On the way home from work I went past the supermarket and thought I would treat myself to something sweet for iftar, having avoided chocolate and sweets for most of Ramadan so far. I forgot that you shouldn’t shop when you are hungry… Thankfully by the time I broke fast I didn’t want it any more […]
Despite my best efforts to find alternatives to television for my children (including not having one), Little Lady has developed a thing for all things female and Disney which has me worried. I know it’s not a big deal for little girls to like all things pretty, pink and princessy, but I am always concerned […]
I turned 40 this year alhamdulillah, a number that in my earlier years would have felt very old and unimaginably distant. But now having arrived at it, I still feel myself – human, flawed, youthful, enthusiastic about life, perhaps comfortable in myself and my body, if a little battered by life. This feels like a […]
I recently re-read this book having enjoyed it so much in the past.The book explores exactly the themes listed on its cover: The life of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan, the birth of Pakistan and the emergence of Islamic identity in the Indian subcontinent.Although it looks back as far as the appearance of the […]
Although we received tickets to the Paralympic swimming heats, what I really wanted to do was see the Olympic Park before it closed down for a year. There was lots of art installations and the venues to see, but I was particularly interested to view the various gardens. I really liked this waterfall. It was a hot day […]
It is absolutely crazy outside my house. I don’t think I have ever seen so many people in festive mood here. The traffic is gridlocked and the roads are heaving with shoppers and people just outside enjoying the atmosphere and women getting their henna done. However, the night before Eid-ul-Fitr is also a night of […]
Little Man started secondary school this week. I have been fretting for days about getting his stuff together. His school is so strict that having a missing item of equipment means detention. We also missed his induction evening before the holidays where all of the information we needed was handed out to parents. It was […]
Posted by Happy Muslim Mama at 21:26 Labels: 40 Day Challenge
I have always been an early riser and I have always found myself having better, more productive and more satisfying days when I wake early, particularly during that part of the year when I can stay awake after Fajr (dawn) prayer easily. During the current break from school and work, the whole family have been […]
I wasn’t expecting to see any more boot sales this year as they usually start winding up around now as the mornings get darker and the days colder. The better half suggested this morning that we leave the kids asleep with the brother-in-law to keep an eye on them and see if we could bag […]
After the intentions in my last post I had the strangest day today. I went to work with the intention of keeping my head down and just working hard and not giving anyone an excuse to get on my case. I had my one-to-one with my manager and had hoped to talk about development and […]
The latest edition of InCultureParent is out and includes my column “Islam and Child Discipline: Is Hitting Ever Ok?”: “I believe that, to an extent, we are a product of our own parent’s parenting. The way we respond to the world, our emotional reactions and our temperament, are influenced by our upbringing. I love my […]
One thing I love about my relationship about Little Lady is that we have great conversations. These are mainly about books, films, family, school, food and more books. But sometimes they are just about life and our perspective on things.One recent such conversation came about because she had been watching lots of hijab tutorials. I […]
Late last year I picked up the habit of morning journaling again. I have done this on and off for the last fifteen years or so. I have my paper journals which I fill with thoughts and ideas and bits of wisdom that resonate. These are left out where anyone can read them and I […]
