The only shelter in the storm

This is a very fascinating article- have a read


http://www.yasminmogahed.com/2011/11/09/the-only-shelter-in-the-storm/

Productivity

I have recently started a new job and am enjoying it on the whole. The only time I get slighly bored and agitated is when I have no work to do, my team has come about due to a restructure of the finance team and its still in a trial phase so eveyrthing is new to all of us working here. I try make sure I am productive while sitting at my desk because otherwise I would just fall asleep.

Any tips as to what to do instead of pulling out one hair at a time from under my hijaab during the quite periods????

Ladies Evening

On Friday 2nd December there is a ladies event being held in London, its a dinner and dance event with no men and lots of non alcoholic champagne. Any of you girls out there going?

http://www.ivyentertainment.co.uk/

Food food and more food

So I was thinking about all the restaurants I want to go to and decided to make a preliminary list.
Here's my list:

Levant http://www.levant.co.uk/

Benares http://www.benaresrestaurant.com/

Tuk Din http://tukdin.co.uk/

Bundu Khans http://www.bundukhan.com/

Zains http://zains-grill.co.uk/

Any other suggestions guys?

Sharing Our Stories

Wycombe Muslimah Network in conjunction with Wycombe Sharing of Faith have organised an event for women to come together and share their stories.
Have a look at the poster and pass it on to your friends and family who may be interested.

Bol

Mr M and myself went to watch the new Pakistani movie Bol in cinema today. I've never been a fan of Lollywood films myself and neither has Mr M, but this film broke all the stereotypes and negative expectations I had of the movie. The acting was brilliant and the storyline was very thought provoking at a number of levels.

The movie touched on a range of issues which are very prevalent in Pakistan and the unfortunate ways we deal with them today. I would definitely recommend watching this movie not only to get an insight to the issues we as a community are facing today but also to suppport the Pakistani film makers who have put this film together.

Countdown to Ramadan

So Ramadan is literally around the corner with the first fast expected to be on the 1st or 2nd of August.
I don't know about you guys but I am far from ready. I am trying to instill routine in my life therefore ensuring I take time our for all the important things, especially during Ramadan. I don't just want to sit for hour son end reading the Qu'ran but I want to be able to understand it, so I am trying to read the Qu'ran with translation. I have also made it my aim to learn some more surahs from the Juzz  Amma as well as increase my nafl prayers.

Here are just a few tips for all of us to help us prepare for Ramadan;

1) Start asking for forgiveness for yourself and for your brothers and sisters as well as increasing the amount of zhikr you do,

 “Whoever seeks forgiveness for believing men and believing woman, Allah will write for him a good deed for each believing man and believing woman.”

It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (RA) said “The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: ‘Whoever says subhanAllah wa bi hamdih (praise and glory be to Allah) 100 times, morning and evening, his sins will be erased even if they are like the foam on the sea.” (Bukhari, 6042; Muslim 2691)

If a person says “SubhanAllah” (glory be to Allah) 100 times, a thousand good deeds are recorded for him and a thousand bad deeds are wiped away. (Muslim 2073)

2) Increase your worship, a small but consistent amount is enough, the Prophet (PBUH) said,
"the deeds most loved by Allah are those done regularly, even if they are small."

3) Make a list of duas- Ramadan is the month to ask or everything whether it be for this life or the next. Making a list will help us to remember to make constant duaa in this blessed month and will ensure we don't forget any particular dua.


If you have any other good tips you wish to share with everyone do add them to the comments, this way we can all benefit from any good advice or tips.

60 ways to win your husband's love

Whether you are married or looking to get married this video is brilliant. It gives 60 ways to win your husband's love, alot of the points are obvious but many of us still fail to implement them into our lives.

