Book Review: Learning to Listen, Learning to care - A workbook to Help Kids learn Self-Control & Empathy

We have been using this book "Learning to Listen, Learning to care" by Lawrence E. Shapiro, as a family to help better ourselves. It is a great Character building book. Initially, I purchased it for the kids, interesting now we have a family session where kids and I sit together and go over one question or one whole activity, then together right our responses. 

It ends up being a great writing and literacy session. This author has a series of similar books that covers many different topics on character building and helping children be better human beings. I highly recommend this book, especially for boys who are not too keen about discuss their emotions. We don't write in the book we answer the question in our personal diaries.

Here is a sample Activity lesson to give you an idea. 

Activity 7 - page 1

Activity 7 - page 2

Actvity 7 - page 3

Book Reveiw: I Think, I Am!

Louise Hay is the author of the international bestseller "You can heal yourself" and also New York Times bestseller for "Heal your body". She also has a work book that goes with "You can heal yourself" called  "Love yourself and heal yourself" which has proven to help many people. She is known for her work on encouraging people to change their thoughts to positive and more affirming thoughts, despite of what they have heard about themselves.

"I think, I am" is a kids version book of her other works. It teaches children the power of Affirmation. With the help of fun illustrations and simple words children can learn how to change negative thoughts to positive affirmations. If children learn this skill of positive self talk, they can live a more fulfilling life inshaAllah.

We paired this book up with her "The Affirmation coloring book" and "Inspirational". I have always felt art to be very therapeutic just like writing. Coloring books like these have very soothing and calming affects on a person. Zentangle is a form of art that has been used to help people focus and relive stress.

Some of our completed works

This is one of those book we should have in our home libraries. Also be shore to check out Louise Hay's website.

Homemade Beauty: Lip Scrub with kids

Kids made Lip scrub today with 3 ingredients that we already had in our Kitchen. It was a simple and fun project that they really enjoyed, especially the kids. I try to teach kids to make whatever they can at home and from scratch and whenever they can instead of always buying it as the first option. Instilling the idea of being producers rather than consumers is crucial at a young age. AR always has chapped lips so we made these lip scrubs for all of us. These have always helped his chapped lips. H of course love making it since it's a beauty product. Also teaching them that our beloved used to do things himself (Peace and blessing be upon him).

Kid's lip scrub

Here is what we used in the kids version of the scrub:

• 1 tsp - organic coconut oil
• 2 tsp - organic cane sugar
• dash - organic cinnamon 

Adult's lip scrub

Here is what I used for the adults scrub:

• 1 tsp - organic coconut oil
• 2 tsp White sugar 
• 2 drops lavender essential oil
• 1 drop Eucalyptus
• Dash of grated lemon 

Optional additions when making it for adults or giving as a gift:

• Food coloring (gives it a LUSH touch)
• Coffee
• Brown sugar instead of cane sugar and white sugar
• Olive oil
• Honey

Enjoy the recipe and polish those beautiful smiles!

Stay tuned for more of our Homemade recipes for the whole family.

Yoga with kids

Every morning as I do my yoga after dawn prayer time my kids start to creep out of bed one at a time. Sometimes after I am have completed my yoga regimen I put one episode of Cosmic kids on for them for their yoga time. The kids have been doing Cosmic kids yoga for quite a few years, recently she has been adding plenty of new videos.

Happy Yoga Mommies and kiddies!

Nature Nurtures Learning

The last few months we have been living out of hotel rooms, Alhumdulillah. It is awesome to have room service, and I feel like I am getting too spoiled by it. However, it can sometimes get quite cramped for the 5 of us in a tiny space, especially for the children. So we try to keep as many outdoor activities as possible, and not burdensome for any of us. One of the things we have been taking outdoors are our books!

We have a nice park by our hotel, we take our books there and stay put a good 2 to 3 hours. The kids play and learn at the same time. They have grown in their cognitive abilities, behavior, in learning and understanding new concepts, each other and the world around them. How things around them are constantly changing naturally and so are we. They're not just doing their daily lessons but also observing and learning from their surroundings and the beauty in what He has created with astonishing perfection.

