Weekly Menu

Sunday's here... recipe box is open.
Here's what's up for this week:

Kafta Balls in a tray with veggies (kafta=meatloaf)
Malfoof (rolled, stuffed cabbage leaves)
Lentil Soup
(possibly) roasted leg of lamb
Sweet Potato & Cauliflower Curry w/ brown rice
Mom's Cabbage Salad

Extra's: I'd like to try a new homemade bread recipe. I did make a new bran muffin recipe this morning and I loved it, so I'll make more for breakfast throughout the week insha'Allah. Probably no more cakes or cookies this week as I am burned out from the baking I did last week.

Mom's Cabbage Salad (Great for lunch!!)
Chopped Cabbage
Chopped almonds
Chopped apple
Handful of Craisins
Dresing: 1/2 cup plain yogurt, 2-3 Tbsp orange juice, 1Tbsp maple syrup
Refrigerate.

Where has the dignity of women gone??  For crying out loud, I get more and more fired up about this subject with each passing day it seems.  What’s happened? How did we go from a people, a humanity, who treated women like property to being one who supposedly liberated them when we still accept atrocious standards?  My big problem is not so much with the long ago history of women so much as women of today.  Supposedly a movement came about to liberate women from their boring life in the home to the world of working out of the house.  This spiraled into something that is so confusing that I wonder what state our families will be in in about 40 years.  You know, it might be true that society didn’t appreciate the work women did in their homes and for their families.  Is that what made them want to go be “equal” to men and work like them, keep the same hours as them, and all?  Because to me, that’s not being equal, that’s wanting to be like them.  Equal is accepting that each side has something valuable to add to LIFE.  Did God create men and women the same? NO!  We ARE different people, so why did women chase after being like them?  Anyhow, to me, the benefit of that revolution is peanuts compared to what was lost in the process.  I am proud to be doing my job (that most men could not do), and to be doing it well.  I use skills that professionals use to make their jobs successful, too.  Time management, quality control, punctuality, respect, continuing education, and more.  Why not put their type of effort into raising a healthy family? 
I’m not saying that no woman should work at a job, and I’m not saying all women should stay home.  I appreciate the fact that I can see a female doctor, have female school teachers, and that a husband and wife can choose which arrangement works best for them.  What I am not for is leaving no one behind to hold down the fort, so to speak. 
Anyhow… I didn’t really mean to go on about women in the workplace.  It’s a huge subject that has many sides.  I’m glad the option is there, but I believe it should be used as a last resort instead of a means to support one’s wants and desires to ‘have more’ and stuff like that.  I think we could all downsize the lifestyles we live for one of better quality (quality in child-rearing, eating, and general health).
About the dignity… two things are grating on my nerves today.  One being how women just throw out, delete, erase the name they were born with and raised by for the sake of a man.  You marry a man, not turn into his property or offspring.  Why should you take his identity? You have one.  What happens if you divorce, or if he dies, and you remarry.  You change it back to your old one?  Then you marry again and you change it to the new one?  So who are you?  What are you known by?  How can anyone find you or know who you are without going into the details?  When someone I meet says “I ran into Jane Jones the other day”, but I knew her as Jane Smith, the heck am I supposed to know who she’s talking about?  I just makes no sense to me, and I find I am so annoyed by it. (I think I’m getting cranky in my old age)  I know many of my readers probably did change their names, and I’m sure you had your reasons, but I just couldn’t imagine it.  Take no offense, this is just my opinion.
The second thing is: why oh why do we still let women be used as symbols to sell products?  How CHEAP is that???  Look at this lovely lady and buy our product.  Barf.  We’re still just as backwards as we were when women had no other rights b/c that’s just as degrading, if not more degrading.  It’s using a woman’s body to peddle.  In the Quran you will find Allah, our CREATOR, telling us “.. and do not display yourselves like that of the times of ignorance,” (33:33) and He tells us not to reveal our adornments except to those certain relatives like our husbands, dad,brothers, father in law, etc..  I’m just so irked b/c I saw a woman standing in the window of a store being a ‘live’ model.  No, i don’t think that’s clever.  I think it’s awful.  She’s on display up in that window, all dressed up, for all passers-by to see.  It goes against my principles. 
I have to go now, as my little Aisha is scooting around now and getting into trouble much faster than she used to.  Glad to get this out there.  Feel free to comment.