60 ways to win your husband's love


Yesterday Mr M and myself went to Mr M's school friend's (let's call him Mr O) house for lunch. I met Mr O's wife, mum and sister and was so pleased to meet them. Mr O's mum was so sweet and so knowledgeable Mash'Allah. Mr O and his father both have personalised number plates, one has Laeba and one has Aiina. None of the girls in the house have those names so I asked why the Laeba and Aiina number plates. Mr O's mum told me that Laeba and Aiina are the Hoors of Jannah. She also told me how in Surah Waqia it says that a pious, righteous believing man will get 40 Hoors in Jannah, but a pious, righteous believing woman will enter Jannah 500 years before the man and she will be 70 times more beautiful that the Hoors.

Jannah has been promised to us by Allah SWT if we follow the Quran and sunnah and stay on the path of Islam, Jannah is where every person will have all they desire and will life the most perfect and ever lasting life. There will be two types of women in Jannah, the Human woman and then the Hoors.

The Human woman is the woman who will have come from the world and will be re created in respect to the beauty of Jannah. In the Quran it says,

"We created them as a new creation. And we made them
virgins, loving to their husbands, equal in age." Allah will make old women into young women and non-virgins into virgins. No matter how their appearance was in this world, Allah will make them all beautiful and good-looking in accordance to the beauty of Jannat."

Married women will remain with their own husbands while the unmarried women will have a choice to pick any unmarried man, and if they do not like any of them then Allah SWT will create a special man for them (similar to the concept of the Hoors) and Allah SWT will join them both in marriage.
It has been narrated by Umm Salamah RA that she asked the Prophet PBUH, " who are more superior, the women of this world or the Hoors?" The Prophet PBUH responded, "The women of this world will have superiority over the Hoors just as the outer lining of a garment has superiority over the inner lining. This is because the women of this world perform salah, fasted and worshipped Allah SWT. Allah SWT will put light on their faces and silk on their bodies. The human women will be fair in complexion and will wear green clothing and yellow jewellery. Their incense burners will be made of pearls and their combs of gold. They will say, 'We are the women who will stay forever and we will never die. We are the women who will always remain in comfort and we will never undergo difficulty. We are the women who will stay and we will never leave. Listen, we are happy women and we will never become sad. Glad tidings to those men for whom we are and who are for us.' Allah will make the women of this world more beautiful and attractive than the hoors.

Mr O's mum told me how the men will be lead to their Hoors. The believing man will come to a house and knock on the door, a beautiful Hoor will open the door and say, " I am not your Hoor, carry on through to the next door." And so he will carry on in this way through 69 doors with each Hoor being more beautiful that the previous. Behind the 70th door will be his Hoor and she will say, "You do not recognise me do you? I am your wife from Earth." Allah SWT will have made her 70 times more beautiful that the Hoors.

So ladies, fear not. If we follow the 60 ways in the video above and Inshallah strive in the path of Allah, we will be 70 times more beautiful that the Hoors that have been promised to our husbands :)

And who said there was no equality in Islam!!!

I'm back!

Salaam everyone,

I'M BACK!!!!

YAY!!!

I went away for Umrah and then when I came back I got so busy with a exams that I didn't get a chance to update my blog. But now, I'm back and ready to tell you all about my trip.

Allhumdulillah we had such an amazing seven days but it was way too short and the time just flew by. I still remember the feeling inside when I first saw the Kaaba, it was nervousness mixed with excitement and pure shock. I couldn't comprehend I was standing in front of the object we spend our whole life praying towards, I couldn't believe the sheer number of people that were there despite the heat. People from all over the world, every colour and race were all there together. We all stood together five times a day to pray and worship our Allah, the sensation of many thousands of Muslims congregated together to pray was extraordinary. I was most amazed by the fact that no matter what time of day it was the Masjid Al-Haram was buzzing with people, 365 days a year, 24 hours a day people were performing tawaf around the Kaaba except during salah time.
I saw so many elderly people who were struggling to walk but still performed Umrah, it was purely due to love of Allah SWT that they managed to complete their Umrah.

