Oh the weather outside is FRIGHTFUL

Snow. Snow. Snow.

Yesterday we woke up to a blanket of white covering our cars, our lawn, our street - our whole city! It was pretty for about 5 seconds until we had to go out and drive in it. Fortunately, some of it started melting yesterday, but that was short-lived.

This morning I woke up to more snowfall, and at this moment, the flakes are still falling! In other words, I am trapped within the walls of my home all day. I was supposed to go up to the school and chat with my old boss, but that is postponed until tomorrow when Devin can drive me. Yes, I avoid driving in the snow at all costs. That is one advantage of being unemployed - very few driving commitments.

That is one HUGE advantage to Arizona. Though the weather is hot in the summer, it does not prevent you from traveling. Actually, when I was at home at Thanksgiving, I wrote a blog post in my head about all the wonderful benefits of living in Arizona. Maybe someday I'll write it on my page.

In unrelated news - the Christmas spirit is abundant in the Mitchell home these days! Devin's uncle had an extra fake tree, so we have a beautiful 6.5 foot Chelsea fir in our living room! We also bought a few inexpensive decorations at Big Lots last week. (Haha, remember when Big Lots was called MacFrugal's? And we referred to "morning breath" as "MacFrugal breath?" Anyone?)

This past weekend we went to the Festival of Trees at the South Towne Center. It was really fun, and the trees were quite impressive! But the coolest part of the night was going to Murray and seeing the Christmas house. A family decorated their house with hundreds and thousands of lights, bought out the airwaves on FM 99.9, and choreographed their lights to Christmas music! It was so fun!! Here's the address and more info if you're interested: christmasutah.com

I haven't posted about Thanksgiving yet. Can you believe I didn't take a single picture the entire weekend?? I was too busy having fun! I'll write about the details soon!

Pictures of our sparsely decorated home later. 18 days to Christmas. 15 days to Seattle.

Chim Chiminey

Fifteen days into November and I'm just now blogging about Halloween. Oh well!

Originally, Devin and I weren't going to dress up. However, I love dressing up - always have - so the day of Halloween, I decided we were going to the ward Halloween party and we would be in costume.

So... After a trip to 2 different D.I.'s, 1 Savers, 1 Michael's, 1 Burlington Coat Factory, and about $15 dollars, here's the final product:

Mary Poppins and Bert, the Chimney Sweep :) I was Mary Poppins 2 years ago, so I already had the hat and a few other things. What can I say - it was my favorite movie as a kid. I was singing Chim Chiminey and Supercalifragilistiexpialidocious when I was 2.

A few key things missing from our costumes:

1. Mom's authentic Mary Poppins bag. I try to hide mine in all the pictures because it is just not very good

2. Black soot on Devin's face; we forgot

We had a good time and got lots of compliments on the outfit. Not too shabby for last minute.

"I'd know that silhouette anywhere... Mary Poppins!"

Fun, Fall-time Family Visit

Next, the week after "wedding week," my parents came to Provo for BYU Homecoming weekend. We always love having them in town!

After a trip to visit their dear friend, Kavita, we had a special visit from my Poppy's half-nephew, Richard Allen. He represents a side of our extended family that we really don't know much at all. It was really neat to hear his stories and get to know him a little!

The timing of Dad and Mom's visit coordinated quite nicely with Emily and Michael's Utah wedding reception. We drove up to Layton on Friday evening to celebrate with them again.

36 years of marriage and they're still cheesy :)

I blend in so nicely with the wall

Saturday was the day of days: the much-anticipated TCU vs BYU homecoming game! ESPN College Gameday was in Provo and everything! Too bad the football team forgot how to play. It was rather embarrassing, but we still enjoyed ourselves!

Plastic tarp blankets and an endless supply of Magleby's pancakes :)

Mom was an expert at hiding our contraband (i.e. food and water)

After church on Sunday, Mom wanted to see the remaining fall leaves. Unfortunately, the best colors had already faded, but we stopped outside the football stadium to capture a few pictures with the leftover scenery.

"Have I told you how cute you looked today?"

I look like a shrimp - I was wearing flats.

Thanks for the visit, Mom and Dad! You're welcome anytime - we love the company!

Weddings

October was a jam-packed month, so I have a lot of catching up to do! I'll start with the week after California when 2 of my best friends got married.

