Holiday Room Storage Solution {Organisation}

Asalamalaikum Sisters :D

As Muslims we love our families Alhamdulilah. The bond that Islam gives family relationships can be compared to no other type of institution. One of the perks of loving our family and being loved by our families is that we are always invited to sleepovers or "stay (for a very long time) overs" by mums, grandmums, aunties and sometimes lovely friends too. 

For me this is great since I get to go and live in Sydney regularly. One of the problems I have found with three kids is storage space can be hard to set up. We all know the mantra for a perfectly organised home and life : "A place for everything and everything in its place". Without places to put things in, holidays can be pretty hectic for yourself and for your kind host too. Its already hard to keep your head in one place with all the hugging, catching up, "debating" (read: lots of dinner table arguing about hundreds of "differences of opinions" on Islam), add to this lost socks and bibs - it can end up really messy.

Enter wonderful solution: The collapsible cube <3 

I bought a 2 pack of large cubes today: Here is a pic of one set up and one ready for setting up :)

I love this handy storage solution. You can pack in the boot and once your at your host's house/hotel room/islamic centre....just pop it up, store and relax. When your're done either it can be used for organising things in the car for the way home or fold it down and it's ready too wait until another great muslim get together happens.

Just think of all the things that don't have to sit difficultly in the suitcases and handbags. Clothes, toys, books,  prayer mats, blankets, socks, bibs, nappies, the list goes on. You can even buy smaller versions in matching colours to further organise within the cube. 

The white removable card gives the box stability and so that it can be stacked

 It's a bit wobbly and doesn't compensate for a real wardrobe but with all it's advantages it will be forgiven :) These boxes can be bought at most big retailers. I bought these for under $10.

Inshallah I hope this helped some of you struggling with keeping your holiday room organised. Please share your own tips for easier Muslim Holidaying. Jazak Allah Khair.

Umm Musk :)

Hubby and the Free Range Egg Debate

Asalamalaikum :D

Once we enter into the fold of Islam, we enter into the fold of mercy. Mercy for mankind and animal kind. I had always felt it was unfortunate that in many places outside Australia, animal rights were given very little attention. Although lobbies and awareness groups do exist, I felt that the West overwhelmingly superceded other countries in this mission. 

Image Source: www.guardian.org.uk

Hubby and I were newly married when this discussion first cropped up between us. We were standing in a line at the local supermarket and I was glad to see a new line of Free Range Eggs. Excited I wanted to buy them instead of the cage eggs. I shared my stance on the West's champion animal right's movement and he scoffed. 

Deeply upset, I asked him why so. "The west is great at highlighting animal rights issues because it cares nothing about human rights issues", he said, "they have a lot of spare time on their hands to worry about animals". As I tried to defend my homeland, images of murders and abductions of Aboriginals flooded to my mind. The undeniable countless massacres in the name of colonialism kept me silent as did the tortures and dis-figuration in the name of science. More recent images played too of millions more deaths in the name of nothingness leading to the ethnic cleansing and torture of Muslims all around the world All perpetrated by the West both actively and passively didn't help my case . The efforts for saving chickens when weighed against the efforts of causing bloodshed seemed suddenly of little significance.

So I stayed quiet. We moved on to the end of the line, scanned our items and went home. I was still very sad about buying cage eggs. It didn't quite make sense to me that I should neglect animals rights just because the same people who heralded these rights were champions in violations of human rights. 

Years passed and we continued to buy cage eggs. Every time I bought them I felt guilt as I imagined all those poor chickens, row on top of row, locked in little cages with sad glassy eyes, wire cutting into their necks. The same guilt I feel when I buy milk, imagining row after row of miserable cows hooked up to machines that sucked the milk of unnaturally drugged cows. Who knows how many other animals are being abused for the sake of the brutal materialistic and capitalistic business men.

Image Source: www.aspca.org

One day, three kids later we found ourselves in a shopping centre again. Hubby went to buy the eggs. He came back smiling as if he was holding something in his hands that was worth the whole world. I was smiling just the same. He had walked right past the cage egg section and had picked up the free range eggs. He locked his smiling eyes with mine for a second before saying "just for you". I felt so much love for him in that moment and he could feel it. 

Why the change? Hubby had finally integrated as an Australian. He had accepted the country as his own and realised that rather go against the ills of society we can fix them from the inside.But to do this we have to accept this country as our own. It may start with chicken eggs but inshallah doors will open to discuss the issues of human rights.