Unfortunately we didn't have much time in Mecca only four days including a day of travelling so didn't get to do much sight seeing, but it was also partly the fact that all of us wanted to sit in front of the Kaaba all day long.

I thought it would be good for you all to read Mr M's account of Umrah seeing as he was able to put his feelings in a much better way.

I wish I could describe the feeling of seeing the Haram Sharif for the first time. No pictures, no videos or anyone's description can really show the majesty and the beauty of standing before the house of Allah. We arrived in Jeddah at about 10.30pm, and went to Mecca straight away. We dropped our things off and went straight to do Umrah. This was at about 2am! I wasn't expecting the mosque to be very busy at this time of the morning but as I came to learn Mecca is forever busy, every minute and every second of the day and night there are thousands upon thousands of people engaged in worship, it is a miracle in itself. We had put on our Ihrams at home and made our intentions on the plane.

They say the prayers you make when you first lay eyes on the Kaaba are always answered, so I kept my eyes down as we left the hotel, although the Mosque is MASSIVE, and so beautiful, its like a dream!  (it was only a short walk from the hotel to the mosque) I did not want to see the Kabbah until I was in front of it, so we walked all the way around to Baab e Salam - the gate we should enter for Umrah, and walked down some stairs and then up some stairs. All the while I am planning what duas to say, and saying "Labayk Alahummah Labayk...." At the top of the stairs I looked up and there it was, the Kabba before my eyes, and the emotion welled up inside me, I cant explain it but I could not stop crying, and I forgot my duas for a moment, but then I started praying for everyone I could think of, for all of my family, their health, kinship,success in this life and the akhira, baraqah in everything we do, all my friends,the Muslim Ummah and all those suffering around the world and finally anyone and everyone else I could think of. Once we had prayed to our hearts content we decided to move on and start our Umrah. We needed to perform tawaf which was the circling of the Kaaba seven times starting from the Hajer e Aswad (the black stone.) From here we proceeded to pray two nafls just behind the Maqaam E Ibrahim, there was such a rush as people wanted to get as close as possible. We then moved onto perform Saeey, this is the walking/ running between the two mountains Safa and Marwah.

I shaved my head after the first day  and i looked like an egg! the top of my head was so white I looked so funny, but at this point you just don't care how you look. I guess the 2 key words are 'detachment' and 'tranquility'. You have complete detachment from duniya and it is so liberating, you don't think about anything in the world, any problems, troubles, strife, issues, news, family, friends. you pray for these things but you don't worry about them or ponder over them too much and its such a liberating feeling. You don't even realise if you have not eaten all day, and most amazingly you don't realise you have not been sleeping. Allah SWT gives you the strength to just keep on going  day and night, I think we slept about 4 hours a day maximum. It was inspiring to see so many people of different ages and races coming together like this. It is a miracle and a testament to the Truth of Islam. Tranquillity in the prayer was another beauiful thing. To have that khushuwa in your Salah that the Prophet PBUH said was the highest level of belief (ahsaan)  was easy to have, you really felt when you were praying that you were before Allah and He was listening to you. Even though Allah is always listening and watching, it is hard to get this feeling anywhere else.

Mrs M mashallah managed to touch the black stone which is very busy all the time, no matter what time of day or night you go! I managed to hold to the door of the Kabah and make some duas. I also managed to pray in the Hateem twice which used to be part of the Kabah and praying in there is like praying inside the actual Kabah itself.

Medina was also beautiful it was a lot more relaxing, the mosque (Masjid e Nabee) itself is beautiful and massive. 

We visited the Prophet PBUH's grave  it was so weird to think that our beloved Prophet was buried here right in front of our eyes, at times things felt so surreal.

We saw Jannat ul Baqi, where the family were buried as well as many others of the companions. We had some time to visit some sites, which was really nice because it allows you to visualise all the things you read about in the life of the Prophet PBUH. We visited Uhud where the famous battle happened, and saw the hill on which the archers abandoned their post which led to the killing of the Prophet's uncle and many others.

