Eid Mubarak

Salam,
I just wanted to say Eid mubarak to all the ummah out there reading my blog.. whether you are celebrating today or tomorrow, may Allah grant you with what you have asked for in the future and accept all your good deeds and fasting during the holy month that has passed us. Seems a shame for it to leave, I was only just getting into it but Allahu alim. We are celebrating Eid Oct 1st in my community, so Im still fasting today. The imam at my masjid gave a little talk about it all yesterday after the 8 rakahs and reminded us to count our blessings that us as a community are being given this extra day to ask for forgiveness during the last year and to be here for the next year insha'allah. Kinda makes you grateful alhamdulillah. Anyways, busy and fun night.. and insha'allah today and tomorrow too.. Ill be back soon to fill you all in with pics too insha'allah.
Peace and salams,
Ammena

Ramadhan 27

So I stayed at the masjid last night... working nights tonight, just got out shower.. wanted to share this video with you from fajr salah this morning and will update blog later insha'allah

Morocco, with love

If you are an avid reader of my blog, or my life in general, you will know of my wish to eventually adopt a child or two insha'allah. A few weeks ago while excitedly looking through the islamic events feed I have on my blog I found this advertisement

KAFALAH / PARENTS REQUIRED FOR MOROCCAN ORPHANS
Moroccan orphanages are
full and conditions are far from perfect.Thousands of babies and children are
looking for loving homes.To be eligible you must have a regular income and have
a homestudy conducted by your social work department. They usually charge
approximately £2000 for the home study. If any brothersand sisters are
interested in adoption please e-mail Zainab at zainab22uk@yahoo.co.uk

I was soo excited, you just cant believe lol. So of course, I emailed the sister for more details.. granted I wouldnt be adopting soon, but its good to have information there to work with. Alhamdulillah she sent me a speedy response with the starting information I was looking for, she asked a few questions: Have you been married for 5 years or more? Are you or your husband in permanent employment? Are you in good health? Do you have your own accommodation or rented accommodation? (living with family will not be acceptable) Are you willing to take a male child? (there are very few female children available for adoption) If you are single you can still apply as long as you can financially afford to take care of another child.
The things she told me were very useful and she later went on to send me a bunch of documents about home studies and uk immigration... Im very excited at the prospect of this and would love to hear from anyone who has been involved in anything like this insha'allah. I also wanted to post the ad for anyone who was seriously thinking about adopting sooner than me too :D insha'allah

New Layout

yeh yeh, Ive been playing while I should be working... what you gonna do about it?? I needed a change, and I hate the fact that all the templates on blogger are so thin in the posting section.. I would rather read more horizontally than vertically but thats just me.. feel free to give me your opinions on the layout. I was looking at 3 columns, and different templates but seems every one I want to use means deleting my widgets and Im not prepared to add all my blog lists again.. just too much hassle!!! Allahu alim.
anyways, you may have noticed my 'got sadaqah?' chip in widget to the right too... please follow the struggle of this family on this blog. The amount raised is amazing masha'allah, nearly $15,000 however the chip in widget only counts the amount raised via this method.. people donating through cheques or paypal dont get added to the total... but if it means raising awareness then its worth having on the blog masha'allah

Hmm, am I?

Salam, so its been awhile since I last posted... getting into Ramadhan in the last 10 night, better late than never eh? Ive been spending my evenings at the masjid when I can, yesterday I spent the day with my old next door neighbours from UK who are over for a holiday. And I managed to fast the day with them :) alhamdulillah.
Anyways, back to the topic of this post... I was called headstrong the other day, now Im not too sure I agree with the characteristic word she used to describe my reaction to a situation we found ourselves in. Come to think of it Im not too sure I agree with the use of the word to describe me at all. Headstrong? me? am I?
The merriam-webster dictionary defines the word as:

1 : not easily restrained : impatient of control, advice, or suggestions headstrong businessman> 2 : directed by ungovernable will headstrong actions>

Not sure I agree with that.. although surprisingly it isnt what I would have defined the word as. So those of you who think you know me... headstrong? oui ou non?

