Weekends :)

I was looking through my empty 2018 planner today & found all these holidays, that ‘they’ chose for us to have as ‘holidays’.. Doesn’t the word holiday/weekend make you smile?

Being off; not a cool thing to be though.. As a morning person, I always enjoy the sun & day time, & never liked sleeping in to a late hour..

Weekends changed a lot over time.. From when they take place, all the way to how they take place.. Let’s go back to the early beginning.. When there was bliss, goodness & ‘barakah’ in our weekends..

Many years ago, our weekends took place on Thursdays & Fridays.. Then it was Fridays & Saturdays.. And now Satudays & Sundays, AND not for everyone.. Different shifts & what not.. It takes us a long time to plan get togethers, outings or board nights now..

Tonight I’ll take you & I back to our good old days.. Or weekends if I should say :)

Wednesdays

Wednesdays were the beginning of our family fun.. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always enjoyed weekdays.. I loved going to school & being the fun tall ‘fasolia’ that I was.. I had a crush on Tuesdays for some reason.. I don’t know whether it’s the T in the beginning or the P.E. classes that always took place then :)

I never had enough of my grade level friends, but  made friends with older girls as well.. Nothing realy stopped me.. Not my hijab when I was the only one wearing it, nor my frequent change of schools..

Wednesday was when Daddy would pick us up from school & take us to meet Mom (after she’s done with work) at KFC usually (where mostly Egyptians/Filipinos worked).. ‘All you can eat’ & weekend fun begins :D

Thursdays

Fish, shrimp & crabs day.. Ah fish market! Absolute pleasure when going with Daddy sometimes.. I love the fresh fish market smell, too weird, eh? I used to feel bad seeing them fresh fish die slowly on the ice cubes; they had to freeze to death to stay fresh for us big monsters :$ My uncles would pig out with us & huge piles of shrimp shells would accumulate on our big dining table :)

Thursday night is usually ice skating or family club night :D I never had enough of ice skating.. I’d wait for the zambony to finish after my first round & get going again and again.. The last one to leave the rink was always me.. I remember when I cut my brother’s thumb with my ice skate :’( It took time to stop bleeding.. He carries that scar today.. We were always skating together.. But I was better in going backwards, right bro? ;P

Growing older, it was more comfortable going ice skating on ladies nights.. Yes we had that luxury in Abu Dhabi! Ladies time/place for everything.. We had a whole Ladies Club, where we’d walk from the swimming pool to the gym/spa under the sky with the sunlight touching our bare skin & our hair out enjoying the gulf’s humid salty breeze.. A whole private ladies beach <3

If it’s not an ice skating night, it’d be the family club night where all the courts & parks would be.. I remember hurting my finger while playing basketball, & slowly giving up on that sport.. I remember Daddy playing ping pong & always winning.. I was always proud Baba :)

The pizzeria there, yummy! Basic pizzas, but always perfect after a long play time..

Fridays

Beach / Bbq / Dubai

Jum’a day.. Long blessed day.. Friday prayers & the strong ‘bukhoor’ in the house.. On their way back home from prayers, Daddy & my brothers would get us snacks (chips/sweets).. And never forgot butter milk for me :)

They’d come home to a different place, Mama as usual would have turned everything upside down, or even more; swapped rooms! Just for the sake of a ‘healthy change’.. :)

We’d then get together, with my grandparents (both maternal & paternal Grandma) & read The Cave Chapter from The Holy Qur’an.. Then Baba would explain & discuss with us verses from the Qur’an or Prophet’s sayings (pbuh)..

If it’s a beach day, it’d mean sun & salt.. Mix them together, & that would be that.. Baba singing the sea fisherman’s song.. If I could turn back time.. If only..

If it’s a bbq day, then I’d like to introduce to you the best bbq hero ever: Baba :D

Mama’s yummy marinated beef/chicken..

Our bicycles in the park..

What else woul one want?

Well, if you’d ask me: no grass please! I had a problem with grass :$ I’m not sure if it’s the insects phobia I have or something else..

If it’s a Dubai Friday, it usually starts from Thursday night.. Rarely was it only a Friday in Dubai back then.. Thursday evening, we’d pack our stuff (& I’d pack my million things), and off to my Uncle’s place.. A fun sleep over with lots of other relatives living in the same building & lots & lots of kids :D

Picnics & malls.. And many tears I always shed for going back home..

Those were our weekends.. Those were the days.. Where we’d all get together.. Laugh together.. Lay back together.. Those were the days..

Please do enjoy your weekends to their fullest, & take whatever is left of beauty in your life & share it with your special ones :)