Hey Everyone, I've been redecorating my blog; hope you like it!
I've had a tremendously busy and fun week. My mom's been in town which means more help with cooking, more things to eat, and also more out-of-the-house things to do. So it's been nonstop. I'll back post our meals since Sunday since I can't remember as far back in time as Saturday :P
Sunday: Chicken Tikka; Rice
Monday: Fried Chicken, Brussels Sprouts, French Fries
Tuesday: Meatballs baked with turnips, carrots, roasted eggplant, tomatoes, and potatoes; Rice
Wednesday: leftovers for some plus dinner at my dad's house
Thursday: Green Salad, Spaghetti and Sauce
Friday: Tenderloin, salad, veggies
Saturday: Picnic lunch
Lunches:
frozen pizza
broccoli/potato/cheese soup
leftovers
tuna sandwiches
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
What Brownies Taste Like at My House
My sweet dreamer, my oldest daughter, has really been finding her way around the kitchen these past couple of weeks. Bless her heart, she's not very attuned to details, so I was rightfully worried when she asked to make her first batch of brownies. She did great, and it was a little more work than when my son started to bake cookies, but she is over the moon with her accomplishments, masha'Allah, and I'm so proud of her. Here is the recipe we've been making brownies with for some time. It's a toss up between this one and some other one I can't find, but we do like these a lot. They just don't taste so good after the second or third day, but they're not given that many hours to sit around in this house.
1 1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
4 oz unsweetened baking chocolate
2 eggs
2 Tbsp water
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup nuts, optional
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 8*8 baking pan although 9*13 will work. Combine flour, salt, and baking soda in a small bown and set aside. In a saucepan, melt butter and chocolate squares over low heat, stirring occasionally. Once melted, remove from heat and add sugar, eggs, water, and vanilla. Stir vigorously until well mixed. Stir in dry ingredients. Fold in nuts if desired. Bake 18-22 minutes. Cool and serve!
1 1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
4 oz unsweetened baking chocolate
2 eggs
2 Tbsp water
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup nuts, optional
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 8*8 baking pan although 9*13 will work. Combine flour, salt, and baking soda in a small bown and set aside. In a saucepan, melt butter and chocolate squares over low heat, stirring occasionally. Once melted, remove from heat and add sugar, eggs, water, and vanilla. Stir vigorously until well mixed. Stir in dry ingredients. Fold in nuts if desired. Bake 18-22 minutes. Cool and serve!
White Chili Recipe
Assalamu alaikom
I tried something new this week in food. I'm the type who will eat just about anything and don't turn my nose at anything, but when I heard the words "white" and "chili" in the same sentence it made me turn "green". That was about two years ago.
Last week I read a recipe online for white chili, and I guess I had a change of heart or something because I felt like giving it a shot. I just had to make sure not to mentally categorize it with "real" chili which is red, not white, and is made with BEEF, and not with chicken.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and will make it again! One tip: it calls for a quart of cream. Since I knew I'd be eating from it over 3 days or so, I didn't add the cream on the day I made the soup. It wouldn't taste good getting heated, chilled, and reheated, so I just added a little bit of cream daily each time I took a portion out to reheat for lunch. Also, I used much less than a quart of cream... and that's a good thing, no matter how good cream is!
White Chili
1 large jar white northern beans (or 2 regular sized cans)
1 quart chicken stock
2 cups cooked, diced chicken
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celergy
1 4oz jar diced green chilies ( I didn't use these)
1 1/3 Tbsp. minced garlic ( I used about 5 cloves... who needs to count in TBSPs!)
1 1/2 Tbsp. cumin
1/2 - 1 tsp. cayenne pepper depending on how hot you like it
1 quart cream
salt and pepper to taste
Saute onion, celery, and garlic in 2 Tbsp oil. Add beans, stock, and spices. Simmer 1/2 hour- 1 hour. Add chicken. Add cream and heat through just before serving. Serve with shredded cheese on top if desired.
Sorry, no picture... maybe another time!
I tried something new this week in food. I'm the type who will eat just about anything and don't turn my nose at anything, but when I heard the words "white" and "chili" in the same sentence it made me turn "green". That was about two years ago.
Last week I read a recipe online for white chili, and I guess I had a change of heart or something because I felt like giving it a shot. I just had to make sure not to mentally categorize it with "real" chili which is red, not white, and is made with BEEF, and not with chicken.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and will make it again! One tip: it calls for a quart of cream. Since I knew I'd be eating from it over 3 days or so, I didn't add the cream on the day I made the soup. It wouldn't taste good getting heated, chilled, and reheated, so I just added a little bit of cream daily each time I took a portion out to reheat for lunch. Also, I used much less than a quart of cream... and that's a good thing, no matter how good cream is!
White Chili
1 large jar white northern beans (or 2 regular sized cans)
1 quart chicken stock
2 cups cooked, diced chicken
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celergy
1 4oz jar diced green chilies ( I didn't use these)
1 1/3 Tbsp. minced garlic ( I used about 5 cloves... who needs to count in TBSPs!)
1 1/2 Tbsp. cumin
1/2 - 1 tsp. cayenne pepper depending on how hot you like it
1 quart cream
salt and pepper to taste
Saute onion, celery, and garlic in 2 Tbsp oil. Add beans, stock, and spices. Simmer 1/2 hour- 1 hour. Add chicken. Add cream and heat through just before serving. Serve with shredded cheese on top if desired.
Sorry, no picture... maybe another time!
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Menu's up
I have a tentative idea of what we'll be eating this week:
Lunches:
~I'm making a couple of extra loaves of bread, slicing them, and putting them in the freezer so that we can get back into having peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch! I know, that's not very exciting, but we haven't eaten those in months and months, so I hope they'll be a happy change.
~ Baked macaroni and cheese (new recipe I'm waiting to try)
~ leftovers or something from the freezer
~ tacos if necessary
Dinner:
Sunday: Tenderloin steak, roasted veggies
Monday: Making a pot of White Chili for the first time, some leftover steak for the skeptics
Tuesday: Probably more white chili for me, feel like frying some chicken thighs, more roasted veggies
Wednesday: Taco soup, steamed broccoli
Thursday: Soup, not sure.. I have a lot of broccoli and potatoes, so probably that.
Friday: Meatballs in a tray with veggies and tomato sauce, side of rice
Insha'Allah, that's the plan.
Lunches:
~I'm making a couple of extra loaves of bread, slicing them, and putting them in the freezer so that we can get back into having peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch! I know, that's not very exciting, but we haven't eaten those in months and months, so I hope they'll be a happy change.
~ Baked macaroni and cheese (new recipe I'm waiting to try)
~ leftovers or something from the freezer
~ tacos if necessary
Dinner:
Sunday: Tenderloin steak, roasted veggies
Monday: Making a pot of White Chili for the first time, some leftover steak for the skeptics
Tuesday: Probably more white chili for me, feel like frying some chicken thighs, more roasted veggies
Wednesday: Taco soup, steamed broccoli
Thursday: Soup, not sure.. I have a lot of broccoli and potatoes, so probably that.
Friday: Meatballs in a tray with veggies and tomato sauce, side of rice
Insha'Allah, that's the plan.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Home activites for your kids
Does the thought of having your kids home for two weeks without school give you a little stress? Do you wonder what you'll do with them, or more specifically, what they'll do with you?? Just kidding, hopefully they'll do nothing with you but fill your heart with love :D
My philosophy is that you as a parent don't need to resort to song and dance to entertain your children, rather you just want to provide a few things to jump start their imaginations and love for play that is already there. They're kids after all! (and by song and dance I'm talking about going to places where you have to pay and pay and pay out the nose for a few hours of 'entertainment')
Here are a few ideas that have worked for me that I hope might be useful for you or might give you an idea for something else you have handy.
1. Have some art supplies handy and structure the time they can use it if the mess stresses you out. There are washable finger paints that are easy to wipe off of any table surface. I've bought some inexpensive newsprint tablets of paper that the little ones can use as much as they want. No fancy thick art paper, just a thinner type called newsprint. There is a little plastic tub (with lid) hidden in one of my kitchen cabinets full of paint brushes, washable finger paints, a couple of trays of watercolors, and reused cans that I've saved from cooking to act as water cans. Older kids know that they have to leave NO TRACE of their activity if I'm going to let them do it again, so they make sure to clean up really well.
2. Homemade Playdo (or the store bought type) We set up at the kitchen table and use rolling pins, wooden utensils (like salad mixers, wooden fork), plastic characters from other toys (we some old Dora and Diego figures), and plastic toys like trees, animals, and other things you might have already. You could make a jungle theme or any theme you want and set out the accessories that will give them a spark to work with.
Recipe for Homemade Playdo
5 cups flour
1 cup salt
2 T Alum (white spice you can find in grocery store)
1/4 cup oil
4 cups boiling water
Stir all together in a large mixing bowl. You can separate the dough into smaller bowl and add food coloring. Store in sealed plastic bags to keep fresh and moist.
3. Have a sensory box. The idea is to fill a container with dry materials that the little ones can sink their hands into and play in. At preschools I've seen them at the kids' waist level so that they can walk up to the long table that is filled with sand or pebbles, rice, or soapy water at times. Kids love to touch and move these things between their fingers. At home, I found a tub that I could reuse and filled it with dry rice and green lentils. Just yesterday I switched it out and filled it with different types of dry beans. I used large white beans, black beans, red beans, pinto beans, and black-eyed peas. Again, the big kids know to clean up completely, but for the toddler, well, I just brace myself and have the vacuum cleaner handy for when she's done. I have used a beach blanket before for them so play on so that I could more easily shake out or throw away what got scattered out of the box.
4. Make fruit popsicles. Ok, I know it's cold enough outside, but this is a quick and easy kitchen activity if you have anyone who is itching to make his/her own treat. We poured our blend into these little containers that Nana gave us, but you can use ice cube trays if you want, too.
Recipe for fruit popsicles
1 cup frozen sliced bananas (it's ok if they're not frozen)
1 cup frozen strawberries, raspberries, sliced peaches or other fruit (we used the frozen tropical mix from Costco)
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract (i'd use a little less)
¼ to ½ cup milk (dairy, soy, rice, almond, or coconut)
In a food processor, pulse fruit until coarsely chopped. I used my blender, not food processor.
Add milk a little at a time through top of processor, and puree until creamy.
Serve immediately, or freeze in individual-size containers for later.
Yield: 4 servings
Recipe is courtesy of: http://www.mothering.com/recipes/better-ice-cream
5. Free up the garage. Ours has tools and toys around the perimeter b/c my husband parks his car inside. When it's too cold or wet to play outside we just move his car out and play in there. Sure, it's not huge, but for most kids it is plenty of room to play ball, ride scooters/trikes, jump on a small trampoline, or just to run and play. I've even taken one of the space heaters to warm it up a little more in there on the really cold days.
6. Have some quiet activities on hand.
a) The most obvious one is books from the library. Why don't all of you sit on the couch with a few piles of books and just sit down and relax for an hour? Make some hot tea or hot chocolate and enjoy reading together.
b) Remember playing Mad Libs as a kid? I just ordered two books and they're a HIT!!
http://www.amazon.com/Super-Silly-Mad-Libs-Junior/dp/0843107588/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1324133457&sr=8-4
c) Latch hook kits. Definitely for ages 8 and up. Maybe even 9 or 10 and up. Don't tell anyone, but my son is really into the one I got him. It's a picture of a pirate ship. He's loving it. What a great quiet, focusing, and productive activity!
http://www.amazon.com/Caron-Wonderart-Latch-Hook-Kit/dp/B0017WEDA8/ref=sr_1_10?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1324133546&sr=1-10
I left out some big things like arts and crafts (glue, construction paper, etc..), scrapbooking, and bead activites b/c I figured those were obvious enough if you already have them at home.
