Eid Gift Guide

Eid is less than two weeks away, and this year Ramadan has been busier than ever for most mamas. I’m just coming to realize that I need to order gifts this week for me to get them in time, wrap them and have it ready to be dropped off to friends and family. To make your life easier, I’m compiling a list of small businesses who cater to the Muslim Market and have excellent customer service, which is important to me, personally!

1. Khitatii This family owned and operated business provides beautifully handcrafted Islamic wall art. All art pieces are made of short Surahs and Ayahs that are of Islamic significance. I have a piece for my home and absolutely love it.

2. Up a Notch Gifts If you are looking for personalized candy wrappers, Kiran has a great variety of designs and colors to choose from. She now offers Ramadan and Eid gift boxes which make a beautiful gift for friends and family who have a sweet tooth and like that personalized touch! She’ll even include a handwritten note for you!

3. Jasmine+Marigold Looking for matching Eid pjs? Jasmine + Marigold has you covered! They have newborn-adult sizes for that perfect Chaand Raat picture. They also have a variety of other products that celebrate the richness of Eastern culture.

4. Zudo You May have seen their 4 Kul Necklace everywhere on Instagram, and rightly so because not only is this necklace beautiful and high quality but it also serves as a reminder of the powerful benefits the surahs generate, including safety, ability to overcome your fears and endure any poisons of the heart.

5. Eid Party.Co For anybody who loves going over the top with decor, this is the place to shop! They have everything from cake toppers, to balloons, banners and serving trays. I love to blow up their Eid balloons and tie it to the gift boxes for that extra touch!

6. Jewelry : The Nacre I’m currently obsessing over their Kundan Khussas which are so in trend right now. They also have a large variety of Ethnic Jewelry which will compliment any desi outfit!

Rouge by Rooj Amir also has some unique pieces of jewelry! These hand painted Mina Hoop earrings are so fun!

Another favorite is Jewels by Sunaina! Their contemporary jewelry makes a perfect gift for an accessory lover in your life!

7. Kiki Khan Photography I’m a huge fan of documenting life’s milestones as well as every day moments. If you are looking for a gift for someone who has it all, look no further than a session with Kiki! She is amazing with putting people at easy and is so creative and fun with props!

I hope this helps. I hope you are all enjoying the promised blessings of this month. Happy Ramadan!

At home Teeth Whitening!

I’ve always admired a beautiful, bright smile, but didn’t realize how easy it was to achieve that. Since I run on coffee and prayers, my teeth had definitely taken a toll from my daily chai and coffee routine. The last time I tried anything for my teeth was when whitening strips first came out, over 10 years ago. The results weren’t dramatic enough for me to try them again. And I was hesitant to do any in office treatments because of teeth sensitivity and costs.

I came across Smile Brilliant and instantly wanted to try it after seeing hundreds of happy clients on their Instagram page. The process is backed by science and comes with a 100% money back guarantee! They were gracious enough to send me a Sensitive System which came with 1 set of custom trays, teeth whitening gels, and desensitizing gels. The process was pain free, and I saw a huge difference within the first week.

The box came with everything I needed, and easy to follow, simple instructions. The first step is to make impressions, and send them back in the prepaid envelope. This will jumpstart your process to get your custom trays. The trays took about 6 days to come back for me, so be mindful of that if you are planning to whiten your teeth for a special occasion or vacation. For me the best time to whiten was after the kids were in bed. I started with brushing my teeth with just water, drying them, covering my gums with Vaseline, applying the gel directly on my teeth, put my trays in place, and catch up on some tv while it did it’s job to brighten up my smile!

I also took some before and after pictures to keep track of my progress.

Even though I’ve never been too self conscious of my teeth before, within a few applications, I felt on top of the World! I’m very happy with my results and would definitely recommend to give it a try! I started out with a 45 minute session and gradually increased it to 1.5 hours, and experienced no sensitivity. You can keep the trays in for upto 3 hours.

I loved this product so much, I’ve partnered up with Smile Brilliant give one of you a kit to try (You can enter at the link below)!With teeth this bright, there’s no reason to not smile!