Thursday is the Day of Arafah for Muslims this year

The day before the big Eid al Adha is called The Day of Arafah. It is such a special day in the sight of Allah, and we know this because several significant things happened on this day:
* “This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.” [5:3]. ‘Umar said, “We know on which day and in which place that was revealed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). It was when he was standing in ‘Arafaah on a Friday.”
* Fasting on this day is an expiation for two years.
* It is the day on which Allaah took the covenant from the progeny of Adam.
It was reported that Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Allaah took the covenant from the loins of Adam in Na’maan, i.e., ‘Arafaah. He brought forth from his loins all his offspring and spread them before Him, then He addressed them, and said: ‘Am I not your Lord? They said, ‘Yes, we testify,’ lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection: ‘Verily, we have been unaware of this.’ Or lest you should say: ‘It was only our fathers aforetime who took others as partners in worship along with Allaah, and we were (merely their) descendents after them; will You then destroy us because of the deeds of men who practised Al-Baatil (i.e., ploytheism and committing crimes and sins, invoking and worshipping others besides Allaah)?’ [al-A’raaf 7:172-173]
* It is the day of forgiveness of sins, freedom from the Fire and pride in the people who are there.

Insha'Allah myself and my family will be fasting Thursday. I'm encouraging Heba to fast as much as she can tomorrow. She did a few hours back in Ramadan. Musa has been able to fast since two years ago, so I don't think he'll have any trouble tomorrow. I'm so happy for such a blessed day to be upon us, and it makes celebrating Eid even more fulfilling. For me, as a Muslim, doing acts of worhip (like fasting, praying, helping needy) are acts that make the holidays just so much more meaningful. Celebrating the feast is not just about *me* or about my kids. It is always tied in with an act of worship that you do for the sake of Allah only. Then the Eid day feels like a true reward for you, and you feel like you gave something as well. May Allah guide us and keep us steadfast.

a perspective on tragedy

I didn't post anything here about the Ft. Hood shootings. I almost did when, about 5 days after, I heard a radio show that was talking about Muslims in such a horrific way that it really shook me up and made me feel like throwing up. The speaker was so off base it was soooo sad, yet he was preaching to a very large audience who would probably not question his facts. I seriously almost was beside myself, and I was driving at the time. But I still didn't and don't want to get into it here.

Anyhow... a person in our community wrote an interesting little email about this, and I want to share it here. His name is Abdullah Mikail, and here is his perspective:

As salaamu alaikum wa rahmat allahu wa barakatu,

Dear Brs. & Srs.,

Recent tragedies in our society have inspired enemies of our Muslim community to unjustly target us once again with smear campaigns.

Allah SWT does not throw His people into trials and tribulations for no reason. There is a wisdom beyond human comprehension.

Recall the story of Musa AS [prophet Moses] when he was in fear in Egypt. He did not ask, “Why did this happen to me?” When he had to flee to Midian.

Not in anger, or self pity, or rebellion, but in humility and searching for what Allah SWT had in store for him Musa AS reacted, after doing good and giving sadaqa to the family of Shoaib in watering their flocks, he made the doa, “…I am needy of any good You can send down.”.

Musa AS [Moses] was moved, by design, away from the disbelieving people into the service of good people who were in need of him where he found a Nabi to learn from and train under, Shoaib AS.

Allah SWT planned for tragedy in the life of Musa AS, and thus moved him by design to be trained as a Nabi under Shoaib AS, and once his training was complete Musa AS was sent on his mission.


And recall the best example, Mohammad SAW and the first thirteen years of the message and how they were ordered to espouse Islam and be peaceful not even fighting back to defend themselves, but rather peacefully spreading the message and being tolerant of the aggression of others.

