5 Creative and Fun Games to Play

Assalamu Alaikum everyone!

We weren't sure what to post today but we finally thought of something that may be of interest. This post is on some of the games we enjoy playing - sort of a game recommendations post if you like.

First of all we wanted to say this: it is better, not just for the environment but also for our own health, to avoid plastic toys as much as possible. Most plastic toys cannot be recycled and they also contain harmful chemicals that are used when manufacturing them. Young kids often put these toys in their mouths which is not safe. We have been trying not to buy/use plastic when possible but obviously it is difficult. However, we should all still try. And now on with the post!

Pick Up Sticks

This is a simple game that would make a nice travel-sized gift. You scatter the sticks on top of each other and then take it in turns to carefully remove them one by one. The only thing is you have to make sure you don't move any of the other sticks.

It is simple but quite fun!

Scrabble

This is a game you probably already know. It is an educational game as you have to get creative with the letters you have and it can also help to broaden your vocabulary.

Our family gets pretty competitive when playing scrabble!

Noughts and Crosses

Here's another simple game that we enjoy. We have had this wooden set for ages. 

It is good for younger kids as it is unbreakable - then again they may swallow the pieces so perhaps not!

Chinese Checkers

Have you ever heard of Chinese checkers? It is a bit like normal checkers only you can have up to six players and you play on a circular board. You need an even number of players and the object of the game is to get all your pieces into the opposite player's home.

You move one space at a time or(like in normal checkers) you can hop over other pieces to get further across the board. Unlike normal checkers though, you don't remove another player's piece when you hop over them.

The more players you have the more complicated and fun it gets! Also, don't they look like Smarties from this angle?!

1000-Piece Jigsaw Puzzles

These are always fun.

It feels very rewarding when you finally finish a puzzle you have been working on for so long.

Also you can make it again and it is always just as hard - and just as fun, of course!

Well, that's all for this post. See you next week, insha'Allah!

Wassalam,

Childhood Memories: Our Old Bedroom

Assalamu Alaikum everyone!

A while ago we did a couple of posts sharing some photos from our childhood home and telling you a bit about where we grew up. We find these sort of posts easy to write and hopefully they are enjoyable to read too.

This time we wanted to look back at our old bedroom which, at one point, all five of us shared(including our brother). It was a fair-sized room and we eventually had two bunk beds put in which freed up a lot of space, alhamdulillah. By the way, sorry for the poor quality photos; they are quite old.

This giraffe usually hung in the doorway and was a gift from our grandmother. You were meant to measure your height against it.

Our mother painted a mural of the beach on our bedroom walls, masha'Allah. The lower half of the wall was in a sandy colour for the beach and the top half was in blue for the sea and sky. So it was almost as if our bedroom was on a small island!

We eventually got a second bunk bed set. The layout of our room changed quite often as shown in these photos. Hope you don't get confused as some of the photos are from before we added the second bunk bed.

Our mum painted lots of details to make the scene interesting, masha'Allah. There were shells, stones, sandcastles, a lighthouse and footprints in the sand. She also painted each of us a boat with our names on them(both in English and Arabic). You can click on the photos to enlarge them if you like.

Here is another view from the doorway. Can you spot the hot air balloon and the dolphin tails in the mural?

Fun fact: our bedroom was painted a year before Sumayyah was born. So our mum added her boat afterwards.

The second bunk bed came with a desk and a little wardrobe attached. You can see some of our crafts and projects on the shelf in the background. The boxes held some of our toys.

Edit: Our mum just found some more photos for us! We have edited them and hope they are much clearer, insha'Allah.

Well, that's all for this post. If you'd like to see another room tour, you can click here to see Zainab and Sumayyah's bedroom.

See you next Friday, insha'Allah!

Wassalam,



Spiced Apple Crumble Recipe

Assalamu Alaykum everyone!

Maryam here. For the past couple of months I've enjoyed baking recipes that are easy and don't take too long to prepare, especially since I'm still studying and have exams coming up in literally a few months time!

So, here's another easy recipe I really enjoy baking.

Ingredients:

(Filling)

9 - 10 green apples, peeled, cored and diced

25g soft brown sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 tbls water

(Crumble)

225g plain or wholewheat flour

75g butter, room temperature

75g soft brown sugar

Method:

1. For the filling, place the diced apples, sugar, spices and water in a saucepan.

2. Cook gently until the apples are soft.

3. Spoon the mixture into a Pyrex-dish and make sure it is spread evenly.

4. For the crumble, place the flour, butter and sugar in a bowl and rub together with your fingertips until the mixture resembles bread crumbs.

(When you clump the mixture together it should hold but when you break it, it should crumble.)

5. Sprinkle the crumble evenly over the spiced apples.

6. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, until the crumble is slightly browned.

And you're done!

You can serve it with yogurt, cream or custard. My personal favourite is yogurt.

Well, that's all for this post. Hope you liked it and give it a go. Until next week insha'Allah.

Love and wasalaam,

Maryam.