If you miss my presence over here, head over to read my posts on DisneyBaby.com.

This month’s posts:

Zaynab’s first experience with bubbles.

A party feature of Maysoon’s First Monster Birthday Party.

My favorite pictures of Baby Z on Instagram.

A quick and easy recipe for some yummy baked oatmeal.

A round-up of 20+ beautiful art prints inspired by books and reading.

Baby Z takes on some spaghetti for some adorable messy pictures.

A round-up of 15+ great finds to decorate Baby’s first library.

A lovely Little Golden Books first birthday party feature.

A list of baby names inspired by characters from children’s books.

Following Baby Z around during a trip to our local library.

A couple of funny pictures during a recent road trip where we harnessed the wind to entertain Baby Z.

Passing on the Tools to Baby Z.

Celebrate Baby with a Little Golden Books themed baby shower.

There it is.  April over at DisneyBaby.com.  I would love some feedback on the posts? What did you like? What would you like to see more of? What baby posts would interest you mamas with babies?

Thank you to everyone who liked, commented, pinned, and shared the posts! I appreciate the support!

]]> http://littlelifeofmine.com/2013/05/april-posts-on-disneybaby.html/feed 1 http://littlelifeofmine.com/2013/04/islamic-arts-museum-malaysia.html http://littlelifeofmine.com/2013/04/islamic-arts-museum-malaysia.html#comments Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:00:44 +0000 Amnah http://littlelifeofmine.com/?p=3093 Continue reading →]]> My number one recommendation for places to visit in Kuala Lumpur is the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia.  The beauty, culture, history, architecture…everything is just perfect [in my book].  I spent h o u r s there.  I would have taken much longer, or even returned, if I could have.

I read just about every plaque attached to each artifact, took pics of practically everything in there, and just stood in awe and amazement of everything before me.  One of my favorite nerdy things to do, is to imagine what life was like centuries ago.  Each case housed items that I imagined being used before my eyes.  Clothing fit for royalty. Handwritten Qur’anic verses on gloriously decorated pages.  Pottery that held the sweetest of fruits.  Jewelery heavy with precious stones that graced the dainty collarbones of princesses.

There was so much information to soak up.  I wanted to learn all about the history of this art form that I loved so much.  The following was taken from one of the informational plaques.

The fundamentals of Islamic art can be attributed to the earliest days of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).  It was during his time that the Arabic script gained its distinct status, and thus calligraphy gained prominence as a decorative form.  Similarly geometry gained eminence as it reverberates circling the Kaa’ba in Mecca while performing Tawaf [circumambulation] during the Hajj [Holy Muslim Pilgrimage] season. Furthermore, the basic decorative element, the continuous vegetal scrolls and arabesque all found endorsement as they reflect perpetual beauty of the vegetation in the gardens of paradise.

One of the main reasons I was able to really immerse myself in the museum was because my awesome sister watched my kids for me! Oh, sweet, sweet vacation.  There is a large and impressive children’s lounge/library area that they spent much of their time in.  I brought the girls up to the museum to do a bit of a walk through.  They were drawn to the replicas of the mosques around the world, the magnificent domes, and Qur’an displays.

Everything about the museum captivated me.  But nothing moved me as much as the section of the museum that displayed numerous ancient Qur’ans.  What made this part of the museum so enchanting, beside the exquisite calligraphy of those glorious words, was the beautiful recitation of the Qur’an being played throughout the exhibit.  I seriously just had to take a few minutes to sit and take it in.  It brought tears to my eyes and renewed a piece of my spirituality.

I can’t stress it enough.  If you ever visit KL, take an entire day (or two) to spend at IAMM. The gift shop was awesome. I picked up majority of my gifts from there. Totally reasonable prices, nice quality, a great selection, and friendly staff.  There is also a gorgeous restaurant on site that I never managed to get to because I took too long in the museum.

When my sister first visited Malaysia prior to moving there, she brought back an adorable hand painted Batik of a giraffe.  With Jenin’s love of painting, I knew it was somewhere I really wanted to take the girls.

The Craft Complex, or Kompleks Budaya Kraf, is situated close to downtown.  It’s a beautiful setting consisting of a main building with a great gift shop and numerous hut style cottages throughout the grounds.  Tropical tree lined pathways lead to each hut.  We only had the opportunity to visit the Batik hut.

