We end this month of February on a positive note. We had a good day today. Jonathan now weighs 52 pounds! He had his first "Real Meal" today that was not hospital food. He had a hot dog, french fries and Diet Coke from Sonic and loved every minute of it. He did well in his therapy today. He is getting better at sitting up by himself and we are working on helping him balance and sit up on his own. He sounded out some 3 and 4 letter words today, spelled his name out loud and wrote his name down several times. He is still sleeping well at night and seems to be content and happy during the day. We get to enjoy more smiles and laughing with each passing day. We are still working on his left arm and legs. He will use his left arm if you ask him to but he does not initiate using that hand. He tries to move his legs and is able to do so a little bit.
A big prayer concern is his agitation during his therapy. Please pray that Jonathan will be able to do his therapy with out crying and being agitated. Pray that he will be able to listen and do what the therapist ask him to do. Pray that when he gets agitated or frustrated that he would be able to find a way to deal with it without crying. Pray for us that we will be patient and understanding with him until this passes. Pray for continued healing in his brain. Continue to pray for his left arm and legs. Pray that God will continue to protect his health as well as the rest of us. As always, thank you so much for all your prayers.

First off, I am going to start putting new pictures on sub pages instead of the front page. New pictures will be added frequently and I will try to let you know when I put them up. New pictures have been added to page 3. All that said, today was a quiet restful day. Jonathan slept well all night again, making it about 4 in a row. We pray that this will continue. He spent most of the morning trying to sit up in the bed and also was trying to move his legs. He is really trying to move his whole body and make it obey but he struggles. You can see it in his face, and he usually moans and gets frustrated. We just continue to encourage him to keep at it, it will get easier and soon he will be able to do it without even thinking. After a while he gets tired and rests but he is fighting and even when he is not in the gym, he is still working out. He is becoming more playful at times and even laughs and jokes with us. It is such a blessing to see him joking around, it is so him. I put a picture on page 3, which will say it better than I can. He is such a cheerful spirit and we just love to see him laugh. He is using his left hand a little more each day but it is still sluggish. He did start using it today to scratch his face. God has been so good to us and we are so grateful and praise Him everyday for the things that He continues to do in Jonathan's life. We are getting reports about some amazing things that God is doing through this situation and we are humbled that God would allow us to be a part. We know that God has great plans for Jonathan's life, plans that we cannot even imagine.
Our prayer focus is for his leg strength. He has feeling in them but right now he cannot control them too well. We are praying that God would give him strength and control so that he will be able to walk soon. Pray for his frustration level as he tries to bring his body into submission. Pray for rest and strength for the rest of the family. It is getting very trying on us as the weeks wear on, but God has been faithful this far and I know that He will see us through. Thank you again, I cannot tell you how much your prayers and support have meant to us and our family. Keep the faith.

Jonathan slept all night again last night. Grandma said the first thing he said when he opened his eyes this morning was, "Pancakes." Today was a nice, quiet day. Typically on the weekends, there is not much to do. Since Jonathan is a lot more aware and awake now, it is more difficult to keep him occupied, especially on the weekends and since his attention span is very short. His favorite thing to do is eat, so he is always asking for food. Dad spent the day with Jonathan and I think they had a good day of just hanging out together. Mom spent the day hanging out with Elizabeth and Sarah and doing to some shopping. Jonathan is now sitting in a regular chair to eat his meals and holds himself up very well. He is trying to move his left arm and his legs more and gets frustrated when he can't make it happen. This evening when I got there, I showed Jonathan the new tennis shoes we bought him today and asked him if he wanted to put them on. I put one in his lap and he tried to lift his foot up to put it on himself. We enjoyed talking to him and making him laugh. It is so much fun to see him smile and hear him laugh. Dad is spending the night tonight and will hopefully have new pictures for you to see next week.
Pray that Jonathan will continue to sleep well. Pray for a good week for him. Pray for Jonathan's level of agitation to decrease, especially during his therapy, and that he will be able to do what the therapist, doctors and nurses ask him to do. Continue to pray for his left arm and legs that they will get stronger each day and that his brain will continue to heal in that area and be able to tell those limbs to move. Thank you so much for your diligence in praying every day. God hears your prayers and is answering! Praise His Holy Name!

Today was not an extremely eventful day, although it was a good one. Jonathan slept all night long last night! Praise the Lord! Our days are much better when we all get sleep at night. We had PT, OT and ST this morning and did well will all of them. OT had Jonathan sitting in a regular chair in his room and he looked great. During the afternoon, we had some friends visit and just did a number of random things. We did some easy math problems (1+1 through 5+5), we counted by 10's, 5's and 2's and remembered the names of the coins and their values. I was very impressed. We got out paper and colors and Jonathan wrote all the letters in his name. We also looked through a beautiful scrapbook that the children and teachers from Lakeland put together for Jonathan. Thanks so much for such an awesome gift. We will treasure it forever. Jonathan continues to talk better and better each day. He also tried to use his left hand much more today.
Please pray that the sleep medicine they are giving Jonathan will continue to help him sleep each night. Pray for continued strength in his left arm and movement and strength in his legs. Pray that Jonathan's agitation level will continue to decrease with each passing day. Pray that until God heals Jonathan of the diabetes, that he will give the doctors and dieticians wisdom to be able to regulate his blood sugar in a normal range with the type of food he needs. Pray for rest for us this weekend. May we never forget to stand in awe and worship the Lord each day as we witness His mighty power and His unfailing love in our lives.

