Virginia is for Lovers: Day Eleven

Jonathan and I took the kids in the stroller and went on a run down the W&OD trail, which I found out stands for the Washington and Old Dominion Trail. Cool eh? It's a wonderful path that goes for miles and miles. It's lovely.

One thing I'm seriously loving about Virginia is the outlets. Yesterday we went on another family outing to the outlets. It's not quite as fun with 3 kids, but still enjoyable. I've already done enough shopping, so it was nice to be able to help Ie Li out with the kids so she could do some shopping for herself. Note: When shopping at the Leesburg outlets, I would advise you not to eat at the food court--I'm not a fan.

When Stephen woke up from his nap we made a short trip to the pool to cool off. A nice man let Stephen play with a toy boat. He LOVED it.


Mei Li met a friend named Samantha.


Kids are funny. They can meet someone and be friends with them instantly. Mei Li is really good at that. When I told her it was time to go, she decided she needed to hop back in the pool to give Samantha (the girl she had met only minutes ago) a hug goodbye. I wish I were better at making friends. I think that will be a new goal for me. Thanks, Mei Li, for being a great example of friendship.

Ie Li picked up some delicious pizzas for dinner and Mei Li and Stephen had some blueberries for a side. I only got Stephen on camera though. I think he liked them.

After the kids were in bed we all watched Sherlock Holmes. I may or may not have taken a nap during it, but it was ok, because I had already seen it. Once upon a time when I lived in Provo I had a friend named Jon-Michael who would randomly invite me to see movies with him. Sherlock Holmes was one of them. I'm excited to go back to school in Provo and be with wonderful friends.

Virginia is for Lovers: Day Ten

We went on our first family outing. Three babies and three adults piled into the van and we headed to world market to look for some things to decorate Ie Li's new house. We bought a couple curtain rods but Ie Li thinks she's taking them back.

After Ie Li put Stephen to sleep, Mei Li asked me to play Hello Animals with her. Hello Animals is pretty much Mei Li's life in animal form. I usually play mom, dad, and aunt. I'm not very good at it. At least, I get pretty bored with my dialog. But Mei Li usually doesn't mind. If I'm slacking off, she'll tell me my lines.

I baked a delicious treat yesterday. I call them oatmeal fudge bars, but I don't know their real name. It's pretty much oatmeal cookie dough and melted milk chocolate with sweetened condensed milk. It's pretty delicious.

I didn't take any pictures yesterday. I'll try to take more and keep up with blogging.

Virginia is for Lovers: Day Nine

HOT and STICKY. Those are about the only words to describe Wednesday. I believe the high was 101 degrees. That combined with the Virginia humidity did not make for the best weather. Luckily we were able to cool off at the pool early in the morning and then stay in the air conditioned house the rest of the day.

Jonathan and I hit the outlets that night and found some good finds at the nike store and the GAP. We came home and decided to go on a little run. Thank goodness it had cooled down to a whopping 88 degrees by 10:30 PM or else we might have sweat a lot or something.

Virginia is for Lovers: Day Eight

I have officially been in Virginia for one week now and it's been so much fun. I've got family, friends, and beautiful green countryside. What more could a girl ask for?

Today we made a trip to Costco for some essentials like Dannon Light & Fit. I've never been a huge yogurt fan, but I do love their vanilla flavor. But, I'm pretty sure we get it because Steven LOVES yogurt. Today I'm pretty sure I saw him down one whole yogurt cup for breakfast and 3 full bowls of Greek yogurt mixed with honey later on in the day. He's a yogurt fiend as Ie Li put it.

It was another extremely hot day. Jonathan, Mei Li and I watched a bit of Anne of Avonlea and then when Stephen woke up we attempted to go to the park. Bad idea. We got there and I said, "Ok kids, you have ten minutes and then we have to go home." We did just that.

Barrett came to pick me up around 6 so we could spend the evening in Purcellville. We arrived at his house and I met Brother and Sister Johnson while they were getting ready for dinner. They are both lovely people. Barrett gave me the tour of both the inside and the outside of the house and it is simply beautiful there.

I met Barrett's little sister, Lauren, when she came for dinner. She was super nice and cute. Dinner was splendid and then Barrett, Lauren, and I took off for downtown Purcellville to get some ice cream. On our way there, Barrett pointed out a place called Field of Flowers where you can go and cut your own flowers to take home! I'm determined to go with Ie Li and Mei Li before my trip is over. We arrived at Gruto's and I noticed their funny hours:


That whole town is just so picturesque. I can't handle the cuteness. We took our ice cream to go and watched the sun as it set over Franklin Park. It was spectacular.

We headed back to the Johnson's and the whole time we were driving I just kept thinking that one day I need to live in Purcellville, and if that's not possible, somewhere in the country because it's just too beautiful to not have in my everyday life. We sat outside for a little while and watched the fireflies roam through the fields and the trees. It was a gorgeous sight. I even caught a couple and one lit up in my hand. Special.


Brother Johnson and Barrett drove me home to Ashburn, where I recorded a glorious account of my adventures in Purcellville.