We have always enjoyed the nature, being in the wild, forests and falls of Canada and United States to the desserts and beaches of Arabia. We love it all! Kids and adults both benefit and flourish in nature. It connects us in a unique way to The Creator, and puts one in a state of Awe in His Signs, as one reflects. All this love for nature was taken to another level when I read "I love Dirt" By Jennifer Ward. And just recently "Last child in the woods"

I leave you with poster and the above quote from the book "Last child in the woods"

Why we love everything coconut

Coconut is a staple in our home, we love it "in" and "on" our bodies.  Hope this inspires you to include this wholesome superfood in your lives too.

Product review: Substance - Nappy Rash Onitment

Bismillah

This post is mainly inspired by my life revolving around a baby these days. Its about a product I have been using for about 4 years now, and really feel I need to share its immense benefits we have had. Its like the only baby skin care  product I carry in my diaper bag. 

It works great for almost everything! I have used it for the kids on cuts, diaper rashes, sunburns, burns, mosquito bites, dry skin, irritation my daughter gets in her private because of swimming and for her . It is the only product we used on our son when he got circumcised . If you are like me and love good smelling things, you will simply love the way it smells.

It is however a bit on the expensive end but the way it works is a little goes a looong way. I have only bought it 2 times in over 4 years and still have enough to inshaa Allah last this whole year or more.

- We ask You O Allaah to protect our families for any evil in this World and the Hereafter, and to make them great thinkers and make us of those who fear You due to knowledge. Ameen.

She got Burnt!

SubhanAllah! I miss blogging!! We have been very busy with HSing, home, beach, packing for vacation, and learning from experience!

We have just been on a rolloaster of test from Allah swt, which ofcourse happens to teach us a lesson and make us a stronger believer! Be'eznillah hu tala

Well, a few weeks ago our little princess got burned with boiling water! (I can imagine all your OMGs!!) Alhumdulillah Allah swt is MOST KIND! He protected her face and chest. The water fell on her left shoulder and back. As a mother! first few minutes I panicked, but then I said to myself if I don't calm down I can't help her! So..Mama took a deeeeep breath and gentle took her shirt off, and did what she thought was required.

What was it that I thought was required you ask??

1.   I applied Aloe vera gel by Forever Living (great products, do check them out). I had to however stop applying this gel on the third day because, as soon as I applied it she was very restless and seemed like in pain. Maybe it was causing some sort of burning sensation on her burn. I immediately washed it off. After that only used the fresh Aloe vera.

2.  Pulled out my "Encyclopedia of homeopathy" and "Prescriptions of Natures cures" to see what I   could give her right away for pain relief, and start her treatment.

•  Homeopathic remedies

• Arnica 30 (always a GREAT pain reliever) 
• Cantharis 30 every 15 minutes for 1 hour, then twice in 4 hours till next day and then cut it to 4 times a day. Now she is taking it once a day. (I have to add that she also had 6 teeth come out at once and 4 of those were molars! MashaAllah, she was/is so brave and patient about it all. May Allah swt increase her more in it. Ameen!)

3.   Made my own aloe vera gel at home with Aloe vera (from home) and honey. You can also use this recipe to make a better one but we couldn't find Vitamin C powder sadly.

4.  Gave her a HIGH dose of vitamin C and E to help her heal for over a week. I ONLY gave her FOODS that were high in Vitamin C and E, no supplements

5.  Applied Calendula Tincture ointment 3 times a day for the first week after cleaning her burn gently while she was played in the bath tub. Still applying once daily.

6.  Also applied Memo a herbal antiseptic for the first 4 night.

7.  Started applying a vitamin E essential oil once the wound was completely healed.

8.  We decided not to do a dressing on the burn because she was getting irritated by it. We also found that it was healing faster without any dressing, as long as the burn and her environment was clean to protect from infections

9.  Applied honey directly but she hated it! only used it with the aloe blend.

10.  Washed the burn with Zamam and Calendula soap 3 times a day for until the burn was completely healed and once a for 2 weeks. 

11.  Applied a Propolis cream 

13.  Gave her lost of fluids and water.

How she got burned you ask?

Well, I recently swtiched to using water insted of oil when frying an egg. Alhumdulillah it was water not oil! It all happened in seconds...she tumbled and fell on the stove, the stove shock and the water fell on her. I usually use the back stove tops, but this time they were out in the lving room playing and in a second ended up in the kitchen!...It was just something that was wrtten. It was Qadr! with wisdom beyond our perception to encompass, unless Allah swt shows us the wisdom.