Alrighty, that's about all I have for now!
My philosophy is that you as a parent don't need to resort to song and dance to entertain your children, rather you just want to provide a few things to jump start their imaginations and love for play that is already there. They're kids after all! (and by song and dance I'm talking about going to places where you have to pay and pay and pay out the nose for a few hours of 'entertainment')
Here are a few ideas that have worked for me that I hope might be useful for you or might give you an idea for something else you have handy.
1. Have some art supplies handy and structure the time they can use it if the mess stresses you out. There are washable finger paints that are easy to wipe off of any table surface. I've bought some inexpensive newsprint tablets of paper that the little ones can use as much as they want. No fancy thick art paper, just a thinner type called newsprint. There is a little plastic tub (with lid) hidden in one of my kitchen cabinets full of paint brushes, washable finger paints, a couple of trays of watercolors, and reused cans that I've saved from cooking to act as water cans. Older kids know that they have to leave NO TRACE of their activity if I'm going to let them do it again, so they make sure to clean up really well.
2. Homemade Playdo (or the store bought type) We set up at the kitchen table and use rolling pins, wooden utensils (like salad mixers, wooden fork), plastic characters from other toys (we some old Dora and Diego figures), and plastic toys like trees, animals, and other things you might have already. You could make a jungle theme or any theme you want and set out the accessories that will give them a spark to work with.
Recipe for Homemade Playdo
5 cups flour
1 cup salt
2 T Alum (white spice you can find in grocery store)
1/4 cup oil
4 cups boiling water
Stir all together in a large mixing bowl. You can separate the dough into smaller bowl and add food coloring. Store in sealed plastic bags to keep fresh and moist.
3. Have a sensory box. The idea is to fill a container with dry materials that the little ones can sink their hands into and play in. At preschools I've seen them at the kids' waist level so that they can walk up to the long table that is filled with sand or pebbles, rice, or soapy water at times. Kids love to touch and move these things between their fingers. At home, I found a tub that I could reuse and filled it with dry rice and green lentils. Just yesterday I switched it out and filled it with different types of dry beans. I used large white beans, black beans, red beans, pinto beans, and black-eyed peas. Again, the big kids know to clean up completely, but for the toddler, well, I just brace myself and have the vacuum cleaner handy for when she's done. I have used a beach blanket before for them so play on so that I could more easily shake out or throw away what got scattered out of the box.
Here is the updated box I just set up today and like more:
1 cup frozen sliced bananas (it's ok if they're not frozen)
1 cup frozen strawberries, raspberries, sliced peaches or other fruit (we used the frozen tropical mix from Costco)
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract (i'd use a little less)
¼ to ½ cup milk (dairy, soy, rice, almond, or coconut)
In a food processor, pulse fruit until coarsely chopped. I used my blender, not food processor.
Add milk a little at a time through top of processor, and puree until creamy.
Serve immediately, or freeze in individual-size containers for later.
Yield: 4 servings
Recipe is courtesy of: http://www.mothering.com/recipes/better-ice-cream
5. Free up the garage. Ours has tools and toys around the perimeter b/c my husband parks his car inside. When it's too cold or wet to play outside we just move his car out and play in there. Sure, it's not huge, but for most kids it is plenty of room to play ball, ride scooters/trikes, jump on a small trampoline, or just to run and play. I've even taken one of the space heaters to warm it up a little more in there on the really cold days.
6. Have some quiet activities on hand.
a) The most obvious one is books from the library. Why don't all of you sit on the couch with a few piles of books and just sit down and relax for an hour? Make some hot tea or hot chocolate and enjoy reading together.
b) Remember playing Mad Libs as a kid? I just ordered two books and they're a HIT!!
http://www.amazon.com/Super-Silly-Mad-Libs-Junior/dp/0843107588/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1324133457&sr=8-4
c) Latch hook kits. Definitely for ages 8 and up. Maybe even 9 or 10 and up. Don't tell anyone, but my son is really into the one I got him. It's a picture of a pirate ship. He's loving it. What a great quiet, focusing, and productive activity!
http://www.amazon.com/Caron-Wonderart-Latch-Hook-Kit/dp/B0017WEDA8/ref=sr_1_10?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1324133546&sr=1-10
I left out some big things like arts and crafts (glue, construction paper, etc..), scrapbooking, and bead activites b/c I figured those were obvious enough if you already have them at home.
Alrighty, that's about all I have for now!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
something *I* have learned from homeschooling
I've had the opportunity twice this past week to talk about why I chose to homeschool the children. (it just so happens that two people asked me why/how I do it) Now that I've been doing it a little over a year I've almost forgotton about those initial feelings that lead me to explore it in the first place! When I think back to those few weeks in the spring of 2010 when I started this journey, the initial reasons are still there and valid, but I've gained dozens more reasons to keept it going.
I couldn't believe how things were changing for the better during those first few weeks. I mean, all the little extra perks were piling up, and I was just all giddy with our new lifestyle. I'm talking about the bonus of the kids seeing their dad an extra few minutes a day b/c they're not being rushed out the door. The bonus of them occasionally eating a hot meal for lunch rather than their packed lunches. The opportunity for them to do some simple chores in the morning their not being totally exhausted by the time they get done with school for the day. We slowly shifted from our old routine to a new one that was much more laid back and kind of with a natural flow.
I get the opportunity to be there to shape their views on key character issues. I am providing them with quality literature that is well written and with good characters/stories. When tough situations arise, we are all there to talk about how we would respond.
To get to do all of this, though, it does take effort of course. Nothing can be successful without putting your all into it. You can't do something like this halfway. And that brings me to one of the more significant replies I've come to give those who question me, because they inevitabley tell me they couldn't possibly do it and that they don't have the patience that I must have. I often stop them and tell them that I, too, used to think that of others who homeschooled. I tell them that not only has it built character in the children, but that it built character in me. This change in lifestlyle has positively affected me. I wasn't expecting it, really, and it took me answering questions of curious friends to realize that I did change. I had to. I had to change in my heart how I saw my children. I prayed about it, asked for help, and put my best foot forward. Now, months later, I can say that I have changed, and I think I am a better mom for it. Alhamdulilaah, Allah is capable of all things, and He can provide for us from places we cannot imagine. And that's the other thing I like to share with moms who consider homeschooling. Make your intentions for seeking the pleasure of Allah, and He will provide for you and make you a way. (and I'm not saying that homeschooling is the only way for Allah to make a way for you to be a good mom!!! just saying how with my intentions for homeschooling along with prayer, I've come a long way)
The struggles haven't been too hard. I've managed my schedule so that I do some outings on my own once my husband is home. It's when he's travelling out of town that I feel the full force of not having any time to run errands alone. I don't even mind being home with the kids, it's when I need something from out of the house that I run into trouble. I'm used to taking my kids with me everywhere, but the older ones don't have as much patience as they used to, and that's where I'm running into the most trouble! In a year or two, though I'll be able to leave more of them home alone, insha'Allah. I'm so thankful that I'm with them while they grow up. I hope and pray that this will benefit them as they grow.
I couldn't believe how things were changing for the better during those first few weeks. I mean, all the little extra perks were piling up, and I was just all giddy with our new lifestyle. I'm talking about the bonus of the kids seeing their dad an extra few minutes a day b/c they're not being rushed out the door. The bonus of them occasionally eating a hot meal for lunch rather than their packed lunches. The opportunity for them to do some simple chores in the morning their not being totally exhausted by the time they get done with school for the day. We slowly shifted from our old routine to a new one that was much more laid back and kind of with a natural flow.
I get the opportunity to be there to shape their views on key character issues. I am providing them with quality literature that is well written and with good characters/stories. When tough situations arise, we are all there to talk about how we would respond.
To get to do all of this, though, it does take effort of course. Nothing can be successful without putting your all into it. You can't do something like this halfway. And that brings me to one of the more significant replies I've come to give those who question me, because they inevitabley tell me they couldn't possibly do it and that they don't have the patience that I must have. I often stop them and tell them that I, too, used to think that of others who homeschooled. I tell them that not only has it built character in the children, but that it built character in me. This change in lifestlyle has positively affected me. I wasn't expecting it, really, and it took me answering questions of curious friends to realize that I did change. I had to. I had to change in my heart how I saw my children. I prayed about it, asked for help, and put my best foot forward. Now, months later, I can say that I have changed, and I think I am a better mom for it. Alhamdulilaah, Allah is capable of all things, and He can provide for us from places we cannot imagine. And that's the other thing I like to share with moms who consider homeschooling. Make your intentions for seeking the pleasure of Allah, and He will provide for you and make you a way. (and I'm not saying that homeschooling is the only way for Allah to make a way for you to be a good mom!!! just saying how with my intentions for homeschooling along with prayer, I've come a long way)
The struggles haven't been too hard. I've managed my schedule so that I do some outings on my own once my husband is home. It's when he's travelling out of town that I feel the full force of not having any time to run errands alone. I don't even mind being home with the kids, it's when I need something from out of the house that I run into trouble. I'm used to taking my kids with me everywhere, but the older ones don't have as much patience as they used to, and that's where I'm running into the most trouble! In a year or two, though I'll be able to leave more of them home alone, insha'Allah. I'm so thankful that I'm with them while they grow up. I hope and pray that this will benefit them as they grow.
Friday, December 9, 2011
I've changed my settings
Hey everyone,
I am going to try this out again where your comments will get published immediately rather than await moderation. For a while I was getting a lot of random spam comments, so I'm just going to try it out again.
So if that was ever holding you back, go ahead and leave comments!
Thanks,
Zein
I am going to try this out again where your comments will get published immediately rather than await moderation. For a while I was getting a lot of random spam comments, so I'm just going to try it out again.
So if that was ever holding you back, go ahead and leave comments!
Thanks,
Zein
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Kitchen happenings and Meal Plan
Assalamu alaikom, hey everyone!
As usual I've spent a big part of Sunday in the kitchen. It's kind of my thing. I like to get a lot of prep work done for the week, and I try to make stuff I can put in the freezer whether it's muffins, sauces, or soups. It really helps ease the stress during the week, and alhamdullah, I like having homemade foods available over needing to eat out or to buy packaged food.
Today I planned the main meals for the next few days, and I managed to get a huge pot of spaghetti sauce simmered and divided into two bags for the freezer. I plan to use some of that for a lasagne next week.
Using the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day method, I've baked four loaves of whole wheat bread and frozen two (boy, we can eat through a whole loaf fast here at breakfast). I'm trying a new recipe using flaxseed with whole wheat, so I'm excited to see how it goes over. It's so much healthier than baking bread with plain white bread.