We had a much better day today. Everyone seemed to get more sleep last night which helped a great deal. Jonathan slept much better so we are hoping this medicine will be good for him. When I walked in this morning, Jonathan held out his hand to me and said "Hi Mommy" and gave me a hug. That is the first time he has initiated talking to me without being prompted. That started out our good day. Jonathan now weighs 50 pounds! He did a great job in all his therapy today. He was able to push himself up to a sitting position after leaning on his right arm and pulled himself up after leaning on his right arm, with help from his therapist. The neuropsychologist was asking him questions today: What is your name? How old are you? Where do you live? He said he lived in Lewisville, which I thought was pretty good. She asked him if he knew where he was right now and he answered with "Massachusetts." I have no idea where that came from but I thought it was hilarious. Later on, he was pushing letters on a learning toy and telling his therapist a word that started with that letter. O - office, J - Jonathan, E - Elizabeth, A - aunt, and G - God. We both thought that was awesome! We sang "Jesus Loves Me" together today and he is trying to whistle again. He is really trying to move his left arm and is doing better every day. It still needs lots of prayers, as does his legs.
After a couple of tough days, we were blessed with a day full of many little reminders of the miraculous work God is doing in Jonathan's life. He alone is worthy of our praise. Continue to pray that Jonathan will be able to sleep each night and that this medicine will be helpful. Pray for continued strength and movement in his left arm and both of his legs. And as always, remember to thank God and offer praise to Him for beautiful miracles and answers to prayer that we have received from His hand.

Although today was a tough day for all of us, God continues to faithfully give us little blessings to remind us that He is in control of Jonathan's life. Jonathan cried pretty much all night long. We had a few 20 minute periods of sleep, but for the most part, he cried from 10 pm until 9 am. I can't even express to you how tough it is to watch him struggle through those periods of agitation. Knowing that the agitation and sleep issues he is having are very normal does not make it any easier to deal with. It is heart wrenching to be unable to do anything to help him. You just pray and cry with him. The doctor gave him a new medicine this morning to help calm him down and it knocked him out for most of the day. He only got one of his therapy sessions, but he desperately needed the rest. They are going to give him this medicine again tonight as well. We had our Cares Conference again today and talked about the sleep issues as well as the rise in his blood sugar. He is eating incredibly well and continues to progress to new levels of eating. He is now on the chopped tray and hopefully will be on a regular tray by next week. We can't help but praise the Lord each time we see him eat. What a blessing. We have been officially told that Jonathan is out of the coma. He is interacting with his environment which means he is no longer in a coma. He is making great progress in his therapy and we are going to continue on the original plan set forth for him.
God has been good to give us so many good days since we have been at Our Children's House. Please continue to earnestly pray for Jonathan's rest at night. This is so important for him. Pray for continued progress in his therapy and strength in his body. Pray that we will not get discouraged when we have tough days like this. Pray for our rest and strength as well as Jonathan's. God's way, His timing and His will are always perfect. Pray that we will wait on Him.

Today was both a challenge and a blessing. Jonathan seemed a bit more agitated and cried a lot today. He did not sleep well last night. Although he was upset most of the day, he did well in his PT and OT today. He had OT twice today and at the second round, he counted backward from 9 to 0 using a puzzle. He would pick up each number as he was counting. When we first put the puzzle in front of him, he picked up the 8 and said "eight" and continued talking a lot for the OT. She would show him a peg and ask him what color it was and he would say the color, he only missed a couple. She would then give it to him and he put them onto a peg board. She had him put them on with his right hand and take them off with his left. He is still sluggish with the left hand but it continues to get stronger each day. We went outside for a walk again today and again he enjoyed it. He did well with his eating in spite of being agitated. This evening he cried a lot but did have breaks where he would stop and talk or just look around. When he is sleeping soundly, he usually wakes up in a loud cry. We are not sure if he is dreaming or what the problem is. He also seems to be sore from all the working out he does, which is to be expected. All in all he is doing good and we are learning to take the ups and downs of rehab.
Please pray that Jonathan will be able to sleep and be content while he is awake. We are told that what he is going through is normal for the waking up process. Still it is hard to watch sometimes. Please pray that we would have the strength and rest that we need to meet the needs of not only Jonathan but our two girls, Elizabeth and Sarah. Thank you for your continued prayers and may God richly bless you for your faithfulness.