Ramadhan 20

yesterday was a big day alhamdulillah, well yesterday after iftar was a big day :D although not technically a day, big enough to be called one. I started earlier than maghrib though when I was trying to find out from a friend where the iftar was that I had been invited too. Alhamdulillah I found out and it was at my mosque :) so I set off a little early as asked and wondered how it would be. I prayed a little before going in and eventually found Mohammed the man I work with after being told, 'the ladies are in there' I smiled shyly and thanked the tall young gentleman who had sternly told me this. As I walked into the room off the main corridor i noticed the number of tables and was shocked at how many there were, I hadnt expected this to be only me & his family, but i hadnt expected around 20 tables full. Then I made a little prayer and asked that they be rewarded for putting this on, insha'allah. I immediately spotted Mohammed as he walked over to me, and pulled (although not literally) me to meet his daughter, who would introduce me to her mother and s-i-l, and his 2 sons soon after. Masha'allah, they are such a cute family all together working to help the community.
As I stood around not knowing quite what to do I suddenly felt back in Bradford, the whole room was full of pakistanis (not that there is anything wrong with that masha'allah) and I suddenly felt like the odd one out :P I was aware of ppl watching me and aware that I couldnt understand the majority of the conversations around me. I was extremely grateful for the adhan for maghrib as I was handed a plate with a samosa & 2 pitted dates on, also a cup of what i thought was milk but to my surprise it had a sweet aroma almost like mango.. im sure someone will tell me what i drank :) it was nice.. I was also grateful to be able to pray too with all the ladies. I also bumped into a lady I have seen frequently at taraweeh and some ladies I met when I went to the 1 and only quran arabic class at the other masjid.
I walked back down to the eating area to looks of confusion, I actually expected someone to tell me this was invitation only, but noone did alhamdulillah. I pulled funny faces with a few kids there and then it was time to line up for food. Plate full of spicy chick peas & salad for me :( thats why i dont like big functions like this.. there is never anything for the vegetarians to eat.. the rice was cooked with lamb and the potatoes with some sort of meat too :( Allahu alim. I ended up sitting on a table with another odd person :) a nice black lady by the name of mariam masha'allah. The other lady (from taraweeh) joined us too and we had good conversations alhamdulillah. Then everyone was leaving for home, I thanked my hosts daughter and told her to pass on my thanks to her dad and arranged to meet up one weekend with our mutual friend insha'allah.
Walking out I was trying to decide whether to stay at the masjid for taraweeh or go home, when I found a voice message on my phone from a girl i met at taraweeh last year alhamdulillah. She was coming over tonight and was still unsure whether to stay the night, we talked and I decided to go home to pick up a few bits... the bad thing was, by the time I got home i had missed the adhan for isha so totally forgot about it until i was in the midst of the taraweeh salah.
Anyways, we prayed the 20 rakahs alhamdulillah and the witr salah too then sat down to read quran. I gave her a present of a stitching I had made a while ago for her and we chatted a little. But mostly we read and prayed... i ended up leaving probably about 1230 with her and it felt good.. a real boost of iman alhamdulillah.
So what do u say to someone who reminds you, after having had such a good experience at the masjid, that you should find and read the ahadith about the best place for a woman to pray :( Allahu alim

A night of prayer

alhamdulillah I made it to the masjid tonight for the whole taraweeh prayers... ok, ok, I got there late and only caught the end of the first 8 which I made up for while the imam did a short talk but alhamdulillah stayed for the whole night, and witr too :D masha'allah.. I also got the chance to take a few pics too :D enjoy the vid I took too. Tomorrow insha'allah Im going for an 'invitation only' iftar :) had to get that in cause I only just found out and it makes me feel special. One of the guys I work with, he invited me last week :) so Im really looking forward to that insha'allah

I also did a little shopping today and finally found a bolero cardigan to go with the 2 dresses I bought off ebay. I was really looking for a jacket, but I found this and I think it would work well with a normal length jacket over the top. Im just thinking weather wise, it wouldnt be suitable to wear only this but a normal jacket would look silly on its own especially when Im inside. So this way I can take the jacket off, and still be covered alhamdulillah. Also bought a dress on sale for $4 :) yeh, I know... I said I wouldnt shop anymore, but its all stocking up for the move insha'allah

To fondly remember... Ill miss you when I leave, my medium white hot chocolate :(








The one thing Im going to miss about the winter here :( I have the scars to remember last season and Im prepared to pay in the region of $80 for a bag to take my board back to UK insha'allah

Random

A path leading to.....

