And the result, the signal victory of the Treaty of Hudaibiya and the peace that followed, and the strength of unity and faith that brought all the believers together and increased salaam and brought about justice in the later years.

So be patient under the assaults from the ignorant who may not even realize why they are goaded into attacking us as they are lead by the nose ring of the press and the media into insulting us on the street…they do not know the truth and it is still our burden to deliver the message, regardless…so increase in the spreading of salaam and be forgiving…remember the signal victory.

This is the way of Allah SWT with His people…nothing we suffer in life is pointless, it all as meaning and wisdom that is beyond our comprehension. So, each time we are tested with tragedy, the loss of a job, the loss of a family member, the loss of a wife, husband, or child, react the way Musa AS did, and seek the guidance and the mercy of Allah SWT.

We are being prepared for the future by the circumstances of today, and Allah SWT will never suffer his people to be out cast…we have the Firmest Handhold that Never Breaks, do not let go of faith even if you have to go to the mountains and cling to it as you would a root with your teeth.

My Sweet Potato Casserole

If you don't like sweet potatoes, you will LOVE this anyway. I read over a few recipes and came up with my own version that has less fat and less sugar. It was great.

3cups sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed (about 3 big potatoes)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 stick butter
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 T vanilla
Topping:
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts if you don't have/like pecans)

Mix the first set of ingredients together until well incorporated, then spread in a large baking dish (9*12). Mix the topping up in a bowl (with your fingers) and top the potatoes.
Bake 35-40minutes at 350 degrees.

Special Ten Days

Assalamu alaikom

Today is the first day of the Islamic month called Dhul Hijjah. It's the last month of the year, and it's the month when Hajj is performed. The Hajj is a series of religious rites performed in Mecca that carry historical and spiritual value. It's a trip that a Muslim should try to do at least once in her life.

The first ten days of this month are the most blessed of *days* in the sight of Allah as far as doing extra acts of worship and good deeds. It was narrated from Ibn 'Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "There are no days on which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allaah than these ten days." It is a time to step back from your daily grind and try to get closer to God spiritually. How can you do this? It's actually quite simple and doesn't require you to hole up in your room! You can just be more aware, and use your spare 'thinking' time to remember God:

1. Fasting these 10 days
2. Giving more charity during these 10 days
3. Say the "Eid" Takbeers loudly wherever you go. (Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar. Laa ilaaha illa Allah. Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar. Walillaahil hamd.)

4. Try to pray more prayers in the Masjid
5. Increase ties of kinship (visit family, say kind words to them, etc.)
6. Perform more voluntary prayers at home
7. Read more Quran, contemplating the meanings
8. Do more Dhikr (remembrance of Allah)
9. Ask for forgiveness more frequently

Also, I’ll be thinking about Eid preparations. Eid will be Friday the 27th, and the kids are already looking forward. I won’t be having a big party like I did for the last Eid two months ago, but we’ll have a special day nonetheless, insha’Allah. We’ll wake up and pray at the mosque in the morning, and then we’ll have a brunch or something. I’ll think of something for the kids during the day, and then we’ll have a nice family dinner in the evening. I hope we can visit some relatives and friends as well over the following days. Alrighty.. that’s it for today!

weekly menu

Assalamu alaikom

Here's what's planned for this week:

Dinners:
Beef Stroganoff (crock pot) with noodles
Musaka
Memaw's Casserole (definitely lasts two days)
Homemade Chicken Nuggets
Beef and Noodle Casserole

backup: Broccoli Chicken Casserole

Picture of Memaw's casserole

"And glorify Him morning and evening" [33:42]

I look at my baby girl. It's like I'm looking at a baby for the first time. How Allah creates us in the way He does is awesome. How we are born and how we exist that first year is awesome. It is so large that all we can do is smile, giggle, make noises, and faces to this little creature that is so different from the being it will be in a few short months. I look at her and feel sad for her vulnerability. She will not survive without the help of another. She cannot express many things. She doesn't know how to reach and get that one object she's eyeing. I wonder if her brain processes that the way mine would, or if her brain really doesn't care one way or another just yet.