Thanks so much for your prayers for Jonathan last night. He slept much better last night with his Grandpa at his side. I hope you will continue to pray for him each night that God will help him to settle into a good sleep pattern. Today we stood up on a new standing frame. He starts out sitting down, then gets raised to a standing position. He has a table in front of him so he can lean on it and do things. He worked a puzzle today and seemed to do very well with the new frame. He almost got his whole name spelled out, and can write a "J" pretty well. He is still eating very well, but his blood sugars have been significantly higher since he has started eating "real food." Each time we take an insulin shot, we stop and pray for God's healing of the diabetes and that until He does heal, that God would make Jonathan brave and strong to handle it. We went outside for a while and enjoyed the beautiful weather. We also had some fun time playing with Jonathan and making him laugh tonight.
Thanks also for your prayers for his left arm. We are beginning to see more movement in that arm with each passing day. Continue to pray for strength and mobility in that arm. It is awesome to see God already in the process of answering this need as He has so faithfully answered all through this process. Your prayers are being heard and answered! Thanks for interceding on our behalf.

Today was a day of rest for Jonathan. He is having a lot of trouble sleeping at night and spent most of the morning sleeping. Pray that he will be able to sleep through the night or most of it. After a much needed nap and lunch he had a good rest of the day. He continues to talk and say more things without crying. He now smiles while he is talking and it is so awesome to hear him. Tonight, as he was interacting with some family and I was talking with his aunt Sherri, I said something that Jonathan thought was funny and he laughed out loud. It was so incredible. He continued to say some things that we would ask him. Earlier in the day we went on a walk around the block and he seems to like the outdoors. He continues to drink all the fluids that the doctors want him too and eats good. We are thankful and praise God for all the things Jonathan is doing. We have just recently been told by a few medical professionals that the things that he is doing is medically impossible based on his injury, but with God all things are possible. Pray that the medical teams that cared for him at Children's and those that are caring for him at Baylor would see Jesus in Jonathan's recovery.
Pray for Jonathan's sleeping habits. Pray for our family as we try to figure out what is best for Jonathan. Specifically pray for Jonathan's left hand. We have already seen more movement today in that hand. Praise God for all He has done and all that He is going to do with Jonathan.

Thank you for your prayers for us about last night. We slept for an hour, cried for an hour, got some Motrin, then slept the rest of the night. I had to wake him up to eat this morning. We had kind of a lazy day and rested as much as we could. Jonathan is getting lots of new things to eat with this new type of food tray and seems to enjoy almost everything he puts in his mouth. He is consistently being very content during the days, and was content today as well. I feel like we saw a distinct change in Jonathan today. He tried to talk to us regularly. Sometimes we got words with no sound and other times we could hear the words. Sometimes we understood them, sometimes we read lips. He is sitting up well on his own from time to time and loves to feed himself when he eats. This evening, we went downstairs to the dining room to eat again and that's when we really saw the change. Up to this point, when Jonathan talks, he sounds like he is crying and talking at the same time. As you know, the only sound he has made since the breathing tube came out is a cry. Since that is the only sound he knows how to make, all his words are said while crying. Tonight, he spoke words without crying. Lots of words. We got him to say just about every family member's name and it was beautiful. Back in the room as we were all talking, he was trying to talk with us, all the while smiling as he talked. The best of the stories is that Jonathan was listening to his Dad talk about his car, a Kia Sportage which he has always loved. While Lamar was talking, Jonathan looked at me, smiled and said, "Kia Sportage." We took some pictures of him and he said to me, "I want to see my pictures." He talked all evening long and we hung on every words. The whole time I sat on the side of his bed with him, he continued to lift his right arm around my neck and just hug me, over and over. He said Mommy, Daddy, Elizabeth and Sarah numerous times tonight. What a blessing.
Please pray for Jonathan and his sleeping. We asked the doctor if we could move his last feeding to 9 pm and not give him the medicine and see what happens. I think we have gotten to the point that Daddy and Mommy will be his sleep partners from now on. Please pray that he will be comfortable with both of us so that we take turns spending the night with him and having time with the girls. Please pray for protection for Lamar and I in our relationship as our time together is limited right now. Continue to praise God for Jonathan's beautiful voice and pray for continued strength in his speech. Begin to pray specifically for strength and movement in his left arm. We would also like to ask you to join us in praying that God will heal Jonathan of his Diabetes. We talked about that today with Jonathan and I have decided to pray with each shot that God will cause his body to make the insulin he needs and that he would no longer be a diabetic. Our God is a God of Miracles and nothing is too hard for Him.