If you’re looking for a meaningful souvenir or special gift, this is the one.  The girls and I were allowed to pick our own design or choose from one already prepared. There are hundreds of images to choose from in binders including flowers, animals, and Malaysian landmarks. You can even bring in your own image for them to transfer to a cloth.  Wish I had known! If you do, think simple drawings in a coloring page format.   Wax outlines are drawn onto a cloth.  The wax stops the colors from bleeding into each other.  You’re given a tray of paints (don’t wear your best clothing and use the apron provided), cups of water, and an assortment of brushes.  After a brief and simple instruction, you’re ready to go.

Despite the humid weather, the hut had cross ventilation and was pleasantly cool.  It was a very beautiful and relaxing setting.  Maysoon, almost 4,  was able to complete her painting and was quite pleased with her little turtle.  The girls enjoyed the process so much, that we returned later in our trip to do it again to give as gifts to their friends.

Artistic or not, this was a wonderful experience to learn the popular Malaysian craft and art.  It was incredibly affordable as well.  The larger ones (11×11) will only set you back less than $10 with a mat. The smaller ones (8×8) are closer to $7.  We didn’t get the mat for our personal ones, wish we did!  Not interested in painting it yourself but like the painting style? Many pre-painted images are available for sale.  We picked up Batik bookmarks for J’s classmates.

Every now and then, the circle of life (children/home/husband) would cause my blogging to pause. “You threw off my groove!”,  I’d want to say.  But I’d pick up where I left off because I knew I had to just keep swimming.  As my readers, you were coming back around because you all knew you had a friend in me.

I’ve had very big goals and dreams for this little life (and blog) of mine. They say a dream is a wish your heart makes when you’re fast asleep. While visiting my sister in Malaysia recently, I woke up one morning to the most magical news.  I read and re-read my email. Was I still dreaming?

The opportunity presented a whole new world to me. I was overcome with an indescribable feeling.   I worked very hard to reach this point so I was thrilled to be recognized.  Yet I wondered if little ‘ol me be able to take this on? I knew I had to be brave and go for it. Hakuna matata!!

Presenting, the big news:

I am now a contributor for DisneyBaby.com!  {squeal!} Certainly you picked up on all the Disney references above.

First and foremost, all praise is due to God.  Without Him, none of this would have been possible. The one who constantly bestows more blessings on me than I deserve. Second, thank you to my friends and family that supported this blog from when it was just an itty-bitty site all through to what it is now. Thank you, thank you, thank you my readers! Your constant feedback, encouragement, and camaraderie keeps me here. Connecting with mothers from around the world – from South Africa to Malaysia, Jordan to Canada – gave me a chance to express myself to an audience that I knew would “get me”.  Thank you.

“Thank you,” I answered, unsure of the proper American response to her gracious enthusiasm. In the Arab world, gratitude is a language unto itself. “May Allah bless the hands that give me this gift”, “Beauty is in your eyes that find me pretty”; “May God extend your life”; “May Allah never deny your prayer;” “May the next meal you cook for us be in celebration of your son’s wedding… of your daughter’s graduation… your mother’s recovery’; and so on, an infinite string of prayful appreciation.  Coming from such a culture, I have always found a mere “thank you” an insufficient expression that makes my voice sound miserly and ungrateful.

- excerpt from Mornings In Jenin

The first of our Kuala Lumpur mosque tour was Masjid Wilayah.  It’s actually quite new, less than 15 years old.  It was quite stunning.  So many awe inspiring details.  It was love at first sight when I saw the cobalt, emerald, and mustard zellij wall.

It’s a beautiful place to visit and offer prayers.  We weren’t around during a prayer time, so it was basically empty.

Enough talk, here’s the pictures:

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15 hours to Hong Kong followed by 4 hours to Kuala Lumpur. We made it!

This post will highlight just a bit of our travels in KL.  With over 2,000 pictures taken, not including the ones my sisters took, I have quite a bit of images to sift through and edit.  I’ll go into detail with more images as I touch on each outing individually.

If there is anything you must know about Malaysia, it’s that it is h u m i d. All year round.  Malaysian women aren’t phased by this because their lovely traditional clothes, or baju kurung, are perfect for the tropical weather.  Light fabrics, loose fitting, and the long matching skirts provide much appreciated air circulation.  I took a cue and disregarded much of what I packed.  My new wardrobe for my trip consisted of knit palazzo pants, skirts and maxi dresses.  Keep your jeans at home.  Trust me.  While all indoor locations are well equipped with AC, many of my favorite Malaysian spots were outdoors.