We visited the mosques where the Battle of the Trench occurred, we visited Masjid Qiblatain, the mosque in which the Prophet PBUH was praying towards Jerusalem when the guidance came and the Qiblah changed direction and in the middle of the Prophet's salah he rotated and started praying towards the new qiblah. You can see the direction of the old Qiblah on the wall opposite.

We went to Masjid Qubaa which was the Prophet's PBUH first mosque.

I had no idea Saudi was so mountainous, and that the ground wasn't all soft sand but hard jagged rocks and stones as well. And to think that the Propeht PBUH led an army over 100 miles across this and then fought the battle of Badr is really something amazing and seeing it with your eyes really puts it into perspective how great a feat this actually must have been.

It is also worth mentioning how unbelievably cheap petrol was in Saudi! We had a 4.5lite engined jeep take us from Mecca to Medinah and from Medinah to Jeddah. When it filled up the whole thing cost 75SAR (Saudi Arabian Riyals) which is equivalent to about 11 pounds! When i fill my 1.9litre car up it costs me £65!!!! Basically in Saudi you get 2litres of petrol for 1 SAR, and there are 6 SAR to the pound, so I am sure you can do the maths, its very cheap. This is compared to the 139.5p that I pay per litre in the UK.

The never ending rat race

Sometimes life just feels like a rat race, with everyone always in a hurry to get somewhere or to do something. This weekend was a perfect expample of this rat race, it started on Friday evening and only now have I had two moments to sit down and prepare for my upcoming Umrah trip. We had family and friends visiting all week and I love socialising and interacting with people and really enjoyed the weekend. The only thing that I think about how quickly the weeks, months and years are passing by. Everday passes by in such a blur that in a few years I'll look back and think "where did it go?"

I think it's so important that every once in a while, say every two weeks, to sit down and look back at the past weeks and what you have achieved. It would also be beneficial to set yourself personal goals and deadlines for the upcoming weeks in order to make sure you maximise your time in an efficient way. For me my goals are firstly to understand my deen more and to make a conscious effort to learn about Islam, the prophet Muhammad PBUH and His family. My second goal is to work on my event management business and successfully complete my first big project, I have many more smaller goals such as become a good cook, to pass my upcoming ACCA exams and to complete my Hijama course. 

I'm hoping I'll be able to fulfill these goals in the next 3 to 6 months and go to 'infinity and beyond!'
What are your goals???



Just a side note, Mr M and I visited The Grand Designs Show at the Excel Centre in London, Mr M was reluctant to go but I really wanted to go so he followed dragging his feet behind him. The event was brilliant with so mant retailers and suppliers show casing their ideas and inventions for the home and garden. Surprinsingly Mr M also enjoyed himself and even purchased a hand whisk and an ironing board cover- well for me :)

If you get a chance next year (the last day for this year was today) do check it out, you might get some fascinating ideas and even save some money. If you go ready to buy you really can bargain and get alot of the stuff on extremely good prices especially the display pieces which are still in very good conditon.

Mr M and myself have figured when we have saved around £50,000 we will go back and furnish our house and garden. No harm in dreaming :)

Any advice?

Inshallah Mr & Mrs M senior and Mr & Mrs M Junior II (thats us) will be going for Umrah on the 12th May. This will be the first time for all of us except Mrs M senior who has already been on Hajj. I'm super excited about our trip and have already started packing, I'm so paranoid I'll forget something essential like Mr M's Ihram or our passports so I've got little checklists posted on the walls around the room of things that need to be packed and done in preparation for my trip too.

I want to take this chance to ask all of you out there to forgive me if I have ever hurt or caused you pain in any way, and if I owe anything to any of you please also come forward ( don't all rush at once now!)

Also if any of you have any sort of useful advice about Umrah, what to take or what to do when I am out there then please do let me know.