Jonathan had another good day today. He did good in his therapy in spite of having a restless night. He did not sleep very well and we are still trying to figure out why. He continues to try to speak but it seems to hurt his throat to talk. Tonight we took him to the family eating area while we ate and he said "I want some drink" and then he said "I want some more drink". It is so awesome to hear his voice again! He seems to be much more aware of his situation and environment. The doctor said that this could be a problem in that he might become more upset and agitated. We are praying and believing that God will give him peace and clarity of mind. He continues to eat good even with his new diet of ground food. He is not having any issues with eating or drinking. In fact, when he drinks his Pediasure for a snack, he can down an 8oz can in about 5 minutes. He also is having no problems getting the 50oz of fluid that the doctor wants him to get per day. We continue to praise God for all the things that He has done in Jonathan and continues to do in him. Tonight after his bedtime snack, we were getting him ready to go to sleep. He seems to be more agitated at night after his snack and we are working on what to do for him. Well tonight Jonathan may have let us know. His mother had already left for the night. We turned him on his side, which he was fine for about 5 minutes and then begin to cry. I asked him what was the matter or if any thing hurt. He shook his head no. I asked him if he needed anything and he said "I want mommie". Well of course, I called right away and she came to the rescue. After she arrived, she got in the bed with him and he went right to sleep. Please pray that Jonathan will be able to rest and so will Kristi.
Give God praise for all the wonderful things that He is doing! Pray for strength and rest for Kristi and myself. Also, pray that God would protect Elizabeth and Sarah and our whole family. God is doing a mighty work in Jonathan and we are humbled. God is good!

9:35 am Prayer Need: Jonathan pulled his feeding tube out last night. The doctor's even now are deciding whether to put it back in or to leave it out and see how he does. He needs to drink 50 ounces of water by mouth per day. Please pray that the tube will stay out and he will be able to drink the amount of fluid that he needs each day.

Psalm 51:15 O Lord, open my lips, That my mouth may declare Thy praise.

JONATHAN HAS SPOKEN

His first words were, "I WANT SOME MILK. He has drank 2 containers of chocolate milk and wants more. HALLELUJAH! OUR GOD IS AWESOME.

PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW

PRAISE HIM ALL CREATURES HERE BELOW

PRAISE HIM ABOVE YE HEAVENLY HOSTS

PRAISE FATHER SON AND HOLY GHOST.

AMEN AND AMEN!!!!!!!!!

Seven weeks ago today was the last time we heard our precious Jonathan utter a word. At best, we could barely understand him then because he was so sick. "I want some milk" will forever ring in our memories as the most beautiful words spoken - Jonathan's first words since December 30, 2004. He would also say "I want some more milk" and "I want some chocolate milk". Praise the Lord! It was an incredible moment. What a blessing to hear his voice again. Lots of things happened today, so let me back up to the beginning of the day. I walked in this morning to find out that Jonathan had pulled the feeding tube out of his nose in the middle of the night. The doctor said they may have to put it back in so that he can get all the fluids he needs (50 oz a day). They also changed the only 2 tube feedings he had left (3 pm, 10 pm) to snacks. I told them we wanted to try to give the fluids to him by mouth before putting the tube back in. So we determined that over 12 hours, we needed to give him at least 4 oz of fluid an hour. So that was our goal for today. Therapy went well. During speech, he ate 2 Cheeto puffs, some cheese and part of a graham cracker and did great. They are ordering him a mechanical, soft, ground tray in the morning to see how he will do. He should have no problems with it at all. Jonathan showed the neuro-psychologist that he also remembers his number 0-9 to go along with colors and shapes. After that we went to the play room for a while and watched Jonathan color on a Magna Doodle board, among other things. We went back to the room and I gave him 4 oz of chocolate milk, which he drank very quickly. After I put it back in the refrigerator, Uncle Chris and I were sitting on his bed talking to him and watching him desperately trying to say words. We continued to encourage him until he said "Milk." I asked him if he was telling me he wanted some milk and he said, "I want some milk." We cheered! Guess what Jonathan got? The rest of the carton and another whole carton too! I think he said "I want some milk" at least 100 times and we just kept calling all the family and holding the phone to his mouth. The doctor told us that chewing and talking usually happen together. Later on in the evening, he said "Bye" to his grandparents too. He continued to try to say more things during the evening, like Dad, Mom, Hi and Bye most of them were whispers but words none the less. We are looking forward to hearing every word he wants to say to us. Jonathan gives great hugs and tonight for the first time in 7 weeks, Dad got a hug from his son. He could hardly contain himself as Jonathan wrapped his arm around his daddy's neck and squeezed.
Psalm 115:18 - 116:1 But as for us, we will bless the LORD From this time forth and forever. Praise the LORD! We hope you will join us in praising God for yet another awesome miracle in the life of our sweet boy. Pray for Jonathan as he works through this new phase of his recovery and continue to pray for healing and peace within his little mind. Pray that we can maintain the fluids he needs by mouth so that there will be no more feeding tube. Pray for movement in his left arm and both legs and strength to hold up his head and to support himself. Thank you for praying and believing with us!

