I'll settle for hot chocolate since I can't have coffee and tea right now.


This term is frequently used by Christian Arabs as well.

JP...there are some good decaf teas out there! But Hot Chocolate does the trick for me too even after the twins! LOL

As for Ya Allah...used quite often whether Muslim or Christian. Maybe not inserted in a chat like OMG but during conversation, etc.

I was told the bible doesn't say Adam is the son of God.... I just posted the verse that does say that. I don't make this stuff up

We don't believe it's haraam to remember God/Allah by calling on Him with any of His names any time of the day.
As far as the second part.... it's haraam to swear by Allah if you're lying.... but there are dishonest christians, jews and others who will do the same thing... it's not just muslims who aren't perfect

I'm not here to try to interpret what your book means when it says what it says. I just says what it says
God has no physical offspring
Yes, I like him a lil bit

oh soooo good lol and no matter what time of year it is we have chai after eating i dont think we would feel complete with out it lol

We do, too.

do u make the brewed tea and make it mixed tea like they do in pakistan i love paki tea

yes, the loose tea. I am hoping that when my father in law goes in October, he will bring some back. i can find it here but its not quite the same.

Sorry ladies but I have to say.... I am a Mint Tea Fan as the biggest fave...lol but look where my husband is from lol.... My tea doesn't taste the same as theirs and I even bring the same back. I think it's the different water???

maybe or maybe it is just the company of those that we love that makes it taste better i have part of my family inpak so i miss them alot

Possible. When I turn on the faucet, all I smell is chlorine. We bought a filter but still very harsh.

perhaps both are right here.... awww the tea on the table, the sounds of the street below, the call to prayer in the air... I miss it there

My heart truly does feel for you.

"L yidin y zamro" That's what they say out here which loosely translates to "it's the hands that whistle" meaning the hands that play the flute, metaphorically meaning the hands that make the food. It's hard to explain cultural expressions from other languages, but you know what they're trying to say right Rajaa? I'm sure Casa misses you too. When are you coming back? Btw BIL and wife and kids are here! Alhamdulillah. I am not crazy about mint tea anymore after it being placed on the table every morning and every afternoon. Twice a day, they're killing me. I can't eat or drink ANYTHING twice a day every day! I need a wide variety. I started to revolt and drink soda or juice when everyone else drinks tea. I'm like, weird. To each his own, it's all about being happy and comfortable to me!

I do understand... and as far as your "revolt" why not??? go for it April I brought Orangina in the home once and they really liked it... started serving that with the tea to special guests lol.

Have you learned how to make it? Im not trying to be rude but they drink mint tea in israel, and it tastes pretty good. But then I went to morocco and the wife of this guy I was working with showed me how to make it this whole process involving sugar cubes and it tastes much different, better imho. Mint can get a little nasty tasting if it is not sitting in the water the rigth way.

I don't really do the decaf thing Nawal. I've heard that they have use so many chemicals to remove the caffiene so I prefer to stay away.

speaking of icky water.... Houstons water tasted sooooooooooo awful when I first moved here... It's gotten better (or my taste buds died) lately BUT I have to put it in a gallon jug and let it get ice cold first. You could also go to wal-mart and get their filtered water. Its only 25 cents/gallon . We also have water dispensers placed sparatically thru the city but i haven't tried those yet.... I can't make my tea taste the same either so I'm thinking that I agree with whoever it was that said maybe its the company ur with whilst drinking the tea that makes it taste good.....

Sisters did u learn tajwid yet? -those who reverted-

yes I did Alihamdolilah... took a while but now I am working on parts of the Qu'ran to memory... insha'allah i'll get it. Hard to know if I am prounouncing it right all the time though

Masha Allah ... well dont worry it needs practice so always read some whenever u have a chance... it improves by time...

I remember the days of praying with crib sheets. Now I can say it all in my sleep I think! LOL. I just don't like praying with my husband, God forgive me, because he does it soooooooooooooo S-L-O-W-L-Y and I get soooo agggggggravated waiting for him.