I also tried out a tomato basil soup that is the La Madeleine recipe. Yum. We'll have some of that leftover for the next day, maybe two. So.... the rough plan for the week:
Monday: Salad, Brussels sprouts, roasted leg of lamb, roasted fingerling potatoes
Tuesday: leftovers hopefully
Wednesday: Salad, lasagne, homemade bread
Thursday: leftovers
Friday: Shakrieh (rice, cooked yogurt with stewed beef cubes)
Lunches:
Tuna
Pasta
Homemade pizza
Fish Sticks
Have a great week everyone! We had a whole week off last week and enjoyed every minute of it, alhamdulillaah. Looking forward to getting back into the swing of things (well, sorta)!
From a recent trip to the Dallas Arboretum:
As usual I've spent a big part of Sunday in the kitchen. It's kind of my thing. I like to get a lot of prep work done for the week, and I try to make stuff I can put in the freezer whether it's muffins, sauces, or soups. It really helps ease the stress during the week, and alhamdullah, I like having homemade foods available over needing to eat out or to buy packaged food.
Today I planned the main meals for the next few days, and I managed to get a huge pot of spaghetti sauce simmered and divided into two bags for the freezer. I plan to use some of that for a lasagne next week.
Using the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day method, I've baked four loaves of whole wheat bread and frozen two (boy, we can eat through a whole loaf fast here at breakfast). I'm trying a new recipe using flaxseed with whole wheat, so I'm excited to see how it goes over. It's so much healthier than baking bread with plain white bread.
I also tried out a tomato basil soup that is the La Madeleine recipe. Yum. We'll have some of that leftover for the next day, maybe two. So.... the rough plan for the week:
Monday: Salad, Brussels sprouts, roasted leg of lamb, roasted fingerling potatoes
Tuesday: leftovers hopefully
Wednesday: Salad, lasagne, homemade bread
Thursday: leftovers
Friday: Shakrieh (rice, cooked yogurt with stewed beef cubes)
Lunches:
Tuna
Pasta
Homemade pizza
Fish Sticks
Have a great week everyone! We had a whole week off last week and enjoyed every minute of it, alhamdulillaah. Looking forward to getting back into the swing of things (well, sorta)!
From a recent trip to the Dallas Arboretum:
Saturday, November 26, 2011
fresh air and love
Assalamu alaikom and hello everyone,
A few years ago when I lived in WA state, a dear sister in Islam who used to lead our Friday night ladies' group would joke about the classic 'what's for dinner' dilema we all faced daily. One time she joked about telling her husband something like "and what do you think we're going to have for dinner, fresh air and love?". It cracked me up so much back then and I still chuckle when I remember our conversation. It was just funny how she said it.
Well, if fresh air and love is all it took to survive, then I could've made it all last week without breakfast, lunch, or dinner. My family and I left our little home tucked in the concrete jungle here in TX and headed to visit my mom in her small town in Mississippi. I prepped for a day or two getting laundry ready, tidying up the house, and sorting through the food in the fridge. I lined up what we were going to take to Mom, did last minute shopping, and packed up the kids' clothes, shoes, jackets, and car activities (you should look at http://www.momsminivan.com/ if you ever go on a car trip with kids by the way).
What welcomed us in Oxford, MS, were sounds and sights of nature that I don't see where I live. Large, old trees are scattered here and there. Masha'Allah, birds actually sing and make noises often. Homes have different types of flowering shrubberies and other types of plants around the property, and not in little manicured designs like at our houses here. Because the town in small, we walked to many of our errands and appointments. In doing that we'd run into friends and people we knew. We spoke to other people who were also walking around. What a nice feeling! One day we walked through a wooded area for about an hour, and I was so happy breathing in fresh air, rustling the leaves that had already fallen, and walking with my kids in an area where all we could see were trees.
We picked pecans off the ground. A large pecan tree behind my mom's house sure was giving us a lot of nuts this year. My kids kept running outside to collect what new ones had fallen at least twice a day. We filled up a rather large bowl (more like a vat) full. The best part was cracking those pecans with the nutcracker that my late grandfather used at his home. My mom has it, and it is mounted on a plank of wood. I wish I had taken a picture of it, but I don't have one right now. I only took one picture of my son using it, so that'll have to do to give you an idea.
Since we passed through Memphis on our way, I decided to spend the night there and take a little sightseeing boat tour on the Mississippi River the following day. The tour was about an hour and a half and we learned all about barges, tows, and life on the river in general. It was really neat.
Back in Oxford, MS, though we shared a great week with my mom and her husband not only outdoors but inside the house as well. My children played with many treasures they found in the basement (in treasure boxes as they called the old trunks stored down there). They baked with their grandmother, played cards with each other, and watched football with Dave. We had a relaxing week, alhamdulillaah, all praise to God. It felt like a relief after some long weeks of feeling closed in.
A few years ago when I lived in WA state, a dear sister in Islam who used to lead our Friday night ladies' group would joke about the classic 'what's for dinner' dilema we all faced daily. One time she joked about telling her husband something like "and what do you think we're going to have for dinner, fresh air and love?". It cracked me up so much back then and I still chuckle when I remember our conversation. It was just funny how she said it.
Well, if fresh air and love is all it took to survive, then I could've made it all last week without breakfast, lunch, or dinner. My family and I left our little home tucked in the concrete jungle here in TX and headed to visit my mom in her small town in Mississippi. I prepped for a day or two getting laundry ready, tidying up the house, and sorting through the food in the fridge. I lined up what we were going to take to Mom, did last minute shopping, and packed up the kids' clothes, shoes, jackets, and car activities (you should look at http://www.momsminivan.com/ if you ever go on a car trip with kids by the way).
What welcomed us in Oxford, MS, were sounds and sights of nature that I don't see where I live. Large, old trees are scattered here and there. Masha'Allah, birds actually sing and make noises often. Homes have different types of flowering shrubberies and other types of plants around the property, and not in little manicured designs like at our houses here. Because the town in small, we walked to many of our errands and appointments. In doing that we'd run into friends and people we knew. We spoke to other people who were also walking around. What a nice feeling! One day we walked through a wooded area for about an hour, and I was so happy breathing in fresh air, rustling the leaves that had already fallen, and walking with my kids in an area where all we could see were trees.
We picked pecans off the ground. A large pecan tree behind my mom's house sure was giving us a lot of nuts this year. My kids kept running outside to collect what new ones had fallen at least twice a day. We filled up a rather large bowl (more like a vat) full. The best part was cracking those pecans with the nutcracker that my late grandfather used at his home. My mom has it, and it is mounted on a plank of wood. I wish I had taken a picture of it, but I don't have one right now. I only took one picture of my son using it, so that'll have to do to give you an idea.
Since we passed through Memphis on our way, I decided to spend the night there and take a little sightseeing boat tour on the Mississippi River the following day. The tour was about an hour and a half and we learned all about barges, tows, and life on the river in general. It was really neat.
Back in Oxford, MS, though we shared a great week with my mom and her husband not only outdoors but inside the house as well. My children played with many treasures they found in the basement (in treasure boxes as they called the old trunks stored down there). They baked with their grandmother, played cards with each other, and watched football with Dave. We had a relaxing week, alhamdulillaah, all praise to God. It felt like a relief after some long weeks of feeling closed in.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Crispy Kale!
I'm sure you've heard about how good kale is supposed to be for us with its calcium and super nutrients. It's not a leaf I buy. It's very thick and curly. I'm just scared of it, to be honest. I haven't seen it used in a recipe where I've thought it would be something we'd eat. Until now.
I was watching the show Parenthood last week, and it was in the show twice! Kale was in the show two times. I grabbed one bunch at the store yesterday, and I fixed 'em up nice and crispy just a little while ago. So so good. I'll definitely make it again, insha'Allah.
Here's a pretty straight forward recipe from allrecipes: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/baked-kale-chips/detail.aspx
Try it out! Tip: you don't need too much oil or too much salt!! Yikes. A little goes a long way.
I was watching the show Parenthood last week, and it was in the show twice! Kale was in the show two times. I grabbed one bunch at the store yesterday, and I fixed 'em up nice and crispy just a little while ago. So so good. I'll definitely make it again, insha'Allah.
Here's a pretty straight forward recipe from allrecipes: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/baked-kale-chips/detail.aspx
Try it out! Tip: you don't need too much oil or too much salt!! Yikes. A little goes a long way.
Friday, November 4, 2011
Hajj Lapbook
Assalamu alaikom everyone,
Note: Eid ul Adha is in two days, Hajj starts today, and we've been working on this project for two weeks. I know it won't be very useful for any Muslim families right now, but hopefully it will give you some ideas for next Eid.
In the Land of Homeschool there is something called Lapbooking. I had never heard of it before I started homeschooling, and it took quite a bit of clicking around for me to understand what it is. Once I figured it out, I figured it wasn't anything I'd be doing often. See, it's a super creative and labor intensive project involving cutting, pasting, coloring, and folding. You create a large lapbook (usually made out of two manila folders pasted together) that has smaller flipbooks, pockets, accordian books, and other media inside of it to represent a whole unit, book, or topic. You take your time building the little parts (by reading and learning about them), and finally you have a keepsake of everything you've learned.
My beef with the lapbook is that it looks like a project that older elementary kids wouldn't enjoy, but the work necessary to produce one is too advanced for a young elementary student to do independently. Enter Mom.
Well, a few weeks ago I was cruising the net, looking to some of my favorite bloggers for a good way to make a unit for Hajj and Eid. Wouldn't ya know, it was a lapbook that really drew my attention. I decided to go for it mostly b/c I wanted something fun and that would hold their attention continually for two weeks on this subject. We read from a book I have on Hajj that bought a couple of years ago. We also spent time talking about the little aspects that are represented in the lapbook. Some of them were really easy for my 4th and 5th graders. There were sections about the Animals for Slaughter and the Colors of Hajj. Not exciting for the older kids, but I had them write the names of the animals and the names of the colors in Arabic on the cut-out cards. We also added a few little speech bubbles with writing in Arabic for "Allahu Akbar", "SubhanAllah", "Alhamdulillaah", and "La Ilaaha Il Allah". That was good practice for them, and it was something they could paste on their book.
I got all the help from http://imanshomeschool.wordpress.com/2010/10/27/hajj-mini-lapbook/ and from the original source: http://ummabdulbasir.wordpress.com/2010/01/17/hajj-lapbook-updated/
Here are the finished products from my three.
You can kind of tell which one belongs to the boy, which one belongs to the youngest one, and which one is made from the artistic child! For a first attempt, I'm happy with the outcomes. The ones on the links above my pictures look much nicer, but that's ok with me :D I'm just glad we got it done.
Happy Eid!
Note: Eid ul Adha is in two days, Hajj starts today, and we've been working on this project for two weeks. I know it won't be very useful for any Muslim families right now, but hopefully it will give you some ideas for next Eid.
In the Land of Homeschool there is something called Lapbooking. I had never heard of it before I started homeschooling, and it took quite a bit of clicking around for me to understand what it is. Once I figured it out, I figured it wasn't anything I'd be doing often. See, it's a super creative and labor intensive project involving cutting, pasting, coloring, and folding. You create a large lapbook (usually made out of two manila folders pasted together) that has smaller flipbooks, pockets, accordian books, and other media inside of it to represent a whole unit, book, or topic. You take your time building the little parts (by reading and learning about them), and finally you have a keepsake of everything you've learned.
My beef with the lapbook is that it looks like a project that older elementary kids wouldn't enjoy, but the work necessary to produce one is too advanced for a young elementary student to do independently. Enter Mom.
