Here’s a word-art freebie from the lyrics to Kelly Clarkson’s song “Stronger”: “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”   The song was written by Jörgen Elofsson, Ali Tamposi, David Gamson, and Greg Kurstin.

To download word art (without watermark), click here, then right click on the image and choose “Save Picture As . . .”

I have lots of word-art inspiration at the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page and on Pinterest!

Background Photo by zavulonya.

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So many of us mothers want to be perfect mothers. But that’s obviously impossible. I’ve grown to like the concept of being a good-enough mother.

I remember wanting to be a more-perfect mom years ago, and I can only imagine how much worse the Internet has made things for moms with perfectionistic tendencies today. Who can possibly be a saintly mother happily creating even a fraction of all the wonderful materials, amazing activities, and fun foods found on Pinterest alone?

I love this post by Jennifer Kunst, Ph.D., at Psychology Today: Searching for the “Good Enough” Mother.

And I REALLY LOVE this post by April Perry at The Power of Moms: Your Children Want YOU!

Whether you’re a sports mom, homeschool mom, career mom, or any other type of mom, I hope you’ll give yourself permission to be happily imperfect. Here’s a post I wrote at Living Montessori Now about learning what my kids really needed: Top 5 Homeschool Lessons My Children Taught Me.

Despite my imperfections, my now-adult kids turned out great. I’m incredibly proud of my kids. I’ve learned that being a good-enough mother is good enough!

“The Ideal Mother” Word-Art Freebie

Happy Mother’s Day weekend! Enjoy being a good-enough mother!

Linked with The Mommy Club Resources and Solutions at Milk and Cuddles and Crystal & Co. and Thought-Provoking Thursday.

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Here’s a word-art freebie from the quote “OF COURSE I’d like to be the ideal mother. But I’m too busy raising children.” From the comic strip The Family Circus by Bil Keane

To download word art (without watermark), click here, then right click on the image and choose “Save Picture As . . .”

I have lots of word-art inspiration at the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page and on Pinterest!

Linked with Thought-Provoking Thursday.

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3. “If You Don’t Have a Smile” Word-Art Freebie Here’s a word-art freebie from the quote “If you don’t...

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I wonder how often we’re simply afraid to enjoy life. I love the following video. It made me laugh out loud when I first saw it.

A DRAMATIC SURPRISE ON A QUIET SQUARE

“To launch the high quality TV channel TNT in Belgium we placed a big red push button on an average Flemish square of an average Flemish town. A sign with the text ‘Push to add drama’ invited people to use the button.”

Wasn’t that fun?! It’s interesting that the button wasn’t pushed immediately. Most of us tend to be too afraid to live fully.

I shared a great graphic from Smile BIG, Love Everybody on the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page. It says:

“When we reach the top, we tend to forget how we got there. It’s on the way down we suddenly remember the journey. Without the lows, there wouldn’t be any highs. Life is exactly like a roller coaster. Always sit in the front row.” Jesse Magoon

Whether we need to spend more time in nature or just be open to life as it happens, I hope we can all start to truly enjoy our lives.

“The Moments That Take Our Breath Away” Word-Art Freebie

I’ll be on spring break from blogging at Raising Figure Skaters next week. I’ll still add my quote of the day and share word-art inspiration at the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page. But I need to spend a bit more time enjoying the outdoors! So I’ll skip next week’s blog posts. See you here on Wednesday, May 9!

Photo Credit: Image at the top of this post by Sumayah Essa at Flickr Creative Commons.

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Here’s a word-art freebie from the quote “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.” The origin of the quote has been attributed to a number of people, but the quote most likely came from an anonymous male Canadian writer for Carlton Cards in the mid-1970s.

To download word art, click here, then right click on the image and choose “Save Picture As . . .”

Background photo by Yang Jun.

I have lots of word-art inspiration at the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page and on Pinterest!

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I recently wrote a post at Living Montessori Now about helping kids avoid nature-deficit disorder through Montessori-inspired outdoor activities. But it isn’t just kids who can have nature-deficit disorder.

Richard Louv first coined the term “nature-deficit disorder” in the 2005 book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder. In a more recent article, “Get Your Mind Dirty” at Outside Online, Louv says that adults as well as children are suffering from lack of time in nature. He writes:

“In the book, I introduced the term nature-deficit disorder—not as a medical diagnosis but as a way to describe the growing gap between children and nature. By its broadest interpretation, nature-deficit disorder is an atrophied awareness, a diminished ability to find meaning in the life that surrounds us. When we think of the nature deficit, we usually think of kids spending too much time indoors plugged into an outlet or computer screen. But after the book’s publication, I heard adults speak with heartfelt emotion, even anger, about their own sense of loss.”

In the spring especially, I feel a greater need to spend time outdoors. “Spring fever” hits me each year and continues throughout the warm months. And I need to get out of the house some even the middle of winter. I think that most adults as well as kids feel better, more whole, by spending time outdoors.

“I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order.” John Burroughs

Richard Louv talks about some interesting benefits of spending time in nature:

“While the study of the relationship between mental acuity, creativity, and time spent outdoors is still a frontier for science, new data suggests that exposure to the living world can even enhance intelligence. At least two factors are involved: first, our senses and sensibilities can be improved by spending time in nature; second, the natural environment seems to stimulate our ability to pay attention, think clearly, and be more creative.”

