Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Mooooove Over

The past few weeks have been very busy. We moved! We decided to say good bye to the city life and move closer to the country.

I have a lot of blogging to catch up on. Lots of ideas to share and lots of catching up to do. 

Please bear with me as I get back into the blogging rhythm.

For now I have a cute little wish list going on to make our home our own. 


Gorgeous Reclaimed Wood: Hudson Reclaimed Furniture

Knit Chair By: Claire-Anne O'Brien

Wool Throw: woolme





Thursday, October 11, 2012

Kale Chips

Today a friend so generously shared fresh kale from her garden. I thought it was finally time to make my own batch of kale chips.

Surprisingly your little ones will enjoy these crunchy munchies! 

What you need:
Kale
Sea Salt
Olive Oil 

Preheat oven to 350, pop in for 15 minutes and tadaaa! 


Before

After



Thursday, October 4, 2012

DIY- Crayon Wreath


I wanted to make a few handmade gift this year for Eid. I made for my sweet sister in law. She has a background in education so I knew she would have the perfect place to hang it. Apart from making sure the crayons were straight, this craft was fairly easy. 

This is an awesome gift for a child or adult. You can easily google this and find hundreds of versions of it. I wanted to add their names to personalize it. 



Tuesday, September 25, 2012

What Inspires you?

Meet Mona! She is the beauty and the brains behind Modern Hejab

Hi Mona, isn't she pretty! Mashallah 


Mona doing her thing!

Mona and I got to chat about what inspired her to start her own business. You can read it for yourself in her own words. 

“What inspired you to do that?” A common question posed to the creators, developers and dreamers of the world.  I suppose I have been inspired many times in my life. Each time it stemmed from a different place. It was either, a deep place within me, force acting upon me or a combination of both. Wherever the inspiration came from, it was strong enough to influence a change in my life. I am often asked why I decided to start an online hijab store when I already had a career as an elementary school teacher.  Why would I step so far out of my expertise?

 Honestly, I did not realize I was building my business while it was happening. It was kind of an accident. In teacher terms, it is like starting an assignment with a pretty good idea. You work on it carefully but you are just looking at the functional concept of the assignment and getting it done on time; no extras. Then you keep working on it, adding a little here and there. Next, a friend or family member sees you working and starts to give you ideas and guidance. Finally, to your surprise you have this incredible A+ assignment that you cannot wait to show off to the world.  That assignment for me was Modern Hejab.

I should back up enough to tell you about what first got me to this “assignment”. I started wearing hijab in December of 2008. My decision to wear hijab came after a great deal of internal exploration. I had taken a great deal of time and care to understand where I belonged in the large Muslim world. I had begun to ask questions to understand my religion beyond its pillars. I wanted to understand what it really meant to be a Muslim. Although I was a born Muslim, it always puzzled me that the concept choosing to be a Muslim was foreign to almost everyone I knew. Why would you choose to be something you already are? My desire to be a Muslim or not was never a question. It was deeper than that. I wanted to make a conscious decision to be a Muslim so I would live it, breathe it and represent it to the best of my ability. I made sure I was 100% convinced of Islam and all that being a Muslim was. I was ready now to put my faith forward for the world to see. I was ready to wear my hijab as helmet as a proud and dedicated soldier of my God and my religion. I knew that I would be dodging words and comments like I had seen my mother do numerous times. I had seen her criticized and questioned about every aspect of her faith, yet she never wavered nor ever doubted what she believed in. I wanted to do the same.

Of course the choice to wear hijab was a journey on its own! I, like many other 22 year olds was vain. That’s the most honest way of saying it.  I liked my hair and I was not ready to cover it up. I didn’t want to change the way I dressed. Unfortunately, to add to my vanity, I hadn’t seen enough examples of mohajabat that dressed well and took care of themselves. I thought I had to be frumpy and I couldn’t have fashion and faith at the same time. “Fashion” and “Muslim” were not two words often, or ever for that matter used in the same sentence.  I simply didn’t have enough role models to show me that I could still be me, and be true to my faith. After spending endless amount of time, going into my mother’s room, putting on the hijab, walking around the house, then putting it back, I asked myself: “Why do I keep taking it off?”. Knowing the fears I had and the hesitation I experienced in starting to wear hijab, I knew that I was surely not alone. Whatever fears I had, other young women had too and I wanted to find a way to bring together fashion and faith.

