The new moon has been sighted and we have entered the Holy month of Ramadan. My name is Shapla, and I live in West London with my family of 7. We recently welcomed our 5th baby, just in time for Ramadan. She has two older sisters and two brothers, the oldest is 11 years old.
Ramadan is a spiritual time for Muslims across the world. Muslims observe the fast for a month, (from pre-dawn to after sunset), along with extra charity and prayers.
Since becoming a parent, Ramadan has looked different. Mostly, it is spent at home. While in the past, Ramadan was spent in the mosque or at events. This year, I am exempt from fasting because I have a new baby. I will be seeking other ways to keep spiritual and stay connected.
As a mother, my love language is spending quality time with my children. I love crafting and getting creative with them, and they love it too! During Ramadan, to make my children feel involved I like to do some crafts, make delicious treats and read stories from the Quran.
This year we will be following the moon phases with this simple craft. We cut out the moon phases out of black card, which we will change throughout this month. We love how the light shines through the pierced holes like twinkling stars. We also love making sun catchers; I am so pleased with the way our Ramadan sun catcher has turned out.
As a family we like to slow down during Ramadan and reset. My children also try to be on their best behaviour; focusing on, bickering less and working together. Their motivation and the ambience in our home, truly makes it a wonderful time; filling our homes with peace and calmness- at least for some part!
We love to decorate the house together for Ramadan. I love all things handmade. We always make our Ramadan decorations and reuse them and add new each year. I love with the paper stars I made with my eldest daughter. Decorating our home is an exciting time, especially when we made them ourselves.
Ramadan is a time of sharing between friends, family and neighbours who come together to open their fasts. I have wonderful childhood memories of Ramadan and what a special time it was. I remember my mum preparing Iftar (meal to break the fast) and we would share with our neighbours, it was a task for me and my siblings to hand out. This is something I would like to continue with my family.
Every year we have a Ramadan “advent” calendar, and we like it handmade. I just love seeing their faces light up, seeing what they achieved and using it throughout the month! Along with treats, I have placed daily affirmations for the calendar. Last Ramadan, we made a salt dough spiral calendar. It hasn’t seen us through to this year, so we made a new one.
As the Islamic calendar is based around the lunar cycle, the month of Ramadan rotates approximately by ten days less, each year. Ramadan lasts for either 29 or 30 days.
Ramadan for me (and the Muslims from my generation) has made a full circle round and returned to spring. As a child Ramadan was spent in the long summer days. By the time, I reached puberty and began fasting fully, it was Autumn and I got to start fasting during the shorter, easier fasting days!
My eldest children aged 9 and 11 want to take part in the fast this year. As they are still young, they will practice fasting during the weekend for some part of the day and challenge themselves to extend the duration. As a child this is something I used to do, and I never used to make it till dinner!
To mark the end of Ramadan, we celebrate Eid (the festival to break the fast). The new moon will be sighted, and excitement fills our homes- we get our best clothes ready, apply henna and prepare yummy treats for the day, and I must not forget the gifts!
Thanks so much to Shapla - @_pinkwaterlily for sharing her families Ramadan