I look at my baby girl and wonder when I will die. Why am I thinking of death when presented with this new life in front of me? Because it is a stark reminder of the Power of Allah. He creates, He takes. "To every People is a term appointed: When their term is reached, not an hour can they cause delay, Nor (an hour) can they advance (in anticipation)." [7:34] I don't wonder when I will die because I wish I knew the actual time, but I just wonder if I will be old, if my children will be young, and stuff like that. I remind myself that it could be any time, and that my family will have to move on regardless. I remind myself of my duties to my Lord and not to put to much importance on the 'things' of this life. "The material things which you are given are but the conveniences of this life and the glitter thereof; But that which is with God is better and more enduring: Will you not then be wise?" [28:60]

So I count my blessings, and I renew my faith. I will strive to do better. I will need reminder after reminder, as we all do. I will turn to my sisters for support, encouragement, and comfort. I will enjoy my children, my husband, and what I do have in this life right now. May Allah protect us from the tempation of the devil, may He make us content with what we have, and may He guide us to the right path.

Morning Rant

I have such a huge pet peeve, and it happens almost daily, so I have to just unload about it here today. There is a line of parking spots *right* across from the front door to my daughter's preschool. There are always free spots available, and most mornings there are near ten open parking spots for parents to park in. We take out kids in, sign them in on the sheet, and walk out. 2-5 minutes max. Ok, so far so good. Here's the problem. So many parents just CANNOT bring themselves to pull INTO a parking spot, and instead, they just pull up right in front of the door. They get out with their child, go in, sign out, etc.. All the while, their car is parked right where it would block (or nearly block) the two or three cars who parked in a spot. Like, why can't they just whip into that free spot RIGHT THERE in front of them? There is a sign on the front door that asks parents kindly not to park in that fire lane in front of the door, rather, to park in a spot. So why can't they just do that??? How many times have I had to come back in to find the person who is blocking me from reversing out? I mean, if there were a parking problem I might be able to make an excuse, but there is ample and convenient parking there so there is really no good reason for selfish people to just do as they please during a high traffic time of day.
It happens almost every time I am there dropping or picking up, and it just bugs me. I know, it's not a big problem, but maybe I'm easily irritated! I feel better now.

This Week’s Menu

This week we'll have my mom's husband staying over for a few days. He is a big meat guy, so keep that in mind when you see what's for dinner this week!

~ Hamburgers

~ Chili w/ toppings

~ Memaw's Casserole

~ Vegetable Curry w/ Rice (I will make this to have around in case I start to feel too meat saturated!)

Lunches: Pimiento Cheese; Veggie Burgers, Tuna sandwiches.

Weekend WrapUp

Oh my. One of the best Saturdays I've ever had was yesterday. After a lovely morning with coffee in bed, I assembled my new composter. It was super easy, and Maryam helped me. It's now started with leaves and kitchen scraps. I came home with about 15 pounds of coffee grinds today from the coffee shop! I've also found people to let me take their wood ashes and chicken poop. Hehehe… I'll be driving around the countryside pretty soon with a bucket and shovel.

Once I finished in the garden (I did dig up a liriope bush and scooch it over to make room for the bin), I went to the kitchen. Did not come out til about five hours later. I cooked for two meals, made homemade butternut squash bread (thanks Cara!), and a tray of brownies. My legs were so sore, but I couldn't stop! I must've washed 50 dishes. Well, more like the same 10 dishes five times each maybe. So, that was so rewarding, and the bread turned out great. It was my first time to try homemade yeast bread… mashaAllah it really wasn't that hard and it turned out delicious! It motivated me to try bread that has black olives in it because Abed said he'd like bread with olives. It was really so easy that I wonder why I was always so scared of making homemade bread.

My dad came over for a few hours, and we ended up sitting outside the front door watching the girls ride bikes and stuff. Shortly after he left, my brother Ziad and his wife Laila came over for the rest of the night. It was so much fun! We improvised for dinner and ended up with delicious breakfast tacos! They had eggs, potato, black beans, green chilis, shredded cheese all on corn tortillas. Yum. Coffee and brownies for dessert!