.... a road of choice......















... but not really.

Surah 102: Al-Takathur

Assalamalikum, I know I should probably be writing this on my islamic blog but I want a quicker answer insha'allah. So Im learning a new surah with the help of the ImaanStar program and have come to a question, alhamdulillah my recognisation of letters is improving and I can generally see the letters being spoke. Although ask me the other way around and I probably would come to a brick wall but Allahu alim. Anyways, the first verse (yes Im still stuck on the first verse)
The transliteration on the site says: Alhakumu alttakathuru
The recitor says: Alha kumu ta kathu


Can anyone help?? I see the al (click on the pic if you need it bigger or refer to your own arabic quran) and I see the 'ru' at the end... am I just not hearing him?? ummah.. help please :D

First post on Grateful to Allah blog :)

Alhamdulillah, I finally did it... Ive been listed as a contributor to this blog for quite awhile now, but never really found anything inspiration to share with the readers... after taraweeh prayers last night I got it :) masha'allah.

Journals

When I was younger I went through phases of keeping a diary and I could see the difference stages of my growing in accordance with the type of diary. None of them were filled and the last was a very studious looking leather lockable diary (they were all lockable) I dont know where they are now or whether I would like to read them again, I highly doubt it actually. So Ive been reading a few ramadhan online journals this month from Aaminah, Yosra and Aalya to name the ones Ive been reading the most. So I was just thinking, why didnt I start a ramadhan diary.... maybe it would have helped me see things more clearly (see previous post) but then I worry that I would still have done, or not done as the case is, the same things and then it would have put me more in a funk of this month. So in a way Im glad I didnt start one, and Im glad that I get to see what other people are doing which gives me a push (although not in the cooking front like Aalya) I wonder how next year will be, if I am here, as I will insha'allah be a wife by then and have 2 people to look after. Will I see friends just as much? Will I go for taraweeh with my husband? Will I wake up early for night prayers before fajr? I will definately have to write out a 'things to do' list before that time.
Anyways, just wanted to get that down :) Im 'working' and its pretty quiet here
Peace and salams, Ammena

This Ramadhan

Why does it feel that this year the only thing different about this month is that Im fasting, reading quran & going to the mosque for taraweeh? Come on girl... get your finger out!!! Astagfrillah

Algerian mosques breeding ground for matchmaking??

Is it right to use a mosque for a matchmaking purpose during taraweeh? esp when some men are looking at the women although saying its ok... isnt there a hadith that says the second look at the opposite sex is from shaitan?? Let me know what you think about the article