I told him that Allah would reward him immensely for the goodness that he just performed. He didn't seem to understand. I told him about the cages and the wires and the sad bleak eyes. He was shocked. I didn't realise he didn't know. He asked me why I never told him about the horrible situation these chickens were in - these chickens were just like the Muslims. The chicken s were given empathy and understanding from that point on and their grief became our grief. Victims of capitalism we both were.

Lessons learnt for our relationship:

Following that point I realised that I had assumed he knew what went on in chicken cages. We had never actually sat down to discuss the topic. I realised the importance then of talking to your spouse clearly and completely. 

Alhamdulilah it's all over now and grocery shopping doesn't have that tinge of sadness and guilt - except for when we buy milk.

Image Source: http://www.ecofilms.com.au

Umm Musk :)

BBC News on Boston Suspects

Asalamalaikum

If you are Muslim: the word "suspect" loses all meaning.

Here's what BBC News has to say:

"A 10-page criminal complaint was filed against Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on Monday during a court hearing held around his hospital bed.

According to a transcript of the hearing, he managed to speak once despite a gunshot wound to his throat sustained during his capture.

Mr Tsarnaev said the word "no" when asked if he could afford a lawyer. Otherwise he nodded in response to Judge Marianne Bowler's questions from his bed at Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center." http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22262452

I'm sorry? Did you just say he was shot in the throat? And he spoke ONCE and at all other times he NODDED? I wonder if "Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center" gave him any painkillers....torture keeps alot of heads nodding.

Funny how we can understand words unspoken but we can not hear words of justice when screamed out loud. Funny how silence proves the innocent guilty and the sounds of drones prove the guilty innocent. Funny how Muslim means criminal and anything else means nothing else.

May Allah punish every terrorist who is a real terrorist. May Allah have mercy on the victims of the Boston Bombings and bring peace to their homes. May Allah send mercy and hope to every other victim of the same aggressor. Ameen.

Read first hand account of the kind of boy an Dzhokhar was first hand according to his coach: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22237388

Kafira for a Day

Kafira for a Day

It’s just one day so let me sway

Let me forget Allah exists this day

Let me forget all the Ayat that I was taught

Let the hadith I know be remembered not

Let me take off my hijab, throw away jilbab

Let make up smear my pouting lips

Let skin tight fabric caress my hips

Let there be jewels, diamontes and types of bling

Let my bumps pop out of this corset thing

Bring out the music and shaitans favourite song

I don’t want to hear what’s right or wrong

Bring out the false lashes and the fake hair

Let my neck and arms lay bare

I have preserved my beauty for so many days

But today ghair men my body gaze

Let them imagine what i’ll be doing tonight

My shame today has taken flight

I am a cheap display for them to enjoy

Stare they can, every man every boy

I look in the mirror and proud I see

A Kafira looking back at me

Guilt now overpowers me

A divine voice inside, I hear it say

It’s your wedding day

Look at it this way

This day could be a blessed first

In sins don’t let your soul immerse

Don’t start your marriage with a curse

Pack away kufr deep in your purse

You still have time to stop and turn

Buy Allah’s mercy in return

Take flight dear bride, from satan run

Image Source: www.nickandzuzu.com

A poem by Umm Shabd. Asalamalaikum: Feel free to share my poem but please give credit and link back this blog. This is not for fame, name or the money game..... this blog is for dawah purposes only so the more poems people read the more ajr we get and you get too. JazakAllah khair.

Holiday Bathroom Cleaning {Cleaning + Organisation}

Asalamalaikum Sisters :D

Are muslim mums (and muslim dads) ever free from cleaning? Nope. At least not for the bathroom. Not even on holidays.

Whenever I go down to Sydney alhamdulilah hubby helps me clean our holiday room completely before we leave. I am in charge of the bathroom. Once I get there I try not to leave the daily routine habits on my checklist. It is easy to get off track and become lazy with all the help from mum and the sisters but I have to push on.

There's only one problem at mum's house. The toilet and bathroom ensuite is white. I don't know why I chose white tiles, truly a regretful choice. This means extra work as the floor has to be picture perfect everyday. Even a single hair on the white floor makes it look very unpleasant. Add to that three toddling holiday feet and hubby trimming a holiday beard? Oh my. Subhnallah.

After the daily bathroom sink wipe is carried out first thing in the morning, I try to take care of the floor right away.

