The Mitchell’s are BACK!! After almost 2 years in Germany we moved back to Oklahoma City late July. After much renovation we are back in the house. While in Europe we managed to work in trips to many of the tourist hot spots, enjoyed visits from family, and experienced some wonderful German cuisine. The Christmas Markets were amazing and we shopped many a Flowmarkt with our Saturday morning breakfast club. In 2011 we traveled to Prague in January (my favorite), February found us in a very cold Berlin, March we traveled to Venice for Carnival and to Dublin for St. Patrick’s day, April was Paris and May was Switzerland and all over Germany, June we went to Munich to see the summer sights (our first trip in Germany was in the middle of winter to Munich and this is definitely a town of many seasons) and in July we flew back to Oklahoma City. We took thousands of pictures of our travels and are enjoying the slideshows now that we are HOME.
Mom has purchase a garden home in Norman and is in the process of downsizing. The other house is for sale and very tempting but the Greenview would have to sell first so we are leaving this in God’s hands. Mom joined us in Germany for almost 3+ weeks in May and we worked in several Castles, a trip to the Black Forest and to the small town of Alsheim (tracking our ancestral line). It was fun to imagine family members walking the town square and working in the vineyards. My brother Pat managed a visit that coincided with Mom’s and it was so nice to catch up with him. His passion for wine and beer making prompted us to try and find a brewery tour but the only I could find (during his visit) were only in German. Pat and Alan took a side trip to Munich and enjoyed the sites as well as the famed Hofbräuhaus. And they will never forget the STAU (major traffic jam) they sat in on the way home.
I hit the ground running upon return to OKC and am happy to be back in the same general time zone as my staff. Alan has been overseeing the house renovations, chauffeuring me around and spending time with family as well as taking over most of our meal preparation. He spent some time in Pennsylvania in October earning certification for heavy equipment appraising so when we decide it is time for him to go back to work full time this might be the path he pursues.
It has been 2 (or more years) since I have bragged about my family so I will take a few minutes to do this now. Sean and April manage to stay busy at work with Sean working for the new owners of PDA OKC and April taking on extra duties supervising staff in the Radiology department. They work in several lake trips with family and friends each summer and spend many hours in the gym with Sean coaching Ryan’s basketball team. Ryan has grown, shooting up past April and will soon be taller than I am. She enjoys reading, basketball, skating AND dance. We managed to stay close via SKYPE with regular video calls while in Germany but sure are enjoying spending time together now that we are back. Michael and Annaleise added a new family member when Isabella Grace made her appearance in September 2010. Michael remains at Oklahoma Christian and recently accepted the position of Director of Admissions. Annaleise is enjoying being a stay at home mom only working one evening a week. Michael and Annaleise both are runners and work in a race every now and then. Isabella’s face lights up when she sees us and already knows that Cappy will do almost anything for her. Her vocabulary is growing with new words every time we seen her. And her walking skills have opened up a whole new world for her. We are so BLESSED to be able to spend so much time with family!
Upon return to Oklahoma we leased a lot and purchased a 23 yr old 5th wheel parked at Lake Carl Blackwell. The lot is right BY Phil and Sondra (brother/sister-in-law) with a large deck and a dock for our boat (now if there were only water in our cove). We spent a few weekends at the end of the summer enjoying the view from the deck and spending time with family. My brother Perry made a trip to OKC in August to ask us in person to be Caleb’s guardians; he and Tiffany were finalizing paperwork and wanted to make it official. We are honored and will gladly stand in if this should ever be needed. Alan managed to see sister Lea Ann and kids at Gettysburg while in Pennsylvania, it was a whirlwind trip but nice for him to see them. We spent a couple of months with Alan’s parents while our home was being vacated and renovated and loved being there with them. Evening meals are great when shared with extended family. Sister Donita and family send frequent emails, texts and we SKYPE but we miss them. We’ve enjoyed seeing sister Julie and family on occasion at Mom and Dad’s or family birthday celebrations.
So there you go, all caught up with the 2011 comings and goings of the Mitchell’s. We are glad to be home and we extend prayers to your family as we celebrate CHRISTmas and the end of 2011!
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