Well, a few weeks ago I was cruising the net, looking to some of my favorite bloggers for a good way to make a unit for Hajj and Eid. Wouldn't ya know, it was a lapbook that really drew my attention. I decided to go for it mostly b/c I wanted something fun and that would hold their attention continually for two weeks on this subject. We read from a book I have on Hajj that bought a couple of years ago. We also spent time talking about the little aspects that are represented in the lapbook. Some of them were really easy for my 4th and 5th graders. There were sections about the Animals for Slaughter and the Colors of Hajj. Not exciting for the older kids, but I had them write the names of the animals and the names of the colors in Arabic on the cut-out cards. We also added a few little speech bubbles with writing in Arabic for "Allahu Akbar", "SubhanAllah", "Alhamdulillaah", and "La Ilaaha Il Allah". That was good practice for them, and it was something they could paste on their book.
I got all the help from http://imanshomeschool.wordpress.com/2010/10/27/hajj-mini-lapbook/ and from the original source: http://ummabdulbasir.wordpress.com/2010/01/17/hajj-lapbook-updated/
Here are the finished products from my three.
You can kind of tell which one belongs to the boy, which one belongs to the youngest one, and which one is made from the artistic child! For a first attempt, I'm happy with the outcomes. The ones on the links above my pictures look much nicer, but that's ok with me :D I'm just glad we got it done.
Happy Eid!
Friday, October 28, 2011
Special Ten Days Start Today!!!
The big holiday, Eid Ul Adha, is coming up on Sunday, November 6, insha'Allah. This is the Eid of sacrifice, and it falls at the same time millions of people are performing Hajj in Makkah. And by sacrifice, I mean it marks the braveness and piousness of Prophet Abraham, peace be upon him, who was willing to sacrifice his son Ismail because that is what Allah ordered him to do. In the end, Allah sent a ram to be sacrificed instead, and it is part of the Eid to sacrifice an animal and distribute its meat to those who need it, to friends, and to keep some for yourself. The other Eid we have during the year is the one that follows Ramadan.
What's really neat to me is that this Eid falls on the 10th day of the Islamic month called Dhul Hijjah, and that the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah are the most blessed days of the year in the sight of Allah. Not all days of the year are equal, and these days are a special time to dedicate to doing good deeds, increasing worship, and even fasting. Just silently glrorifying the Creator while you work, asking for forgiveness, and asking for His guidance are ways to increase your worship. The kids and I made a list where I asked them to think of examples of good deeds we could do during this time. I was thinking of random acts of kindness, for example, if we're out somewhere like complimenting a check out clerk, smiling at someone, or paying for someone's coffee if I were to go to a coffee shop anymore... One of the kids listed 'watching your tongue' and 'smiling'. So to keep up this good mood and feeling of joy for doing a good thing, I strung up our colorful Eid lights one of the archways downstairs and hope to get another one up tomorrow. The string of lights blew a strip and 1/3 of them don't light up anymore. Good thing all the Christmas decorations are out in full force; it's easy to find what I need! We'll also plan what goodies we'll bake for Eid and what plans insha'Allah we can make.
Please forgive me if I've offended any of you all, and I pray that my fellow Muslims have a great ten days and a great Eid.
Here's a link http://ummabdulbasir.wordpress.com/category/hajj-activities/ to a fun Lapbook you can make with your kids about Hajj. It's for younger ones, I think (with the numbers, colors, and animals) but we just added a few things to make it a little more advanced for my 4th and 5th graders like making them write the Arabic names alongside the English ones hehehe. This is the first lapbook I've ever attempted, and so far it's working out how I had hoped it would. We're reading a book that talks about Hajj and doing this project for our Islamic Studies for two weeks leading up to Eid. It's fun and I think the information is sinking in more than it has in the past.
What's really neat to me is that this Eid falls on the 10th day of the Islamic month called Dhul Hijjah, and that the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah are the most blessed days of the year in the sight of Allah. Not all days of the year are equal, and these days are a special time to dedicate to doing good deeds, increasing worship, and even fasting. Just silently glrorifying the Creator while you work, asking for forgiveness, and asking for His guidance are ways to increase your worship. The kids and I made a list where I asked them to think of examples of good deeds we could do during this time. I was thinking of random acts of kindness, for example, if we're out somewhere like complimenting a check out clerk, smiling at someone, or paying for someone's coffee if I were to go to a coffee shop anymore... One of the kids listed 'watching your tongue' and 'smiling'. So to keep up this good mood and feeling of joy for doing a good thing, I strung up our colorful Eid lights one of the archways downstairs and hope to get another one up tomorrow. The string of lights blew a strip and 1/3 of them don't light up anymore. Good thing all the Christmas decorations are out in full force; it's easy to find what I need! We'll also plan what goodies we'll bake for Eid and what plans insha'Allah we can make.
Please forgive me if I've offended any of you all, and I pray that my fellow Muslims have a great ten days and a great Eid.
Here's a link http://ummabdulbasir.wordpress.com/category/hajj-activities/ to a fun Lapbook you can make with your kids about Hajj. It's for younger ones, I think (with the numbers, colors, and animals) but we just added a few things to make it a little more advanced for my 4th and 5th graders like making them write the Arabic names alongside the English ones hehehe. This is the first lapbook I've ever attempted, and so far it's working out how I had hoped it would. We're reading a book that talks about Hajj and doing this project for our Islamic Studies for two weeks leading up to Eid. It's fun and I think the information is sinking in more than it has in the past.
Been in the kitchen tonight
Sometimes I wonder where that strong drive comes from; the one to just get myself busy in the kitchen and bake and bake and bake. I do love it, but I HATE THE CLEANUP!!!! Not only are there the baking utensils, bowls, mixers, pans, and other paraphenalia, but the regular family dishes continue to stream in as well as they did during dinner time tonight. Grrr.... can't they all just vacate the building while I feel like baking?
I don't always have time in afternoons to bake (and my mornings are busy homeschooling), so I often wind up starting projects in the late evening. Perfect for using up every last bit of energy I might have, having it run out exactly as I face a sink full of yet another round of hand-wash dishes (inevitably around 9pm). Right, well I'm not here to complain, so I'll post a recipe of some Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins we're all loving around here at the moment. I casually pass by the cute little "pie pumpkins" at the store, but I can't bring myself to bring one home to prepare for pie or muffins. I totally don't mind using Libby's canned pumpkin, but maybe I don't know what I'm missing out on. These muffins really taste so much like a pumpkin pie (which I love), just in the form of a muffin. This is the third time I make them in a month. What I love is that this recipe makes about 18 muffins, so we dont' wipe them out all at once, and if I double the recipe I can freeze a ton for snacks another day. Here is the recipe:
PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS
1/2 c butter or margarine, softened
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 c canned pumpkin (without spice)
2 c all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1 c semi-sweet chocolate chips
Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl. Add eggs, stir until smooth. Stir in pumpkin. In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Stir to m ix. Pour into mixing bowl; stir until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon into greased or paper-lined muffin cups until three-fourths full. Bake at 350* for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
Sorry, I don't have any pictures right now. They come up just perfect each time, though. I bake mine a full 25 minutes, if not a few minutes more.
The other thing I baked was a cookie we call Snowballs. They're also popularly known as Mexican Wedding Cookies, but my mom's husband has made these every year at Christmas time and calls them Snowballs, so I call them Snowballs, too. I'll be sharing most of those cookies with some friends to whom I've promised some homemade goodies, and now that it's not 110 degrees all over the South I feel comfortable putting food in the mail!
And now I'm craving peanut butter, so I think my next goody will have to be a new experiment of brownies with peanut butter... yummmmm.
(these are not my cookies, but yum)
I don't always have time in afternoons to bake (and my mornings are busy homeschooling), so I often wind up starting projects in the late evening. Perfect for using up every last bit of energy I might have, having it run out exactly as I face a sink full of yet another round of hand-wash dishes (inevitably around 9pm). Right, well I'm not here to complain, so I'll post a recipe of some Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins we're all loving around here at the moment. I casually pass by the cute little "pie pumpkins" at the store, but I can't bring myself to bring one home to prepare for pie or muffins. I totally don't mind using Libby's canned pumpkin, but maybe I don't know what I'm missing out on. These muffins really taste so much like a pumpkin pie (which I love), just in the form of a muffin. This is the third time I make them in a month. What I love is that this recipe makes about 18 muffins, so we dont' wipe them out all at once, and if I double the recipe I can freeze a ton for snacks another day. Here is the recipe:
PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS
1/2 c butter or margarine, softened
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 c canned pumpkin (without spice)
2 c all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1 c semi-sweet chocolate chips
Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl. Add eggs, stir until smooth. Stir in pumpkin. In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Stir to m ix. Pour into mixing bowl; stir until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon into greased or paper-lined muffin cups until three-fourths full. Bake at 350* for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
Sorry, I don't have any pictures right now. They come up just perfect each time, though. I bake mine a full 25 minutes, if not a few minutes more.
The other thing I baked was a cookie we call Snowballs. They're also popularly known as Mexican Wedding Cookies, but my mom's husband has made these every year at Christmas time and calls them Snowballs, so I call them Snowballs, too. I'll be sharing most of those cookies with some friends to whom I've promised some homemade goodies, and now that it's not 110 degrees all over the South I feel comfortable putting food in the mail!
And now I'm craving peanut butter, so I think my next goody will have to be a new experiment of brownies with peanut butter... yummmmm.
(these are not my cookies, but yum)
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Getting Friendly With My CrockPot
I've been trying to get better at using my crock pot, but not many of the recipes fit into our eating style whether it be because of health or taste. (was that grammatically correct?) What I mean is most of them involve opening and dumping copious amounts of canned foods into the cooker. I'm not totally against said canned foods, but the overuse of the cream of fill-in-the-blank soups and blocks of velveeta have me turning pages in disgust. I had to laugh when a recipe for Chicken Alfredo called for chicken and a few cans of cream of mushroom soup. Ya... I don't think so!!
I checked out Fix-It and Forget-It, 5-ingredient favorites by Phyllis Good from the library to give me some ideas on how to get going. The book was pleasing and easy to look at. She lists the recipes in columns with only 3 to a page. The big font and occasional tips make it feel very easy peasy to do. And easy it is. During our breakfast time yesterday, while some kids ate and others finished up their morning routine, I boiled a box of small pasta just a few minutes, drained it, and put it in the crock pot. To that I added 2 cups of milk, half a stick of butter, and a good couple of handfuls of shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Oh yeah, I learned that you have to add flavor to a lot of crock pot recipes, so I finely chopped up half an onion and threw that in along with some crushed black pepeer. (The original recipe called for a can of cheddar cheese soup, so I just didn't use it at all, put plenty of cheese and milk) It was ready in less than 2 hours, which was great for us to eat before we headed to the library for a couple of hours.
Today, with the leftovers, I added half a can of tuna and warmed it up for the kids.. they loved it!
I also decided to work mom's chicken stew recipe into a crockpot one. I started all the 'stew' parts in the cooker (tomoates, sauce, potatoes, and onions) while I cooked the chicken in the presure cooker. We were in school for the following two hours, but by lunchtime the chicken was cool enough to debone and pop into the crockpot. By then the tomotoes had gotten a good two hour lead time into cooking which is always yummy for tomatoes. It was delicious, and I plan on doing that again.