Exciting!!!!!!!!!

Endless possibilities :)

So this morning I was dropping Mr M to the station and our conversation went something like this;

Mrs M- do you have your wallet?
Mr M- Check
Mrs M- train pass?
Mr M- Check
Mrs M- Phone?
Mr M- D'oh!!!!

This is a usual occurence for Mr M, sometimes its his train pass and sometimes his phone. So being the lovely wife I am I let Mr M take my phone to work today which means I have Mr M's phone today :) Oh the possibilities of things I could get upto today, going through his text messages, his whats app messages, fraping him, using up all his free minutes or even prank calling all the people in his phonebook who I don't know :)

But NO I will be good and avoid the temptation of being childish and instead will focus my energy on my upcoming spiritual trip.

                                     

AWOL!

Salaams people,
hope you are all well and enjoying the beautiful weather. Sorry for disappearing without notice, I was busy wrapping up my job and settling into my life as a lady of leisure.

Now I am off work I need to be very careful not to get lazy, I am trying to keep myself busy with Finishing Touches (my event management business) as well as getting back into the blogging routine. I have also made it my aim to learn to cook properly.

I came across a very good quote from the genius Einstein;

The idle man does not know what it is to enjoy rest.

I hope I dont become that idle man!!!

Lady of leisure

I've quit my job and decided I wanted to become a lady of leisure! I've got three more weeks left in my current position and loads to do before I leave. I can't wait till 5.30pm on the 8th April 2011 when I can walk out of work and not worry about coming back on Monday morning. No more Sunday blues, no more Monday morning panic attacks and no more mid week breakdowns.

This is what I am going to do all day when I am at home :)

And I will be going to the gym (in case Mr M reads this post) because I dont think either one of us would be happy if I ended up looking like this, minus all the hair. But then again she does look pretty cute, hena?

Jesus and the third loaf

Have a look at the you tube video below, its a story about Jesus and the third loaf of bread, its a gentle reminder about the life of this world.

Jesus and the third loaf

Scarf 3, 4 and 5

Sisters

Over the weekend I spent some time talking to a friend who had recently lost her sister to cancer. I listened to my friend talk about her sister and the last two amazing weeks they  had spent together before her sister passed away. My friend spoke of how her sister was the best sister she could have ever asked for and how she is so thankful to Allah SWT for letting her have had such a loving and loyal best friend. I have a sister of my own and even though we don't see each other everyday we still turn to each other for advice about the smallest things from what colour hijaab to buy to what to do in an awkward situation. I know my sister always has my best interest at heart and would never advise me wrongly and that if no one else was standing by me when times were tough she would always be there.

So for all of you out there who are lucky enough to have a sister make sure you apreciate each and every second with your sister because time flies by you so fast that before you even have the chance to look back at the good times it might just be too late.

Please make sure you remember my friend in your duas and make a special dua that her sister is granted a place in Jannat e Firdous and for Allah SWT to give her family patience and strength to deal with the huge loss.

Scarf number 2

Shopping..........

My sister and I went shopping on Oxford Street yesterday, she was looking for a dress and I was just there to help her find one. I ended up buying five hijaabs from new look , all on sale. They were originally £8 and I got them for £3 each, bargain!

Ill show you the hijaabs as and when I wear them, today I am wearing my favourite one.

I also spotted some other items that I really liked the look of,  I'm liking the very wide leg trousers, I think they look so cool/elegant/funky and they can be dressed up with a blouse or dressed down with a tshirt.

Miss Selfridges had some really nice ones;

Miss Selfridge wide leg black trousers

Wide leg- camel colour

I also spotted a grey skirt, I sooo want the skirt!