I've checked out several books on gardening and on backyard livestock. I haven't had much free time since I brought the books home, so I hope to read more tonight, but I did read Let It Rot! It is a fabulous quick intro to composting. I don't have much good land to garden on, so I'm exploring my options. An elevated bed is the best idea so far, but my biggest obstacle is finding the right place. The side of the house is the best spot, but I'm not so excited to have it there. It's out of sight (read: out of mind) and requires me to go to the hottest ugliest part of the house. The A/C units are there, too, and in the summer they just blow out hot air all day long. Oh ya… the biggest problem is probably the rabbits! There are millions of little bunnies all over the place here, and they'd knock out any glimmer of a garden as soon as I put it in the ground! So, I'll keep reading and see how or if I'll go for it.

So, about the backyard livestock… I'm thinking of raising hens. J Apparently it isn't hard at all, and they don't need too much room. I'm reading about them. I think the city of Plano still doesn't allow for it, so I'll need to do a little more research. I know you can do it in Dallas. I suspect some people in Plano do it. They prefer that the home be on some land instead of how these homes are all close together. I'll just plan for the future! Insha'Allah after we're done with this house we'll finally move and settle into a nice one level home on a couple of acres of land. Abed wants land to build bike jumps, and I want land to do some agriculture on!

It's heeeeeeeere!

I can't believe the composter arrived this evening!!!

I'll be assembling and filling tomorrow insha'Allah!!! (God willing)

Stay tuned :)

So so so excited fo rmy composter. Yay!
I was so busy yesterday that I skipped walking this morning so that Aisha could nap and so that I could catch up on the debris of yesterday's tornado in my home! I got stuff done already, and am now enjoying a homemade double shot cappucino while browing my favorite sites. I am really giddy over my composter, I don't know why it's this much LOL I will collect anyone's food scraps and yard waste to put in there! Maybe I can get my brother to collect their food waste and they can put it in my bin.

I've been using this toothpaste from Tom's of Maine (and their deoderant as well b/c it is free of aluminum) http://www.tomsofmaine.com/products/default.aspx that is SLS free, but it feels kind of weird. Obviously it doesn't foam like Crest or Colgate, but I think it does the job. SLS= sodium laurel sulphate. Those sulphates and sulphites are bad for the envirnoment, and another reason i quit wanting to use regular shampoo on my hair.

I drove up to Georgia' Farmer's Market in old Plano (on E15th) curious to see what they were about. Well, kinda boring. It was a regular fruit and veggie stand in an old garage. They had some local honey which is great, and I might go buy from there when I need more. But that's about it. Their prices weren't better than Sprouts, for those of you familiar with them. Sprouts is right across the street from my house, so I can get healthy foods there.

Well, back to work.

I ordered a composting bin!!

I found a really neat wood composter. The wood has had the moisture taken out of it in a slow process called Torrification, and so it will not rot with moisture. Isn't that great! I really like the idea that it is made of wood and not plastic, even though the plastic ones are recycled plastic. Anyhow... I can't wait to get started. Seriously, this totally makes my day. I just cannot stand throwing away kitchen scraps, and now with all the fall leaves on the ground, I couldn't bear it! Alhamdulilaah, I'm so thankful!!! It will take a good 7-10 days to get here, so I will anxiously await its arrival!

It feels so good to do this, and in turn, we send less garbage to the landfills. Masha'Allah, in recent years we have cut down our trash a lot. The bin that gets collected once a week now usually has 2 kitchen trash bags a week, and the recycling bin is overflowing. Add a few small bags full of diapers (ok, that's a huge guilt trip right there), and that's the total trash we send out. What else can we do to reduce waste?

A wee bit irritated

I'm a little irked tonight by more than one thing (!)