I'm getting hungry talking about this food and thinking ahead to the lazy lasagne and to the mexican food I can cook in there! Let me know if you have any favorites.
I checked out Fix-It and Forget-It, 5-ingredient favorites by Phyllis Good from the library to give me some ideas on how to get going. The book was pleasing and easy to look at. She lists the recipes in columns with only 3 to a page. The big font and occasional tips make it feel very easy peasy to do. And easy it is. During our breakfast time yesterday, while some kids ate and others finished up their morning routine, I boiled a box of small pasta just a few minutes, drained it, and put it in the crock pot. To that I added 2 cups of milk, half a stick of butter, and a good couple of handfuls of shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Oh yeah, I learned that you have to add flavor to a lot of crock pot recipes, so I finely chopped up half an onion and threw that in along with some crushed black pepeer. (The original recipe called for a can of cheddar cheese soup, so I just didn't use it at all, put plenty of cheese and milk) It was ready in less than 2 hours, which was great for us to eat before we headed to the library for a couple of hours.
Today, with the leftovers, I added half a can of tuna and warmed it up for the kids.. they loved it!
I also decided to work mom's chicken stew recipe into a crockpot one. I started all the 'stew' parts in the cooker (tomoates, sauce, potatoes, and onions) while I cooked the chicken in the presure cooker. We were in school for the following two hours, but by lunchtime the chicken was cool enough to debone and pop into the crockpot. By then the tomotoes had gotten a good two hour lead time into cooking which is always yummy for tomatoes. It was delicious, and I plan on doing that again.
I'm getting hungry talking about this food and thinking ahead to the lazy lasagne and to the mexican food I can cook in there! Let me know if you have any favorites.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Personal note
I can't seem to blog about anything recently. I feel like it's a silly waste, this blog. What is the point. I start to think of things to blog about, but I often delete it and close the laptop without posting. I just don't see the point in blogging about our details of where we went, what our schedule of homeschool is, and whatever else I did. Maybe that's because my blog isn't focused on one particular topic, so I find it irrelevant to post about just anything and everything. I might not post for a while. I just thought I'd put that out there since that's what I'm feeling. Sometimes I'd like to post our schedule, our struggles, our good times, and so on, but once I get it typed out it just seems a little frivolous.
If you have any feedback I'd be happy to hear it. See y'all later!
If you have any feedback I'd be happy to hear it. See y'all later!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Toddler storytime and other activities
Assalamu alaikom and hello everyone,
This is our fourth week in school, and I decided to disrupt our day on purpose with a trip to the library's toddler storytime. We did this last year on nearly every Tuesday so that Aisha could benefit from the little storytime they do there. She was in awe the first time I took her! She was just looking at all the other little kids, the moms, and especially the storytime lady with all her puppets, song, and books! We decided she needed that little weekly storytime, and the big kids would take along Math or some other subject they could do at a work table while I was in the storytime room. Maryam stayed with me, being a bit young, but the older two worked. Going back today after a long break, even the librarian noticed how far along Aisha has come as far as knowing what is going on. It was neat to see her know more stuff (animals, colors, counting, etc..)
The Story Room in one of the libraries we go to:
Our new schedule has been working out really nicely. I tried a new system this year giving each child a block of time to do a certain subject. I did that because I had to stagger the subjects they need one-on-one time with me with. Things like grammar, dictation, and other language lessons. Break times are scheduled, and that's been really better than having it be a floating break.
The second best thing I've changed this year is having everyone go for a morning jog (or walk if they're feeling lazy) at 7:30 before breakfast. This is obviously subject to change considering weather and daylight hours, but so far it's been great. I'm also taking a morning walk earlier than the kids before my husband heads out to work. I personally love spending more time outdoors, and that's not easy in many places and in many lifestyles we live today. I'm guilty of not spending a lot of time outside but I sure wish it were different; it makes us feel so much better in mind, body, and soul!
Well, I don't have much direction in today's blog. What I'm often most curious about is how other moms of many children manage their schedules and chores. I'm just so happy I've found a way that is keeping us all running smoothly. I realize this can change at any time, but for now it's awesome. I'll just describe some of the main "pegs" of our day. To me, a "peg" is something that happens each day like breakfast, lunch, dinner, prayer times. We try to tie other activites to a certain peg. So in order for school to start, the following things have to be done: walk/jog, dress, eat, morning chores. This is also my time to get out bread dough to bake later, get myself dressed, and to prep anything I might want for lunch or dinner. Then each child follows his schedule for each subject till we break for lunch. At the lunch break I switch out laundry if needed, put away morning dishes, prepare and eat lunch, and let the kids play a little. I get Aisha ready for a nap and also prep anything in the kitchen that might need my attention. We then finish our last two subjects of the day, pray Duhr, and then each go our separate ways for an hour or so :D
Once the 'rest time' is over we fold and put away laundry, play outside, snack, and get ready for any out-of-house activity. This is also another kitchen time for me when I might chop up a salad without dressing, get the rice ready, and clear the table for dinner.
Once we get back from the activity, dinner is ready to go and we just hang out at night. Usually we have to do a "ten minute pickup" where I set the timer and everyone has to clean up rooms regardless of who played with what. Preparing the bread dough in the way discussed in Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day has been an awesome new discovery, too. I have loved baking bread in this easy method. No kneading and protecting from drafts. It's a very user friendly recipe, and everyone in this family is so happy with the difference. Alhamdullah, it's easy to prepare especially since I'm home for blocks of time to give the bread a chance to come to room temperature and then to bake. Here's a pic of the one I made this morning:
So that's my random outlet for today. Feel free to comment!
This is our fourth week in school, and I decided to disrupt our day on purpose with a trip to the library's toddler storytime. We did this last year on nearly every Tuesday so that Aisha could benefit from the little storytime they do there. She was in awe the first time I took her! She was just looking at all the other little kids, the moms, and especially the storytime lady with all her puppets, song, and books! We decided she needed that little weekly storytime, and the big kids would take along Math or some other subject they could do at a work table while I was in the storytime room. Maryam stayed with me, being a bit young, but the older two worked. Going back today after a long break, even the librarian noticed how far along Aisha has come as far as knowing what is going on. It was neat to see her know more stuff (animals, colors, counting, etc..)
The Story Room in one of the libraries we go to:
Our new schedule has been working out really nicely. I tried a new system this year giving each child a block of time to do a certain subject. I did that because I had to stagger the subjects they need one-on-one time with me with. Things like grammar, dictation, and other language lessons. Break times are scheduled, and that's been really better than having it be a floating break.
The second best thing I've changed this year is having everyone go for a morning jog (or walk if they're feeling lazy) at 7:30 before breakfast. This is obviously subject to change considering weather and daylight hours, but so far it's been great. I'm also taking a morning walk earlier than the kids before my husband heads out to work. I personally love spending more time outdoors, and that's not easy in many places and in many lifestyles we live today. I'm guilty of not spending a lot of time outside but I sure wish it were different; it makes us feel so much better in mind, body, and soul!
Well, I don't have much direction in today's blog. What I'm often most curious about is how other moms of many children manage their schedules and chores. I'm just so happy I've found a way that is keeping us all running smoothly. I realize this can change at any time, but for now it's awesome. I'll just describe some of the main "pegs" of our day. To me, a "peg" is something that happens each day like breakfast, lunch, dinner, prayer times. We try to tie other activites to a certain peg. So in order for school to start, the following things have to be done: walk/jog, dress, eat, morning chores. This is also my time to get out bread dough to bake later, get myself dressed, and to prep anything I might want for lunch or dinner. Then each child follows his schedule for each subject till we break for lunch. At the lunch break I switch out laundry if needed, put away morning dishes, prepare and eat lunch, and let the kids play a little. I get Aisha ready for a nap and also prep anything in the kitchen that might need my attention. We then finish our last two subjects of the day, pray Duhr, and then each go our separate ways for an hour or so :D
Once the 'rest time' is over we fold and put away laundry, play outside, snack, and get ready for any out-of-house activity. This is also another kitchen time for me when I might chop up a salad without dressing, get the rice ready, and clear the table for dinner.
Once we get back from the activity, dinner is ready to go and we just hang out at night. Usually we have to do a "ten minute pickup" where I set the timer and everyone has to clean up rooms regardless of who played with what. Preparing the bread dough in the way discussed in Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day has been an awesome new discovery, too. I have loved baking bread in this easy method. No kneading and protecting from drafts. It's a very user friendly recipe, and everyone in this family is so happy with the difference. Alhamdullah, it's easy to prepare especially since I'm home for blocks of time to give the bread a chance to come to room temperature and then to bake. Here's a pic of the one I made this morning:
So that's my random outlet for today. Feel free to comment!
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Homemade Granola Bars
Assalamu alaikom
I was curious to try this recipe for granola bars after reading good things about it from some other moms online. The main recipe is simple, and you can substitute your favorite mixings to put in it if you want something other than what's in the original recipe. Here it is:
3 cups quick cooking oats
1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk (low fat or skim)
2T melted butter
3-4 cups "other" ingredients of choice such as:
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup craisins
Grease a 9*13 dish. Mix all ingredients well, press firmly into the baking dish, and bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees.
Once you see brown around the edges you're done. Or else you'll get much crispier bars.
I'm loving these, and they serve as a good snack for my kids who seem to be hungry all the time.
I was curious to try this recipe for granola bars after reading good things about it from some other moms online. The main recipe is simple, and you can substitute your favorite mixings to put in it if you want something other than what's in the original recipe. Here it is:
3 cups quick cooking oats
1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk (low fat or skim)
2T melted butter
3-4 cups "other" ingredients of choice such as:
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup craisins
Grease a 9*13 dish. Mix all ingredients well, press firmly into the baking dish, and bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees.
Once you see brown around the edges you're done. Or else you'll get much crispier bars.
I'm loving these, and they serve as a good snack for my kids who seem to be hungry all the time.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Cabbage Stew
So after I made a large pot of stuffed cabbage leaves I had a ton of leftover cabbage that was too wrinkly and curled up for me to stuff. (I like to use the smooth upper layers and just move on to the second head of cabbage once I start to reach the center of the first one). I didn't want to let all that slightly boiled cabbage go to waste, so I looked up some recipes and made the following. It was pretty good, although my kids complained all about it at lunch today. I told them that's all we were having for lunch, to just eat it, and that it was the same cabbage they'd be eating at dinner. Ok, so it would be with rice, beef, and spices at dinner, but that's ok. I like this kind of thing b/c it is light on calories, healthy, and actually hearty.
Stewed Cabbage (I omitted the celery)
Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
2 onions, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium head cabbage, cut into squares
1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed tomatoes, with liquid I used a can of Rotel
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1.Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and garlic and saute for 3 to 5 minutes, or until translucent. Stir in cabbage, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes.
2.Pour in tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover pan and cook over medium heat for 30 to 40 minutes, or until cabbage is tender.
Stewed Cabbage (I omitted the celery)
Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
2 onions, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium head cabbage, cut into squares
1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed tomatoes, with liquid I used a can of Rotel
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1.Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and garlic and saute for 3 to 5 minutes, or until translucent. Stir in cabbage, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes.
2.Pour in tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover pan and cook over medium heat for 30 to 40 minutes, or until cabbage is tender.