Does anyone here wear capri pants? I refuse to not wear them, much to my husband's dismay. He knows it's all my choice thank God and never really bugs me about what I wear but every so often we'll be sitting down and the capris ride up kind of and I'll get that sucking of the teeth sound. (which btw my 11 yr old has perfected and anytime I do something she doesn't like I get the inverted tsk tsk tsk from her ). I'm just so freakin HOT in the summer that having capris is the only thing that keeps me sane. I do love the cottony light straight skirts that go to my ankles but I just had to throw one out due to rips and I only have one left and can't find a replacement that I like.

You know while I was in Morocco I got these great light cotton pants... LoVE umm.... they tie and the ankles and have elastic waste with a tie... great for his weather whish I had more than two pairs though...

I did not have israeli tea but only israeli coffee. It was yucky though, I don't know what they did ito it. It was from the airport:(

and for tajweed, that is where you do intonnation in reading the Koran, no? I only know Fataiha and An Nas (I forget that one though). I am too busy concentrating on my arabic though:) When my husband gets here, we will work together on it by ourselves.

israeli cappucino is very good, israeli turkish coffee is black and like arab coffee if you are into that and if they make it right, but there are two ways they make it sometimes they cook it and sometimes they just mix it in boiling water and call it black coffee.... what you probably had is the most popular (for a reason I dont comprehend) and thats "nes" or nescafe (even though its made by elite company and not nestle or nescafe) It is very very bad instant coffee, and they serve it in restaurants and bars and have at home as well.... Its horrible. I have a beautiful cappucino maker at home it makes amazing restaurant quality cappucinos better than starbucks and my in laws come and i have to buy them a thing of the israeli nescafe and the israeli turkish coffee so that they can just mix it with boiling water. they would rather have this than the cappucino. wtf?

i dont know what intonnation means? forgive me.... but im talking about knowing the rules of reading quran....

yes working on ur arabic will definitly help reading the quran

Bridget- i prefer skirts alll the wayyyyy it lets the breeze in n out easily its very nice n i never feel hot -i wear cotton shorts under tho-!! pants on the other hand make me hot but i do wear them under my abaya if im going to be active somewhere like the park or so forth...

shalom hm..funny that you mention nescafe. I think you may be right. Come to think of it, I think that may have been!! sheesh all I had was that and a little cake and it costed me 50 sheckels...for 50 sheckels I want Gourment coffee not nescafe:) Because you're right, nescafe is bad.

hahaha reminds me of my husband's family. I brought over coffee for them because they are in love with American coffee and my husband requested it. I brought it over and all I kept hearing from his family was nescafe blablanescafe, nescafe. For a minute, I thought they thought I brought them nescafe which was wrong....I brought them generic coffee so I felt kinda bad thinking they wanted name brand coffee:( but then I realized after 2 wekes of being with them that no, for some reason the palestinians call every coffee nescafe, lol Even their arabic coffee, lol Kinda funny I thought:) They really should not insult arabic coffee that way you know cuz arabic coffee is good:)

Yes intonation is how you read the Koran. I did not want to say what i was thinking "singing the Koran" because that's kinad what it sounds like. Well, before I understood, thats what i thought they were doing:) but then a Muslim told me before I reverted when I asked him, no thats intonation. So yeah I just did not want to say "singing" because many Muslims feel that music is haram so why would I say singing the Koran as to offedn anyone?

Speaking of pants, it seems to be what is huge in style is cropped pants whether tyey be business casual or jeans. I sthat ok to wear in Islam or? I thought about buying them cuz I'm so sick of trying to find pants that I can fit into. But I feel kinda naked with the bottom part of my leg showing:) And I don't know if my husband would like me to wear cropped pants or no? well, my husband keeps talking about buying me clothes in Palestine or Amman. So we'll see what they have there if I can find pants that fit me ok!!

Intonation masha Allah new word learned .. thnx

My husband's uncle has gone to Mekka 4 times.. my husbands grandfather every year Subhannilah When we pray with his uncle (his grandfather goes to the Masjiid for every prayer) it's really moving for me. My husband and his uncle in front, me and the wife in back and maybe a cousin or another aunt. I really enjoy and miss those times sooooo much. but He the uncle, prays that way... Masha'allah

yes its beautiful!! moves u n makes u feel every verse which in itself helps u focus more n feel the amazing act u r doing!!! I loooove praying in jam3ah i try as much as i can.....

when u learn tajwid... after time u start to do the intonations by urself just by how u feel about the verse masha Allah its a blessing al hamdulillah...