I spray the spray’n’wipe on the floor and get a broom to spread the spray all over. As I sweep I gather all the toothpaste that my babies drop, random bits of tissue paper (my babies love tearing this sometimes in little bits, sometimes I find an entire roll unravelled on the floor) , paper, cardboard, plastic...whatever my kids happen to bring in from the day before and gather it all at the drain. All this gets picked up with a thick wad of tissue paper and thrown in the bin. Next I pour very hot tap water all over the floor and sweep it into the drain.

There! quick and easy regular cleaning of a white floor taken care of! Alhamdulilah :)

Image Source: www.homeklondike.com

Umm Musk :)

Muslimah Revert from the Hindu Faith

Asalamalaikum :D

I'm here with some good news I've been wanting to share for a while. I was at PiousBegaliSis's place one night as she runs Madrassa for kids in the neighbourhood. All the kids mums hang around for a chat while the kids learn Quran and Arabic in the garage which her husband has transformed awesomely into an office/musallah/madrassa.

It's a great place to stalk some pious, islamic mums and admirably listen to what islamic sisters talk about. They are so inspirational.

We had a surprise guest that evening. She was a beautiful revert from Hinduism. I had never met a revert from this faith so meeting her was truly special. The difference on her face from other Hindu women was amazing. The light of faith and Iman made her glow. It was her first time attending a sisters gathering like this and she was in so many tears. It was a heart rendering experience.

She has been a revert to Islam for three years now but only has recently met up with some excellent sisters who are helping her benefit from the Deen.

I request that inshallah you will make dua for this lovely sister as she is taking her first steps towards wearing hijab. Mashallah!.

Image Source: www.mynews.in - What a beautiful image of co-existence :)

Umm Musk :)

Protests in the West

Protests in the West

What is your problem when we protest? What is it that you detest?

We proudly uphold the Islamic banner, boasting in a public manner

Screaming and shouting displays our passion, our strength is displayed in this violent fashion

Check out our sisters and their chests, slogans attracting you to their breasts

And look at our brothers as they scare passersby, without this behaviour the Ummah will die

These protests let us take out our emotions, we’ll proclaim out loud and cause commotions

And when done we’ll go home for a coke or two, we’re celebrities on the news, Facebook and Youtube too

We put our feet up on our couch brand new,

Our job is done there’s no more to do, we are heroes, woop di doo

We pat each other on the back, ”take that Julia, take that Barack”

Restored is our honour and our dignity, the kuffar are overcome, in fear they flee

Saved are Syrian children and Gaza’s widowed wives, so now we return to our normal lives

There’s no more work, we have done our part, the burden and guilt removed from our heart

Back to flirtation at Gloria Jeans....back to cheering our drugged sporting teams

There’s no need for Islamic revolution....no need to strive for a permanent resolution

No attempts at intellectual intervention.....someone else will bring about a solution

We are mighty balloons and now we have deflated....relaxed, satisfied, proud and elated. 

A poem by Umm Shabd. Asalamalaikum: Feel free to share my poem but please give credit and link back this blog. This is not for fame, name or the money game..... this blog is for dawah purposes only so the more poems people read the more ajr we get and you get too. JazakAllah khair.

Egg on Carpet - What was I Doing?

Asalamalaikum :D

From my bedroom I could hear a strange cracking sound followed by quick swift scratching noises. I couldn’t make out what it was that my two year old was doing, all I knew was that my carpet was in trouble and so was I. 

As I make my way over to the half a dozen broken eggs smeared and “cooked” into the carpet with a toilet brush “spoon”, my first worry is not the smell nor is it the landlord’s reaction, it is the dreaded question. The dreaded question is often asked by friends and family who either have no kids, had them a few decades ago or have a team of domestic helpers including nannies, cooks, butlers and drivers. “What were you doing?” they ask the ‘helper-less’ houseparent, clicking their tongues and shaking their heads.

The houseparent has a limited number of reactional routes they may embark on. The first and easiest is to turn into an anger tornado, ripping apart the questioner and their question with questions of our own. ‘Do you know how much work being a stay at home parent is?’. This reaction only confirms what is really meant by the question – that your’e a bad parent. Your anger outburst only serves to provide proof. So now you’re a bad parent with anger management problems.

Image Source:  www.xacto.com

Another option we can take is to exude excuse extravaganza. I was breastfeeding my five month old when my son created his carpet omelete. But no, that excuse is not good enough. Actually nothing you were doing can be used as an alibi. Except maybe to say ‘I was giving birth at the time’, even then perhaps that answer may not suffice. I could then go on to describe my difficult day, how difficult it is to care for three kids under three and just how difficult it was to stop him from the egg disaster whilst having a baby latched onto my body. Again, this reaction only confirms what is really meant by the question – that you’re a hopeless parent and your excuses just demonstrate that you’re a hopeless parent with hopeless excuses.