Giveaway link: www.smilebrilliant.com/g/mommylovesbaby

 15% off store wide code: mommylovesbaby15

<a id=”smilebrilliant_widget_article”  ishidden=”1″  title=”Tooth Whitening Gel”>Tooth Whitening Gel</a>

///spanspan%20style=

Self Care

As much as I love being a mom, I also love some alone time. We are still learning the concept of “personal space” and “privacy” around here so needless to say, I don’t get much of down time until all 3 are in bed. Lately, I’ve had to pen in my alone time each week on our family calendar so I get this much needed break and I can continue to be somewhat of a sane mom. Once a week my husband has been picking up the kids from their after school classes, and I get to clock out for the night! He helps them with bath time, dinner, story time and bed time. What do I do you ask? Walk the isles of Target and Home Goods without having to remind anyone to watch out for their elbows hitting the shelves. Eat dinner, without anyone digging in my bowl, or asking me for more water. I park the car and watch an episode of my show without having to pause. It’s something so simple and mundane that most people wouldn’t understand it unless you are a parent.

What I’ve learned is that it’s okay to take that break-you can’t pour from an empty vessel! And that self care is NOT selfish! I look forward to my night out by myself, enjoy that dessert without having to share, listen to some gangsta rap in my mini van and then get back home, slip in my pjs, kiss (and squeeze!!) my babies, read, watch some Netflix, and call it a night! A good night!

My kids make my days brighter, smiles wider, and heart fuller! Mom life is indeed, the best life! What’s your go to for self care?

These PJs from Pink Blush are the softest, most comfiest pjs I’ve ever owned! This Burgundy Star Printed Soft Knit PJ Set makes for a perfect gift for yourself! Or you can browse all the other patterns by clicking here.

Back to reality

And just like that summer comes to an end. Well, sort of! The sweltering weather is still going pretty strong, but summer break is over and I have a 1st grader! This is the first year, Musa is in school for a full day! On his first day of drop off, I asked him if he would like me to come in with him, and he said “Don’t worry mom, I got this!”. When did my baby become such a big boy?

After school, we went to celebrate at Dunkin Donuts, rode our bicycles, and went to the park! I think it was a memorable day for us all!

This Pink Blush top took me from drop off, to pick up, and from our donut date to the park play date! I love how comfy it is for moms on the go! This Burgundy Solid Chiffon Pleated Trim Blouse has quickly become my favorite! And I love how it’ll transition beautifully into fall with some dark jeans, booties and a hat!

You can shop for this top and some other fabulous pieces by clicking here.

Middle Child

Imani is our middle child. We try to spend one on one time with all the kids but I feel the need for doing it much more with her. They say middle children find it hard to find a ‘role’ in the family as they are no longer the baby of the family. The oldest is prone to receiving more responsibilities and the youngest receive indulgences. I always want her to be heard, and know how much she’s loved!

Last week, Imani and I went on a mommy daughter date to the playground right after brunch with my friends! I love that this Women’s Maxi Dress from Pink Blush can be dressed up for brunch with a pair of heels and a nice handbag, or dressed down for the playground or just running errands by pairing it with some converse shoes and a crossbody bag! This Navy Blue Printed Ruffle Wrap Maxi Dress was super comfy and breathable for summer and would be a great fall piece with a leather jacket and some booties!

You can shop this look by clicking here.

6 years old!

My sweet boy is 6 years old! In the past 3 months, anytime he was asked how old he was, he’d reply “almost 6!” and then start asking me how many more days until his birthday. He can now officially say he’s SIX!

He was first obsessed with cars, then trains, then fire trucks! We had a phase where we collected Paw Patrol dogs, and then roaring dinosaurs and let’s not forget Legos. The newest obsession is Pokémon! So in honor of his big day, we had a small celebration at home with friends!

I decided to make him a cake myself, as the kids and I love to bake together. We also made chocolate pretzels, cupcakes and cake pops! I ordered a bunch of balloons from Party City in our theme to make it look festive!

