We spent Saturday morning at a local park with Mio, and had some interesting animal sightings! While Mio was on the swings, a fawn just casually trotted out of the bushes behind the swingset.
Deer sighting at Peterson Lane Park.
Skinny fawn. It was so tame, and wasn’t scared of us at all. It just kept walking around the area, eating as it went.
Also spotted by the playground: a cute little fox!
The fox looking at us.
I swear we don’t live in the sticks. haha* But it’s nice to see some wild animals once in a while… it shows that the neighborhood is pretty animal-friendly and a lot of the natural environment is well-preserved. 🙂
Bonus video of Mio cackling on the swings. (Sorry it’s overexposed. All photos and videos were taken on my phone.)
Since making the move to Virginia, I’ve been looking forward to going on trips and vacations together again with my family. When my siblings and I were kids, our parents would always take us to the Shenandoah Valley a few times a year, so much that we grew sick of going in our teenage years. But after spending a decade away from home, I actually came to miss going there with my parents and that time that we could spend together as a family. As I’ve grown older, I have a new appreciation for family trips (especially now that I have my own child), and it’s also probably due to the realization that such opportunities will become more and more rare as we all get older, have our own families, get busy with more of our own obligations, and our parents eventually won’t be as able-bodied anymore. It’s important to take these opportunities while we can, as well as appreciate and treasure these moments that we’ll eventually look back on as fond memories.
That’s why Dan and I were totally on board when my father suggested we take a family trip to West Virginia during the week of July 4th. We booked rooms at Breath of Heaven Bed & Breakfast in Petersburg, nestled along the Monongahela National Forest and Appalachian Mountains. My brother Ted and Elisa couldn’t come because they were on their honeymoon trip, but it was nice that most of our family could join in this peaceful getaway up in the mountains.
We spent a lot of Wednesday, July 3 traveling to our destination, and upon arriving were greeted by incredibly warm and sweet hosts Geri and Ed, and the quiet, beautiful landscape of mountains and valleys rich with trees. The bed & breakfast was lovely, and there were always homemade cookies and tea on hand and available for guests to eat.
Breath of Heaven Bed & Breakfast, the main lodge area where my parents and siblings stayed.
Here’s a video of the view of the countryside from the balcony of the main building.
Mio spent much of the evening on the porch swing and exploring the premises.
Dan, Mio, and I got our own little cabin/cottage (the owners called it a”cabbage” as a combination of the two) away from the main house. It was so cozy and nice!
Breakfast crepes with sausage made by owner Geri the following morning. I usually don’t like crepes because of how egg-y they taste, but these were delicious!!!
We spent a lot of July 4th hiking in nearby Dolly Sods. My family did a total of three hikes. I had to sit out on the longest one and rest in the car because I’m still pretty queasy and don’t have a lot of energy due to pregnancy.
Dan carried Mio for a lot of the hikes. Thank you Daddy!
Lush green forests and mountains at Dolly Sods.
Mio about to give Daddy a peck.
My dad was in heaven! He loves hiking in the great outdoors.
Mio and I taking a rest together.
Perched on a rock.
Giant rock formations at Dolly Sods.
“On top of the world!”
At the bog at Dolly Sods.
Seneca Rock
In the afternoon, we headed back to the bed & breakfast to rest and freshen up a little bit, and then in the evening went out for dinner and to watch the fireworks show in Petersburg. It was actually a pretty impressive 30-minute long show of fireworks! I think this is Mio’s first time seeing such large fireworks, but she wasn’t scared at all and kept saying “pika pika” (the Japanese word for “sparkly” or “shiny”) and “Wow!” Here’s an Instagram video I took!
The following morning, we were treated to another delicious breakfast by Geri. I think the breakfasts at Breath of Heaven are definitely one of the biggest highlights of the place. Geri is such a great cook!
Mio chowing down at breakfast.
French toast casserole, cheesy potatoes with bacon and onions, and orange slices. The best part is that we can always ask for seconds!
The family enjoying breakfast on the patio.
Mio and I spent a lot of our stay on this porch swing overlooking the countryside. So relaxing!
A family picture before leaving Breath of Heaven.
The Allens with the wonderful owners Geri and Ed. They made our stay so comfortable and enjoyable!
Before heading home, we stopped by a couple more scenic spots in West Virginia. The first was Blackwater Falls, which I’d been to before back in the summer of 2007, right before I moved to California.
Who knew that the next time I’d be back here, I’d have my own family?
The Yokoyama ladies at the falls.
Allen family picture ♥
Yokoyama family picture!
The Blackwater Falls
There were so many beautiful wildflowers everywhere we went, and Dan got some nice photos of them.
Mio getting pretty tired…
…but she perked up again when she got to share a popsicle with Auntie.
Our final stop was Lindy Point, which was a bit of a tiring trek for my pregnant self, but presented some beautiful views.
The view from Lindy Point.