A snack of cool, fresh fruit on the hot streets of KL.

We visited numerous mosques, each with breathtaking details that made me fall in love with Islamic architecture and design all over again.  I took the opportunity to pose with every wall, niche, panel, tile work, carpet that I could.  Even some of the shops in the malls were decked out in gorgeous details.  In true tourist fashion, I posed – and made the girls pose – in front of just about all of them.

I, of course, was eager to dig in to Malaysian eats.  I was game for just about all of it. I downed gallons of addicting refreshing ice lemon tea.  Curry puffs, a popular deep-fried Malay street food, found a special place in my heart – and around my waistline.  This typical French Toast and pancakes kinda girl, ate trays of roti canai instead. A Indian paratha style bread served with spicy dipping sauces.  I just couldn’t leave KL without the eating the ever popular nasi lamek, or fat rice.  I even dared to take on the infamous pungent durian, king of the fruit! King? Not in my book.  All I managed was a tiny nibble of a freeze dried version before I realized I wasn’t as brave as I’d like to be.

Nasi Lemak

Other activities included the popular Malaysian craft, Batik painting.  The girls and I really enjoyed the creative outlet in the midst of our vacation.   We did some hiking, swimming, and good old fashioned site seeing.  The girls loved an indoor child sized city called Kidzania. The highlight of the trip for me was the Islamic Arts Museum.  {sigh} So much beauty and history.

Of all the things seen and of all the places we went, the best part of my entire trip was seeing my sister Iman.  My BFF! It’s been so hard the past year she’s been living in Malaysia.  Time differences made it hard to connect.  We finally had a chance to hang out and essentially catch up.  Our little sister Affnan also traveled with me to KL. (Amena was terribly missed! Next vaycay in Pali!) So many great memories made in a far away land.

My best friend’s daughter recently turned 13.  ThirTEEN.  In an attempt to prep my BFF for these tumultuous years, I pulled together a few items intended to possibly ease the journey for both mother and teenage daughter.

Contents:

• Journal – To record the good memories and the bad moments.  The bad can be used against them later if necessary. You know, when the teen grows up, gets married, has kids, and can’t figure out why they’re children are so bad! Karma.
• Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff for Teens - Because it’s all small stuff no matter how dramatic or exaggerated a teen makes it out to be.
• Duct Tape - To avoid excessive talking back.
• Dove Dark Chocolate – Regardless of how peaceful you wish these years to be, it’s a bittersweet time.
• Band-aids, deodorant, tissues - It’s going to take blood, sweat, and tears to successfully raise your teen.
• Excedrine Migraine - Teenagers and headaches go hand in hand.
• Box of Brownies - Take time to bake with your teen.  Bond.  Listen to them talk.  Don’t judge.
• Movie Gift Card – Take your teen out on a date.  Let them pick the movie. Laugh hard.  Don’t try to throw in a life lesson.  Just chill and have fun.
• A Penny – If you receive a penny for every time your teen will say “it’s not fair!”, you’ll be incredibly rich at the end of these years.  This is the start of your fortune.
• Q-Tips – This will solve “But I didn’t hear you tell me my curfew/no car/no phone/etc.”
• One Direction CD – Learn the lyrics to your teen’s favorite songs.  They might think you’re cool.  Maybe.  This one may backfire.
• A Picture Frame – Try to picture a close and respectful relationship.  Though these years are difficult, they too shall pass.

This gift was all in good fun and I obviously don’t think band-aids and brownies will help my BFF through the years.  It’s just a reminder to have a sense of humor, be patient, and trust that with even the best of intentions, our children will make their own mistakes.

I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like to raise a teenager.  My own J is 6 going on 17.  You know what they say, what goes around comes around.  And boy do I have a thing or two coming once she hits those teenage years.  Pray for me!

Mamas of teens: How do you/did you do it? Share your best advice. 

Of all the books they’ve read, nothing compares to one that they can truly relate to.  One that speaks to them and brings Mama’s daily sayings and teachings to life.  I couldn’t have been more happier than when I read The Apple Tree by Mariam Al-Kalby.  I try very hard to instill acts of charity and generosity in my daughters.  This book touched on that beautifully.  The Apple Tree focuses on the Prophet Muhammad’s Hadith, or Prophetic saying:

“When a Muslim plants a tree, whatever is eaten from it is charity from him and whatever is stolen is charity and whatever is subtracted from it is charity.” [Sahih Muslim]

The story follows the growth of an apple tree and a little girl’s hesitation to share the fruit it bears.  Her resistance eventually gives way to generosity for the sake of Allah’s reward after remembering a special conversation with her father.

