We love this time of year because we suddenly get a large influx of mail and Christmas Cards. We love to see all the pictures that people send, and read the cards and letters. We post them on our wall so we can see them all month long. Thanks to all who have sent us a Christmas Card this year.
We finally got a good snow storm here in Ann Arbor. Last week it rained, then froze, then frozen rain. It has been cold enough to snow, just not the right storms. Finally last night it snowed about 6 inches, and is still snowing all day today.
This morning Jayda and I went out to enjoy the new snow. It was windy and blowing all over, but it is a beautiful white covering to everything.
Here is what it looked like yesterday. We were getting ready to run (hobble for me, run for Anna) with the kids. It was 23 degrees outside, no snow, just cold. It was a lot of fun for all of us though.
Some of our neighbors and Jayda's friends came out to play with her this morning. It was cold and Jayda got wet legs and hands, but she never wanted to come inside. When we finally did get her inside, her boots were full of snow, her legs wet, and her hands freezing, but she was so excited she didn't even notice.
Anna and Addison decided to watch from the warmth of the kitchen. I think they may have been the smart ones.
Time for an update from the Allen blog of life. I know you have all been checking daily and anticipating our next update. Well, here it is.
Life is good here in Michigan. It's cold, but that is normal for December here. Not much snow to report, a little storm here and there, but mainly ice and cold. Todd finishes school this week and has almost 3 weeks off! (last time that will ever happen, better enjoy it now!). Todd also has finished interviewing at his pediatric dental programs. 5 interviews total, and he is glad to be done traveling and scheduling interviews. We will submit our match rank list in January, then on the 28th of January our fate will be determined by some fancy computer that will tell us if, and where we will be going....
For the cold weather here we have to bundle up the girls extra warm, even to just run to the car. Here is Addison in her snow suit. We were on our way out the door one day and we looked to find Addison had fallen back and was unable to move . She can't roll over, crawl, or move much at all, but it sure does keep her warm.
Jayda got a new hat and scarf this year. The scarf has little pockets on the end so she can tuck her hands in them when outside. It works pretty well and she won't leave the house without her hands in her pockets.
Even though we won't be in our apartment on Christmas this year, we (Anna) decided that we should have a Christmas tree for the girls to decorate and enjoy. We got a small 3 foot tree and set it up, let Jayda help decorate it, put lights on it, and now we get to enjoy it until we are gone. Todd is a bit of a scrooge with tree's for some reason, but Anna talked him in to it and he likes it now.
No Christmas season would be complete without some gingerbread houses. Jayda made one at pre-school and was so excited to bring it home and show it off. She was also excited to have left over candy that she could bring home and eat. This picture was her showing off the house, but it was so cold she could barely stand still long enough to take the picture.
Jayda has finally showed a desire to sleep "up top" on the top bunk bed. We were washing her sheets from the bottom bunk one day, so we let her sleep on the top for her nap- now she won't go back. She loves to climb up "by myself" and pull up her blankets. She does great getting in and out by herself so we don't end up helping her at all. 
In this one you can see her tucked in on top, but even better is that she has her "babies" tucked in on the bottom bunk now. I guess they took over the lower when she moved up.
Just a quick report on our Thanksgiving last week. We took the kids to Richmond, VA to visit Anna's sister Marcy. Anna's Dad and step-Mom were also there making it a fun visit for everyone.
Tues- I had an interview with Michigan's pediatric program and spent the day in Flint, MI seeing part of the program up there. I got home at about 3pm and helped Anna finish packing and getting everything ready. We left Ann Arbor for our 10 hour drive and obviously didn't get to Richmond until very late (or early Wed morning).
Wed- Hanging out and Jayda and Addison played with all of the cousins. Here is a photo of Jayda and Addison with their cousins Mya and Megan. 
Thursday/Turkey Day- Big dinner at Marcy and Taylor's house. Great food, fun times to visit, football on TV, games for the kids. Of course I forgot the camera that day and so have no pictures of the actual dinner of anything related to it. After dinner Grandpa Craig took all of the kids swimming at the hotel. Jayda loved the water of course and especially the hot tub (not very hot, so she did fine in the water). Addison went to bed so she didn't get a chance to play in the water.
Here is Jayda and Grandpa Craig in the hot tub.
Friday- Anna woke up early and went with Marcy to do the Black Friday 6am shopping routine. I stayed back with the girls and slept in a little. Anna found some good deals of course, and enjoyed shopping in a short sleeve shirt as the weather was so warm in Richmond. (70+ degrees for two of the days we were there). The rest of the day was spent playing at the park, seeing "The Bee Movie", and just hanging out.