Back to School 2011/2012
Assalamu alaikom,
I'm sitting on the couch after our first day back to homeschool. What a great day it was; I have great kids, masha'Allah. They know there is a place and time for things. They don't try to be all goofy or distracted when school starts. They don't try to sit and play video games. They know when it's time for school that they're on a schedule. MashaAllah, la quwwata illa billah ( this means there is no might or power except with God, and that what He wanted to happed did happen ). So our first day back went really well.
The funnest addition to our day is the "Jogging Club" I started (stole the idea from their public school). I used an iPhone app called iMapMyRUN (free) to see how far it was from our door to the water fountain located on the city trail by our house (and back). That is 0.86 miles and it took about 8 minutes for my son to run it. I'm going to have them do that little run/walk every morning. I spent some time figuring out a schedule so that we can all get some exercise in addition to schoolwork. It's worked great so far, as I'm on day 6 of my morning walks. I'm also going to have them record their time once a week, and then we can graph it (math lesson).
A tradition I started last year was for the kids to fill out this questionnaire on the first day and then to share it. At the end of the year we were amazed at the change in handwriting and likes/dislikes! I'm filing this sheet in their Geneology Binders (blog on that later) for a memory.
It was fun showing them new books I chose for this year. We're using a new curriculum for Science, and I'm beefing up History and syncing up their Reading with the History as is explained in The Well Trained Mind. An awesome mom made up lessons on her own that coordinated the reading with the history including questions, copywork, and other activities. Here's a link to her blog Classical House of Learning. So I'll be going with that for a few weeks and see how that works. It is completely free.
Alhamdulillah, all praise to Allah, everything was fine and will be fine I hope. It feels great to be into the routine; I can't go on enough about how right that feels. It felt great to be homeschooling, and I was reassured a few hours into it that I was, indeed, doing the right thing. We're incorporating Arabic, Quran, and Islamic Studies into our day now which is different than last year. I found a new-ish company called Ad Duha whose products are laid out similar to our other homeschool books; language easy for the student to understand, short easy lessons, and a layout that is updated. I didn't buy a whole grade level, rather I had to pick and choose b/c my children were at different levels in the different subjects. However, for my youngest one, I could easily start with their preK level and then she could move up with their program. If you're interested in something to do at home without paying for and driving to lessons (kids and I dreaded that routine), then I highly recommend you check this out.
Last night I had a good little pep talk (from a fellow homeschooling blogger) and summoned up my words of encouragement, some patience, a few prayerful words, and a good attitude for the new school year. May Allah guide me and give me the strength and knowledge to be successful in raising and educating my children!
I'm sitting on the couch after our first day back to homeschool. What a great day it was; I have great kids, masha'Allah. They know there is a place and time for things. They don't try to be all goofy or distracted when school starts. They don't try to sit and play video games. They know when it's time for school that they're on a schedule. MashaAllah, la quwwata illa billah ( this means there is no might or power except with God, and that what He wanted to happed did happen ). So our first day back went really well.
The funnest addition to our day is the "Jogging Club" I started (stole the idea from their public school). I used an iPhone app called iMapMyRUN (free) to see how far it was from our door to the water fountain located on the city trail by our house (and back). That is 0.86 miles and it took about 8 minutes for my son to run it. I'm going to have them do that little run/walk every morning. I spent some time figuring out a schedule so that we can all get some exercise in addition to schoolwork. It's worked great so far, as I'm on day 6 of my morning walks. I'm also going to have them record their time once a week, and then we can graph it (math lesson).
A tradition I started last year was for the kids to fill out this questionnaire on the first day and then to share it. At the end of the year we were amazed at the change in handwriting and likes/dislikes! I'm filing this sheet in their Geneology Binders (blog on that later) for a memory.
It was fun showing them new books I chose for this year. We're using a new curriculum for Science, and I'm beefing up History and syncing up their Reading with the History as is explained in The Well Trained Mind. An awesome mom made up lessons on her own that coordinated the reading with the history including questions, copywork, and other activities. Here's a link to her blog Classical House of Learning. So I'll be going with that for a few weeks and see how that works. It is completely free.
Alhamdulillah, all praise to Allah, everything was fine and will be fine I hope. It feels great to be into the routine; I can't go on enough about how right that feels. It felt great to be homeschooling, and I was reassured a few hours into it that I was, indeed, doing the right thing. We're incorporating Arabic, Quran, and Islamic Studies into our day now which is different than last year. I found a new-ish company called Ad Duha whose products are laid out similar to our other homeschool books; language easy for the student to understand, short easy lessons, and a layout that is updated. I didn't buy a whole grade level, rather I had to pick and choose b/c my children were at different levels in the different subjects. However, for my youngest one, I could easily start with their preK level and then she could move up with their program. If you're interested in something to do at home without paying for and driving to lessons (kids and I dreaded that routine), then I highly recommend you check this out.
Last night I had a good little pep talk (from a fellow homeschooling blogger) and summoned up my words of encouragement, some patience, a few prayerful words, and a good attitude for the new school year. May Allah guide me and give me the strength and knowledge to be successful in raising and educating my children!
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Meal Planning September 4 2011
Here's the idea for this upcoming week!
Sunday: Mujaddara (rice, lentils, topped with caramelized onions; yogurt on the side)
Monday: (Invited out for brunch/lunch) Gazpacho and homemade bread for dinner
Tuesday: (first day of school, first day hubby goes back to work) Fasuliah (green bean stew, rice)
Wednesday: Malfoof (stuffed cabbage rolls)
Thursday: Chili and baked potatoes, Salad
Friday: Soup (some wisdom teeth are coming out), leftovers
Sunday: Mujaddara (rice, lentils, topped with caramelized onions; yogurt on the side)
Monday: (Invited out for brunch/lunch) Gazpacho and homemade bread for dinner
Tuesday: (first day of school, first day hubby goes back to work) Fasuliah (green bean stew, rice)
Wednesday: Malfoof (stuffed cabbage rolls)
Thursday: Chili and baked potatoes, Salad
Friday: Soup (some wisdom teeth are coming out), leftovers
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Schedules
Last year I used a planner from Rainbow Resource (planner) that had blocks for me to write in what subjects each child was to complete each day. It had enough weeks for a full school year plus calendars and extra pages to log in what curriculum I used, reading logs, and field trips taken.
This year I need to take a slightly different approach and actually designate certain blocks of time to certain subjects. Rather than the child choosing what order to get his work done in, I will have to assign the order it is done in this year. The reason is that I have 3 children in school now (last year's kindy wasn't very time consuming), and some of our subjects need to be one-on-one with me. So if I organize and stagger the subjects properly, I hope to be able to get to each child at the right time! So I'm fiddling around with the planners and timers over at http://www.donnayoung.org/ such as these.
I hope you can find some of her tools useful, it's a treasure trove of freebies!
This year I need to take a slightly different approach and actually designate certain blocks of time to certain subjects. Rather than the child choosing what order to get his work done in, I will have to assign the order it is done in this year. The reason is that I have 3 children in school now (last year's kindy wasn't very time consuming), and some of our subjects need to be one-on-one with me. So if I organize and stagger the subjects properly, I hope to be able to get to each child at the right time! So I'm fiddling around with the planners and timers over at http://www.donnayoung.org/ such as these.
I hope you can find some of her tools useful, it's a treasure trove of freebies!
Friday, September 2, 2011
Thoughts on my first year homeschooling
Assalamu alaikom wa rahmatullah. Hello and peace everyone.
I'm really so flattered that you're reading my blog. I'm always excited to see that people have visited and viewed my blog :D
Last year brought us another shift: homeschooling. Usually, that shift would be being pregnant or having a newborn, but alhamdullah, this time I prayed about it and decided to let homeschooling be my new 'baby'. I want to share some of more significant impacts homeschooling has had on us.
To begin with, I will start with how and why the topic ever came up in the first place. I was concerned about a handful of things that my two older kids were going through at public school, grades 2 and 3. Looking at the big picture, and after researching and praying about it, I decided it would be so worth the risk to give homeschooling a shot. If it didn't work out at all, that school would still be there and they could return at any time. Thankfully, our district is pretty good in education, so that was not our main motivator for bringing them home. (some families homeschool because they live in districts with very poor public schools)
Second thing worthy of mention is the world of homeschool curriculum. I was blown away when I received my first books. The way the books and lessons are organized is nothing how it looks like in a traditional school textbook. Lessons are divided into daily portions so that the student simply goes to the next lesson the next day. Teacher portions are scripted like a play (!) so that Mom knows what to say and how to guide the student to achieve the desired result. If any mom feels she 'can't' be the teacher, I say give it a try because the books spell it out so that you can be the teacher!!
Lastly, and this is the most fun part, is reaping numerous benefits that I didn't expect just because of the nature of our lifestyle change. That routine of the old way faded away and we started a new one. This one didn't have us rushing around early in the morning, inevitably ending with some shouting or some tension to get out the door. This one didn't have that after school crankiness they all came home with when I'd have to tiptoe around them and their moods (keep in mind they were only in 2nd and 3rd grades!). This one didn't come with new words and attitudes that I had to spend time reversing. This one came with increased patience, with more relaxed attitudes, with more time spent with Dad in the mornings or if he came home early from work, with enough time to pray, and with a sense of everyone helping in the running of the home. When the 8 year old wanted to try making scrambled eggs for breakfast I could let him (and later, her). When we have some free time, we like to bake cookies from scratch. My point is that we had time and mental energy for stuff like this. They also found many ways to play together rather than grow divided because of age and grade differences.
Last year my Kindy daughter spent only about a full hour on actual work like math, writing, and phonics. She spent a lot of time reading for fun, doing crafts, coloring, or playing with her little sister. This year she will need to spend about 2 hours or so per day doing work.
My 3rd and 4th graders last year spent about 4 hours a day on work. If we didn't have any morning appointments, they could be done by lunch some days. This left after lunch for tidying up, praying, playing, and reading (or resting). My 5th grader will have a heavier load this year, and I dont' expect him to be done till closer to 3pm. My 4th grader will probably have around 4 or 4 1/2 hours. I've laid out a spreadsheet to fill in when I will do one-on-one subjects this year with each child. They don't need me for ALL of their subjects, and for others they might need me for 15 or 20 minutes. So, while last year I did not have a detailed schedule, I will have one this year because I will have 3 kids to juggle instead of 2 (my kindy was very easy and could be done after the big kids were done for the day). My sweet 2 (nearly 3) year old will have puzzles, books, markers, and blocks to play with. She will also have her own seat at the table because, well, she's just old enough to want one and will cause trouble if she doesn't! I plan to do the big subjects like history and science (alternating days) during her naptime after lunch. Insha'Allah (God willing)
Some of the challenges:
* I would lose my patience at times when they'd all be talking to me at the same time, when the toddler was going nuts writing on the walls, or when they had their own bad attitudes towards work. UPSIDE: i would apologize and we would learn how to get over bad moods like that.
* Going out to places during the day felt weird sometimes because we'd get stared at. I would limit my outings and try to consolidate trips for when my husband got home or for the weekends. Anyhow, we were usually busy doing school. And another anyhow is that more and more people do homeschool, so people guess it right away.
* I would occasionally feel like I needed to have some alone time out of the house. Thanks to my super supportive husband, all I had to do was schedule that in to the weekend. I also would sometimes sneak out after dinner and do a Target trip on my own. I had my own morning routine in my room without any kids, and I often took a nap or a lie down in my room with the door shut around 3pm. We would all kind of split up and do our own thing till dinner or at least for an hour. I expect this year will be easier than last b/c my youngest is older and more independent thus requiring less from me.