Jenin specifically was incredibly attached to this story.   The first time we read it together we spoke of the apple seeds she had attempted to plant last year.  While in kindergarten, she planted just about every seed she could get her hands on.  She diligently tended to her seeds and watered them regularly.  Truly my green-thumbed mother’s granddaughter.  All her work was in vain as nothing ever grew.  The conversation led into good intentions and that even though nothing ever came to and no one technically benefited from her nonexistent tree, she would still be rewarded for her intentions and efforts.

Reading The Apple Tree gave Jenin a character she could relate to. She was excited that even though we didn’t plant the existing apple tree in our old yard, we did share the fruit with loved ones and plenty of squirrels, thus earning her a reward with God.  I saw much of my daughter in little Shaima, with her struggle to give of what’s hers.  The reminders of the reward she will receive, helps her fight her inner pull to keep all for herself.  I like to encourage my daughters to be kind and generous to others so that they reap the rewards from God.  Since reading the book with them, I’ve noticed that they’ve begun to speak more and more about rewards they will receive.   It’s beautiful to see them strive for Allah’s happiness through acts of charity and kindness.

I truly adore this book.  We all teach our children the hadith and sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). But to have a beautifully illustrated story – on top of leading by example – that allows them to visualize and return to constantly, can really drive the lessons home for them.  The Apple Tree is meant to be a “Prophet Says” series.  I’m very excited to have a well written and lovely illustrated Muslim children’s book series.  I definitely encourage this book to be a part of a young Muslim’s personal library.

The book is gorgeously illustrated with fresh and modern images with lovely details throughout.  One simply can’t help but fall in love with the main character’s large, dark eyes.  See more of Yee Von Chan’s beautiful work at chanyeevon.com.

You can (and should!) order the book through Mariam’s blog or via Amazon.

Support this wonderful series and author.  The children of our ummah deserve children’s books that they can constantly return to and take pride in.  Please spread the word!  Be sure to like The Apple Tree on Facebook .

This Little Life of Mine received a complimentary issue.  The opinions reflected here are entirely of my own.

So here at our new place, I wanted to get on the good side of our new feathery neighbors.   The girls and I found some pine cones along our new walking route which are way nicer than the cones from our old trail. (New house: +1) Grabbed a few more supplies and made a few bird feeders.

Pine Cone Bird Feeders

Supplies: Pine cones, any size.  Smooth peanut butter.  Bird seed.  Yarn, ribbon, or string.

Directions: Using a butter knife (or your finger) spread a thin layer of peanut butter onto each opened scale.  Sprinkle generously with bird seed.  Attach a yarn and hang on a tree.

The little guys devoured these. Yay!

]]> http://littlelifeofmine.com/2013/01/pine-cone-bird-feeder.html/feed 5 http://littlelifeofmine.com/2013/01/housewarming-gift-in-a-jar.html http://littlelifeofmine.com/2013/01/housewarming-gift-in-a-jar.html#comments Mon, 21 Jan 2013 14:00:34 +0000 Amnah http://littlelifeofmine.com/?p=2805 Continue reading →]]> Moving sucks.  Don’t get me wrong, a new place and a fresh start are great.  But it’s the packing and unpacking, transporting, furniture getting damaged, fragile items breaking, and things getting lost that are annoying.  Am I right?

A dear friend of mine recently moved a couple of weeks ago.  But wait, she just moved into this new place a few months ago.  There’s more, she’s moving again after four months.  Why all the moves?  Their current apartment needed to be renovated so management had to ask them to leave temporarily.   I hope the postal service doesn’t think all their mail forwarding requests are pranks.

In an attempt to make her current temporary place feel a little like home, I pulled together a small housewarming gift for her.  Inspired via here.  I included yummy and useful goodies that can easily be put to use.

The key to a successful jar, besides including items that are actually useful, is color coordination.  It makes the entire gift look more cohesive and ups the cute factor.  The quote and “painting” (I’m not an artist) were inspired via here.

Add this to my list of “you’d never know I couldn’t wrap a gift” tricks.

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