Me with Addison and Megan playing at the park.
The kids (Addison, Megan, Jayda, Mya, and Preston) piling up on the slide.
Saturday- We went with Grandpa Craig and cousin Mya to Colonial Williamsburg (about an hour from Richmond). It was absolutely beautiful with so many trees that still had fall leaves on them. Williamsburg is a fun place to visit with a historic area of town that has fully restored houses, shops, streets, horse carriages, etc.... People walk around dressed up in the colonial period and there is so much to see. 
Sunday- A VERY LONG drive home. Heavy traffic, hours of driving, stops for kids to play, stops for bathroom breaks, more stops for kids to play and eat, and a total of 14 hours of travel later we arrived home! Long travel days on both ends of the trip, but an overall very fun trip.
Thanks to Marcy and Taylor for hosting us all for Thanksgiving. Thanks to Grandpa Craig and Grandma Meg for the hotel room to share, and for all of the fun visits and playing with the kids.
Sad day at our house after Michigan lost to Ohio State yesterday. We didn't really expect them to win since they haven't beat Ohio State once in the 4 years we have been here, but there is always hope. You Ohio State fans out there can go ahead and rub it in now....
At least Utah won, that is what really matters. Utah will have the same record or better then Michigan depending on what happens next week against BYU. (Go Utes!)
Anyway, enough sports for this week. It's almost Thanksgiving! That means fun times with family, friends, and of course no work or school for a few days! We hope everybody has a great Thanksgiving week. Anna is teaching Jayda's preschool class about Thanksgiving and it is fun to hear what 3 year olds are thankful for. Always thankful for simple things like parents and siblings.
Weather is cold here now, but earlier this week Anna got some photos of the girls playing in the leaves. There is no shortage of trees or leaves around here, and it makes it very pretty in the fall and spring. Lots of leaves on the ground for the kids to play in and crawl in right now..
So it is past time to update our blog, and I don't really have much to write about today. We are all sick with the same cold- coughs, runny noses, and not enough sleep. Addison has had it for about 2 weeks, Anna for about the same, Jayda and I have had for about a week. It isn't terrible, but it won't go away either.
The weather is turning into late fall/ early winter now. It is pretty and I don't mind the temperature now, but I know it is only going to get much worse for the next few months. We will survive though, we have every other year.
I have been busy with school and interviews for my potential pediatric residency. I have had 2 interviews recently, and have 3 more to come.
My first interview was in Buffalo, NY at the Children's Hospital there. It was a good interview and a good program. Only problem is they interview about 70 people for 5 spots. I liked it though and would be happy there if it worked out that way. First impression of Buffalo is snow and cold, but also I know of a good children's hospital there now.
My second interview was at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. It too was a good interview and has better odds- they interview about 20 people for 5 spots. A very different program then Buffalo, and they both have their pros and cons. When I think of Minnesota, I think of cold and colder. All of the residents seemed to really like living in Minneapolis though, so I guess it can't be too bad.
I have 3 more interviews- here at Michigan, at the Denver Children's Hospital, and Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. I already know a lot about each of these programs ( I spent a week in Denver and Richmond already) and so I know that they are great programs that I would enjoy. The big question will be where (if anywhere) I will match and be accepted. It could be any of these programs, or none at all. I won't know until Jan 28th, so we all just have to be patient I guess.
So it is the end of October which means it is time for pumpkin carving and of course Halloween. We posted last week about our trip to Greenfield Village, and now the fun just continues.
Jayda had a fun pre-school class on Thurs where they decorated cookies, learned about Halloween, learned songs, etc.... at the end they all put on their costumes and had a little parade around the house. Their favorite part was singing/screaming their new Halloween songs so all could hear them.
Today we decided to finally go out and get some pumpkins of our own from a real pumpkin patch. Last year we went and Jayda loved it, so we figured this year would be even better. Problem is we waited until 3 days before Halloween so most of the pumpkins were gone. Jayda still had a lot of fun running around looking at each one and trying to decide which one was just the right size for her- "no Dad, that's too small" or an occasional "no Dad, that one's yucky" until we found just the right one for her, for Addison, and for each of us. 