Of course we could also take a more modern approach and say that we are progressive, liberated parents. We have liberated our children from the shackles of sensibility and decent behaviour. We allow them to explore the world free from parental intervention. After all egg cracking develops fine motor skills and brush scrubbing develops gross motor skills. He also learnt tactile differences between the carpet, the yolk and the whites. His observation skills are improving while he watches me play my own version of the egg and spoon race as I try to chase the thick liquid into my utensil. And look at the beautiful contrast in the egg white stains, the orange yolk stains and the way the egg is splattered and dripping off the adjacent wall. Perhaps he will become a great artist one day? No? Yet again this confirms what is really meant by the question – that your’e a stupid parent and by saying all this you sounded even stupider.

Image Source: manmadediy.com

So when my husband comes home tonight and see all hopes of our rental bond being returned to us vanish and poses the dreaded question to me what will I do? Perhaps I could get angry, I could let out all my excuses, I could justify using modernity or I could just shrug. I think I will shrug my sore from egg scrubbing shoulders. It’s really a lot less effort.

More blogposts on Stain Removal on the Muslim Mum's Mirror

Stain Removal {Cleaning} {Renting}

Asalamalaikum Sisters :D

Keeping a rented home perfectly clean not only helps us get our bond back, it also helps give off a great image of Muslims. Landlords should be impressed by the level of cleanliness of our homes. Our willingness to respect and protect the property of those who help us should shine through with our cleaning abilities. 

Trouble is we're not totally in control of the mess making business. Although we as couples can maintain a perfect home, there's no saying what little grubby hands can reach to and just how far those tinky little feet can go. 

Renting with kids is a huge challenge. In my previous home, we had covered the whole house with carpets and tarpauline to protect the white carpets. Despite our efforts a tiny piece of carpet had been left vunerable. The area in front of the kitchen was covered with a mat. It was continously tampered with by the children. 

One day the inevitable happened. ToddlerBoy found organic mandarine juice in the fridge. Brown organic mandarine juice. I have written about ToddlerBoy's artisticly creative carpet and egg disaster in this blogpost. His artistic side had attacked again. He poured a waterfall of 2 litters of juice right onto the carpet right in front of my round, shocked eyes. By the time I got there...it was too late. 

No amount of stain removal made any difference. No amount of professional carpet cleaning made any difference. No amount of stress or tears made any difference. We had to pay for the carpet replacement.

Alhamdulilah life at most times is not so bad and we have stains that we can tackle.This is not a paid advertisement for Preen. It is just something I found my mum use so I use it too.

I have written this article on How to tackle Baby Wee and Prayer on other uses for our Preen products.

Preens we use at my place

Steps for a good clean:

1. Be sure to blot out excess muck before spraying with a rag cloth, tea towel or tissue
2. Spray as soon as you spot the mess except in these circumstances: (Article about My Shoe Polish Stains and Praying on Time)
3. Blot away dirt lifted by the chemical
4. Spray again if necessary
5. Wash away chemical with water, especially if you have crawling toddlers - if you wouldnt lick stain remover, baby shouldn't either
6. Check after everything is dry for complete stain removal, if not repeat the next day

May Allah help those sisters who are renting instead of purchasing a house on a haram loan. Ameen. :)

Umm Musk :)

Islamic according to whom?

There are many people out there waiting to judge our "Islamicness". Some of us are judged positively others not quite so. In the eyes of our fellow humans we might be heroines when it comes to the piety screen but is this also the case when it comes to the eyes of Allah?

Our judges may be known or unknown and they may be real or imaginary. They may be acquaintances such as those on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. They most definitely take the shape of family, friends and colleagues. Regardless of who they are and what out relationship is with them, they play a great role in shaping our understanding of how Islamic we are.

Islamic recognition can be beneficial or detrimental depending on our level of Iman and our personalities.

For some receiving acknowledgment and praise for our Islamic deeds gives a boost. It drives them to perform greater and better Islamic deeds. They may increase their Ibadah in private and increase public acts of goodness.

For an exhaustingly huge number of Muslims out there, fame makes for lame Muslims. The real meaning of lame - 'a person who is crippled' will be applied in this sense.

The Prophet peace be upon him has told us not to praise our brothers and sisters in relation to their iman.