We got a couple of new pieces of news today. Because Jonathan is eating 100% of every meal and is only getting 2 tube feedings a day now, the doctor is going to talk to the endocrine doctor to see if they can change those to snacks. We are trying to give him as much of his water intake by mouth so that hopefully, very soon, the tube will be able to come out for good. That will be awesome! They also told us today that when they feel we are able to handle things adequately with Jonathan and we get the doctor's okay, we may be able to take him off campus for a short time. We went to the play room today and played with play-doh, put together a Mrs. Potato Head doll and pushed buttons on another toy. Overall, we had a good day.
As you are praying for Jonathan, please remember to pray for his little mind and all that is going on inside. He is beginning to work on things that require him to think and it can cause much agitation. He throws his head back and forth and cries when he gets agitated. So pray for his agitation level, that God would drive out the confusion and frustration and replace it with His peace and order. Pray that he will be able to get the feeding tube out soon and that he will continue to improve each day. God has been so good to us. Praise His name for all His wonderful works.

Jonathan is doing so well. He had a great day in therapy. He got up on his knees for the first time today (with help of course). He played with play dough and is still picking out colors and shapes perfectly. We are working on remembering other things by using flash cards, puzzles and trying to learn to blow a whistle. He pretty much cleans his plate almost every time he eats. He's gained 3 pounds so far! He seems very alert and much more content. There's not as much crying anymore. He has improved to the point that when he does get agitated, he is able to calm himself down fairly quickly. There were a few times that I looked at him and he had his mouth opened, and I wondered if he was trying to say something. I can hardly wait for that moment to come. Jonathan got to go on a walk and pet a dog this evening. We also let him sit in his Daddy's car for a few minutes.
Jonathan is doing so good with his right arm/hand. Pray specifically for the use of his left arm and legs. Also pray that he will be able to speak soon. Continue to pray for his eating and strengthening of his limbs. God is good!

This is a Valentine's Day we will never forget for a number of reasons. Jonathan had a great day to start out the week. He ate great at all of his meals and even fed himself some pudding this evening. It was a cool thing to watch. He did great in all his therapy again. Our best session was with the neuro psychologist, Dr. J. She asked him a few questions and then gave him a toy with square, triangle and circle blocks to put in the appropriate holes on top of the bucket. The first couple were slow, but as he went on, he would take them right out of her hand and put them in the slot they belonged in. She asked him to compare 2 blocks and asked same/different as well as to pick out the different block out of 3. He did very well knowing his shapes and colors. She also had him pick up puzzle pieces of a boat, train, truck, plane and bus. He knew which ones they were. I was so very proud. He did such a fabulous job. The Lord, of course, deserves all the credit, although the snack of sugar free chocolate/vanilla swirl pudding just before we went might have helped just a bit!
Today was a very emotional day for me. I wept as I wrote Valentine notes to our girls whom we love so much and are so proud of how they have handled this enormous trial in our family. I wept many times as I looked upon our precious son. My heart was torn between undying gratitude to the Lord for the fact that he is alive, breathing, eating, holding his head up, moving his arms, opening his eyes, and yet begging God to restore him soon and let this cup pass from our lives. God's grace is sufficient and He remains faithful to carry us through each and every step of this path we are on. We hope that you have taken the time today to tell the precious people in your life how much you love them. Each day is a treasure not to be taken lightly.
Our prayer requests remain the same. Praise God for the wonders He shows us daily in Jonathan's healing process. Pray for his continued healing and daily progress. Pray for rest, health and strength for the rest of us as we wait for God's perfect will and time. We love you all.

Today was a good day. Jonathan started out with breakfast and at the end of it decided that he wanted to feed himself (the picture above explains it all). After a good breakfast he decided to wipe his mouth off also. After that he settled into a nap. He still continues to eat his food well and even drinks some liquids by mouth, through a straw sometimes. He seems to be more alert during the morning and early afternoon. He was moving his right arm very well today and would wave and play with his cars. He has a favorite pillow that big sister Sarah gave him that he likes to keep close so that he can feel how soft it is. Tonight after eating his dinner very well, the doctor was making his rounds and gave him a 100% on his meal. He ate it all so he did not have to get any supplement of pediasure. This afternoon we actually went out to a playground area that is at the facility and watched some children playing. He studied every move with anxious eyes and I told him that pretty soon he would be right in there with them. While we were outside, Grandpa found a ball and gave it to him. Ms. Christin wanted to play so I asked him to throw the ball to her and he rolled it to the end of his legs and let it go. She gave the ball back to him and he did it again. He likes being outside and today was a great day for it. He is holding his head up by himself much better and seems to have better control today. After all that we went back to the room for some R&R after a hard time of play. He rested a bit until dinner time. He does seem to get more agitated at night, but all in all he is doing very well.
Many of you continue to ask about Elizabeth and Sarah. We are grateful for your prayers for them as well. They are both doing very well. They homeschool each day with their Aunt Sherri and cousin Emily and are staying on track with that. They continue to attend Awanas, choir, handbells and other church activities each week. The schedule is difficult for all of us as we get up very early to get downtown, stay gone all day and return home in time to go to bed again. This is very difficult for us as most of our life has been spent together as a family at home. They are a great help with Jonathan each morning and very much enjoy helping to give him a bath and get him ready for his day. They are two of his biggest fans and are a great source of encouragement to him and us. Please continue to pray for them that they will have good health and rest. Also pray for protection of our relationship with them and their tender hearts as they continue to deal with such a difficult situation at such a young age. God has great plans for our precious girls as well as our precious boy and we are very blessed to have them as our children.
Please continue to pray for Jonathan's strength to return to his arms and legs. We are also asking God to allow his speech to return. Jonathan periodically throughout the day seems to be working on moving his left arm and gets frustrated with it. Pray that he will not be afraid and frustrated and that he will have the ability to do all the doctors and therapist ask of him. God has been so gracious to us and we are praying for continued favor.