First was Vanessa and Dana. They were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple. It was so neat to be part of their special day! They looked so happy!

She's about 5 feet tall so I always feel like a giant next to her!

Next was extra special! My maid-of-honor, cousin, best friend, Emily was sealed to Michael in the Mesa Temple! It was sad not to have Devin there with me since he had to work, but it was great to be in the temple with her. She looked so beautiful! Her dress was amazing and the whole day was so nice (but very very warm! good thing we're desert rats!)

Stay tuned for Mom and Dad's visit to Provo and Halloween.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Wow, autumn is full of birthdays for the Allen family!

My Dad's birthday is tomorrow, but Devin will have the computer all day. So, I'll do his blog today!

What can you say about my dad? Since I was Mary Poppins for Halloween, I'll quote her. My dad is "practically perfect in every way!" If anyone needs a hero, you can find one in my dad.

He is full of love. He loves the Lord, he loves his wife, he loves his children, he loves his grandchildren, he loves all of his family, he loves all of his stake members - he loves all people with a pure love. (And they all love him!) I think he has a gift for seeing people as the Lord's children, which gives him a greater capacity to love. He is stalwart in the gospel of Jesus Christ; that is apparent in every aspect of his life.

My dad is great at having fun! He is - to this day - the best water skier I have ever seen! That may also be true of snow skier (although my mom gives him a run for his money). For years, he played basketball several mornings a week. He loves sporting events - football, baseball, basketball, etc. He inherited his father's green thumb; he produces a great garden every year! As I've mentioned in previous blogs, my dad can fix anything. He somehow knows how everything works and can, thus, identify what's wrong with it in order to fix it.

Ok, I could go on and on and on about my dad. But I've probably already embarrassed him enough - he may make me delete this blog. I feel really lucky to have been the youngest of his children because it gave me 9 years (sometimes just summers) to live at home with just my parents and get to know them really well and love them as my best friends. My dad is the first one I turn to for advice in many many areas of life.

I love you, Dad! I hope your 29th birthday is spectacular :) You're always my number one guy! (well, besides Devin :) )

Happy Birthday, Michael!

Today is my oldest brother, Michael's birthday!

There is a lot to say about him - I'll try to keep it all nice :) Just kiddin'.

Michael is one of the least selfish people I know. He does everything for his kids and family. He is about the best dad and husband I know. His kids love him so much - in fact, I remember one time he called me, and he was sitting (clothed) in the bathtub trying to hide from his littlest daughter because she kept following him - she always wanted to be around her daddy!

Actually, EVERYBODY loves Michael because he's hilarious and knows how to get people to laugh and to like him. Ex: he has been known to wear a fake mustache to work (he's a dentist) so that his patients laugh and feel at ease.

Michael is a man of many abilities. He, like my dad, can do anything and fix anything around the house or yard. Michael is an extremely hard worker and he always has to be doing something! As I alluded to earlier, his first loves in life are his wife and kids; but a close second is surfing. He is obsessed! He follows the tides to know when the waves will be in, he makes surfboards, plays fantasy surfing (who knew that existed?), and is on the beach whenever it is possible.

Michael is a great older brother. You can be sure that when you're with him, you'll be laughing. I love you, Michael!

So I'm using a different computer for this, and I can't get this pic big enough to tell if it's Matt or Michael. But we'll pretend it's Michael :)

California Dreamin'

We finally got to go to the beach! The summer was not complete without it. My whole family met up to play on the beach and go to Disneyland for Jeni's birthday! Unfortunately, Baylor and Gunner left early and I never got to see them :( But it was a blast seeing everyone else! I apologize that I don't have pictures of everyone. So here's a glimpse of the fun!





I had a few MUST DO items on my Disneyland list:

1. Eat a pickle
2. Eat a chocolate nut-covered banana
3. Eat a churro
4. Ride Space Mountain

And you can bet I accomplished all four!


I love love love my siblings, nieces and nephews, parents, and Devin! It was so great to be around them all (and it would have been even better with Baylor and Gunner!) All of the nieces and nephews loved me (which made me happy) with one exception: Crew! Can you believe that I, who used to be his favorite, was ignored by the little guy the whole time? Hopefully he'll grow out of it soon! At least he's still super cute :)

Can't wait for Thanksgiving!