This is a reminder to myself before anyone else. For those of us who are on YouTube, Facebook, Blogs and other social media sites, we really need to sit back and reflect on how Islamic we are according to Allah. Friends, readers and viewers will praise and applaude our iman and our Islamicness but we need to remember that the number of "likes", "comments" and "subscribers" does not determine whether or not we are safe from Hellfire in the hereafter.

We need to constantly be in the company of those whose iman and islamic efforts exceeds our own.

May Allah protect our iman and safeguard us both in this world and the akhira. Ameen.

Riyad as-Salihin (The Meadows of the Righteous)

by Imam Nawawi

360. Chapter: It is disliked to praise someone to his face as it is feared that it will cause him to be arrogant, and the permission to do that if the person is safe from that happening

1788. Abu Musa al-Ash'ari said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, heard a man praising another man, extolling him greatly. The Prophet said, 'You have destroyed him - or you have broken the man's back.'" [Agreed upon]

1789. Abu Bakra reported that a man was mentioned in the presence of the Prophet and a man praised him heartily. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Bother you! You have severed you companion's neck,' saying it several times. "If one of you must praise someone, he should say, 'I think such and such' if he thinks the person is like that. Allah is enough for him and no one should commended and praised in front of Allah." [Agreed upon]

1790. Hammam ibn al-Harith reported that a man began to praise 'Uthman and al-Miqdad went and knelt on his knees and began to throw pebbles in his face, 'Uthman said to him, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "When you see praisers, then throw dust in their faces."'" [Muslim]

Source: http://www.sunnipath.com/library/Hadith/H0004P0360.aspx

She is such a sinner!

Asalamalaikum, I think today I'll just stay quiet in front of this great personality. Lets absorb his wisdom and then share it with our children and sisters.

Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

It may be that what he meant is that your criticizing your brother for his sin is an even greater sin than his, because it means that you feel pride in your obedience and you are praising yourself for that, and claiming to be free from sin, whereas your brother has fallen into sin. But it may be that his feeling humble because of his sin and what has happened to him, such as his feeling humble and submissive, thinking less of himself, ridding himself of pious pretensions, arrogance and self-admiration, standing before Allaah with his head bowed, his gaze lowered and his heart broken – it may be that all of that is better for him than your feeling proud of your obedience, thinking that you are doing much good, believing that by doing so you are important, and reminding Allaah and mankind of that.

How close this sinner is to the mercy of Allaah, and how close this conceited one is to the wrath of Allaah! A sin that leads to humility is more beloved to Him than an act of obedience which fills a person with conceit. If you sleep all night then wake up feeling regret (for not having prayed qiyaam al-layl), that may be better for you than if you were to pray all night and wake up in the morning filled with self-admiration. For the deeds of the one who admires himself are not accepted. Perhaps your laughing whilst admitting to shortcomings is better than your weeping with piety but being filled with conceit.

The groaning of the sinners is more beloved to Allaah than the tasbeeh of the conceited. It may be that by means of this sin, Allaah has caused him to drink the medicine that will cure a fatal disease which you also have, but you do not realize it. Allaah has reason for what He does to both those who are obedient and those who sin, which are known to no-one except Him, and which no one recognizes except those who have insight, and then only within the limits of human understanding; beyond that there are reasons which are not even known to the honourable scribes (i.e., the recording angels).

The Prophet said: “If the slave woman of any one of you commits adultery, let him carry out the punishment on her and not criticize.” And Yoosuf (peace be upon him) said: “No reproach on you this day” [Yoosuf 12:92 – interpretation of the meaning]. For the scale is in the hand of Allaah, and the ruling is His. The point is to carry out the punishment (prescribed by Allaah) and not to shame and criticize. No one feels safe from what has been decreed for them and from the power of His decree except those who are ignorant of Allaah. Allaah said to the one who had more knowledge of Him than anyone else and was closer to Him: “And had We not made you stand firm, you would nearly have inclined to them a little”[al-Israa’ 17:74 – interpretation of the meaning]. And Yoosuf said: “Unless You turn away their plot from me, I will feel inclined towards them and be one (of those who commit sin and deserve blame or those who do deeds) of the ignorant”[Yoosuf 12:33 – interpretation of the meaning]. One of the ways in which the Messenger of Allaah used to swear was “No, by the One who turns hearts.” And he said, “There is no heart which is not between two of the fingers of the Most Merciful. If He wills He guides it aright and if He wills He sends it astray.” Then he said, “O Allaah, the one Who turns hearts over, make our hearts steadfast in adhering to Your religion. O Allaah, musrif al-Quloob, sirf our hearts to obey You.”

Passed on by Umm Musk