomplished this year. Today I learned something funny. We were talking about nicknames for things. One of the people...

We have been trying to teach Jonah to say his own name. All that can come out is Nanoh. It is funny. He did pick up a couple new signs, apple and break (like take a break). Just before bed he was cleaning up his toys in the front room, picked up his shoe and said, "Shoe." What an amazing little boy! Tanya is doing wonderful things for him.

Today has been kind of a lonely day for our little family. We began missing a lot of things we had previously had at our leisure. Things like: Gardens, help, canning, pets, parties, and the time spent talking and hanging out. We have been taught what we need to know and there is plenty of knowledge in our ward about how to do things here on the coast, we just have to muster the courage and start doing it. That is the rough part, to start. . . Jonah is a superstar in my book!! He loves. And that is all there is to it, so far. One thing I miss when I go to work is to see his excited face when he sees me in the morning when he wakes up. I love it. I hope mommy gets the same reaction as I do. We are doing well, some slight heartaches, but well. Jonah continues his development at a rapid rate. We love him!!!

Jonah is learning how to sit. It is funny to watch, but amazing at the same time!!! He is such a hard worker. There is no give up in him!! Even with his words. We are constantly trying to get Jonah to exercise his mouth to be able to form new letter sounds. We have been working on saying, "Oh, man." Stressing the N sound. It is coming, but slowly. Today when we went for our walk to the mail box, there were a few kids walking about 60 feet in front of us crossing our path. Jonah said hi to them. When they did not return his hello the look on his face was utter disappointment and confusion of why they did not say hi back. It was kind of funny, but at the same time I am starting to see his personality come through. Jonah loves to help. Sometimes to much. Be we enjoy letting him make a mess, mostly because he is such a big help at cleaning it up. We hope you enjoy the videos. We did making them and watching them again. Especially Jonah. He gets so very excited ...

Mis Gwen, bless her heart, volunteered to spend her day off (she works weekends at the hospital) with Jonah so that Dave and I could have an evening out. Jonah was as good as gold and went to bed within 30 minutes of Gwen's arrival. Dave and I enjoyed getting out.

Daddy was put in the young men's program on Sunday. He is an assistant priest quorum leader which means he is working with the 16-18 year olds. I get the feeling that he is very excited for the opportunity to get to know some great youth and to be involved in the ward. This is the first that he's really been able to really participate in church activities since Jonah was born. We're crossing our fingers that the night has gone well. As for me I had to call and tell my visiting teaching partner that I could no longer go visiting with her on Saturday because Dave's command decided to take Friday off for Veterans Day then work on Saturday and be off on Sunday. Darn, well I suppose it's not the first nor the last time I look like a complete flake! Jonah had a great day. He played with Gwen, had Speech therapy with Jacqui, and a play date with Johnathan. Jonah is really coming along with his verbal skills. I'll try to get some videos taken tomorrow!

So Jonah has had pretty uneventful day. Therapy came for a visit. She said she always enjoyed coming to see Jonah because he always had something new to show her. He is a trooper, even if he didn't get a nap today. That just means an early bed time.

Today Started off with a visit to SSI. When we arrived Tanya looked at me and said, "I forgot my ID." We decided to let it play out and see what happened. We only had to wait for about 30 minutes before we were called to the desk, we were 5th in line. When the lady at the desk read the letter we received she left for a few moments and came back and said, "Sorry to leave I had to verify something." Since we are living in military housing Jonah's shelter needs are being paid for. That is why his benefits have been adjusted. We said thank you and went on our merry way. We decided to run by the thrift store on base at Oceana. Just as we were about to turn into the gate I reached for my ID, which was not there. We simply kept on driving. I thought this was going to be a bummer of a day. When I called work to see what my instructions were for the rest of the day, if I needed to go into work or not, I was told if they needed me they would call. That meant ...

Not much has happened for us on this monday, other than: I woke up late, got stuck in traffic due to an accident, was late for work. What a horrible way to start a day. Not to mention Jonah's feeding pump is malfunctioning and kept waking Tanya up all during the night. Poor Tanya!!! She is running on a few hours of sleep tonight. With no nurse today, I am surprised she was able to keep up with Jonah so well. She said he has been an angel baby today. I think he knows when mommy needs a little help. He is such a wonderful little boy. Always happy and willing to give hugs and loves out freely. Tomorrow Tanya and I go to SSI to challenge the system because they cut back some of Jonah's benefits. Now we get to find out how we can rectify the situation.

