A beautiful reminder!

In the recent years we have heard a lot of talks about what is happening around us, our homes, people, envoirnment, and children, most of which are tangilbe. We/others can see them and  feel them, therefore we are easily pulled to focus on them. On contrary our inner state, our soul, is intangible and we tend to very easily forget about it. The only one who knows about our inner state is us and Allah SWT.  We often find ourselves too busy trying to appear clean and neat, watching out for what our bodies consume and what's in our environment. We are too busy with purifying/cleaning/cleansing our external and in that busy process we conveniently neglect our internal purification/cleaning/cleansing. What is this internal purification?? The Purification of our Souls and Hearts.

It's VERY important to remember that as Muslims all our outward actions are always a means to our inward purification. The actions we do with our limbs (tangible) leave a lasting effect on our hearts and souls. Let us be true to ourselves... and accept that a LOT of times we tend to focus souly on our external on the expense of our inward. A good example of this could be, we delay our prayers to the LAST moment in order to complete a (tangible) task at hand.

Salah (prayer) is one of the first steps to purifying oneself internally. So if we try to perfect our Salah our internal soul will inevitably be purified and be at peace. Salah purifies us in many ways from sins, evil thoughts, diseases of hearts, and helps us attain the pleasure of Allah SWT, which should be our primary focus.

There is no harm in focusing on the external, what needs to be understood is that the outward actions are only a means to obeying Allah SWT, and attaining His pleasure. We have to purify our intention for every act we do. Salah is one thing that lets us connect to Allah SWT, when we say Takbeer Ihram {Allahu Akbar} we cut ourselves from this duniya and focus only on Him Azawajllah. We should always be mind full of Him, pause here for a second and ask yourselves...How many times is that the case with us in this fast paced lifestyle we have adapted.

Is there anything wrong with purifying/cleaning/cleansing our external? No, absolutely not.  Allah SWT says in the Quran "Allah Loves those who purify themselves" {9:108}. Prophet Muhammad SAW said: "Purification is half of Faith" {Muslim}. What we have to remember is that these purifications also refer to the internal cleanse, the cleanse of our soul and heart.

Let us try to perfect our Salah and focus more on our inward then outward... and you will be AMAZED to see how Allah SWT makes all your outward/external matters fall into the right place.

7 steps to a successful prayer

This is a small and beautiful reminder a friend had posted, which provoked a lot of these thoughts in my mind and heart. Lets us try to treat Salah as our getaway from this duniya and not a chore of our fast paced life. Lets us run after Allah SWT and not this duniya. Let us be Dynamic in our Salah!

As our beloved Prophet SAW said "...coolness of my eyes is in prayer". I ask Allah SWT to make the coolness of our eyes the prayer as well and not this duniya and its fame. Ameen.

I have a game plan to try to perfect my Salah inshaAllah, I want to make short but consistent goals with the permission of Allah SWT. I'll let you all know inshaAllah.

What are you going to do to perfect your Salah? Please share and let others benefit as well.

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. :)

Mom's golden advice

THIS POST WAS NOT TO BE A PUBLIC POST, BUT I FELT THAT MAYBE IT WILL BENEFIT SOMEONE BI'DHNILLAH.

Bismillah hi rahmanir raheem.

I want to share the story of our princess H and the power of dua.

I would like to start by saying Alhumdulillah for healthy and beautiful children Allah has blessed us with. Having healthy complete children is an inconceivable blessing which a lot of people take as granted!

The story of our princess started when we introduced solids to her at around 5 months. Her stool would be bright green and very mucusy. I knew right away that there was something wrong. I did a lot of reading on the internet, asked people, emailed doctors and then concluded that she was sensitive to something she was eating or me (which was going to her through nursing), meaning she might have some sort of allergies. I spoke to an expert and she told me not to worry to much as long as she is not having a some serious signs of allergies, such as asthma, eczema, hives and blood in the stool.

She was waking at night here and there being a little cranky sometimes, but it was all fine until I saw blood one day in her stool, I got really worried about her and started crying! I made lots of dua for her and Alhumdulillah  that was the first and the last time I saw blood in her stool. Alhumdulillah.

I was feeding H everything like normal infant would, except egg (she didn't like it and it would give her a 10 minute rash around her lips and cheek), and avoided milk products, However, her stool still had mucus and would sometimes wake up crying for no apparent reason in the middle of the night. When she reached the mark of toddler-hood (she turned 1) I wanted to start milk with her, because with ALL the house work, homeschooling and nursing I was feeling SO drained by the end of the day! I just wanted her on a bottle at least once a day (milk, not formula). So I started adding milk in her diet here and there to get her use to it, but it was the same thing, crying at night, I would say even worst! So I stopped.

About a month ago someone came to our house and saw her legs and said that she has eczema. She also added saying that her daughter was allergic to ALL sorts of things and she had eczema and asthma. There was also a nurse there who said something around these lines: "Yeah, it looks like eczema but you can't know until you get it tested!". A few week earlier I was testing H to see what she was reacting to and I had pretty much concluded it was cow's milk, because she showed intolerance to "Lactose free milk" as well.

