Trip to Wisconsin

The kids have been feeling rather left out recently about all the trips Moin and I have been taking. So we decided to take them on their very own day trip to Eau Claire, Wisconsin (90 minutes away). We decided we would go to the Eau Claire county fair while there.

Let's go!

Sadly, it ended up being a chilly day so we didn't say long.
Zahra, of course, wasn't bothered one bit by the cold, even in shorts and crocs. This girl loves the outdoors!

We only stayed a bit, but Quinn managed to score a funnel cake before we left, which he was of course thrilled about.

Cute, but unrelated story - the last few days Penelope has started calling Zahra, "my best friend Zahra."
Some example sentences are:
"Where's my best friend Zahra?"
"I'm playing with my best friend Zahra right now"
"My best friend Zahra is sad"

Pretty cute, right?

Summer time park fun

The kids just can't get enough of playing outdoors and in the water. They all love summer! They have several "seasons" books, and when asked about their favorite season they all say summer. Quinn says winter is his second season because "at least you can play outside. In spring and fall it rains too much to play." He may have been born in California, but that kid is all Minnesota now!

 Here are some fun photos of them playing in the misters and on the swings at Chutes and Ladders Park. I feel like these photos just capture summertime fun.

Zahra had to show off her pedicure, obviously.

How is it that our kids are always the only ones running around in their underwear?

Happy 4th of July!

Happy belated 4th of July! We spent lots of time outdoors this past weekend, and discovered a new beach about 20 minutes away (located on Lake Minnetonka) that we all loved. 

I tried to paste two photos together above to get one of everyone smiling. you can't tell, right? :)

The girls were wiped out after all the fun!

On Friday, I needed to work so Quinn came along with me. Construction on our new lab space was just completed, so he got to be the first visitor!

Moin, Quinn, my dad and I also went to a Minnesota Lynx game. This was Quinn's first professional basketball game and probably his last for a while. He's enjoyed the baseball games he's attended so far, but didn't really loved watching basketball. He likes to play it, though.

It was a nice, lazy, long weekend.

In other summer news, the girls have been playing outside a lot lately and getting lots of knee scrapes. In a weird identical twin moment, they scraped the same knee at almost the same time the other day.

We also took away the girls' diapers for good a week ago, after a false start a couple months ago. penelope was trained instantly - she has yet to have a single accident. Zahra still has accidents from time to time but has also done a fantastic job. We're so proud of them!

Quinn's been doing the library summer reading program. When he completed his first ten hours he got a free book from the library and he and I went out for ice cream.

Then, when he completed his next ten hours the library gave him: a free book, a state fair ticket, a water park ticket, and a coupon for a free Culver's custard. Score! I think summer reading might count as his first summer job.

Gymnastics and other fun

The girls started lessons at a new gymnastics location this week and they LOVED it! Some pictures below.

They had the best time, and I loved watching them.

Some other recent fun events:
The kids got to meet Dora and Diego at the Mall of America!

They were so excited.

On the same day, Quinn created this apartment complex at the Lego store. In his word, "the tall tower is where me and the sisters will live mom, and you and dad will live in this little one."

Thanks a lot, man!

Happy Father's Day Moin!

We had a great day celebrating one super fantastic dad - Moin!

The kids and I all went out at 7 to get Moin donuts and coffee from Mojo Monkey.

I love this picture I got of Zahra waiting outside the tattoo parlor next door - PJ's and all!

Then, we took Moin to the farmers market downtown to select some plants for the backyard. Last year we went to the downtown farmers market almost every weekend in spring, but because of the delayed sunshine this year this was our first visit.

We spent the rest of the day outside, planting Moin's new plants, as well as the flower seeds sent by grandma amy.

The day ended with Quinn falling, getting a swollen lip and a bloody nose, and getting so scared that he threw up everywhere. And yes, taking care of that is part of Father's day, too!

We love you, Moin!

Summer kid updates

Some summer kid updates.

All three of the Syed children love swimming! And when it's not raining, it's actually warm enough to swim these past few weeks! Here's a few swimming pictures from our recent trip to Iowa.

Quinn went to the St. Paul public library summer reading kick-off today.

He kids a free book after reading for ten hours, and another after twenty. He did 1.5 today so if he stays motivated he'll be at 10 in no time. Apparently one of the bigger libraries also gives out state fair tickets for completing your time, so we'll investigate that for sure!

The girls have been saying some more funny things. This picture was taken while they were taking turns hugging and saying, "I love you!" "I love you, also!"

Penelope likes to make some sort of exclamation after you tell her something. Some of my favorites are, "Oh, I see" and "Oh, awesome!"
They also talk about everything in the past as "last time" or "sometimes"
For example, "I went to Iowa, last time"

Finally, Quinn has had an amazing time in summer camp so far. No pictures of that, but he's been rock-clibming, swimming, playing outside and doing art projects. He's come home exhausted and STARVING every day.

We're all just so happy that summer is here!