Today was a lazy day. Jonathan didn't do much except sleep and eat. He continued to eat good, about 25% for breakfast (but it was about the amount that he always eats for breakfast), 75% of his food for lunch and 90% of it for dinner. Because he is eating so much of his pureed food they are starting to reduce his pediasure based on how much he eats. We did have a short physical therapy session today where he sat up pretty much on his own with a little help. He would also lift his head all the way up and look at me when I asked him to. The therapist seemed impressed with what he did. After that we went on a little walk inside the facility and looked out the windows for a while before returning to his room. He sat on a couch by the window today for a good while and watched it rain and took a nap. All in all he had a good day.
Please pray that as he becomes more aware of the situation, that he would not be scared or confused about what is going on but that God would give him a peace. Pray for strength and that he would continue to recover quickly. Pray that God would help him to speak so that he could communicate with us on a deeper level and we could understand what he is thinking and feeling. Pray for us as we wait on God.

Today was a quiet but good day. Although Jonathan didn't do anything "new" today, he is doing all the same things better and better. He ate all three meals today again today. He ate about 25% of both breakfast and lunch, but ate 75% of his dinner! We were quite excited. He is well on his way to eating with out any feeding tube. He only had one therapy session today and did well with it. He is still answering yes/no questions for us fairly accurately and seemed to be more in control of his eyes today. We just enjoyed some time sitting in the bed with Jonathan.
Please continue to pray for Jonathan. We are praying that Jonathan can remember how to speak and be able to begin to say words. Continue to pray for him to get stronger and able to control his head and body. God has and continues to manifest himself through this journey. We need prayer for strength and rest for the journey ahead.

Today was a wild day for us. We got to the center an hour early just to see Jonathan eat his first meal in 6 weeks. He did a wonderful job! He ate some eggs, all of his ham, some cream of wheat and drank some milk through a straw. The eggs were not as pureed as I had thought, but he did a great job of chewing and swallowing everything. He ate about 25% of his tray. Because of some miscommunication between therapist, doctors and nurses, he did not receive any Pediasure through the tube after eating this food. Consequently, he only received one-fourth of the amount of food he normally has in the morning, which caused him to have no energy. He could not even stay awake for most of his therapy. The only therapy he was able to do was to stand on the tilt table again just as well as he did yesterday. They even had him standing straighter today than yesterday, although not straight up yet. He did fabulous again and everyone was quite pleased. When the speech therapist came at noon to feed him his lunch, he couldn't even eat it. We started him again on his tube feeding and once we did, he perked up instantly. The speech therapist came to try again at 1 pm and he ate another 25% of his lunch tray then. He ate beef with brown gravy, mashed potatoes, carrots and cream of celery soup (all pureed of course). I got to feed him part of his lunch too. At dinner, Daddy got to feed him chicken and cream gravy, mashed potatoes, peas and tomato soup. We ate another 25% for dinner as well. We are so proud of Jonathan. For now, he will remain on his usual tube feeding in addition to any food he will eat from the trays they bring. Once he begins to eat more from the tray, they will back off on the tube feed until it balances out.
Continue to pray for this feeding process. I can't tell you how awesome it is for us to see Jonathan eat by mouth. If you recall, this is now the second thing that the neurologist said he would never do. Our God is an Awesome God! Continue to pray for his awareness, for tracking with his eyes and for strength in his limbs. Pray for the rest of us as well. Lamar has gone back to work this week and we are all very tired. Pray for strength and rest for us. We love you all for your continued prayer support for our family.

God continues to glorify Himself through Jonathan each and every day. Today in physical therapy, they put Jonathan on a tilt table. They strapped him onto a table with his feet flat on another piece of the table and tilted him upward so that it puts weight on his legs like he is standing. I was told that most children can barely stand 5 minutes of this on the first try because it causes so much agitation. Jonathan stood there for at least 20 minutes with no problem at all! Everyone seemed very surprised. He ate another cup of pudding (sugar free vanilla this time) in about 10 minutes again today, so the speech therapist is ordering a breakfast puree tray for him to try tomorrow morning about 7:30. He is still doing lots of waving and thumbs up for everyone which always makes us smile and cheer. Our Cares Conference was not real detailed except to say that the current time frame for his stay is 6 weeks. However, this will be re-evaluated in 2 weeks when we meet for another conference. Only God knows the real time frame. We have only been here for one week but the doctors have been very positive about his progress.
Please pray for Jonathan tomorrow as he begins to eat some real food. Pray that it will taste good to him, that each bite will go down the right way and that he will continue to progress in this area. We are so grateful for all that God is doing and give Him glory for it all. He alone is worthy.