THIS IS THE BEST/MAIN PART!

So the next day I called my mom and told her about how H is allergic to milk I think, but there is no real sign for it and how the ladies at our house had said such and such. (note: I had a very concerned/convinced mommy voice that nothing can be done for her except illuminating milk). My mom listened to me first and then said to me:

Amma: "You are talking as if you have NO trust in the Power of Allah"

(I am thinking in my mind NO, thats not the case! I stayed quite though) she continued saying: "I understand that she cries at night and milk is affecting her, its a well known fact that children's digestive system takes 2 years to completely get use to different foods some children are more sensitive than others. You are saying that Alhumdulillah there is nothing serious that needs immediate care, so inshaAllah when you go back in summer then get her checked. But you need to STOP discussing this with people and start ONLY asking Allah to cure her completely."

Me: "I do, but its been a while she has been going through this."

Amma: "ok, so that means that if you start getting peoples opinions and asking people what to do instead of Allah, it will help change state of her health??"

Me: "No, I know only Allah can give her shifa and Alhumdulillah its not like she is diagnosed to have allergies yet."

Amma: "I would say from now on, just drop this subject (meaning don't talk to anyone about it), erase everything anyone has said to you and put your trust in Allah and make dua for her with FULL conviction that ONLY HE can cure her. I will also make dua for her inshaAllah, I might be going to Makkah I'll make dua for her there too inshaAllah. Give her Zamzam to drink with the intention to cure her." She added a Hadeeth (paraphrased) 'When we rely on people, or turn to people for help then Allah leaves us in the hands of those people.' So, go and ask Allah to cure her and HE is Qadir (All Powerful) on doing that"

Me: (in tears, but realizing that, its true that its only HIM how can help me until I actually go the doctor, or might not even have to do that) "Ok, inshaAllah."

BY ALLAH THE LORD OF THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH, THE ONLY ONE WORTH OF WORSHIP AND PRAISE, THE MOST KIND, THE EXALTED ONE! Our little girl was AMAZINGLY cured by ALLAH THE AL MIGHTY ALLAH in less then a week! she had been dealing with this for almost 13 months!! Alhumdulillah for the past 2 weeks she has been drinking a bottle of cow's milk in the evening and she sleeps like a baby throughout the night (just gets up for water or nursing and goes right back to sleep) no endless tears of pain!

Lessons I got from this:

1. ONLY Allah can helps us, not that I didn't know that but the conviction level needs to be stronger. We unknowingly start expecting people to help us when we start sharing our problems and matters with them. I was  asking/talking to different people about her state of health, WHY? To get them to give me a convincing answer/solution. I was not intentionally doing that... I should have ONLY turned to Allah from the start. 
2. Listening to our parents even when we think they are wrong (as long as they are not telling you to commit shirk or do Haram) can be in benefit for us because Allah will be pleased with you. (At first I felt like, my mom's not understanding, but when she said the Hadeeth, I said to myself YOU are not understanding!)
3. Nothing in our life happens without a purpose. The purpose behind this in m eyes was the fact that I was exclusively able to nurse H for more then a year. We all know the countless benefits of nursing.
4. The power of the parents dua! It saddens me to even think of the day when the shade/blessings/barakah/duas of our parents will end upon their death.
5. I kept thinking about what my mom said and remembered this aayah from suratul Al-'Isra 11 "And man supplicates for evil as he supplicates for good, and man is ever hasty." This ayah made me think so much, for as to maybe I was asking for shar (evil) unknowingly when I was putting my issue in-front of people who really couldn't help me! All, most of them would say was "Yeah she is allergic, our this is the way the allergies start and then they get worst! someone even said stop the dairy right away or she could die (me: WHAT!?? imagine someone telling you that about your child...wouldn't you want to take precaution if that matter could cause them harm). Whatever these people were saying was maybe getting accepted which I was not aware of. I was hasting for a solution and turning to people was not the right way to go about it...but to me it seemed wrongfully right! 
6. How blessed I am to have a wonderful mom like her!! I pray that Allah makes us sadaqah jariyah for them. rabbir ham huma kama rabbayani saghira'. Ameen

Words for my mama!

Nothing like a mother 

who reminds you of Allah when you are falling apart,

who commands you to be patient when things are getting hard,

who loves you even when you don't listen to her (we all do that one time or another),

who reminds you to join kinship,

who reminds you that your husband's Jannah is not you, its his mother!

who reminds you to leave this Duniya because she wasted her youth on it and it didn't benefit nothin'

who reminds you of ALL the blessings Allah has given you, so you can be grateful to Allah

who reminds you that you can do it when you feel like you cannot.

who teaches you to overlook the shortcomings of other and look at the good of others,

who reminds you (repeatedly) that your Jannah is in the obedience to your husband,

who reminds you to better yourseslf as a wife and a mother.

who reminds you of things Allah has protected you from.

and most of ALL 

who reminds you of ALLAH when you need HIM the most!!

I love my mother!