Rainchecks

now when you talk about this in UK you dont need the check part because there is usually rain, or chance of it.. but I have a new found love for rainchecks here in Canada. This is a totally unrelated Ramadhan post to be warned :) Here, there are many stores who do weekly deals unlike what I see in UK.. although its sometimes annoying that eventhough there are offers for 2, 3, 4 items if u want the 1 its the same price as buying the 2 on sale, like... 2 bottles of coke for $2, but if you buy 1 its $1, they arent deals the supermarkets are trying to get rid of stock. Anyways, I digress, last week I saw that Canadian tire (yes thats tyre to those Brits out there) they were selling an ipod 3-in-1 transmitter for the car for $10 from the usual $30 so I popped along to the store figuring 'well, I have an ipod that will be going back to the UK with me, and I also will be travelling by car in the future (whether my own or someone elses) so why not?!' When I got there they had sold out so, raincheck it was, they give you a slip, take your phone number and allow you to gain the purchase for the sale price when they receive the product in the future which is usually that week. Today after not hearing from them and deciding to venture outside to do things I popped in to the a different location to find they had some in and picked one up :D and I love it!!! I plug it in to my cigarette lighter, flick a switch to find a dead radio station and hey presto.. I wish I had bought it last time I saw the offer I would have used it on my trip to Michigan when I was listening to Islam: a short history by Karen Armstrong masha'allah. Allahu alim, at least now I can listen to stuff properly on my way up to my mums or anywhere else I decide to go. Well worth the money! brilliant investment alhamdulillah.
On other news, yesterday I received my firearms license :D brand spanking new card with hijabi on underneath the title FIREARMS LICENSE / PERMIS D'ARMES A FEU, POSSESSION / ACQUISITION its soo cool and I love it!!
What other news do I have? cant really think of much really... i have learnt the english of surah at-takathur masha'allah so insha'allah I will have it down by the end of the week.. Im working this weekend, so gives me time to catch up on my quran reading (im on the right part - 10- just going slowly) and get that arabic in my head.
Im going to leave it at that for now :) I know I havent blogged recently, with taraweeh, quran reading and generally living its been away from my mind. Im enjoying the time away from it masha'allah but then i still go through life making mental notes to 'blog about that later'
Peace and salams, Ammena

One less thing on my list

So after looking back to check the flights last night I saw that from the previous night they have increased by $200 :( I called my mum and told her, and we went through the whole... 'I dont think you have enough money, I dont think youve thought this through, why does it have to be that date?' in response to these comments (I didnt tell her them obviously) she thinks I dont have enough money but when I tell her what I do have shes says 'well that could pay off your student loan' not thinking it through means that she already senses (and has told me) that Im not telling her everything :( this date? what when Ive already changed it so many times for her.. I think this is her pushing it further, I mean come on... I told her I was doing it by the end of the year in April, she was fine with me not being here at xmas. When I told her end of sept I mistakenly said beginning on oct, to which she replied.. well if its october at least stay for stepdads bday (oct 28th) which I am.. so then I decided end of oct right after her bday but there are little in flights.. so now its November 4th!!! yes!! booked!!! woohoo.. and I just emailed the confirmation to bro A too heehee... pray for me girls :) I did tell her I was booking it, so whether she thinks after our 'chat' Im going to change my mind who knows... Allahu alim.. she also made comments about my dad which I cant handle right now.. and told me not to sponge off my grandad, hello?!?! who brought me up?? astagfrillah...

My scar

I was told today that my scar almost looks like a tattoo!!
should I be pleased? I think not!! :P