First of all, I've found a really great sounding CSA (community supported agriculture) FINALLY here in DFW. Only to find out I have to pick up the produce myself from their farm 30 MILES SOUTH OF DALLAS!!! No thank you. I live about 30 miles NORTH of Dallas, so ya. That stinks. How fabulous of the farms in the Seattle area to provide such convenient ways to support them. I'd buy shares into a farm, and once a week pick up a box FULL of produce, herbs, and flowers from a local resident. The farmers would have drop spots in the major cities, and you'd go pick up from the nearest location to you. I'll keep my eyes open, but so far it hasn't trickled into the big city yet. :(


Second thing is this 'heritage project' my 3rd grader has to do. He's to put his family name on this small poster as the title. Then, he is to design the poster with things that represent his family's heritage. He can't print and glue stuff from the internet. That's fine. But he has to do it on his own and know everything on there so that he can present it well to the class. So I told him to make a sketch (on a separate paper) of what he thinks he'd like to put on it. We talked about Arabic words, clothes, food, etc. Next thing I know he says he's done. He used markers and drew on his poster! He used tiny letter, crossed out spelling mistakes, and in the middle drew a huge picture of palestine and israel fighting. :(


And finally... ever since moving to this house I've been wanting to set up my composter. I had one at my old house, and I really dislike throwing fruit and vegetable rinds in the trash. What is irking me to no end is the cost of composting bins these days!!! Up to $250!!! $400!!! We're talking a heavy, plastic container with a secure lid to compose waste in. There seem to still be a few $50 or maybe $75 ones out there, but that is still a lot for a 'bad' one. I started collecting my food scraps yesterday, so I will find a solution. I just can't stand throwing it all out anymore, and there's nothing better than knowing that you are putting back in to the earth from what you took out. I know I won't make a lot of compost in the end, but that's ok b/c I don't have a lot of land to use it on. The point is: I don't want to throw out the food scraps anymore. So if you have any ideas please share!

And now it's bedtime.... for the kids.

Monday's Over!

Assalamu alaikom!

What a day. Monday is housecleaning day, and thankfully, I'm not the one doing most of it. Anita comes over at 8am and we both get to work. So much laundry! That's the first order of business. Then I usually run a few errands after dropping Maryam off. What's nice about having Anita here is that I can put Aisha down for a nap and then leave the house! Woohoo! So, ya, got a lot done today, but I was in the car way more hours than I wanted to be.

I finished up some food shopping that we didn't get to yesterday (Sunday), which leads me to this week's menu!!!!

Today: Roast Chicken w/ Potato and Garlic, mashed potatoes for Heba, salad
Rest of the week's menu cards:
American Meatloaf (as opposed to Arabic meatloaf!)
BBQ Chicken Strips (will probably do them in the oven instead of on the barby)
Laban, Rice (Arabic dish, cooked yogurt with beef cubes served with rice)
Kafta Balls w/ veggies in the oven (kafte=arabic meatloaf)

I made a pecan pie yesterday, but it's almost gone. I don't want to bake more b/c it is too tempting for me! I do end up eating more than I should, so I think I'll take a baking break this week. If you want any of the dinner recipes, just ask and I'll put 'em up here. Tonight's chicken was great... everyone really loved it.

On a little heavier note, I have a PSA (public service announcement). Look out for you kids. Hehehe, yes seems obvious, but I just want to urge you to spend some one on one time with each child, especially as they pass new milestones, and see how they're feeling and see how they perceive themselves and their role in the family. With the oldest child, you don't want to fall into old habits and keep treating him/her like a child or like the younger children. He/she will want some element of control in his/her life, and will want to feel different from the younger siblings. I know this from my own experience as the eldest of 3, and now having my oldest child change out of the 'young kid' stage. He's been feeling frustrated and wishing he were a 'grown-up' so that he could move out and do what he wants. *gasp* I was shocked when he talked like that, and that was my flag to really get to the bottom of his feelings. I remembered our old pediatrician and some advice she gave me a few years ago. I found a way for Musa to have more control. I asked him what things he wanted to change, we discussed them, and we came to new decisions. He was so happy that he thanked me the next morning for a nice talk!

This situation is only a precurser to teen years, which I just pray and pray about all the time. So, ya... stay connected to your kids!