I was very moved the first time I prayed with Ibrahim. His voice was melodic and I could feel from his voice in prayer that our religion is very important to him.

I know it is not good to talk about the ex, but please take it in context..he did not pray. I prayed with him 3 times in 5 years and he was pretty much silent. Looking back now, I feel he was either embarrassed or not into it.

Hearing your SO pray with conviction...is wonderful.

Jackie

You are sooooo right JJ... hearing my habibi pray his voice his .... i don't know what it is but it reaches me. (sigh) I miss it bzzzaaffff

Nothing like a strong religious man with a good head on his shoulders

*bump*

Salam,

I need some help from my fellow sisters and brothers..... something is going on with me and I am not sure what to think. my husband and I've only been apart for not even two months yet but I've found that the last two weeks I couldn't sleep at all... I would try but couldnt... I wasn't interestd in eating and cried alot. He has now gotten his visa to work in Spain we talk maybe 30 min. now since right before he left on the computer... I now am able to sleep but now it's like Icannot get enough sleep!

I am now always tired, never want to leave the house (this is not like me at all). I just drink coffee to wake me up I can cry at the drop of a hat and I have headaches everyay. I don't talk to any of my friends anymore unless I make myself. I miss my husband soooo badly but knew ahead of time this would be a long hard process.

I am typically a very strong woman... it's a good thing he has a job and a visa to Spain (proves to the U.S. Consulate when he gets his interview he is not using me to get out of his country) and I just got a new job that will pay much more and have alot more vacation time.

So what's the deal???? I am a fairly new convert and this is my first summer wearing the hijab. A friend called me to tell me it's typical for people in the NW who wear hijab to have a vit D difficiency could this be a cause?

Any suggestions are welcome please...
Rajaa

It sounds to me like the beginning of depression.

Just a few of the things you said, I can relate to and empathize. I also have no appetite. I don't sleep or sleep 10 hours. I could stay in the house for days and not leave. I call it 'on the floor'. Don't do what I did, I let it go for months. By the time I got to a doctor with my list of symptoms, I was labled as MDD --major depressive disorder.

I am not saying that medication is the answer for all, in fact I am dead set against it, but I do know what worked for me. It gave me my life back, the ability to socialize and function.

Stay positive and know that he is suffering too. Soon this wait will be a mere memory and you will be picking up his dirty socks. (hey i heard stuffing them in a ziploc bag works ) Cheer up sweety and know your sisters/brothers are here for you.

Jackie

Rajaa,

I agree with Jackie that this could possibly be a start of depression. Many of us have had to deal with this during our journeys. I know for myself that when I was separated from my husband I would cry over anything. I would talk to him and cry thinking oh my gosh, he will close his cam, when will I see him again. I caught myself snapping at my kids and staying in the home like a hermit. I didn't take medication but I am not saying that I didn't need it. My thoughts are with you and if you ever need to talk just send me a PM. God bless!

Tasha

I don't see what wearing hijab would have to do with this. As Jackie said, it sounds like symptoms of depression. We have all been there, everyone copes differently. I was seperated from my husband for 18 months and just found ways to deal with it. I'm not saying it didnt get the best of me at times but I didn't want to take meds. Staying in the house is only going to make it worse. You need to get out of the house and focus on the big picture.

If you aren't convinced that it isn't a Vit D deficiancy, take a multi vitamen. But more importantly get out of the house!

Thank you ladies.... I am going for a walk. I am glad to feel I am not the only one thank you.

as far as the "hijab" thing goes my friend says cause we dont' get much sun in the NW and then cover when we do get it we typically have a deficient vit D difficiency... I know the first thing that will help. Get my butt outside.

I am going out now.... and thank you for your understanding... it is a touch embarrassing

Sounds like mild depression.

I fail to see how wearing hijab would cause vitamin D deficiency-- you're not getting a lot of VitD from your neck. Now covering up your arms and legs would be a much bigger factor-- but judging by your pic, you're a very fair-skinned person and shouldn't have an issue. Fair skin is designed for this-- this is why cooler climate peoples are usually more fair and warmer are darker-- the more dark you are, the more skin that needs to show in order to manufacture the same ammount of Vit D as a fairer person-- fairer people from cooler climates tend to cover up more and our hands and faces are more or less about all the whitest of the white need to show in order to get enough D.