HIgh waisted maxi skirt

I think I might need to make another trip to Oxford Street very soon :)

The husband store

A store that sells husbands has just opened in Nairobi, where a woman may go to choose a husband. Among the instructions at the entrance is a description of how the store operates. You may visit the store ONLY ONCE!
There are six floors and the attributes of the men increase as the shopper ascends the flights. There is, however, a catch . You may choose any man from a particular floor, or you may choose to go up a floor, but you cannot go back down except to exit the building!
So, a woman goes to the Husband Store to find a husband...
On the first floor the sign on the door reads: Floor 1 - These men have jobs and love the Lord.
The second floor sign reads: Floor 2 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, and love kids.
The third floor sign reads: Floor 3 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, and are extremely good looking.
"Wow," she thinks, but feels compelled to keep going.
She goes to the fourth floor and sign reads: Floor 4 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, are drop-dead good looking and help with the housework.
"Oh mercy me" she exclaims, "I can hardly stand it!" Still, she goes to the fifth floor and sign reads: Floor 5 - These men have jobs, love the Lord, love kids, are drop-dead gorgeous, help with the housework, and have a strong romantic streak.
She is so tempted to stay, but she goes to the sixth floor and the sign reads: Floor 6 - You are visitor 4,363,012 to this floor. There are no men on this floor. This floor exists solely as proof that women are impossible to please.
Thank you for shopping at the Husband Store. Watch your step as you exit the building, and have a nice day!

Moral:Realize that true happiness lies within you. Waste no time and effort searching for peace, contentment and joy in the world outside. inshAllah

Freshly baked scones :)

I decided to do some baking on Sunday evening. I have a billion cake books with recipes for every cake possible, I thought I would bake something that would appeal to all, so I decided to make scones. The recipe is really simple to follow. We ate the scones straight from the over still warm with clotted cream and strawberry jam..................YUM!

The scones were very tasty if I do say so myself so I thought I would share the recipe with you guys.

Pre heat the oven at 220C/ 425F/ Gas 7.

Place 375g of self raising flour (sifted), 1 and a half heaped tea spoons of baking powder and 75g of butter (room temp) in a bowl. With your fingers mix together the butter and flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. (Add in raisans and glazed cherrys if you like)

Using a wooden spoon create a well in the middle of the mixture and pour in 110ml of milk and 2 large whisked eggs. Start mixing the egg and milk with the flour in circles but start from the centre and mix outwards until you are left with a dough like mixture. Leave for five minutes.

Lightly dust a work surface with flour (make sure the surface is clean!) and place the dough mixture on the surface. Knead the dough until it is soft.

Roll out the dough so that it is about 1 and a half inches thick, using a cookie cutter which is about 3 an a half inches wide cut the dough. Cut as many as you can and with the remaining dough re roll it and repeat the process. You can usualy make around 12-16 scones depending on how thick and wide you cut them.
Place the scones on grease proof paper on a baking tray and lightly brush on some whisked egg.

Leave in the oven for about 20 mins.

Eat when hot with clotted cream/ double cream and jam :)

Happy Baking.....

Inna lillahi Wa inna ilaihi Rajioon

Inna lillahi Wa inna ilaihi Rajioon- To God we belong and to Him we will return. Surah Al Baqara- Verse 156.

A colleagues grandfather passed away today, she found out while she was in the office and was obviously very distraught. It's hard losing any member of your family or a friend, but losing a grandparent, someone who was head of the family can throw the whole family into disarray.
I lost one of my 'grandfathers' just under a year ago and even though he was my grandfathers brother I felt a great loss when he passed away.  Grandfather A (lets call him) had bought up my father as his own son and because he was the centre of our family here in the UK (my dad's dad was in Pakistan) I had a closer connection to him. Before last year I hadn't experienced a death of a member of the family so closely so never came to trully appreciate the heart ache one goes through. Even now when I think of Granfather A I feel a shiver run down my spine and feel my eyes fill up with tears as my last memory of my grandfather was seeing him lying peacefully in his coffin just before the namaaz e- janaaza. I don't think a day goes by when I don't think of him but losing someone so close helps you realise that, "To God we belong and to Him we will return."
It's such a simple prayer yet it so clearly explains the belief of Muslims such that is it God who gives and it is He who takes away too, the prayer provides reasoning during times of turmoil and calamity.