I’ve been focusing on getting outdoors more in general lately. And I want to take my writing outdoors, too. I plan to take my laptop outdoors in the warm weather rather than spending the day sitting at my desk, even though my computer is right by a window.

“The Earth Delights” Word-Art Freebie

What better plan for Earth Day or any day than to get outdoors and enjoy the earth? How do you plan to spend more time outdoors?

Photo Credit: Photo at the top of this post by Vinoth Chandar at Flickr Creative Commons (License).

Linked with Thought Provoking Thursday.

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Here’s a word-art freebie from a Kahlil Gibran quote that I love for Earth Day: “And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.” The Prophet

To download word art, click here, then right click on the image and choose “Save Picture As . . .”

Background image by bloodmars.

I have lots of word-art inspiration at the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page and on Pinterest!

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Last year I arrived two days late, but I’m on time this year for the Ultimate Blog Party 2012! What a great way to make some new online friends! The Ultimate Blog Party is hosted by Janice and Susan at 5 Minutes for Mom. You can join, too … write a post about your blog and enter it in a linky to make lots of new blogging friends. And you can register for some awesome prizes!

Here’s a bit about me:

I’m Deb Chitwood, a Montessori educator/writer and mom of two grown children. I also have 14 years of experience as a mom of competitive figure skaters. I homeschooled my kids through high school. They both have college degrees now and are figure-skating professionals.

My whole family has had many amazing experiences as a result of my kids’ figure skating. In addition to providing lots of great opportunities for character development, figure skating allowed us to travel many places in the world, gave my daughter a chance to get her university degree (and meet her husband) in England while representing Great Britain as an ice dancer, and even gave me the opportunity to get my master’s degree in Early Childhood Education in England! You can read more about my family and me at my About page.

Here are some places you can find me online:

• Twitter as @RaisingSkaters, @DebChitwood, and @SpringSnowPub. Through @RaisingSkaters, I tweet and retweet a lot of inspirational quotes, word-art freebies, motivational posts, and ways to make a difference.
• Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page. I add an inspirational Quote of the Day and often share word-art inspiration. You can also find me at the Living Montessori Now Facebook page and Spring Snow Publications Facebook page. You’ll find lots of interesting (and different) information at each of my Facebook pages.
• RSS feed (Get my blog posts in your Google Reader or another reader.)
• Networked Blogs
• Google+ page (brand new)!
• Pinterest, where I share Word-Art Inspiration along with lots of activities and ideas for parents.

What You’ll Find at Raising Figure Skaters

Every Wednesday, I have a word-art freebie based on a quote or saying. I especially focus on inspirational quotes that can apply to anyone. On Fridays, I typically write a post with inspiration of any kind, best quotes on a topic, motivation for life, focus on gratitude, encouragement for parents and athletes, tips on raising kids with character, or ways to make a difference.

Before you leave, here’s a word art freebie for my new and old friends:

“Friends are the Sunshine of Life” Word-Art Freebie

And here are lots of Word-Art Freebies.

Party on!

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Here’s a word-art freebie from the John Hay quote “Friends are the sunshine of life.”

To download word art, click here, then right click on the image and choose “Save Picture As . . .”

Background image by Anna Omelchenko.

I have lots of word-art inspiration at the Raising Figure Skaters Facebook page and on Pinterest!

Related posts:

1. “You’re Never Fully Dressed without a Smile” Word-Art Freebie Here’s a word-art freebie from the quote “You’re never fully...
2. “I’ve Never Seen a Smiling Face That Was Not Beautiful” Word-Art Freebie Here’s a word-art freebie from the quote “I’ve never seen...
3. “If You Don’t Have a Smile” Word-Art Freebie Here’s a word-art freebie from the quote “If you don’t...

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My Smile-a-Thon Spontaneous Smileys

Our bloggers’ Smile-a-Thon technically ended last Saturday. But, fortunately, Share a Smile doesn’t have to be over. I see spontaneous smileys more often than I ever did, and anyone can still upload spontaneous smileys to the Spontaneous Smiley website, raising $1 per smiley photo to help Operation Smile.

We didn’t reach our goal of 5 operations to correct cleft palate, cleft lip, and facial deformities in children around the world. But we did raise enough money for about 1½ surgeries … and every bit helps!

If you’d like to help the Operation Smile crusade, you can search for spontaneous smileys at any age. I have a post with lots of smiley-inspired activities for kids: Go on a Smile Hunt with Your Child. There’s more smiley fun for kids with Smiley Face Crafts by Amanda at Crafts~N~Things for Kids. And check out the Spontaneous Smiley posts by Elizabeth at Broken Treasures. Elizabeth organized our bloggers’ ShareASmile Project and has more kid-related smiley fun!

You still have until tomorrow to enter the giveaway at Broken Treasures to win a signed copy of The Smiley Book of Colors  by Ruth Kaiser (and you’ll have an EXCELLENT chance of winning)!

Before I leave the Smile-a-Thon, I must have a finale. And what better than some smile inspiration from Annie!

“You’re Never Fully Dressed without a Smile” Word-Art Freebie

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Participant List of ShareASmile Contributing Bloggers

Special thanks to Elizabeth from Broken Treasures for organizing the ShareASmile Project,

special thanks also to Ruth Kaiser, and thanks to all the participants!

Linked with Thought-Provoking Thursday.

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