Thus began the journey to start to Modern Hejab. Initially, it was just going to be a small basement business. I wanted to encourage and inspire other young women to wear hijab. I wanted them to see the beauty and freedom that hijab offers. I wanted them to see how their faces would glow when showcased in a lovely scarf. I wanted them to see how Allah makes us more beautiful with our hijab because all you can see is our faces, no other distractions. 

Like any assignment, it started small; very basic. Then, with some time, and passion and lots of help, it grew little by little to encompass more than I could ever have imagined. I never pictured myself making hijab tutorials, although I had watched hundreds of them. I never pictured myself doing radio or newspaper interviews, although I always admired the strong women who did.  I thank God every day for bringing me this assignment. For like most assignments; you learn the most when you least expect to. It’s a matter of keeping your heart and mind open for all the possibilities and remember to take a few risks too.




Wednesday, September 5, 2012

A Summer Detox





We are back at home from our week away. It was refreshing and relaxing but we missed all things Canadian. With the hustle and bustle of every day life one can easily forget the passing of this season. Summer is transitioning into fall and rain pours itself onto the trees, grass and roads. Today the clouds teased us but there was no rain in sight. We trek up a hill  and nestle into the freshly cut grass. We hear the birds chirp away, the crowd cheer for the soccer players below us. We pull out our brushes, paper and paint away for hours on end.

How does your family detox from a busy summer?



Friday, August 10, 2012

DIY: Melted Crayon Heart


So I finally decided to try melted crayon art. I have seen it all over the Internet and YouTube for months now. I have to say this project was really time consuming. My little guy definitely found it boring to sit thru this. My advice is to have most of the project started and let your little ones watch the crayons melt. Zaki helped me unpeel some of the crayons, arrange in color order and hold the blow dryer to melt crayons... but he was pretty restless.

Here is what you will need (I purchased all the items from the dollar store) 

72 Box of Crayola crayons (they melt best) 
Blank canvas
Glue gun 
Blow dryer 
Acrylic paint  (optional: black or silver works best)
Newspaper to cover your surface

1) Paint canvas with acrylic paint
2) Fold a sheet of construction paper and cut into a heart. Most tutorials I saw were arranging the crayons in a straight line but I decided to change it up and make a heart
3) I don't care much for crayola so I decided to peel the wrappers
4) Separate the peeled crayons and color coordinate them. ROYGBV (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet)
5) Glue them onto your canvas. This can be tricky if its done without the wrappers.
6) Put your blow dryer on low heat and start melting the crayons. BE CAREFUL and make sure to cover all surfaces this stuff splatters!

 Tadaaa our completed art! 

And the winner is the 17th entry which belongs to Rema. Jazakallah khair to all of you who entered! Inshallah you can win our next give away. Rema please email your details to alif2yaa@gmail.com within the next 48 hours to redeem your prize.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Date & Honey Cupcakes


No Ramadan is complete without Date & Honey Cupcakes! Check out the delicious recipe here: BackerActer Confections

Monday, July 30, 2012

Eid Giveaway: Eastern ToyBox

I just received my Eid order from Eastern ToyBox. I am in LOVE with their products. I have a soft spot for all things handmade. Not only all these products handmade, Eco-friendly, fair-trade but they are  economically priced! All their products are absolutely drool worthy but my little heart is melting over the adorable Hijabushka line!

Between fasting, iftaar and taraweeh there is little time left to go out shopping. With Eastern Toybox you can shop online and your order will be shipped to you- its that easy. This is perfect for those last minute Eid gifts!

I have a surprise for all my readers {insert cheer} now your little ones can own the cute little guys below!

Why hello cute Hijabushka family!

To enter our Eid Giveaway:

  • Check out the  Eastern Toybox website, browse the products and leave me a comment telling me which Eastern Toybox products you like most (one entry each)
  • Like Eastern Toybox on Facebook (one entry each) leave a comment below
  • Share this giveaway on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, spread the word about these awesome products! Leave a comment telling me where you shared this (one entry each) 
You can have up to three entries to win!!!

This giveaway will be between July 30th-August 10th! Enter now to win! I will close this giveaway and announce a winner on Friday August 10th!

