Looking forward to another year!!!!

Yes! As the new year approaches, I have so many things I want to do, so many experiences I want to have and so many places I want to see. God willing, I want to go back to school. I say this all the time, but I think 2011 is the year!

Prayerful Moments

Bismillah

Here is my prayerful moment.

It happened two years ago. I went to this muslim family retreat with some friends and their families. We were at a beautiful beach nestled near some mountains. I went alone as my two sisters were still in school. It was the beginning of winter and I did not think that the weather would be a problem. I had tons of fun, but on the last evening, we got a huge snow storm blown in on us for approximately two minutes. After that, the sun came out again. We thought nothing of it.

Na*No*Wri*Mo is almost here!

Yay! I am really looking forward to November. Last year I participated in the National Novel Writing Month. I wrote a rough draft of a novel (over 50,000 words.) This year I hope to do the same thing. Only this time, I'm not sure what I'm going to write about. Should I start on book two of my three-part story? Or, should I do something totally different and new? I know for sure I want to stick with the Sci Fi genre (I think.) Insha Allah, this month I will be attending a Plot Workshop put on by a group of NaNoWriters in the Seattle region. I hope to get some great input and craft tips!

Books and Technology

Where will the digital world take us? While sitting here checking email, updating my facebook status and reading tweets, I came across a tweet that asked, "what will libraries look like?" in the future as we move to move forward and e-books become more popular and accessible. I realized that it has been ages since I set foot in a library, this coming from a girl who was practically raised in our small town library. Granted, the last time I went to the library, which wasn't that long ago, was in search of some board books for my classroom, but I'm talking about sitting down amongst thousands of books and spending hours reading.

Book Fair!

A book fair is coming soon to the Child Care center where I work. I'm really excited!!! For some reason, books and being around them make me happy. :) I have been searching the Scholastic website to see what books they have that I want for my classroom. Our center is also doing a coin drive to raise funds to buy books for each classroom. I look forward to that as well. I just may buy books myself! :)Books are a big part of my classroom. While most books we keep up in the teacher trove, we have all the kiddies favorites on a mini bookshelf that they have access to all day long. We love sitting down reading together. I always know when a book is a favorite when it is read a gazillion times (in one or two sittings) and loved to bits and pieces!:) With the coming of another book fair, we get to throw out the tattered, battered and chewed books and replace them with all new books ready to be loved! I love book fair season! :)

When I have too much time....

The saying often goes, "too many things to do and not enough time." For me, it is often this way. I have just way too many things going on and not enough time to accomplish them all. Work alone takes up a lot of my time, especially when I have to bring some of it home! Then there's house chores, cooking (sista's gotta eat!)keeping up with my writing and/or editing, volunteer work with the IWA, producing articles for MAGazine, managing my blogs/website/facebook page and the simple task of trying to relax at the end of the day. When things get hectic, I tend to shut down; the computer is the first thing that goes, then the writing. But then, once (and I mean once) in a blue moon, I have too much time and not quite much in the ways of work, writing, curriculum planning or even blogging to keep me busy. During these rare occassions, I will often try to get the much needed rest I have missed out over the week. I also like trying out new recipes. I also take this time to read, be it religious materials to spark that inner light of faith or catch up on some facinating science news or wrap my head around a new fiction story. It is not often that this opportunity finds me, but when it does..................I will definitely take it on!!!!

Dua to say during the last ten nights

ALLAAHUMMA INNAKA 'AFFUWWUN TUHIBB AL- 'AFWA FA 'AFFU 'ANNI

(O Allaah, You are Forgiving and You love forgiveness, so forgive me)

(Tirmidhi