Virginia is for Lovers: Day Seven

July 5, 2010 was a hot day. We cooled off in the pool.


The sun was bright. Mei Li is a cutie.


Mei Li requested the song Joshua Giraffe by Raffi on our way to the pool. It is indeed one of the most interesting songs I've ever heard. You should check it out if you get bored sometime.

Virginia is for Lovers: Day Six

The fourth of July is one of my most favorite holidays. I don't remember the last time it fell on a Sunday, but it did yesterday. I feel like most wards sing patriotic songs the Sunday before or after the fourth, but yesterday we sang patriotic songs and it was the real day--what a treat! I can't say that I'm extremely patriotic year round, but when the fourth rolls around, it's hard not to be.

I love this country and I love the freedoms we have. I am so grateful for all the sacrifices the founding fathers made for this country and the sacrifices that soldiers make for this country every day. And in the words of Lee Greenwood, "I'm proud to be an American." We sang America the Beautiful for the closing hymn and everyone stood up and I couldn't help but get a little teary-eyed. America is beautiful.

So, if anyone looks on my facebook, there is a little box under my picture that gives a pronunciation guide of my name because it's not uncommon for people to say it wrong and after the 3rd or 4th time of correcting someone I pretty much give up. Another thing that should be noted is that there are quite a few people in my family that have similar names. I'll just write down the ones that kind of sound alike:
Ie Mei
Ie Li
Ie Ling
Mei Li
Mylee
Ailee

Well, yesterday I attended my sister's ward and they read in all the names of her family. I couldn't help but chuckle when they said "I" Li Zackrison because it's not only a mispronunciation of Ie Li's name but also the name of my niece. Then we went to Relief Society and there was a conversation like this:

Nice lady 1: Are there any visitors?
Me: We're Ie Li Zackrison's sisters.
Nice lady 1: Well, we're glad to have you.
Nice lady 2: Oh, you have to listen to their names!
Me: I'm Ie Ling.
Ie Mei: I'm Ie Mei.
Nice lady 3: Oh that's beautiful! There's Ie Li, Elaine, and Ie Mei. (I'm not sure why everyone hears Elaine when I say my name)
Nice lady 1: Oh that's right Eli (Like the boy's name, Eli) was telling me that all the girls have Oriental names and the boys have American names...and it looks like she's doing the same!

It cracks me up at least. I don't ever really get upset when people say my name wrong, it makes for good stories.

After church Jonathan and I piled into the Tay Team vehicle and went on a tour of their old stomping grounds in Oakton. I was partially asleep while we were driving, but we pulled up to their old ward building and I sleepily said, "Holler if you see Sister Livingston (The mother of my dear friend, Gregory.)" There were obviously slim chances of that, but then Brad said, "There she is!" So we pulled up and she looked surprised to see the Taylors after a four year absence. She didn't realize I was in the car and said, "Greg's really had fun getting to know your sister!" to which Ie Mei replied, "Oh she's right here." And that was when I was introduced to the famous Sister Livingston who I had only heard about. This was the woman who sent grand packages to Greg during the year and after our brief meeting, it has been confirmed that she is indeed lovely.

On our way home we stopped at Bull Run which was pretty cool. We snapped a couple good shots.





We then hurried home so that Jonathan and I could grab a quick bite to eat and head to downtown for the fireworks display. Steve made us some delicious brats and then Barrett picked us up and we were off!

I don't think I'll ever be in D.C. for the fourth of July again, so I'm glad I was able to go to downtown. There is nothing as beautiful as watching the fireworks on the 4th of July, in the nation's capital, under the Washington Monument. I'm so glad I got to go and be around so many monuments dedicated to our nation's leaders and heroes on that special day.



We ended up walking about 1 hr and 45 min. to get back to our car that was parked at the Pentagon and then we were on our way home. It was a wonderful day. God Bless America.

Virginia is for Lovers: Day Five

Saturday was a fun-filled day. The Taylor clan arrived and a few of us walked to the library to read some books. We returned for lunch and realized that it can get a little crazy with 7 children running around the house, so we decided that the park would be a great place to release some energy.



Unfortunately it was extremely hot and sunny, so we didn't stay too long.

Mei Li and Mylee talked Ie Mei and I into painting their nails.



Our friend, Barret Johnson, let us in on a little secret. A little town called Lovettsville shoots fireworks off on the 3rd of July for some reason or another. We decided to make a family outing out of it (Barrett joined us too) and it turned out to be a great time. There weren't too many people there and the kids just ran around on the field and the playground until it was time for the fireworks to start.

Most of the kids had fun, but Mylee thought it was too loud and all Stephen could do was cover his ears and say, "This is scary. I don't like it!" It was kinda sad, but cute and funny at the same time. I didn't think it was too loud or too scary. It was just right.



We all piled into our cars and Mylee was talking to be while I was buckling her in and she said, talking about Barrett, "Is that your boyfriend?" Which was funny because Lance had said earlier, "So Ie Ling, is that your B-O-Y-F-R-I-E-N-D??" To which I had to reply no. But I did complement him on his spelling.