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Welcome Ramadan

All year we anticipate the sighting of the moon that welcomes Ramadan. My family and I look forward to all that comes with celebrating this blessed time of the year. We watch as the world welcomes New Years, Valentines Day, Easter and the rest of the calendar holidays. We wait anxiously for our turn and welcome Ramadan with open arms.

Will you welcome Ramadan with me? 




Thursday, June 28, 2012

Marble Art

With all the rainy weather this week we had to find creative ways to enjoy the indoors. This was a super easy project. I already had the materials at home so it was convenient.

You will need an empty cardbord box. I used the box we had from file folders.

I used some fabric paints because I like the 3D effect they give.

Squirt a generous amount of paint and throw in different sized marbles.

Give the marbles a good shake and move them vertically and horizontally.



Tadaaa here is the finished product!



Friday, June 22, 2012

Spelt Pancakes



Tired of the same old buttermilk pancake mix? Well do I ever have a recipe for you! These were by far one of the most delicious pancakes I have ever had. I am getting hungry just thinking about them.

In our home we are wheat free. This is of course for many different reasons. The main reason being that wheat is one of the hardest grains to digest. If your looking to go to the loo after every meal like we are supposed too- you will quickly learn that wheat is not your friend!

I like to change it up and use a variety of different flours. The recipe for these delicious pancakes requires spelt flour. What? Your not familiar with spelt. Don't worry your like the million of Canadians and Americans who eat only white or wheat flour. The reason you have no idea of altnerative flours is because your grocery store probably has a tiny shelf with the spelt flour on the very bottom. Conveniently away from all the major and highly processed brands which are placed front and center.

If you look a little harder you might find a variety of different flours. Brown rice flour, amaranth flour, spelt flour, millet flour... just to name a few.

So what's so great about spelt? Well for starters its full with hearty nutrients. Fiber, niacin(B3), protein and lots of manganese, a key mineral in our bodies found in a minimal amount. Like wheat spelt is not a stored grain. Which means it is free from the effects of grains in storage. In short, by eating spelt you can avoid the long term effects like mold in your flour bag.

Sweetened with agave, this recipe is much lower on the glycemic index than those sweetened with processed white sugar. Of course you want to top the pancakes with some real whole goodness maple syrup and not with Aunt Jemima's poison in a bottle. You know the stuff we all grew up eating? Real maple syrup is packed with almost every mineral known to man. Aunt Jemima's  not so much. It actually contains NO maple syrup at all! Well isn't that a fun fact!? If your still in denial, click here to read all about it.

I present to you- a healthy, yummy, craving right now alternative:

1 cup organic light spelt flour


2 tbsp aluminum free baking powder

1/8 tsp sea salt
1 cup coconut, rice or almond milk. I use coconut (the unsweetened kind)
1 tbsp agave syrup. I use RAW agave.

2 tbsp grapeseed oil.
1 1/2 tsp pure alcohol free vanilla

coconut oil for the pan

Method:
Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix the wet ingredients in separate bowl. Combine both. Put the batter aside for 5 minutes and let rise. Prepare a pan with 1/4 tsp coconut oil on low-med heat. Gently spoon in batter without mixing. Cook for 2-3 minutes, flip and repeat.

We also dressed these up for dessert. Throw a scoop of coconut ice cream, maple syrup and some dairy free choco chips!

Friday, June 15, 2012

Fun Fridays!

Friday is here and I am excited for the weekend. We are hoping to get some fresh air and sunshine at the Royal Botanical Gardens.

We have really been taking advantage of being outdoors lately. This is the BEST recipe for a fulfilled child. My son sleeps better, has less energy to throw tantrums or hyper monkey jumping horseplay- that's what I call it,  has a huge appetite and is in love with Nature.  

Our home is filled with his "treasures" in all shapes, sizes and colors. We have a growing rock collection and a variety of branches and sticks. Best of all this has cost me nothing! You would be surprised how these simple things entertain your child for hours.

Last week, my extended family and I went to Webster Falls. We had a blast. Of course there was a series of different reactions to the hike. One of my cousins said her legs felt like rubber. The other said her entire body was sore. For the rest of us it was pretty refreshing. We were exhausted but when we hiked down to the falls it was like we were suddenly re-energized, Alhumdulillah!

Happy Friday and in the mean time, do not forget to sign up for my upcoming workshop here only 3 spots left!