What one should do when one gets burned (things I didn't do, due to not knowing and lack of resource)

1. Wash burn immediately with moderately cold water for about 15 minutes. This will stop the tissues from farther burning and provide pain relief.  This is only for first degree and second degree burns DO NOT do this to a third degree burn!
2. Dip and clean gauze in a diluted mixture of Catharsis mother tincture and water. Apply the wet gauze on the burn for 15 minutes do this repeatedly until completely healed.
3. Essential oils such as  lavender oil, tea tree oil and eucalyptus oil with very powerful antiseptic and immune stimulator. They are known to help heal burns, cuts and wounds

Things to keep in mind if you are planing to treat a first or second degree burn at home.

1. Always keep the burnt area clean to aviod infections.
2. You need to know what degree of burn it is, you can easily google it and read about it! You have to be sure of what degree burn it is in order to start the treatment.
3. Watch out for symptoms of infection, such as pus, yellow or green discharge, bad smell coming from the burn or blood. Immediately consult a doctor! 
4. If you are not confident enough to take the charge of  healing the burn at home then its better you do not! (In my case despite the fact that I had a LOT of pressure to take her to the hospital, I chose not to, and Alhumdulillah Allah swt granted her shifa! Alhumdullilah my husband was supportive of my decision as well, although inside at first he wanted me to take her to the hospital, and also mentioned it a few times. BUT, when he saw her healing he was satisfied and supportive of helping our daughter heal safely at home.)
5. My brother and father in-law mentioned a stove guard that you can put in front of the stove, I will be investing in getting one inshaAllah. 

I have shared all this information with you all in order to help you to be able to help a burned victim (Na'uzubillah) with home remedies rather then rushing to the hospital. In case of a third degree burn (where the burn has reached the third layer of the skin) rush the victim to the hospital for medical care. Also, if you are unsure of how to go about the procedure of home treatment of a burn, you will be better of seeking professional care. Before you do something you have to believe in it!!

Last, but not the least, I would like to say we should ALWAYS remember that shifa comes from Allah swt ONLY! If He wills He can put shifa in plain water! so its very important to remember Him a lot and ask for His Divine Protection and Healing.

NOTE: I have a Pdf version of the book "Encyclopedia of Homeopathy", if you are interested in a copy, mail me at rawdahs@gmail.com. I would be more then happy to share it with you, it's an amazing reference book to have. :)

Holistic Health: Remedies for vomiting

What is Holistic care? 

"Holistic health is a concept that all potential contributing factors which may affect a person's well-being, are taken into consideration when assessing a person's overall health.

Holistic health in traditional medical practice upholds that all aspects of people's needs, physical, social, and mental, should be taken into account and seen as a whole. As defined above, it has been accepted among general practitioners and district nurses in Swedish primary care.

In alternative Medicine, it is believed that the spiritual aspect should also be taken into account when assessing a person's overall well-being. The spiritual aspect is not associated with any religious ideology but rather, refers to the essence or "core self" of a person." {American Holistic Medical Association}

The above information is for those who were wondering what 'Holistic' stands for. In simple it a natural way for living where in you focus much on your; physical, nutritional, emotional, spiritual, environmental health and a whole new lifestyle. Some of the major 'Alternate medicine" that  focused on are Herbal medicine, Homeopathy, Acupuncture, Cupping, Riki, Massage, Body Cleansing, Reflexology, Yoga, color therapy and many more. There are over 30 different methods that can my used for your overall well being, some of them don't go by our Islamic teachings and some things we can add from the teachings of our Prophet Muhammad (saw).

Most of these methods are not acceptable by majority of convectional (pharmaceutical techniques an drugs) and allopathic medical practitioners. However, if the alternative medicine fails then one can be referred to conventional methods.

I am still in the process of learning about these methods and inshaAllah plan to study a few in detail, Bi'edhnillah (with the permission of Allah).

When my kids got the vomiting and diarrhea a few weeks ago these are some of the things I gave them.

Vomiting

• 24 hours after their vomiting I gave them fluids such as water, lemon water with sugar and salt (works as a oral re-hydration and works as a glucose which is lost during vomiting)
• Plain chicken broth
• Fresh Ginger and Honey tea--> Boil a small piece of ginger for about 5 minutes and then add honey, strain and put it aside to get completely cool. Remember to never give  give hot or warm drinks.
• Homeopathic Remedies, according to their changing symptoms and temperament.
• Reintroducing solids after 24 hours gave boiled rice, rice cracker, toast, mash potatoes (recommended by a friend) bananas, homemade applesauce with powdered cinnamon, dry cereal and diluted milk

Never force the child to eat when they are sick, it's from the sunnah.


