It is Allah who gives and Allah who takes away... to Him we belong and to Him we return!

Source: HabibiHalaqas.org

by Sister Sunshine Smiles

“Inna Lillahi Wa Inna Ilaihi Rajioon”

Indeed we belong to Allah(SWT), and indeed to Him is our return.

The intensity that this statement offers does not pertain to death alone but different perceptions of loss and intellect that blows my novice mind to amazedness.

A few years back, this phrase came into my existing Dua’ dictionary when my Father introduced me to it as I was unaware on how to react on the news of somebody’s sad demise.

That one unforgettable morning which started with these words on my lips even before the break of dawn, forced my mind to shut down emotionally for the rest of the day.

It is unimaginable how Allah(SWT) finds the perfect reminders to soften our hearts from the deep barriers of hardness that develop around it in the conscious attempt of living up to the ever competing world.

This isn’t another article reminding you that death is inevitable and all that. This one’s about life, creatively wrapped in ribbons of genuineness symmetrically bowed in what we love to call ‘Love’, of which death does hold some significance.

Pepper Fry beef

I learnt to make what I would like to call as pepper fry beef (for the lack of a better name :P) today. This recipe is solely dedicated to Aysha. She's been asking me for the recipe since ages now!! When she visited Bangalore with her hubby and family, my helper prepared this and turned out really good. So I finally got around today to learn how it's made and oh my it turned out soo soo yummy, alhumdulillah. Now without further delay here is the recipe :)

Ingredients:

Core Ingredients

• 2 medium sized onions
• 1 big tomatoe
• Corriander leaves (about a palm full)
• 5 Chillies
• 2 cloves (laung)
•  3 small cinnamon
• 3 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 2 tsp pepper powder
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp corrionder powder
• 1 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 kg beef
• 8-10 curry leaves
• 3-4 tbsp oil
• 2 cup water

Method:

Prawn Masala

I have been learning few recipes every weekend. Yesterday I made prawn masala which turned out fairly good, alhumdulillah. I have also included in the post what I learnt while trying out this gravy! :) I didnt click a picture so will update this post with a pic next time I cook the same ;) inshaAllah

Ingredients:

• 26 medium sized prawns (Yes I counted the prawns but dont know how much they weighed :P)
• 6 medium size onions 
• 2 tomatoes
• 1.5 tsp Ginger garlic paste
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp salt 
• pinch of turmeric
• 1 tsp corionder powder (dhanya)
• 2 full chillies (just cut a lil on top vertically such as to open it)
• 1 glass water
• about 15 tbsp oil (yes i counted that too! :D)

Method:

Am I with the right person?

During a seminar, a woman asked," How do I know if I am with the right person?"

The author then noticed that there was a large man sitting next to her so he said, "It depends. Is that your partner?" In all seriousness, she answered "How do you know?" Let me answer this question because the chances are good that it's weighing on your mind replied the author.

Here's the answer.

Every relationship has a cycle… In the beginning; you fall in love with your partner. You anticipate their calls, want their touch, and like their idiosyncrasies. Falling in love wasn't hard. In fact, it was a completely natural and spontaneous experience. You didn't have to DO anything. That's why it's called "falling" in love.

5 Minutes DIY: Revamped Pin Cushion

During the christmas vacations, my niece and I decided to make a simply pin cushion tutorial of which we found on a blog. We did not have the fiberfill as it was mentioned so we tried out using cotton.. but didn't work :( You just could not stick pins into it.

We were disappointed and wondering what we could do. Just then it clicked why not instead just revamp the box we had received the hijab pins in? :)

Know your priorities!

You might be married to the worst man ever, like Asiyah was married to Pharaoh - but it didn’t change her and her loyalty and love to Allah (subhanahu-watala).

You might be married to the best of men, like a Prophet of Allah (subhanahu-watala), and still not be saved from the punishment - like the wife of Prophet Lut (alayhis salam).

You might be not married to any man, like Maryam (alayhis salam), and Allah (subhanahu-watala) can make your rank higher than any women on the Earth. Know your priorities.

Love and trust is with Allah (subhanahu-watala) first.

The only relationship where you’ll never have your heart broken is the relationship between you and Allah (subhanahu-watala).

DIY: Paper Flower

I am in lovee with Pinterest! One because they are soo many lovely ideas that are shared and secondly it's a great way to save all the cool links you come across on web and you think you might need them in future!

While I have 199 pins already, mashaAllah... I had not tried out any of the DIY crafts that I had pinned !
Today I went searching for this flower I had once seen that was made for gift decorations. I thought I would try it out and put that one a gift I intended to give to a friend's family who shifted to a new house recently! Unfortunately I didn't find the pin I was looking for, as I had failed to repin it on my board. But I did find some other great tutorials for gift decorations and I zeroed in on this one -