Smile-A-Thon

Smile-a-Thon Finale

April 6, 2012 By Deb Chitwood 4 Comments

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

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!

Broken Treasures
Crafts~N~Things for Children
Play Dr. Mom
Jaihart
Boo Boo Princesses
Raising Figure Skaters

hands on : as we grow
Courts Craft Corner

Linked with Thought-Provoking Thursday.

Filed Under: Share a Smile Tagged With: Annie, Operation Smile, ShareASmile Project, smile, Smile-A-Thon, Spontaneous Smiley, You're never fully dressed without a smile

Smiley Fun

March 30, 2012 By Deb Chitwood 9 Comments

“I’ve Never Seen a Smiling Face That Was Not Beautiful” Word-Art Freebie

By now, you probably know that I LOVE smiles and smiley faces! We have two days left of our Smile-a-Thon for the ShareASmile Project. If you’d like to join us in helping provide surgeries for cleft palate, cleft lip, and facial deformities in children, you can help now – or anytime. Just check out my post for ways you can easily make a difference.

I have a new focus on smileys and am amazed at smileys I see now that I never noticed before. That’s a good thing. Each spontaneous smiley I see brings a smile to my face and $1 more toward Operation Smile when I upload my smiley photo to the Spontaneous Smiley website.

Neighborhood Car Smiley

You can search for spontaneous smileys at any age, whether you’re an empty nester (like me) taking a walk in your neighborhood or a parent with young children. I have a post with lots of smiley-inspired activities for kids: Go on a Smile Hunt with Your Child.

More smiley fun for kids: Smiley Face Crafts by Amanda at Crafts~N~Things for Kids. (There are even handprint and thumbprint crafts for a special project worth saving for future smiles!) And check out the Spontaneous Smiley posts by Elizabeth at Broken Treasures. Elizabeth organized our bloggers’ ShareASmile Project and has giveaways and more kid-related smiley fun!

Here are my favorite smile quotes and all my smile word-art freebies in one place: Best Smile Quotes.

This made me smile! Not a spontaneous smiley … just a bit of smiley fun: “World’s Largest Smiley Face” Mahwah, NJ (over 2,000 people!) June 30, 2011

Happy days!

Linked with “Get Inspired” Monday and Thought-Provoking Thursday.

Filed Under: Happiness, Making a Difference, Share a Smile Tagged With: happiness, Operation Smile, ShareASmile Project, smile, smile hunt, Smile-A-Thon, Spontaneous Smiley

Share a Smile!

March 16, 2012 By Deb Chitwood 9 Comments

I LOVE smiles … and I have a new way to share smiles and truly make a difference at the same time! I missed Project Smile when it was discontinued, so I’m extra excited to tell you about the ShareASmile Project, a collaborative bloggers’ project to raise funds for Operation Smile!

You’ll see the importance of Operation Smile in this video:

Through the ShareASmile Project, we’re having a Smile-A-Thon! We’re photographing smileys we see everywhere around us and uploading them to the Spontaneous Smiley website. Spontaneous Smiley donates $1 to Operation Smile for every photo uploaded!

Each surgery to repair cleft lip, cleft palate and other facial deformities for children around the world only costs $240 through Operation Smile. Our goal is to raise enough money for 5 surgeries. We want to raise $1200 for Operation Smile by the end of the month!

Helping Operation Smile is easier than you’d think – and lots of fun! Here’s what you can do:

1. Look for spontaneous smileys, photograph them, and upload the photos to the Spontaneous Smiley website. Include in the “who are you” section the words “Elizabeth Sent Me.”

Here are some examples of Spontaneous Smileys:

This was my first spontaneous smiley uploaded to the Spontaneous Smiley website:

Really Useful Box Smiley

I found my first spontaneous smiley while trying to organize my closet. I guess my closet is happy, too!

2. Sponsor one of our bloggers. As in a walk-a-thon, we’re collecting pledges of any amount per photo we collect and upload. You may contact me or comment below with a pledge amount if you’re interested in participating in this way.

3. Print off sponsor sheets and collect your own pledges.

You could even try this with a local group (school project, art class, kids’ club, Scouts, etc.). You’ll find all the information you need to collect your own pledges here.

4. Donate directly to Operation Smile here.

If you’re a blogger, it would be awesome if you’d like to join us in the ShareASmile Project! Please feel free to post the button on your blog and join us for the next 14 days of sharing spontaneous smileys!

In addition to the Smile-A-Thon, we’re raising awareness for Operation Smile and Spontaneous Smileys in several other ways, too!

There will be giveaways from now until the 31st! These giveaways are from ShareASmile Contributing Bloggers who are generously donating something related to their ShareASmile project.

Be sure to check out the ShareASmile giveaways. I’ll be sharing each of the giveaways at the Living Montessori Now family-friendly giveaway linky.

March 18th -Broken Treasures giveaway
March 20th – Boo Boo Princess giveaway
March 31st – Spontaneous Smiley Book Giveaway

The March 31 giveaway is The Smiley Book of Colors by Ruth Kaiser, the founder of Spontaneous Smiles. Learn more about Ruth at the Spontaneous Smiley website and Facebook. Check out the Spontaneous Smiley Shop, too!

Join us for a Twitter party on Monday, March 26th at 2:00pm EST with #shareasmile Come prepared to share activities, crafts, food, etc. that are smile or spring related

The Participant List of ShareASmile Contributing Bloggers

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

and thanks to all the participants!

Broken Treasures
Crafts~N~Things for Children
Play Dr. Mom
Jaihart
Boo Boo Princesses
Raising Figure Skaters

hands on : as we grow
Courts Craft Corner

Before you leave, here’s something for you. It’s not a spontaneous smile, but it makes me smile anyway!