Month of August

So the month of august has been and gone, we are now into September and Im sitting down now to type out this post. Many of you may be thinking, shouldnt she really be doing something other that being on her computer during this holy month. Well, let me tell you... this is my output!! I have noone really to talk to around here, Ive read part 2 of the quran today and will start on more later insha'allah. So if you feel I should be on here less, well thats between me & my creator :) I feel ok with being on here, I have no tv so why shouldnt I use this tool that has been given to us to vent my life and to research my deen? Allahu alim.
Anyways, back to the topic in hand, what did I get up to last month.
To start with I had an amazing 4 days in Michigan with sis EyeS masha'allah, we had so much fun and Im so glad I went down to see her alhamdulillah *reminds myself to finish off email to her* we spent time just hanging out and talking till dawn, just like the good old days :) and I cant wait for her to come visit me in UK insha'allah
Then when I got back I had my pre leaving party, I think I did blog about it here. It was soo nice to see all my friends there after such a long time, everyone wasnt there but alhamdulillah it was nice to see some people who I didnt think would have turned up. Masha'allah, they all made me feel really special and welcome, I almost thought about staying here in Canada. lol... only joking!! calm down everyone :P Was so good to spend that time away though,
It was in all a very busy first week of August because the day after my party I went to Muslimfest in Mississauga :) Ive been for the past 3 years now and summer just wouldnt be the same without it.. yeh people say its boring, I usually spend on things I dont need (but not this year alhamdulillah) and I get frustrated with havng to coordinate with my friends usually.. but I think Im really going to miss it next year if Im not here. Will see.
The next week miss eyeS came to canada for a surprise visit :) well not a surprise for me, but she hadnt expected too and it was good to spend quite a few hours with her :) we went to MY veggie restaurant, value village and just chilled around :) she made me, yes u heard me.. made me buy a new hijab in value village ($4) it is gorgeous though, ive had issues in the 2 times Ive worn it but I think Ive figured out the problem. Its a square scarf which I usually wear by pinning under my chin then using a straight pin to hold one end on the opposite side of my head and a safety pin to hold the other end on the opposite shoulder.. the one pinned at my head means I have 2 layers of this material over my ear and I have this constant echo and problem with not hearing well :P so next time, it will have to be pinned on the shoulder too :P
I also went out for coffee with a friend :) I havent seen her in awhile, since just after she gave birth a few months ago.. and this time was without both her kids so was nice to just chat. We talked about my plans for the future and I questioned her on her 'next baby' heehee insha'allah.
The Premiership started :) yay.. we lost our first game :( won the next and lost the next.. i pray this isnt an insight of what is to come.. especially since I just heard that Manchester City has been bought by a guy from Dubai!! yes thats where the money is!! So, hes been buying up the players... who would have thought I would have seen Man City win the cup.. what do u think? they in with a chance?
It was my mums bday :) I sent her some flowers to work, and surprised her by taking some time off over my work weekend. It was also the anniversary of my nana's death 1 year ago.
I went for brunch with a girl from my department whos on MAT leave, shes due back mid september... we had fun and ate yummy breakfast grub :P
I had Nadia over for some time and we had major giggles :) heehee.. she makes me feel like a little kid sat on the back of the bus talking about stupid things on the way to school :D and i appreciate her totally for it, alhamdulillah.
That seems to be it really.. I started 2 new sewing projects, one actually for me :P so will post some WIP photos soon insha'allah. I finished my book 'scattered pictures' by Imam Zaid Shakir masha'allah good collection of essays on many global topics.

On an islamic note
I learnt surah al-fil and I have decided to start surah at-Takathur just because there is quite a bit of repitition in it which makes learning easier for me.
no duaas learnt :(
no fasting done :(
Sorted out some books to read over Ramadhan, including my quran masha'allah.

So peeps.. what did u get up to? did we have fun? :) ok, back to my sewing or reading.
Peace and salams, Ammena

29 degrees celcius

... is too much full stop!! Let alone in hijab! Let alone while having to be outside! Let alone, on top of all this.. fasting too!
But I would feel totally useless and devoid of meaning if I had to stay in side for the whole month

And it starts

First and fore mostly Ramadhan mubarak to the portion of the ummah who reads my blog :) I pray that this month we keep on top of things, remember our creator and our brothers & sisters around us. I started fasting today, as most of the world probably has alhamdulillah... I woke up eventually to find an email from toronto muslims stating they will start on tuesday as no moon was actually seen last night. So what to do? My masjid started taraweeh prayers last night, so Im going with them... as much as I would love to be fasting from tomorrow because it would mean I can take this bank holiday outside in the gorgeous weather somewhere like Niagara or something. Alas, Allahu alim :) Anyways, I got to the masjid yesterday to find a good car turn out, a below normal male turn out and a good female turn out alhamdulillah. I was too impressed with the recitor, he was very monotonous and just seemed like he wanted to get it done. We finished 8 rakah in about 45/50 mins... it wasnt the speed that he did it with more the tone of his voice. But insha'allah he gains his rewards for the next life and we get to listen to different people during this month.
Insha'allah Im going again tonight, Ive decided that every night I can make it i will... except when Im working the next day. I just spoke with a friend I havent seen in awhile and shes invited me around for iftar before she leaves the country (she told me where shes going, but i cant remember :P) So thats someone to break it with, Nadia wanted me to go to hers tonight to break fast, but I really dont think Ill be driving all that way.. esp if I want to pray too. Ive decided somewhat on where Im going to put some of my zakat insha'allah and Ive picked out a few books from my library to read through now my tv is off :) For now Im off... to get ready for dhuhr, may Allah (swt) listen and accept all the duaas from the ummah and allow us to see through Ramadhan to the next.