We learned something new this week about squirrels- they like to eat pumpkins. We had a few small pumpkins on our porch steps earlier this week. One of them, about the size of grapefruit, just disappeared one day. We assumed it was just some child that took it and didn't think much else of it. Then one day, we found the guilty party, caught him red handed and even have the photo to prove it. A squirrel! He took our small one, then came back and ate half of a larger one. He made a huge mess all over the porch and sidewalk, and when we moved the pumpkin to the grass, he just kept eating it. Here is the photo to prove it. And yes, it is a squirrel and not a small cat, they are huge here and have very long tails!
So we have started the Halloween season out already with a little trip to Greenfield Village last night. For those of you who don't know what Greenfield Village is, it is a historic town that is part of the Henry Ford Museum near Detroit. They have old style homes and neighborhoods (from Thomas Edison and such), old Model-T car's driving around, etc... During halloween they set up a trick or treat path that winds through the village and lets you see everything they have decorated. All along the way the path is light by Jack O' Lanterns with candles in them, and there are people dressed up in famous costumes, and also scary ones too. They give out candy to the kids and adults as you pass them on the road and make it all quite a fun adventure. Most of the people that attend are also dressed up and it was fun to see so many costumes. The weather was perfect and not too cold even when the sun went down.
Here are a few photos....
Special thanks to Anna's mom who helped make the poodle skirts. Jayda has been soooooo excited this week to finally get to wear her special poodle skirt!
All the kids that we went with- Jillian holding Kara, Jayda, Hayden, and Addison in front
A few of the dressed up people along the way for you to see:
Marie Antoinette with the kids.
Headless Horseman
So Addison had her 9 month check up this week. We have noticed lately that she has started to suck her thumb at night. We have been tempted to sew on some closed sleeves onto her sleep sac, but felt like it was child abuse so we didn't. Anna asked the Dr. this week if she had any suggestions, and the Dr. said that sewing sleeves on her sleep sac so she can't suck her thumbs was a great idea. Here is a photo of what Anna made for her. She seemed so confused at first, but slept just great with the sleeves on. Her sleep sac was soaked this morning where her hands are from her trying to suck on them, but she didn't suck her thumb last night!
Other then that Addison is a healthy 9 month old child. She is around 50th percentile in height and weight, she is right on track with all of her growth development, and all is well for her. She and Jayda both had flu shots. Jayda went first and took it like a champ, didn't even flinch. Addison on the other hand screamed and cried. We are next, I am betting that Anna will scream and cry too.
Jayda is not really a big fan of races we decided. She has run in little kid races before, and is always excited ahead of time, and afterwards, but when it is time to run- she seems to hate it. We have participated in the Red October Run for the last few years with Anna running a 5k last year and the year before. This year we decided to let Jayda run the kids 1 mile fun run and see what she thought of it. There were 5-6 other kids from our neighborhood running in it so we thought she would just have fun running down the street. We knew she wouldn't run the full mile of course, but we didn't know that she wouldn't want to run at all. When they yelled "on your mark, get set, go!"....she just started whining and wanted Anna to hold her. I think the crowd of people may have been overwhelming to her, so we let her wait for the end of the pack. She then wanted me to hold her, and I told her she had to catch me first. I then ran backwards and about 10 feet ahead of her while she tried to chase me and catch me. It is the only thing that worked to get her to run, but of course it didn't last very long. I then picked her up for a bit, and then she got to ride with Addison on the stroller. After the race she was very happy and excited to show off her red ribbon. She even asked Anna today if she wanted to run a race with her. Funny how kids are sometimes.
So it's official- Addison is now crawling. She has been pushing backwards for sometime now, but could never quite figure out how to move forward. Suddenly it clicked for her on Saturday and she crawled forward a few feet while we just happened to be watching. She seem to quickly catch on to it and now she can pretty much move where she wants. She crawled all the way across our apartment today to see the vacuum on the other side of the room. Exciting to have her crawl, but also it makes us have to "crawl proof" our house again. Jayda is a good helper and now watches to make sure Addison doesn't get into too much trouble. She ran all the way across the room when Addison was still 15 feet away and made sure that the door to the basement was closed even though Addison wasn't moving. It is fun to watch Addison's little hands and legs shuffle across the floor while she is exploring a new world. 
So it has been awhile since we last posted. We are just busy I guess, or nothing exciting has really happened. Fall is in the air and we are enjoying our September. The weather has been absolutely wonderful and we can't complain at all. If only it would stay like this for the next 6 months....