I wore this beautiful striped top from Pink Blush that went so well with the colors for the party. It was so important for me to be comfortable and look stylish and it was just that! The material is soft and flowy and perfect for moms on the go! Imani had originally got a Pokémon shirt to wear but once she saw this yellow dress she didn’t want to wear anything else. The yellow complimented her skin tone so well and it was a beautiful fit on her! She couldn’t stop twirling!

Thank you to everyone who came to celebrate with us and thank you to Pink Blush for keeping us stylish! You can shop for toddler dresses here and women’s tops here.

Xtreme Xperience

This year for Father’s Day, the kids and I wanted to do something special! My husband loves (LOVES!) cars and is usually up past midnight watching Car + Driver videos on YouTube. There’s no better gift for a car enthusiast than Xtreme Xperience!

Our reservation was for 9:30 on Sunday morning. Even though my husband likes to sleep in, he woke up on the first ring of his alarm and was ready to start the day. Auto Bahn Country Club in Joliet is about an hour from our place, so we were on the road bright and early!

Once we checked in, he took a 20 minutes class where they went over safety and track details. The first round was riding along a driver to check out the track. He was able to drive two super cars-Ferrari 488 GTB and Lamborghini Huracan!

He had a huge smile on his face the entire time we were at Xtreme Xperience! From the check in crew, to the instructors, and ride along crew, everyone was so friendly and welcoming to us and our son, Musa.

We were able to spend some one on one time with our son, doing things that all of us enjoy so much! Thank you Xtreme Xperience for having us! We cannot wait to return!

Day 2

After walking 28,534 steps the previous day, we were ready to take on the day. I had booked a photo session at the Eiffel Tower with Février Photography, and agreed to meet at 7:00am at the location. We woke up super early, took he metro and finally got to see the Eiffel Tower from Trocadero! It has the best view of the tower and the city! So glad we chose this location because the pictures came out beautiful!

After the session, we took the metro back to the hotel, changed our clothes, and were out again within 10 minutes to head to the Louvre since our tickets were purchased for 10am! It was a breeze to get it from the “secret entrance” as we were able to skip all the lines. This is the World’s Largest Museum and there’s no way you can see it all in one day, so we picked what we wanted to see and headed that direction first and foremost!

We spent nearly 6 hours at the museum and by the time we got out, it had started to rain, so we decided to sit it out in a boat along the Siene River. It got cold,windy and dark but the views from the river were amazing!

We ended the night at a local cafe by our hotel, sipping on some coffee and devouring crème brûlée until 1am!

The City of Love-Day 1

I’ve always envisioned myself walking the streets of Paris with my husband. People watching, getting lost, finding our way, and just being us. For our 10th wedding anniversary we decided to go to Paris, kid free! It was every bit as magical as I had envisioned.

Our flight landed at 5pm local time, and from Charles De Gaulle Airport it’s about an hour train ride to the city. By the time we got to the hotel, it was closer to 8pm, but we were ready to venture out and find something to eat.

Early next day we had a bicycle tour with Fat Tire Tours, which was the best money we ever spent! We got to the meeting point, at 9:30, picked out our bikes and were ready to see the city with our awesome tour guide.

Later that day, we went back to the Seine River for some food and fun! The Pont Alexander is such a beautiful spot! I couldn’t stop admiring the beautiful, intricate details and the gold accents!

We also took the Metro to the Grand Mosque of Paris, and checked out the gardens and prayer rooms. There was a cozy lil cafe right inside the mosque where we devoured in some middle eastern desserts and tea.

We went back to our hotel around midnight, after an exciting first full day in the city and that was just the beginning of falling in love with Paris!

Starting over

When I started writing this blog, I was a new mom of a lil 4 month old baby boy, Musa. This blog was my creative outlet, a way for me to feel “normal” in my new normal. Fast forward to a few years (four years to be exact!) and here I am again, laying in bed at 10:22 pm, pretending to be asleep so I can have some quiet time all to myself. I’m a mom of two, a four year old with 456 questions a day, and a two year old with a mission to test my patience. Typical. No big deal! Welcome to my life!