Peace at 7 a.m.

I never thought I would be glad to get out of bed pre-dawn just for the solitude...just to sit quietly and drink a cup of coffee and write is so wonderful this is going to be my new thing. Last night I was in bed by ten/asleep by eleven so I bet while Jeff is gone we will be more on a "schedule". I have to admit, many of the attached parenting techniques we have tried with Owen have not really worked. I guess I am talking about the sleep situation. We none of us are getting enough and Jeff is still in the "little buckaroo" bed. I am going to get Owen his own crib and this next week start to talk to O about being a big boy so when we get back from Nanny's birthday we can try sleeping alone. I'm not talking about banishing my baby to another room here, just a small crib alongside of the big bed.
So, our other big news is that Jeff is going to Rwanda to help with an internet network and then on to France for 5 days to see his friend Alex. Very exciting to see his hard work pay off in such a cool way. But we are so very sad about the separation. I am not even acknowledging it.

Owen continues to amaze me. He is so sweet natured but also very determined. He proudly shows off five teeth--three on top two on bottom. He is pulling up on everything and starting to take a wobbly step sideways while holding on to something. He has a ton on words--some real and some stand ins. His favorite word seems to be "thank you". We pass things back and forth and say thank you all day! We had another round of sister/cousins come to visit and he loved that of course. Jake and Jared were not so into him as his other cousins though b/c they are pretty young themselves. But I loved seeing them. Those boys bring joy and life with them.

I miss everybody.