Speaking of 6 months.... in just over 6 months from now (mid-April) Todd will be done with dental school!!! Clinic ends the middle of April and graduation is May 2nd. We aren't really counting down the days, but as we look at the calendar we realize it is approaching rather quickly. Where will we go? we don't know.....
The girls are both doing very well. Addison is getting bigger everyday and is now pushing herself from laying to sitting. She crawls backwards, and gets very frustrated that she can't go forward. Her favorite thing to do now- take off her socks and eat them!
Both girls got haircuts from the Anna Salon of beauty. Addison can now see again, and Jayda doesn't look so raggedy!
Every year the Borders book store here in Ann Arbor has a huge tent sale. They put out all of their discounted, or returned items. They have thousands of books, and also thousands of kids toys. We went this weekend and scored big time on deals! We were there at the start of the sale and it felt like the day after Thanksgiving! People running, diving, yelling, fighting, etc.... Very protective of the items that they grabbed first, and one lady even tried to accuse us of stealing one of our books after we had already paid for it! Overall it was actually fun to go and we got tons of things for very cheap (most are about $1 or $2, when they were originally $20). It works out great because now we are done with our Christmas shopping for the girls (or at least close to being done). Best deal of the day: 4 packages of finger puppets (16 puppets total) and a puppet theatre that normally sell all together for $100- we got it all for $8. Many other deals too, you can see in the picture just some of what we got.
Todd took the first part of his regional dental board exam yesterday. The whole exam is broken up into three parts.
1) a clinical part that he does on a manikin head on plastic teeth- (what he did yesterday)
2) a 6 hour written exam that can be taken anytime between Sept and March.
3) a 3 part patient exam with fillings and deep cleanings that takes place in March.
Yesterday he did the manikin portion at school. There was a fake head that was mounted to the dental chair with teeth in it that he had to to 2 root canals on, and then also prepare 3 other teeth for crowns. All went well, and he feels pretty good about it. He doesn't get the results for a few weeks so we won't know until then what happened. We hope he passed because it costs $850 to retake it!
So bad news on the St George marathon scene. Anna is out. Due to an overuse injury of her IT band (the fibers on the outside of your leg from your hip to your knee), she can't run for a few weeks. She went to see a doctor about a month ago and he referred her to a physical therapist. She worked with the therapist for a few weeks, but the pain while running was unbearable and she couldn't even run a mile without lots of pain! How would she do 26.2 you ask?- she won't be this year. She made the difficult decision to withdraw from the marathon with just 4 weeks left of training. Very sad for her and hard to withdraw, but she knows it is the right thing for her body and she needs to take care of the problem before it becomes a chronic issue. So good luck to you runners that are in the St George marathon, you won't be blessed with Anna's presence this year.....
I (Todd) was gone last week to a small town in northern Michigan called Oscoda. I was there working at a dental clinic for a week as part of my last year of school. While I was gone, Anna's mom came to visit for the week and helped her with the kids. They were very busy doing fun things (riding in a Model-T car at Henry Ford Museum, shopping at the outlet mall....) and then they spent the evening doing crafts! (good week to be gone huh!!!). They made halloween costumes for the girls, made halloween calendars, made more crafts, made messes, made more crafts,....you get the idea. They had a good time though and it worked out very well that her mom could come visit (Thanks Jane!) Here is a picture of them in the Model-T.
Other then the above things- life is good here in Michigan. We finally won a football game (Go Blue!). The Utes won an even better game against UCLA, and BYU lost! The perfect weekend for college football if you ask me. Jayda and Addison are doing well. Addison is almost crawling, sort of. She pulls up on all fours and then looks at you like "what do I do next". She is very cute, except for waking up 2-3 times a night to play. She isn't hungry, or wet, or anything else, she just wants to play at 1am, and 3 am, and then 6am again. She wakes up and sings, then it becomes a cry, then a scream. We are putting an end to it tonight though, if we are lucky.
We had our neighbor (professional photographer) take some pictures of the girls a few months ago. We finally got copies of them and thought we would share one. They are the cutest.
So Jayda started "pre-school" this week. It isn't really school, but more like a structured play group that gets together 2 days a week. It has 4 kids in it, all close to her age. She got to put on her backpack and walk over to the neighbors house and thought it was pretty exciting. She looked pretty cute. She was a little upset that she didn't get to ride the yellow bus that comes to pick up the big kids, but she still thinks it if fun to "go to school" and play with the others.
Each of the parents (the Mom's) takes turns each week to plan a lesson and have the kids over at their house. Our turn is in a few weeks, we will see how fun it is after that...