Today was another great day for Jonathan. He is doing very well with all of his therapy and we see improvement everyday. Tomorrow we will have a Care's Conference with Jonathan's doctors to discuss where he is now and what they expect from the future. He really surprised the Speech therapist when he downed a whole snack pack in about 10 minutes or so. He really likes his pudding! She said that she was going to continue to work with him but maybe by next week we might be getting real food (pureed of course). He also continued to answer Yes/No questions today and would wave when asked to. He even picked up one of his cars off of the bed and put it on his lap when Kristi asked him to.
Please pray that Jonathan will continue to grow stronger with each passing day and that the transition to real food will be a smooth one. Also, continue to praise God for his healing and help on the journey ahead.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow! What an absolutely wonderful day! This morning I asked God to be glorified through Jonathan somehow today and we spent the day praising God for what we witnessed. We started out the day giving Jonathan a bath and getting him ready for the day. Elizabeth and Grandpa Smith changed the bed while Sarah washed his hair and I gave him a bath. The girls got Jonathan's approval on what they picked out for him to wear. They both got to see him nod his head yes/no for the first time. Our first therapy was physical therapy. They had him sitting on the side of the bed and he was able to hold his head up on his own a couple of times for a short period. That alone was great. The speech therapist came right after lunch. She asked him numerous yes/no questions and got an answer out of him every time. She asked if he liked pudding - Yes. Do you want vanilla? - No. Do you want chocolate? - Yes. Jonathan got 3 bites of chocolate pudding and he ate and swallowed all of it. He had some on his front teeth and she told him to lick it off with his tongue. He did. Next she asked if he liked chocolate milk - Yes. He got several spoonfuls of chocolate milk and loved every one. His eyes were wide open and he was even licking his lips. It was awesome! The therapist and I were both very excited and she is planning on working with him every day to get him to eat. I was more than happy with what I saw up to that point, but that's not all God had to show us. Just before the therapist left, I said to Jonathan, "Okay, tell Miss Ronnie bye-bye." When I said that, Jonathan lifted his right arm and waved at her! Both of us almost died right there! After that, he spent the next 20 minutes waving at everyone who came in the room, or waving his hand just for me. Occupational therapy came in right after that and we spent the next 30 minutes squeezing, picking up, dropping, rolling and pinching a squishy ball with his right hand. You could really tell he was concentrating on trying to do everything he was asked to do. I can't tell you how proud I was of Jonathan and how I have spent this day praising God for these unspeakable gifts. God truly showed Himself strong on Jonathan's behalf today. After all of that I told Jonathan how proud I was of him, we offered up a prayer of praise to God, and I asked him, "Do you know that Mama loves you?" He looked me straight in the face and shook his head Yes. Lamar is finally doing better and hopefully will get to see him again tomorrow.
Thank you for all the prayers you offered up for us today. Continue to pray that God will glorify Himself through Jonathan each day and that we will faithfully trust Him and give Him the glory for all that is accomplished in Jonathan's life. "God has been faithful, He will be again, His loving compassion, it knows no end. All I have need of, His hand will provide. He's always been faithful to me."

This Sunday was a day of rest for Jonathan. He seemed very content after a fabulous night of sound sleep. He was awake a lot, but didn't seem agitated at all. He just looked around quietly most of the day. His aunt and uncle that were with him this morning got him to answer several yes/no questions about what he wanted to wear today. This was the first time they had gotten to see him do this and they were both very excited. He is still drinking water pretty well for us too. Lamar is still sick and needs healing as well.
Pray for each of us this week. Pray that God will be glorified in all of us as we continue to walk through this journey in our family. We are looking forward, with much anticipation, to what God is going to do in Jonathan's life this week. Pray with us, expecting great things from the Great Physician.

Today was another pretty quiet day. The doctor is still trying to tweak the meds to help him sleep. He didn't do too bad last night, but we are hoping to do better tonight. Not much happened today. I did get him to nod yes to me when I asked if he wanted some water to drink. He opened his mouth when I asked him to and swallowed the water I put in there when I told him to. Lamar is doing much better today but still stayed at home.
Please pray for us as we begin this next week. We have no idea what to expect. Pray Scriptures of strength for Jonathan. Continue to pray for his awakening as well as strengthening of his head, arms and legs. Please pray for us as we try to figure out some kind of a schedule as we begin Jonathan's new schedule. We are very tired and need strength and rest for ourselves. Thank you for your faithfulness to pray for our family and may God abundantly bless each of you.

