Author Archives: admin
DIY Puzzles with Islamic Themes
I LOVE this idea that a mum sent! Check it out:
“Salaam, wanted to share a simple activity you can do with any image. Since it was the Prophet’s birthday, we printed images relating to the prophet (his name and masjid).
Then you take Popsicle sticks (as many as takes to cover photo) and glue with mod poj glue, then put image on top and add another layer of mod poj glue.
Be generous as it dries clear like you see in picture. Then take a box cutter and cut picture between Popsicle sticks and voila you have a DIY puzzle for kids!
You can do any image like Kaaba for Eid ul Adha or Imam Hussein’s shrine on his birthday, etc. I’m planning on taking these to mosque also to keep the kids busy.”
Kindness Jars - Favours for School
Check out what school favours one family gave out for the Prophet’s birthday! Kindness Jars!
The creative mum got some spice jars from IKEA (size is 5h x 5.4w), and printed out some acts of kindness (downloadable here) and put them in the jar.
These tags were then printed and stuck on the side of the jar (downloadable here). Here it is as a PNG image also.
She printed out instructions and added them to the jar (downloadable here), and added some sweets and balloons.
And finally, she topped off the jar with a Lindt emoji chocolate!
Khabib - a sporting role model
I loved this Facebook post. He is a great sporting role model!
Can’t stop thinking about when Conor offered Khabib alcohol at the pre-fight press conference and Khabib said, “I don’t drink.” Conor says, “Why don’t you drink? I bet you’re some buzz at parties you mad backwards c***!”
That had to have struck a chord with every Muslim kid in public school who said “I don’t drink, I don’t date, I don’t engage in premarital sex” and was met with jeers, weird looks, and made to feel like an overall outcast.
That’s why I love Khabib. Showed young Muslims that there’s nothing wrong with being an outcast in society of degenerates. At the weigh-in:
1) Conor strips down to his underwear to flaunt the body he’s worked so hard to get.
2) Women dolled up on stage and made to wear barely anything so that they may be objectified by the UFC’s majority-male fan base.
3) Everyone is drinking and hollering like rabid dogs.
In the midst of all that, Khabib shows up, fully-clothed with his head covered. Keeps his gaze averted from what he shouldn’t be seeing. The demeanor of a lion amongst a pack of rabid, barking dogs, and he publicly invokes the name of Allah, declaring himself an outcast who is a proud Muslim in the middle of this degeneracy. Then he proceeds to promise them that he’s going to tear their golden boy to shreds, and the following day, he fulfilled that promise, because a Muslim always keeps their promise.
A lesson to all the Muslim kids who’re tired of being made to feel like weirdos: don’t just go along with whatever the crowd says or does. Follow the path laid out for us by Allah and His Messenger ﷺ, beat them at their own game, and solidify yourself as the new standard for what it takes to succeed.👆🏼
Tasbih and Dhikr for Children
I love the way this mum explained dhikr to her children – and her ideas for making it a part of their family life are lovely!
As seen on Facebook:
This past week my boys began a new Islamic Studies class. The teacher assigned them the homework of saying “astaghferullah” 100 times a day.
Alhamdulillah, we’ve been consistent in doing it every day. Yesterday, after we finished reciting together, I asked them if they knew why we did it.
They said to remember Allah and ask forgiveness.
I said, “But you are children, Allah doesn’t hold you accountable. So why should you do it?”
They shrugged and said they didn’t know.
I replied, “Well, one day in sha Allah you’re going to grow up and then Allah will hold you accountable, right? So, it’s very good to get in the habit of these things now to prepare you for later. Does that make sense?”
They said yes.
I then said, “There’s also another reason why doing this type of dhikr and dhikr in general is very good for you. When you can focus your mind on doing something by repeating it, it’s very good for your brain. Do you know why? Well, your brain is kind of like a muscle in that it needs exercise every day. Just like people spend hours in the gym doing “reps,” which is short for repetition, of different exercises or weightlifting because they are working out their body’s muscles, we need to also exercise our brain. Dhikr is a great way to do that. We focus on something and get very good at it and our brain gets stronger. It’s also very good for our hearts because anytime we call on Allah ﷻ’s name our physical and spiritual hearts, and our whole body actually gets healthier.”
In the digital age when an unprecedented amount of teens and youth, and even small children, are either addicted to devices, video games, television, or on very serious prescription medications for anxiety, depression, ADHD, and a variety of other mental health related issues, we need to empower our small children with ways to quiet their mind.
Dhikr is the best practice to teach mindfulness and meditation to children. If you haven’t already done so, I highly recommend that every parent do the following:
1. Buy individual prayer beads for every member of the household based on everyone’s color/bead preferences. You can even get them involved and excited by taking them shopping to buy their own prayer beads at a nearby Islamic bookstore or online if you don’t have one in your community!
2. Keep the beads in a special container somewhere in the house that is easily accessible to everyone.
3. Have dhikr circles daily (if possible) after one of the prayers or even before bed time.
4. Teach your children that they can do dhikr by themselves whenever they are sad, upset, sick, tired, etc. Teach them from an early age to call on Allah ﷻ (not just mommy or daddy) when they are not feeling happy.
5. Give them clear objectives and goals based on THEIR preferences. Some children might like doing simple tasbih like “alhamdulillah, subhanAllah, and Allahu Akbar,” where other children might want to do salawat an-nabi or astaghferullah. Give them options of which dhikr THEY like most and let them pick that one to start. Guiding them to do what their hearts incline to instead of what you assign to them is a much better way to encourage them in sha Allah.
May Allah ﷻ guide and protect all of our children and always keep their hearts close to Him. Amīn. 
Motherhood in Muharram, A Reflection - by Aseel Machi
“So, while I find myself feeling overwhelmed and disconnected during the majalis, I have found the solution to all those issues through the acts of Imam al-Husayn (as). Mothers must, whether at a very minute or grandiose level, sacrifice like our Imam did. Sacrificing our peace of mind, our physical energy, and at times, even sleep for the child’s benefit. While this sacrifice is not limited to any month or day of the year, it is felt especially strong and perhaps, even burdensome, in Muharram. Our sacrifices are not for vain, it is for our young seedlings to take root and grow. With time’s allowance, their souls will bear the fruits of our hard work. The difference is that despite us not being in the time of Karbala, we are in a time even more necessary for sacrifice: the occultation of Imam Mahdi (aj), the Husayn of our time.”
Read the full article here.
Duas for Pious Children
A handy list! Great to print out and stick up somewhere 🙂