If the child vomits continuously, then please consult your physician immediately as their might be some underlying cause for her continuous vomiting.

Here are some books we use in our home as reference. These books are great to have but always consult someone who is knowledgable in the field. I have seen and heard of people prescribing homeopathic remedies, herbs and essential oils without any previous knowledge about them - simply "googling" it. We need to remember these are all sciences that need to studied because they have harms and benefits in them.

NOTE: Due to over load of work and other priorities I will be slowing down the blogging a little bit, will try to catch up inshaAllah

Effects of screen on children

Here is some scary information about how the brains of our little ones get effected by stuffing their faces in front of a screen (TV, Laptops, iphones, ipads) for a long  periods of time. Also how TV/technology effects our children's imagination and creativity, and what the best age for exposing them to a little bit of screen time. Some researchers say there shouldn't be an exposure to screens for young children until high-school age.

Children's Brain and Television

Television & Children

Understanding TV's effects on the Developing Brain

How young is too young to watch television?

Unplug Your Kids: What Kids Learn From TV

Classrooms without technology

The Media's Effects on Children

This video is just general  about media but very shocking!

Consuming Kids, Advertising world Part 1 of 7

This is a also a great documentary you might want to take time to watch about media and kids.

Where have I been?

Maybe some of you are wondering where have I vanished...

Well, both our little ones have been vomiting and diarrhea-ing the past week or so. Alhumdulillah Allah swt is Most Kind, they are on the road to complete recovery...and also trying to put on the lost weight. Be'edhnillah. Please remember us in your duas...with the these little sick, blogging was the last thing on my mind.

Hopefully you and your families had a great Jummah! InshaAllah in the next few post I will be sharing some things we have been up to this week despite being sick we were able to do some fun stuff... that I would love to share with my readers.


ALSO, stay tuned for some holistic care tips to help yourselves and children prevent aliments and how to get over them rather than druggin' out on pharmaceutical medications. Allah know best!

Duas needed :)

Side Effects of Fluoride

Did you know your toothpaste can be toxic for you anf your children? I remember when my son AR started teething and got his first tooth at around 14 months (I know... you must be thinking thats late! Pediatrition and children's dentists say its nothing to worry about. Its normal for children to not have teeth till about 17 months, after that, is when you need to get it checked out). I began to ask more experienced mom's what's the best toothpaste for children, I thought those who have more children would have more experience about what's right and what's not. Most of them recommended Stage 1 of Oral-B, we went and bought it. Although, most of his body products were either homemade, natural and plant based.

Alhumdulillah, a few weeks ago I found out that the fluoride in the toothpaste (or water) is extremely harmful. How did I find out? Well, my mom was diagnosed with 'Hypothyroidism' underactive thyroid gland, when I found out about it I did some research on what are somethings she can do to help her body heal. Of course, change of diet is one of things that can even help a cancer patient get better (bi'edhnillah). One of the things I came across was fluoride levels in our drinking water, which is really harmful for the thyroid gland and other things. (Alhumdulillah she was able to switch to distilled water.) All of sudden it clicked to me that  our toothpastes have fluoride in them, we immediately switched to fluoride free toothpaste. Alhumdulillah, I was able to find one at Nature Source.

When we moved to KSA, I brought one with me but then it finished...I was lost again. But, Alhumdulillah, Allah is Most Kind once again, we found a better one, called 'Aloe dent' made in UK. We all use the 'Aloe dent' now. I prefer UK products over North American products, even if they are natural and organic based. Allah knows best.

As for the water, Alhumdulillah we try to drink zamzam most of the time but sometimes, we mix the zamzam with the other water making dua to Allah swt to waste ALL the harmful things in the water for us.

I would just like to share with you some shocking information about fluoride and its side effects. I have some links at the bottom please take time and read and switch to a fluoride free toothpaste. May Allah swt protect us and our families from the harmful things in this Duniya and the Aakhirah. Ameen.

Infant Exposure

Brain

Immune system

Teeth fluorosis

Kidney

Thyroid Gland