Who wants to jump in?!

 Webster Falls- loved the sound of the water!

Zaki with my cousin Rayyan

Friday, June 8, 2012

Surprise!

Happy Friday to you all.


I have some good news to share with all of you. It's not what you are thinking... keep guessing ;)

I have joined the team at PureBalance Wellness Center as the Doula! You can check out their facebook page here

Click here to see my Bio and Services 




Monday, June 4, 2012

Handmade Goodness!

With Ramadan approaching soon I am really looking for some crafty ideas to make as Eid gifts. In the past, I have tried to stay true to this by baking goodies for the men in my family. The last few years, I baked sugar cookies and purchased some cute containers from Michael's. I have to admit, with each passing year I am totally stumped about what to get for my guy cousins.

This year I will continue on the tradition but extend it to my other family as well. There is so much love, effort and positive energy that goes into a handmade gift. I like to visualize the person whom I am making the gift and send good vibes and blessings their way.

People often make the assumption that handmade gifts should only always be economical but they forget the time that goes into it and the cost of quality materials.

That being said it can still be really economical to make a gift, card or baked goods!

Here are some quick ideas you can put together for your loved ones:


A scarf I made for my younger cousin. Love the color!

Add some hand made deco to any room for a pop of color. I made this for my cousin, the colors represent her husbands college football team. 

My little Artisan personally working on a series of handmade eid gifts for our family.

Don't feel like much of a crafter? Looking for creative energy? Find yourself lost in the handmade dream world of Etsy

You can always purchase a handmade gift made by someone else. If your not sure where to start... let me introduce you to a friend of mine, hand crafter, artist, crotchet lady, photographer, Super Mama extraordinaire- Sarah! Sarah just made adorable shoes for her little one. This totally melted my heart, handmade shoes by mama- what could be sweeter than that?!

She even makes custom art! Eid gifts galore- Imagine custom artwork for your husbands office or artwork to adorn your hallways and living room. Drooooool!


Click here for her Blog 


Click here for her Facebook Page

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Minty Limeade

Sweet summer is finally here. As Canadians we wait months for the warmth that only the summer months can bring.

We have been keeping cool with this delicious minty limeade. The recipe is from Bobby Flay. I added some limes to change it up to resemble my favorite drink a virgin mojito. I also used cane sugar as a substitute for refined white sugar.


How are you keeping cool this summer?

Friday, May 11, 2012

Tim Hortons Baby!



Yet again another baby born in a public place without any interventions, medications or even trained staff. Perfectly healthy baby when you let nature take its course.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

BirthFire

Wouldn't it be amazing if you could rid yourself of a bad memories, negative energy, unwanted advice or that feeling of the moment when your birth plan changed ? 

Now you can

Birth is a powerful event in our lives.

Sometimes it is smooth and magnificent, and sometimes it doesn’t go as we'd hoped,
leaving some very strong feelings.
 
Join us on Friday May 11, 2012 (details) around a bonfire as we let go of all that is unhelpful or disappointing about birth - personal experiences, medical practices or cultural perspectives.

Bring to the fire bad advice, disappointing circumstances, poor communication, fears and cultural attitudes towards birth.


All those with an interest in birth are welcome: parents, expectant parents, Midwives, Doctors, Nurses, Doulas, etc.


Come to participate, or come to support. Children are welcome.

Come out to BirthFire on Friday May 11th, 2012 at 7:00 p.m and join the movement!  

 

Friday, May 4, 2012

Blooming Spring Bazaar

Looking for something to do this weekend? Come out and support the Spring Bazaar. There will be several vendors including yours truly!


Monday, April 30, 2012

Sweet Grandparents

My little man and I were out today running errands. An elderly gentleman approached us. He had a long white beard and cane, he sweetly greeted us, gave us Salaams and shook Zakariya's hand. Then to my surprise he took out his little coin purse and gave Zakariya a looney (canadian dollar coin) he gave him many duas and told him to take care of his mom to which Zakariya happily said Okay!


I miss being surrounded by elderly people. I think back to my childhood and remember being surrounded by a group of all the grandparents. They just don't make old people the way they used too ;) I especially miss my grandparents. I was blessed to have met my great grandmother a few weeks before she passed. I remember holding her frail hands and running my hands thru her thinning hair. Alhumdulillah I was raised around my paternal grandmother and have so many lasting memories with her. I still remember sinking into her soft bear hugs and hearing her childhood stories. May Allah grant all of our grandparents the highest level of jannah.