Today was a long, quiet day. After his evaluation by the neuro psychologist yesterday, we never really were able to calm him down enough to relax and rest. His eyes were open and he moved his head back and forth and seemed very agitated all night long. So today he was much quieter, although still very much awake most of the day. Today he moved his head back and forth, but never made much noise. There is still so much of this that we don't understand, but it all seems to be part of the process of coming out of the coma. No one can really say how long we can expect to deal with this. The doctor is going to give him a medication to help him sleep at night so they will be able to work with him during the day. We will have the weekend to try to get this going in the right direction so that we can start his therapy in full force on Monday. Because of a pretty sever cold, Lamar was at home all day today and probably will be for the next day or two.
Please pray for Jonathan as he continues to progress through these stages of coma. One comforting thing about all of this is that according to the information we have received, Jonathan will probably not remember anything about these stages he is going through. Continue to pray for his healing as well as healing for Lamar and continued health for the rest of us. Also pray for us as we deal with each of these phases that Jonathan is going through. It can be very discouraging to watch your child cry and be agitated and not be able to do anything to make it better. Pray that we will not despair or lose our hope as we wait for these long days to pass. Pray Habakkuk 2:3 for us.

Today was busy with all of the therapist coming in to evaluate Jonathan. After this evaluation period of about 1 week we will have a conference to discuss Jonathan's rehab. Our Children's House at Baylor has been very quick to make us feel welcome today. We had a lot of issues with the switch and they have stepped up and tried as best they could to accommodate us. One milestone that was reached today was that he had his first shower and regular clothes on for the first time in 5 weeks. He even had his tennis shoes on. One of the doctor's that evaluated him today, tested him for the level of coma that he is in. She said that he was in a moderate coma. Someone also mentioned to us today that what he is doing right now is called being agitated, then next step is to cry. Please pray that as we move into this phase we have strength to endure.
Please continue to pray for Jonathan to get stronger with each passing day. We know that God has healed him and need patience to wait on God's timing.

Today was both a challenge and a blessing. We moved to Our Children's House at Baylor. They are more of a rehab facility than a hospital and it is taking some getting use to the new surroundings and staff. We are spoiled by the staff at Children's Medical Center but I am sure that it will not take long to break them in to our way of caring for Jonathan. We would like to send a special word of thanks to the great staff of doctors and nurses at Children's Medical Center who took care of Jonathan as if he was their own. He will be back to run up and give you a hug and say thank you soon! One thing that amazes me is how most of the children that are in the hospital and rehab do not have parents in their room with them. I cannot imagine not having access or wanting to be with Jonathan and help him through, but everyone is different. We were always getting comments in the hospital about our being in Jonathan's room and our willingness to learn and take over caring for him.
As we were getting situated in his new room, we had some doctor's come by to check out Jonathan. The head doctor wanted to see how much head control that Jonathan had, so he sat Jonathan up without supporting his head. When he sat him up he held his head up completely straight for about 30 seconds before slowly lowering it to the front. As he was lowering it they would ask him to hold it back up and he was trying. You could see the muscles in his neck contracting trying to get it back up but they had to help him a little. It was awesome to see him with his eyes open and his head up all on his own without any assistance. After that and the trip he pretty much slept the rest of the time.
Please pray for us as we make the transition to a new facility and staff and pray that the staff will be attentive to our requests and desires for Jonathan. Jonathan has come a long way in a relatively short period of time and I believe that God will raise him up in his time. Please pray for patience to wait on God and not to be anxious. Here is a verse that was given to us and really spoke volumes.

"These things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, do not despair, for these things will surely come to pass. Just be patient! They will not be overdue a single day." says the Lord. ~ Habakkuk 2:3

Today was an awesome day! We had much less crying today. Jonathan did many little things on command for doctors/therapists. He tried to turn his hand over when asked by the physical therapist and also moved his fingers for one of the doctors. We got "purposeful chewing" for the speech therapist as well. Our biggest excitement was this evening when we took Jonathan for a ride down to see the trains. He had his eyes wide open and would follow our instructions of looking in particular places. Several times we would ask him, "Jonathan, did you see the train?" He answered us by nodding his head "Yes!" He has begun to move his head from side to side and would do that to answer "No" when appropriate. It was very cool! We ended a great day by spending time with Bro. Ben and several godly men (including Jonathan's grandfathers) who prayed over him and anointed him with oil (as written in James 5). It was a precious time for all of us.
Tomorrow will be another big day for us. We are scheduled to move to Our Children's House at Baylor, a pediatric rehab facility, at 11:00 am tomorrow. We will go by ambulance and hopefully get settled in our new home there. The next few days will be full of evaluations by the therapist there and then a Cares Conference will follow to give us an idea of where he is, what the goals are for him and the estimated length of stay. Please pray for all of us as we enter this next phase of this journey. Because we will be in a semi-private room and the facility is much smaller than the hospital, we are asking that only family visit at the present time. Please keep in contact with us and we will let you know when things change for us.
We covet your continued prayers for us. Please remember to offer praise and thanksgiving in your prayers for all the miraculous things God has done in Jonathan's life over these past 5 weeks. Pray for continued awakening of his being as well as movement in his limbs. Also pray for his ability to speak and hold his head up. Pray for strength and patience for us as we continue to wait for God to reveal the healing that He has already done in Jonathan's body. We love and appreciate you all.