Not much has changed for us this weekend. Jonah continues to progress and learn new words and signs. Today we had our friends come over and eat dinner with us again. After much thought a tough decision was made by Tanya that she and Jonah will not be going to Utah after all. Much sadness and heartache are in this decision; yet it is the correct one to make. As for us, I have been called to the Young Men's. The Bishop asked to meet with us today. He said he was trying to find the right calling for Tanya.

In a little over a week Jonah has pretty well mastered the forward push. Now to work on his turning! Enjoy the video!

So, what would you like to know? Some of you out there must have questions you are wanting to answers to. It may take a bit, but I bet Tanya and I can get them answered correctly!!! Tanya received a couple phone calls today. One, from the PT to tell Tanya she found the mat they were looking for. It is a play mat for Jonah, about 1/2" thick to help Jonah not to slide when he is playing on his knees. The other phone call was from the health care people. Telling her the soonest an oxygen condenser is available is on the 19th. We were shooting to leave on the 17th but are now trying to get it so Tanya and Jonah can leave on the 19th for Utah. Lets hope this works. Other wise I think several people will be disappointed, including a 4 year old little boy. Jonah on the other hand, seems to be back to his happy little self. He loves to help. Help prepare food to eat, do the dishes, but mostly loves to help with the laundry. Jonah is also getting pretty good at rolling around ...

We are still waiting to hear back on the condensor for Jonah. Last we heard, we will need to pay $75/week for its use. That's very due-able. The Speech therapist visit was today. She was very impressed with Jonah's ability to learn new things and retain them. Jonah is a charmer!! That is for sure. One of my biggest fears for Jonah is/was that he will not want to work through "hard" stuff. I know some children, older children almost teenagers, who will not do things because they are difficult for them. Instead of working at it to make weak things strong they avoid them at all costs. I don't see Jonah doing this. A testament for him is his willingness to try things with his tongue. We can get him to lick things, by telling him he will like it if he tries it. He then will stick out his tongue for a lick. And then, he decides if mommy or daddy told the truth. I hope this carries over into the challenges Jonah will face in the up coming years.

Today we asked Jonah if he wanted to help daddy grate some cheese. When this was said, he looked up at us and gave us a huge cheesey smile!! Tanya and I laughed and laughed and laughed. Debbie was the fill-in nurse today. Tanya said she was great. Erin, our PT, commented today that intelligent kids, classifying Jonah in with them, have a hard time letting go of things to walk. She speculates Jonah also will have to champion this challenge as well. Letting go and falling down. Tanya's heart jumped when she heard this compliment!!! She said to me, "It is so nice to hear other people classify Jonah as an intelligent kid." I agree. Jonah excels in some aspects of his development; while in other areas he struggles. But we will persevere and triumph over the challenges the best we can. Time is going extremely quick for us. I can't believe how fast October came and went. It seems like we barely have time to sleep before we have to get up and start the next day a...

Tanya and Jonah watched the first part of Aladdin today. Guess what word Jonah picked up? Abu. Funny funny. It is odd at the different words Jonah picks up when we least expect him to. He is getting over his cold. Maybe a couple more days and he will be back to himself. Lately he has been sleeping in until 830 am and only taking an hour nap then going to bed between 700 and 800 pm. Tanya is a little hesitant about our nurse tomorrow. Gwen has a cold and won't be here this week, so a replacement will be here tomorrow. After hearing Gwen give the low down on what to look out for, I suppose anxiety is to be expected. It is starting to get a little chilly here in Va Beach. A high of 56 degrees F. We missed Family home evening last night, so tonight we held it. This was right before we put Jonah down for the night. After Jonah was situated, Tanya and I enjoyed a nice banana split with pretzels sprinkled on top. Y UMMY!!!!

Jonah and I have started making plans to return to Utah for a short visit. My Selman Grandparents' health is not as good as it once was and I'm feeling anxious to be able to spend some time with them while I still can. I don't have a departure date because I'm waiting on our oxygen company to let me know when I can borrow a Portable Oxygen Concentrator (Yes the Dreaded POC!) I have high hopes that this will not be a huge ordeal like our last flight! I noticed today that Jonah's Big Wheels were completely flat so when i went out this evening I bought a little bike tire pump and Daddy inflated his tires. It is amazing how much farther Jonah can cruise with the same amount of effort as before. Love it!