I think we all felt refreshed from spending a few days in the tranquil countryside of West Virginia, getting away from the busy-ness of Northern Virginia and cutting off from technology — we didn’t have phone reception nor WiFi for most of our trip, so it forced us to power down and enjoy our surroundings, which was a good thing. While the scenery there is different from the grandiose spectacles of Yosemite and Big Sur back on the West Coast, it definitely has its own beauty. (No wonder John Denver goes on and on about it in “Country Roads,” his ode to the state!) West Virginia tends to get a bad rap, and while I confess to on occasion having poked fun at the neighbor state myself, I think there’s much to be appreciated in this wonderland of mountains, rivers and trees. We’ll definitely be back!
Yesterday was a very special day for our family, as my younger brother Ted got married to his girlfriend of four years, Elisa! Their wedding was at beautiful Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna. I had the honor of being a bridesmaid in the wedding, and it was great being a part of the lovely celebration of the happy couple’s love!
Mio and I before the wedding.
It rained a little in the afternoon, but the sun came out just in time for the ceremony!
Mio sharing a moment with her favorite uncle before the wedding.
Oh the excitement!
The ceremony begins with the mothers lighting the unity candle.
The groom Ted enters with his groomsmen.
Processional of the bridesmaids led by myself.
Here comes the bride!
Ted and Elisa at the altar
Reading their vows together… they had each other in tears. (A rarity since I haven’t seen Ted cry since he was a child!)
Exchange of rings
Officially husband and wife!
Happy groom!
Happy bride!
Cupcake tower at the wedding!
Loved their cake topper!
Mio got to sneak a mini cupcake before the reception began!
Entrance of the bride and groom at the reception
Mr. & Mrs. Ted & Elisa Yokoyama
The couple sharing their first dance.
…which then turned into the Harlem Shake!
The couple coming around to our table. Mio gets some love from Uncle Ted!
Congratulations Ted & Elisa!
Love this picture!
The bride & groom with our parents.
“Bottoms up!” This picture of Mio cracks me up.
Another gem of Mio… take note of her expression.
They even had goodie bags prepared for the kids at the wedding!
The cake-cutting!
Mio had so much fun on the dance floor!
Glowsticks in hand.
…and in her hair.
Mio and Mama dancing.
“Congratulations Uncle Ted!” Mio loves her uncle. 🙂
The whole wedding was a beautiful celebration that reflected Ted and Elisa very well. We wish them the best in their new life together as husband and wife. Welcome to the family, Elisa! Congratulations to the couple on this wonderful start to their happily ever after. ♥
Mio has recently discovered how to open the refrigerator door herself, and likes to rummage through to find something she wants to eat. The problem is that it takes her forever to locate something she actually likes, so we have to speed up the process by pointing at each food and ask her “Do you want ____?” to which she usually answers with a “No….” This continues for a while before we finally point at something she wants, to which she’ll either answer “Yesh” (which sometimes sounds like “Shesh”) or just starts giddily giggling to show that she approves of said food. It’s usually something like yogurt, strawberries, or watermelon.
We captured a funny moment this week when Mio was going through the fridge again, and my sister offered her some yogurt… but when opened, the container was actually filled to the brim with baked beans (left over from a BBQ we had with family friends last weekend). We couldn’t help but chuckle at Mio’s reaction: a mixture of confusion, bewilderment, betrayal, and disappointment. The way she says “bean” and “no” at the end gets us every time we watch it.
Sorry Mio! I’ll make sure to pick you up some of your favorite yogurt soon. 🙂
We took our first trip to the beach this summer on Sunday, when we went to North Beach, Maryland, which is part of the Chesapeake and only an hour drive away. (We had originally planned to go to Rehoboth but decided to save that for a whole weekend when we could stay overnight, as it’s a 3 hour drive away.) North Beach was a cute little town and while the beach was small, it was pretty private and ideal for small children in that there were no strong waves and the water remained shallow pretty far in. We felt that it was a really safe beach for Mio to splash around in.
At first, Mio was very upset and reluctant about stepping onto the sand, and just kept pointing at the water saying “ocean!” from our beach mat, imploring us to just carry her over to the water so that her little feet wouldn’t have to to touch the dreaded sand. Once she got into the water, though, she loved it and kept going in and out and splashing around in it with Daddy for about two hours! The Atlantic is so much warmer than the Pacific waters that we’d taken Mio to in California and Hawaii, so this was the first time she could really stay in the water for a long time without freezing! By the end, she didn’t even seem to notice the sand because she’d had so much fun.
Mio and I at the beach. I didn’t realize until Dan mentioned it, but we match!
She loves the water!
Our little waterbug ♥
Going further into the water with Daddy
Dan teaching Mio how to kick in the water.
Daddy throwing Mio up high!
Family picture!
After spending a few hours on the beach, we packed up, enjoyed some Rita’s Italian Ice and then headed to lunch at Neptune’s Seafood Pub nearby because we were craving shrimp! All the food there was delicious, and Mio discovered how much she loves sour cream. (She kept dipping every food she tried in the sour cream, and then ended up just scooping it up by the handful with her little fingers. She definitely has her Daddy’s taste buds, because I hate sour cream.)
Steamed seasoned shrimp and potato skins!
The hubs with a mouthful of shrimp chorizo tacos… And of course, the little hand sneaking in.
I love that summer is officially here and I look forward to more little mini trips and outings to the beaches in the area! 🙂