I know people always think of it as a skin cancer/burning issue and in a sense it is-- but it's moreso a Vit D and folate issue (darker skin protects you against the destruction of folate in the skin by the UV rays-- so you can again expose mroe skin and not end up with folate deficiency and still manufacture D as well.). Obviously, if you're in a warm climate wearing some pretty skimpy stuff, you're going to need more sun protection on your skin but also consequently it takes more exposure to light over a larger area of skin to make the same ammount of VitD. The real problem is for people of darker skin tones who have moved to more extreme upper and lower lattitudes (upper bing the real issue-- like Europe, North America) becoming VitD deficient. it's one of the main reasons they started VitD milk-- studies showed many African Americans had Vit D deficiency living in places like NYC, etc. I'd be careful about rushing in to dose yourself with VitD-- it's a non-water soluable vitamin, and it is possible to easily overdose.

julianna, girl you r smart u musta wenta skool

jJ

I get short term depression I guess you would say around certain events. Like a stressful situation. If I have a job interview I will go to bed at like 7:30pm not because I want to be rested but because I dont want to think about it. Or if I had a stressful milestone at work coming up in a few months I would say "oh I cant wait until its four months from now and over". Then someone told me I shouldnt wish time of my life away. You might not see your husband for 6 months or a year but do you really want to sleep/wish time away until then? We only have a certain amount of time on this earth so focus on things that make you happy besides him and do them. Or set a positive goal for yourself like you want to learn arabic before he comes or you want to lose weight before he comes (i have no idea how much you weigh so dont take that personally, its just something that has worked for me). Maybe get more active in the womens group in your religion if there is one and if there isnt one maybe gather up the women and make one? Work sucks for me right now, my husband has been working non stop and my vacation in israel is not until the end of August. So instead of saying I cant wait for the end of August and wishing all of that time away I have put myself on a weight training regimen and have a few goals for myself physically before then - I want to look a certain way and I dont want the time to go by too fast hat I dont make my goal. See what I mean? It just helps when you want time to go by faster to fill it with something worthwhile. Hope this helps if not ignore!

Jullianna - can you overdose on vitamin b? i have been taking it for energy! You are so knowlegeable!

Techincally, you can overdose on anything.

http://www.acu-cell.com/bx2.html

That's a list of varying B-overdose symptoms... but... B complex is a water-soluable vitamin set. So assuming you're not chugging like a whole bottle at a time and overdoing your liver, I don't think your taking supplements will really affect anything. Unless someone is on certain meds,strict vegetarian, etc though, most people receive enough b from diet.

The bigger problem is with the non-water-soluable vitamins. Those are not flushed out through your system like the others and so they build up.

Raja,

about the Vitamins I heard that alot from my aunts talking to each other that they don't get sun in their hair so it gets really dry and dead texture

how it's linked to depression I wouldn't have guessed or thought that or maybe that's not what you meant at all lol
It was really sad when I came back to USA alone when I thought we would come together. The school of my choice awarded me a scholarship and I knew I had to be smart in decision so I had to come back without him. I would also just stay in the house and never go out with friends. I would call USCIS every other day sometimes everyday trying to understand the process more and more. It was really horrible and I wasn't even working or anything. I hardly ate, slept, talk to my family. He would call me everyday but it's not the same being in 2 different countries. But you know what after I started focusing on school and got a job I started to feel better. I guess I can say if you put yourself in a depressive situation you will become of that. Making extra $$$ and shopping helped me a bit lol . Going out with friends again helped alot too. I think in this long hard process you will get to know your spouse much better good or bad things but you will end up loving him more than ever. This time away from each other really teaches to respect and appreciate WHO you have. The reunion we had wouldn't have been nearly as great if we were just given the visa like that. I hope you cheer up soon!

oh yeah and i have to edit to say good and bad things = his happiness and anger !! not the other things

i worry a little bit about this with my husband, because of where we live, and he doesn't particularly like to drink milk. we eat fish quite a bit though, so it's probably alright. ayah's pediatrician gave me a vitamin d supplement for her. she said that even though nursing is perfect for her nutritionally, darker-skinned babies where we live can sometimes become deficient.