Family!

BY MARIA SMIETANA

Before making Willowsford their home, Nishil and Meera Patel lived in Alexandria. “We enjoyed the semiurban lifestyle before children came into the picture and while they were still very young,” said Nishil, who grew up in Maryland and is a University of Maryland-College Park grad. “But once they started getting closer to school age, we loved the idea of having more space, a huge community for them to make friends and explore, as well as terrific schools to attend.”

The family moved to the Grant in December of 2019, just a few months before the Covid lockdowns went into place. “We feel so fortunate to have become great friends with many of our wonderful neighbors,” said Meera, a native Texan and alum of the University of Texas at Austin. It’s always a win-win when the children enjoy playing with each other and the parents can also get together and have their own fun.”

The Patels are Americans of Indian descent and living in a big multicultural neighborhood like Willowsford makes it easy to introduce cherished celebrations to other families while being introduced to theirs. “We’ve made it a tradition to celebrate various holidays throughout the year,” Nishil said. “In spring we did a streetwide Easter egg hunt hop from house-to-house, and for the past three years, we’ve celebrated Holi (the Indian festival of colors and the welcoming of spring) with our neighbors by throwing colored powder on each other while enjoying food, drinks and music outside.”

“Diwali is the Indian holiday the kids enjoy the most,” Meera added.” The kids make a “rangoli”; (a bright and colorful pattern usually made out of colored sand and/or rice which represents the happiness, positivity and liveliness of a household). And during the holiday [Christmas] season, we like to go drive around the neighborhood to see the lights and decorations.”

The Patel’s daughter Ayna, 8, has a strong creative side. She loves arts and crafts, journaling, and is already a good writer and storyteller. Dance is her big passion. “She takes Bollywood dance lessons at Moksha Arts, owned and directed by a Willowsford friend and neighbor, Punchali Khanna Kumar, and has gone to perform in NYC twice now for the studio’s annual recital,” said Meera. “She recently started playing tennis and is really enjoying it.”

Middle child Saiyan loves sports, and even though he’s only 6, he has already played soccer, flag football, basketball and baseball over the past few years. He’s also a Lego fan. When he’s outside, he plays with the neighborhood kids who have become his best buds. “He is super goofy and always knows how to make us laugh with his silly impressions and jokes,” said Nishil.

Shaylan, 2, “is our little troublemaker who always gets his way; the baby of the family who melts our hearts and has completed our little family,” said Mom. “Anyone who knows him knows that he has to have his Ellie (his elephantshaped lovey) around for comfort. He adores his big sister and brother and follows them around the house and participates in whatever antics they are getting into.”

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“With three little kids, we don’t get much of a chance to relax,” Nishil laughed. “When we do, it’s usually after the kids get to bed and Meera and I can enjoy a quiet evening watching a movie. Meera also enjoys reading books and crafting, and I like staying on top of sports, cars, technology and investing. With the kids, we like to get away to the beach once or twice a year and we often take advantage of the great amenities the community has to offer, especially the resort-style pools, walking trails, and the zipline. Ayna did the Junior Chef’s Academy last year and loved it!”

During summer break, the Patels make it a point to see as much of the world as they can. They have taken family trips to Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Paris, Italy, Greece, Scotland, London, Mexico, Bahamas, Hawaii and other parts of the U.S. Back at home, Friday pizza night and Saturday movie and family sleepover night have become established traditions for the Patels.

“Our most recent favorite is Knead and Wine in Middleburg,” Meera said. “We also go strawberry picking every year at Wegmeyer Farms. It was one of the first activities we were able to get out and do after the COVID lockdowns and so have made it a point to go annually since.”

The Patels chose “adventurous, loving, and thankful” as the words to describe their family.