I'm so thankful for all the tricks I've learned. How to talk to the children, how to guide them, how to check my intentions, how to change in my heart how I feel about raising my children, how to keep praying for guidance, patience, and success. I've learned tricks for getting laundry done, meals cooked, and chores split. All in all, it has been a great growing experience for all of us, I think, and has been a blessing. We start our new school year next Tuesday, so if you remember, say a prayer for our success!
I'm really so flattered that you're reading my blog. I'm always excited to see that people have visited and viewed my blog :D
Last year brought us another shift: homeschooling. Usually, that shift would be being pregnant or having a newborn, but alhamdullah, this time I prayed about it and decided to let homeschooling be my new 'baby'. I want to share some of more significant impacts homeschooling has had on us.
To begin with, I will start with how and why the topic ever came up in the first place. I was concerned about a handful of things that my two older kids were going through at public school, grades 2 and 3. Looking at the big picture, and after researching and praying about it, I decided it would be so worth the risk to give homeschooling a shot. If it didn't work out at all, that school would still be there and they could return at any time. Thankfully, our district is pretty good in education, so that was not our main motivator for bringing them home. (some families homeschool because they live in districts with very poor public schools)
Second thing worthy of mention is the world of homeschool curriculum. I was blown away when I received my first books. The way the books and lessons are organized is nothing how it looks like in a traditional school textbook. Lessons are divided into daily portions so that the student simply goes to the next lesson the next day. Teacher portions are scripted like a play (!) so that Mom knows what to say and how to guide the student to achieve the desired result. If any mom feels she 'can't' be the teacher, I say give it a try because the books spell it out so that you can be the teacher!!
Lastly, and this is the most fun part, is reaping numerous benefits that I didn't expect just because of the nature of our lifestyle change. That routine of the old way faded away and we started a new one. This one didn't have us rushing around early in the morning, inevitably ending with some shouting or some tension to get out the door. This one didn't have that after school crankiness they all came home with when I'd have to tiptoe around them and their moods (keep in mind they were only in 2nd and 3rd grades!). This one didn't come with new words and attitudes that I had to spend time reversing. This one came with increased patience, with more relaxed attitudes, with more time spent with Dad in the mornings or if he came home early from work, with enough time to pray, and with a sense of everyone helping in the running of the home. When the 8 year old wanted to try making scrambled eggs for breakfast I could let him (and later, her). When we have some free time, we like to bake cookies from scratch. My point is that we had time and mental energy for stuff like this. They also found many ways to play together rather than grow divided because of age and grade differences.
Last year my Kindy daughter spent only about a full hour on actual work like math, writing, and phonics. She spent a lot of time reading for fun, doing crafts, coloring, or playing with her little sister. This year she will need to spend about 2 hours or so per day doing work.
My 3rd and 4th graders last year spent about 4 hours a day on work. If we didn't have any morning appointments, they could be done by lunch some days. This left after lunch for tidying up, praying, playing, and reading (or resting). My 5th grader will have a heavier load this year, and I dont' expect him to be done till closer to 3pm. My 4th grader will probably have around 4 or 4 1/2 hours. I've laid out a spreadsheet to fill in when I will do one-on-one subjects this year with each child. They don't need me for ALL of their subjects, and for others they might need me for 15 or 20 minutes. So, while last year I did not have a detailed schedule, I will have one this year because I will have 3 kids to juggle instead of 2 (my kindy was very easy and could be done after the big kids were done for the day). My sweet 2 (nearly 3) year old will have puzzles, books, markers, and blocks to play with. She will also have her own seat at the table because, well, she's just old enough to want one and will cause trouble if she doesn't! I plan to do the big subjects like history and science (alternating days) during her naptime after lunch. Insha'Allah (God willing)
Some of the challenges:
* I would lose my patience at times when they'd all be talking to me at the same time, when the toddler was going nuts writing on the walls, or when they had their own bad attitudes towards work. UPSIDE: i would apologize and we would learn how to get over bad moods like that.
* Going out to places during the day felt weird sometimes because we'd get stared at. I would limit my outings and try to consolidate trips for when my husband got home or for the weekends. Anyhow, we were usually busy doing school. And another anyhow is that more and more people do homeschool, so people guess it right away.
* I would occasionally feel like I needed to have some alone time out of the house. Thanks to my super supportive husband, all I had to do was schedule that in to the weekend. I also would sometimes sneak out after dinner and do a Target trip on my own. I had my own morning routine in my room without any kids, and I often took a nap or a lie down in my room with the door shut around 3pm. We would all kind of split up and do our own thing till dinner or at least for an hour. I expect this year will be easier than last b/c my youngest is older and more independent thus requiring less from me.
I'm so thankful for all the tricks I've learned. How to talk to the children, how to guide them, how to check my intentions, how to change in my heart how I feel about raising my children, how to keep praying for guidance, patience, and success. I've learned tricks for getting laundry done, meals cooked, and chores split. All in all, it has been a great growing experience for all of us, I think, and has been a blessing. We start our new school year next Tuesday, so if you remember, say a prayer for our success!
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Meal Planning
Well hello! New posts coming soon, insha'Allah.
About my meal planning: I slacked off most of the summer (being off school) and definitely during Ramadan. Now that we have a busy week ahead and school starting on the 6th, I've started up again with planning ahead. I started this by writing down what we normally ate on recipe cards (one dish per card) and trying to collect at least 30 dishes we all like to have for dinner. I even wrote down the easy peasy spaghetti and sauce b/c the method is that I go through my cards on a Thursday or Friday to plan the grocery list for the weekend for the upcoming week. (We do our grocery getting on the weekend since I try to avoid this errand with the kids as much as possible) Once you know the main dishes you're having for the week it's easy to buy accordingly and to better plan your free hours in the day.
Without further ado.... the PLAN for this week starting with today:
Sunday: Roasted Chicken Leg Quarters, Homemade French Fries, Big Green Salad
Monday: Homemade Hamburgers, More Homemade French Fries (can you tell I bought a big bag of potatoes and my husband asked for fries!!), Fresh Cut Veggies
Tuesday: Eid Day... we'll have brunch out. Main dish of pureed vegetable soup with homemade bread, cheeses, olives, veggies.
Wednesday: Crockpot Chicken with Rotel Sauce, Tomato Sauce, side of Rice and Salad
Thursday: Leftover Rotel Chicken
Friday: American Style Meatloaf, Broccoli w/ Cheese, Mashed Potatoes (wink, wink)
Pictured: Fava Bean salad
About my meal planning: I slacked off most of the summer (being off school) and definitely during Ramadan. Now that we have a busy week ahead and school starting on the 6th, I've started up again with planning ahead. I started this by writing down what we normally ate on recipe cards (one dish per card) and trying to collect at least 30 dishes we all like to have for dinner. I even wrote down the easy peasy spaghetti and sauce b/c the method is that I go through my cards on a Thursday or Friday to plan the grocery list for the weekend for the upcoming week. (We do our grocery getting on the weekend since I try to avoid this errand with the kids as much as possible) Once you know the main dishes you're having for the week it's easy to buy accordingly and to better plan your free hours in the day.
Without further ado.... the PLAN for this week starting with today:
Sunday: Roasted Chicken Leg Quarters, Homemade French Fries, Big Green Salad
Monday: Homemade Hamburgers, More Homemade French Fries (can you tell I bought a big bag of potatoes and my husband asked for fries!!), Fresh Cut Veggies
Tuesday: Eid Day... we'll have brunch out. Main dish of pureed vegetable soup with homemade bread, cheeses, olives, veggies.
Wednesday: Crockpot Chicken with Rotel Sauce, Tomato Sauce, side of Rice and Salad
Thursday: Leftover Rotel Chicken
Friday: American Style Meatloaf, Broccoli w/ Cheese, Mashed Potatoes (wink, wink)
Pictured: Fava Bean salad
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
IPad Apps for Ramadan
Assalamu alaikom! Hope everyone's Ramadan is coming along nicely. The first few days sure are the hardest, for sure, as our bodies and minds get used to the fast. May Allah give us patience and endurance during this time and help us to increase our worship and good deeds.
A friend of mine has a put together a neat list of Apps you use on your iPad or iPhone. I downloaded a few of them to be used by myself and some for the kids to use. Here is the link to her site Muslimas Oasis on the page of the App Reviews. Take some time to read the rest of her site, it's really nice, masha'Allah.
We're currently playing Stack the Countries and listening to Quran on the Quran Majeed app.
A friend of mine has a put together a neat list of Apps you use on your iPad or iPhone. I downloaded a few of them to be used by myself and some for the kids to use. Here is the link to her site Muslimas Oasis on the page of the App Reviews. Take some time to read the rest of her site, it's really nice, masha'Allah.
We're currently playing Stack the Countries and listening to Quran on the Quran Majeed app.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Quiet Time turned into Overtime!
Not sure what got into me, but I cooked and baked a lot today. My legs are tired, my feet hurt, and I'm cranky from my cranky 2yr old (!) I've been working on freezing meals to have during Ramadan. It's often hard to muster up the motivation to spend hours in the kitchen cooking, so I'll be happy to have a few freezer meals ready!
I did cook a hot meal for dinner, and in the meantime I prepared a completely unrelated chicken casserole for the freezer. If I had planned ahead I would have combined and used the same meat, but I just winged it today. Then, as I've been craving CHOCOLATE, I decided to make the delicious double chocolate cake recipe I love. I happened to notice that the Hershey's cocoa box was going to expire in August, and there was just a bit left, so it was definitely the right time to make a CAKE!
Realizing the first day of Ramadan will be Monday and that my husband will be looking for something sweet to eat after Maghreb time, I knew I'd want to have his favorite on hand: pound cake. So I whipped up one of those too. (this is a picture of a previous pound cake, not the one I made today)
Add to all of this washing the dishes, serving and eating and cleaning up dinner, catching up with a good friend on the phone for 45 minutes :D (that was a good part), and then getting the girls into the shower and ready for bed. Add in a few mishaps here and there (like Aisha flooding the kitchen floor with water from the water dispenser in the fridge) As soon as I was going to get Aisha's PJ's on, I found her in her bed having just marked on herself and her doll in purple marker. So, scrap the PJ's and go to the bath. Start over. I was really on my last straw at that point and was rushing to pray Maghreb too. I got her in bed, prayed, then realized the chocolate cake needed some chocolate frosting. Whipped that up, put the whole thing in the fridge and parked it right here on the couch. Glad I had such a productive day, alhamdullah, thank God. I'm glad I have a comfy couch and laptop to chill out on after all that work!
My point was really to make food for the freezer which I did accomplish. Chicken casserole and part of the pound cake. I like to cut it in half. Keep half and freeze the other half for the freezer. That's what I'll do with this cake for Ramadan. Probably same for the chocolate cake since I know I'll be scrounging around the kitchen for chocolate after breaking my fast! Thanks for reading, have a good one!
I did cook a hot meal for dinner, and in the meantime I prepared a completely unrelated chicken casserole for the freezer. If I had planned ahead I would have combined and used the same meat, but I just winged it today. Then, as I've been craving CHOCOLATE, I decided to make the delicious double chocolate cake recipe I love. I happened to notice that the Hershey's cocoa box was going to expire in August, and there was just a bit left, so it was definitely the right time to make a CAKE!