The Prophert PBUH said "If any Muslim man or woman suffers a calamity and keeps it in his memory, even if it happened a long time ago, saying each time as it is remembered, "Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji'un," Allah, who is Blessed and Exalted will give a fresh reward each time it is said, equivalent to the reward when it happened."
Tirmidhi: Ahmad and Bayhaqi, in Shu'ab al-Iman, transmitted it

Like a Garment

Jummah Mubarak people!

I've joined the facebook group called "Ahadith per day Keeps Shaytaan away," and they send out a hadith with an explanation once a day. Yesterday the hadith I receieved was titled 'Like a Garment: Husband and Wife.' I thought I would share it with you guys.

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said, "A believer must not hate (his wife) believing woman; if he dislikes one of her characteristics he will be pleased with another". [Muslim]

Commentary: Love does not mean that we should always agree with or feel good about our partners. A man may like a quality not in his wife, but he should be conscious of the fact that she might have other qualities that are even better.

Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) says that spouses are like clothes for each other. They hide the defects in the body, and beautify the body. Each person wears clothes that are just the right size for their body. So also Allah gave you (or will give you) the spouse just right for you, somebody who complements your strengths and compensates for your weaknesses. Therefore, never compare your partner with others. Somebody else’s clothes may look great on them but terrible on you.

The same applies to the wife regarding her husband. Perfection in humans is only possible in Jannah; it does not exist in humans on earth. So don’t look for it here.
As clothes and bodies go together but are not the same, so also yours and his strengths will be different. Do not expect your spouse to be good at the same things as you. Do not compete with each other, nor expect the other to become just like you.

What happens if something falls on your best clothes? You carefully wash the stains off them. You don’t junk the clothes or exhibit the stains, but make the clothes all beautiful again.

Sometimes the clothes are perfect. Everybody says they look great. But you don’t like them. Then it is your own sight that needs to be fixed. When partners are able to accept and live with their differences, love and respect will grow and that is how this relationship stays.

So, this Hadith contains a very wise counsel for a happy married life. It tells us that every person has certain good qualities as well as some shortcomings. Man has been advised here to overlook the shortcomings that he does not like in his wife and appreciate her good qualities. Similarly, a woman is advised to ignore the shortcomings of her husband and admire his good qualities.

A gentle reminder for all the men out there, whether you a husband yet or not :)

Je Roche

A few months back I attended a charity dinner in Manchester held by Imran Khan's Flood Appeal charity. I took part in the raffle and actually won :) I didnt win the two tickets to Pakistan which I was hoping to win but I did get the second best prize which was £500 vouchers for Je Roche Fashion House. I haven't had a chance to go back to Manchester and pick out the clothes I want (Je Roche is based in Manchester, on Wilmslow Road) but I do keep going on their website and drooling over the really pretty outfits. Hopefully I'll get to go in a few weekends time, can't wait!!!!

Scrumpy Jacks

Mrs M: Do you like these crisps, they are new, I haven't had them before.

Mr M: Yeah, they are really nice, and only have 82 calories.

Mrs M: They are really light, when you eat them you expect there to be more to them.

Mr M: They are just like the Scrumpy Jacks.

Mrs M: Scrumpy Jacks? Whats that.

Mr M: You know those other crisps just like these. You will know them when you see them.

Mrs M: I don't know any Scrumpy Jacks, they were probably around well before my time.

Mr M: No, you eat them sometimes, they are round and the same shape.

Mrs M: You mean Snack A Jacks!


SILENCE.............................

Rishta Events

Rishta Events  is collaborating with Marriage Potentials  for a marriage event being held on Saturday 5th March 2011 in London.

The event is open to all Muslims who are looking for a marriage partner. Please go on the respective websites for further details as well as forwarding the link onto any family members or friends who may be interested.