What are some memories you can remember with your great grandparents or grandparents? 
 

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

To Leash or not to Leash?

You must have heard of the on going debate parents have about keeping their child on a leash... right?



What would you do? To leash or not to leash?

Friday, April 13, 2012

Handmade napkins

I picked up this cute strawberry printed fabric to make a table cloth and matching napkins.

We have gone paper free and these napkins are washable and work great to clean up his hands and messes

This project cost $5 total. I did not use a tutorial but I found this one really straight forward gingercake


Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Sleeping In Literally

So where have we been? Between 2 weeks off for March break, a family vacay, doula'ing, cupping and studying I have had no blogging time. When we were on vacay, I opted to go tech free. It was so refreshing, Alhumdulillah.

 
Here is a peak into what most of our mornings looked liked ;) 

Monday, March 5, 2012

DIY pasta sauce

It's true it's all from scratch. So much so that my husband was reminded of his childhood Italian babysitter, Nona! He describes her cooking as authentic homemade goodness, Can you say yummy? I will upload the steps of the canning method I used to keep this made from scratch, preservative free, organic and local pasta sauce fresh and ready to serve in my pantry.

Anyone else attempted this before? How did the sauce turn out?

P.s I'm using the blogger app, convenient!


Sunday, March 4, 2012

The Year of the Preggos

So Its been awhile since I have last visited. Things around here have been really hectic. It is the year of the babies. Mashallah, a lot of sisters are expecting this year. For me this means a lot of births to look forward to.


I always joke that every couple of years, we go thru a baby boom. We actually went thru this a few years ago when I was expecting. It was the year of the boys- Subhanallah I know 14 boys that were born that year! I wonder what it will be like this year? Anyway,  boy or girl- its definitely the year of the preggos. Do you know anyone who is expecting? Any chance you might have caught the baby bug ;)

Friday, February 24, 2012

Friday Favorites

Jummah Mubarak and happy Friday to you all!

It has been a busy busy week around our little nest. I thought I would start a new series Friday Favorites filled with some of my favorite inspirations. Enjoy!

This is by FAR the most adorable new born baby shoot I have ever seen, click to see Mermaid Stella

Red Velvet cupcakes made by my cousin Mahnoor

My sweet sweet grandmother introduced me to knitting. I even have the pink sweater she made me... Yes, Zakariya has to wear it too!

Being outside, rain, snow or shine

Because no trip is complete without taste testing the snow


Monday, February 13, 2012

DIY: Felted Flower Wreath


In our home we have been paying close attention to the changing seasons. We decided to come up with a fun project to celebrate the winter.  The colors we picked represent the winter but also happen to match our living room!




I used straight pins to secure my flowers on, this is so we can change the flowers with each season of the year. Alternatively for permanent flowers you could use a glue gun to secure the flowers on the wreath
                                       
                                                        

        




 


Saturday, February 11, 2012

Would you like an Induction with that? Muslimah's Guide to Birth in North America

   
This topic is applicable to all women because having children is something all wives and wives to be are thinking about. It is something that will affect all women at some point in their lives, whether they will go thru it for themselves or if they have sisters, cousins, friends who are expecting as well.

Regardless if you were recently married or if you are planning and thinking about having a baby, if you are expecting for the first time, or expecting their 2nd/3rd/4th (and so on) child. This workshop is for all women.

This is the first workshop of this type in our community, not to be missed!
 

Friday, February 10, 2012

DIY: Homemade Children's Toy, Wind Wand


 
What you will need:
Metal Circle (pack of 3 available at Michaels) or 1 meter thin cane 
Any color ribbon 
Glue Gun
Scissors

 
Measure 5 x 1 meter lengths colored ribbon

 
Fasten the ribbon and secure it with glue gun, to strengthen over lap existing ribbon

  Space out attached ribbons
 
The bottom edges of the ribbon might look like this 

Fold, crease and glue ribbon end inward for polished look 

 Admire the finished wind wand! 

Your little one can hold it or shake it, make big movements, run down a hill and watch the ribbons in the breeze, this toy will strengthen the hands and limbs and promote the senses.




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