Add to all of this washing the dishes, serving and eating and cleaning up dinner, catching up with a good friend on the phone for 45 minutes :D (that was a good part), and then getting the girls into the shower and ready for bed. Add in a few mishaps here and there (like Aisha flooding the kitchen floor with water from the water dispenser in the fridge) As soon as I was going to get Aisha's PJ's on, I found her in her bed having just marked on herself and her doll in purple marker. So, scrap the PJ's and go to the bath. Start over. I was really on my last straw at that point and was rushing to pray Maghreb too. I got her in bed, prayed, then realized the chocolate cake needed some chocolate frosting. Whipped that up, put the whole thing in the fridge and parked it right here on the couch. Glad I had such a productive day, alhamdullah, thank God. I'm glad I have a comfy couch and laptop to chill out on after all that work!
My point was really to make food for the freezer which I did accomplish. Chicken casserole and part of the pound cake. I like to cut it in half. Keep half and freeze the other half for the freezer. That's what I'll do with this cake for Ramadan. Probably same for the chocolate cake since I know I'll be scrounging around the kitchen for chocolate after breaking my fast! Thanks for reading, have a good one!
It's quiet time on this Thursday
Assalamu alaikom wa rahmatullah,
I'm happily enjoying some quiet time here at my house this afternoon. Each child is in his/her room reading in bed and I'm on the couch with a cup of coffee, my laptop, and a full basket of clothes waiting to be folded. But I'll just pretend that basket isn't mine for the next few minutes. The house is calm, and I hear the whirrs of the fans trying their best to cool off our rooms.
I came back from the library earlier with a few new books for each child to read over the next week or two. While I do let them pick out lots of books on their own, I also feel it is my job to select a few for them. They don't know what are 'good' books to pick a lot of the time, so I make sure they get to read the real gems for their grade level. Our library (and I'm sure most have this, too) has a few binders at the desk in the Children's Room with sections and categories full of lists. Some are arranged by awards earned, some by grade level, and some by other 'official' titles I can't remember right now. So I often go to the binder marked Young Readers and go to the grade level I'm searching for. I just go pick a few books from those lists, and the kids usually like them! Ta da. We not only cover the classics, but we find books that we otherwise wouldn't have known to look for. As for nonfiction, we do read a whole lot of those during the school year, so for now I don't mind if they hang out with fiction books till we we start back again.
A checkout lady at WalMart yesterday asked how the kids were behaving over the summer. I realized again how it doesn't differ for me anymoe. My kids and I are going about life together regardless of the school calendar. It's really neat, different, and surely challenging at times, but that's ok. The older kids have found their way. They know what chores are expected of them (and when), they have books to read, games that they play alone and together, and other things like puzzles and board games. Our day fills up nicely, alhamdullah, and we go out to the library, to friends, and to extra curricular activites most days. The biggest challenge is little 2yr old Aisha. That little monkey knows how to get into trouble before you can blink your eye. She's really enjoyed a few new activities, though, these past two weeks. One is activity is using finger paints ( I buy the Crayola brand. They do not stain at all and are a piece of cake to wipe up) She uses a brush and paper. She's like my other kids and gets grossed out at stuff touching her fingers, so she uses a brush. For the water can, I have saved some cans that's I've used for cooking. I just make sure that when I take the lid off I do it in a clean sweep so that nothing pokey is left. I give her the one that the tomato paste comes in b/c it is so small! I keep a few in our art area for the big kids to use too.
The other thing she loves to do is play in the texture box. It's a tub (a little small, but I didn't feel like buying another plastic tub so I used what I had) that I've filled with dry rice and some green split peas. She gets out my measuring cups and goes to town 'cooking'. Like I said above, she doesn't care for things to touch her fingers and hands, so she doesn't really sink her hands in there, but she does feel the rice a little. My older girls love to sink their hands in the bucket! It does feel good. You have to expect a mess, but there are ways to minimize. I use it either on a beach towel like the one she's on in the picture below, or I put it on the kitchen table which has a tablecloth that can be shaken out. Either way, I can shake most of it out when they're done. I still have to sweep or vacuum when they're done. That's ok, they really love it and it takes up a good chunk of time.
I'm happily enjoying some quiet time here at my house this afternoon. Each child is in his/her room reading in bed and I'm on the couch with a cup of coffee, my laptop, and a full basket of clothes waiting to be folded. But I'll just pretend that basket isn't mine for the next few minutes. The house is calm, and I hear the whirrs of the fans trying their best to cool off our rooms.
I came back from the library earlier with a few new books for each child to read over the next week or two. While I do let them pick out lots of books on their own, I also feel it is my job to select a few for them. They don't know what are 'good' books to pick a lot of the time, so I make sure they get to read the real gems for their grade level. Our library (and I'm sure most have this, too) has a few binders at the desk in the Children's Room with sections and categories full of lists. Some are arranged by awards earned, some by grade level, and some by other 'official' titles I can't remember right now. So I often go to the binder marked Young Readers and go to the grade level I'm searching for. I just go pick a few books from those lists, and the kids usually like them! Ta da. We not only cover the classics, but we find books that we otherwise wouldn't have known to look for. As for nonfiction, we do read a whole lot of those during the school year, so for now I don't mind if they hang out with fiction books till we we start back again.
A checkout lady at WalMart yesterday asked how the kids were behaving over the summer. I realized again how it doesn't differ for me anymoe. My kids and I are going about life together regardless of the school calendar. It's really neat, different, and surely challenging at times, but that's ok. The older kids have found their way. They know what chores are expected of them (and when), they have books to read, games that they play alone and together, and other things like puzzles and board games. Our day fills up nicely, alhamdullah, and we go out to the library, to friends, and to extra curricular activites most days. The biggest challenge is little 2yr old Aisha. That little monkey knows how to get into trouble before you can blink your eye. She's really enjoyed a few new activities, though, these past two weeks. One is activity is using finger paints ( I buy the Crayola brand. They do not stain at all and are a piece of cake to wipe up) She uses a brush and paper. She's like my other kids and gets grossed out at stuff touching her fingers, so she uses a brush. For the water can, I have saved some cans that's I've used for cooking. I just make sure that when I take the lid off I do it in a clean sweep so that nothing pokey is left. I give her the one that the tomato paste comes in b/c it is so small! I keep a few in our art area for the big kids to use too.
So that's what we're up to right now. WalMart has washable Crayola markers for $0.40! Their school supplies deals are irresistable!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Ramadan is days away!
Ramadan will begin August 1 this year; just a few more days. This is our big time, our month, and our holiday that follows. It is one of the 4 holy months in Islam, and this one is most special because of the fasting. Fasting is one of the 5 pillars of Islam. The other four are 1) Saying the Shahada which means declaring there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His messenger, 2) Praying at the fixed times, 3) Giving Charity, and 4) Going on Pilgrimage at least once in your lifetime to Mecca.
People long ago used to fast more often than people these days do. It was done by pious people who wished to get closer to God, to give up some of their attachment to the material world, or to sit and ponder their existence. Allah tells us in the Quran (and this is translating) that fasting in Ramadan is prescribed to us just like it was prescribed for those before us, so that we may become more pious and God conscious. (2:183) Of course whoever is ill or on a journey should not fast but make up those days later when he can. Whoever does good of his own accord, it is better for him. And that you fast is better for you if only you knew. (2:184) That last part really motivates me to push through. Allah is our creator and know us, His creation. He gave us this month of fasting as a purification, as a way, a path, to get closer to Him, and as a way to help others. If we have a hard time with it for whatever reason, then we should remember that it is still better to fast b/c we don't know. He knows. He doesn't mean hardship on us and he wants ease for us, so if we're not well or going through a hardship like travel then we can just make up those days later, and we can praise Him for his guidance and mercy.
Last year I made a little Ramadan Journal for my older kids to fill out daily. I recommend this for ages 10+ actually, because the writing prompts are a little lengthy, and if the child isn't fasting most days then it isn't very useful. Here is the link to the journal. I printed everything out and put it in a binder for each child last year. I won't do that again this year since they won't be fasting the whole month. My eldest will probably fast most of the month so I'll make one for him, but I think I'll print out as needed for the other kids.
The website is TJ Ramadan is loaded with ideas, recipes, crafts, and lessons. Oh boy! It's easy to feel overwhelmed when you see all you 'could' be doing! I remind myself to keep it simple and just let the kids understand the essence behind Ramadan. All those posters, crafts, and lessons are there if you want/need them. I have printed out several things from this site, though, and we've made a poster and used some of dua' pages. The kids made their own posters with their friends yesterday and we used some print outs from this TJ Ramadan page.
I wanted to share some of these kid-friendly links with moms out there looking for something to do with their children. In the end, I think setting a positive example is the best way to set them up for success.
I hope to have about one hour each day when we can go over our goals, read Quran, and reflect on our fasting. That's when the journal will come out, too. I'll have some coloring pages for the younger girls to do as well as some activity pages out of a cute book I bought last year called Ramadan Activities. Sorry, I forgot where I bought it from.
Have a Blessed Ramadan to my Muslim readers!
People long ago used to fast more often than people these days do. It was done by pious people who wished to get closer to God, to give up some of their attachment to the material world, or to sit and ponder their existence. Allah tells us in the Quran (and this is translating) that fasting in Ramadan is prescribed to us just like it was prescribed for those before us, so that we may become more pious and God conscious. (2:183) Of course whoever is ill or on a journey should not fast but make up those days later when he can. Whoever does good of his own accord, it is better for him. And that you fast is better for you if only you knew. (2:184) That last part really motivates me to push through. Allah is our creator and know us, His creation. He gave us this month of fasting as a purification, as a way, a path, to get closer to Him, and as a way to help others. If we have a hard time with it for whatever reason, then we should remember that it is still better to fast b/c we don't know. He knows. He doesn't mean hardship on us and he wants ease for us, so if we're not well or going through a hardship like travel then we can just make up those days later, and we can praise Him for his guidance and mercy.
Last year I made a little Ramadan Journal for my older kids to fill out daily. I recommend this for ages 10+ actually, because the writing prompts are a little lengthy, and if the child isn't fasting most days then it isn't very useful. Here is the link to the journal. I printed everything out and put it in a binder for each child last year. I won't do that again this year since they won't be fasting the whole month. My eldest will probably fast most of the month so I'll make one for him, but I think I'll print out as needed for the other kids.
The website is TJ Ramadan is loaded with ideas, recipes, crafts, and lessons. Oh boy! It's easy to feel overwhelmed when you see all you 'could' be doing! I remind myself to keep it simple and just let the kids understand the essence behind Ramadan. All those posters, crafts, and lessons are there if you want/need them. I have printed out several things from this site, though, and we've made a poster and used some of dua' pages. The kids made their own posters with their friends yesterday and we used some print outs from this TJ Ramadan page.
I wanted to share some of these kid-friendly links with moms out there looking for something to do with their children. In the end, I think setting a positive example is the best way to set them up for success.
I hope to have about one hour each day when we can go over our goals, read Quran, and reflect on our fasting. That's when the journal will come out, too. I'll have some coloring pages for the younger girls to do as well as some activity pages out of a cute book I bought last year called Ramadan Activities. Sorry, I forgot where I bought it from.
Have a Blessed Ramadan to my Muslim readers!
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