Remember;

Marriage in Islam has been declared 'half of one's faith.' It has been reported that the Prophet Muhammad PBUH said ‘A person who posses the means to marry (i.e. he is able to work etc. to support a wife and children) and does not marry then he is not from amongst us (i.e. the believers).’

Allah SWT has also commanded His people to marry in Chapter 24, Verse 32; ‘And wed the single among you’.

So for those of you who are looking to get married do have a look at the website and make an effort to attend this event, who knows you may just find your special someone.....................inshAllah.

Allah SWT's tests

Allah, Glory be to Him, says in the Quran: "Do men think that they will be left alone on saying, 'We believe,' and that they will not be tested? We did test those before them, and Allah will certainly know those who are true from those who are false" (Quran, 29: 2-3)

Sugar Leaf Photography

While surfing the internet going from one site to another I came across a blog called The Kissing Tree, this is written by a lady called Lexia and is based around her work as a photographer. The blog dates back to October 2008 with pictures she has taken throughout the past few years of wedding, babies, pregnancies and much more. Your thinking pregnancies, weird! But just have a look at the blog and scroll through and you will see what I mean. Her pictures are so different yet capture the moment so well. The images are striking yet touch the heart. Lexia is based in Florida but also is able to travel to her clients when the need be (even abroad), she offers a very competitive package while her husband Dustin specialises in videoing and turning them into vintage movies. Could you get a more creative couple?????

For more information you can visit their website Sugar Leaf Photography

These are few of my favourite pictures from Lexia's blog;

Nikon d5000

A few months back Mr M bought me a Nikon D5000 DSLR camera. I had wanted one for a while but wasn't sure which one to get, I wanted a good reliable camera that would be easy to use for a new but keen photographer but not one I would get bored off within a year.
After months of research we settled for the Nikon D5000.

So what are the features of the Nikon D5000 I hear you ask me.

Well in simple terms the camera has a 12.9 mega pixel sensor, the LCD monitor is 2.7" wide with a tilt and swivel function which makes it perfect for taking pics from above  when in a crowd, especially if your not very tall like me :) It has the ability to detect faces as well as track subjects, this is perfect when trying to capture young kids. There is an image sensor cleaning as well as an extensive built in picture retouching process which includes raw development and straightening. The D5000 now has a new battery with increased capacity and finally a 72 thumbnail and calendar view in playback which shows the images taken respective of the dates.

This is a very simple review of the camera just highlighting a few of the key features, for a more detailed review why not have a look at Nikon's homepage or Wikipedia.

I will be putting up some pictures I have taken with my camera throughout the last couple of months to show the picture quality and my photography skills, I'm hoping the latter will increase with practice!

What cameras do you guys use?

Why you should never rely on a man :)

After a nice long break I was finally back at work yesterday. Work was hectic busy due to month end and then year end, for those of you who didn't know you have probably clocked on now that I am an accountant (well trainee to be correct- not fully qualified yet!) So I finished work at around 7pm and decided to walk back to Marylebone, I got to Marylebone at around 7.50pm and the next train home was in ten mins. Just as I got on the train Mr M called me saying he was just about to leave work and if I was still around we could go together, so I thought it would be a good idea to wait for him.

Mr M arrived at Marylebone forty mins later and we got on the 9.02pm train home. I was so so so tired and fell asleep while Mr M read his book  I woke up at 9.55pm in a panic and realised that we had missed out station, and guess what???????????????? WE DID MISS OUR STATION, even though Mr M was awake reading his book!

I was annoyed, it was 10pm when we got to the next station and had to wait 15mins for the next train back. It was cold and late and I really wanted to get an early night. Mr M was adamant the train didn't stop at our station and that we couldn't have missed it. I think Mr M fell asleep while reading his book and only woke up when I jumped up realising we had missed our station.

So ladies moral of the story, don't rely on the men!!!