Happy Mother's Day! {AND, a Giveaway!!!!}

I wish you a wonderful Mother's Day!

♥♥♥

Pictured, clockwise from left:

1.  Gypsy Mom by Kimberly Dow

2. Biodh ceolna mara ag bualadh i do chroi by Loime Studios 

3. Mother Baby by Sascalia 

4.  Crush by Katie M. Berggren

To celebrate, I thought I'd share a few of my favorite quotes on parenting:

You don't really understand human nature unless you know why a child on a merry-go-round will wave at his parents every time around - and why his parents will always wave back. ~William D. Tammeus

If I had my child to raise all over again,

I’d build self-esteem first, and the house later.

I’d finger-paint more, and point the finger less.

I would do less correcting and more connecting.

I’d take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.

I’d take more hikes and fly more kites.

I’d stop playing serious, and seriously play.

I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.

I’d do more hugging and less tugging.

~Diane Loomans, from “If I Had My Child To Raise Over Again”

What's done to children, they will do to society. ~Karl Menninger

Your children need your presence more than your presents. ~Jesse Jackson

The quickest way for a parent to get a child's attention is to sit down and look comfortable. ~Lane Olinghouse

Too often we give children answers to remember rather than problems to solve. ~Roger Lewin

If there is anything that we wish to change in the child, we should first examine it and see whether it is not something that could better be changed in ourselves. ~C.G. Jung, Integration of the Personality, 1939

No matter how calmly you try to referee, parenting will eventually produce bizarre behavior, and I'm not talking about the kids. ~Bill Cosby, Fatherhood, 1986

There are two lasting bequests we can give our children. One is roots. The other is wings. ~Hodding Carter, Jr.

Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother.-- Lin Yutang

* * * * *

To celebrate Mother's Day, I am having my very first giveaway!

The prize is an 8x10 print of your choice of any photograph from my Etsy Shop.

To enter, simply leave any comment for this post.

***If you would like extra entries, you may do any of the following:***

1.  Blog about the giveaway and provide a link in the comment section.

2.  Tell me your favorite memory of your Mother.

3.  Comment about your most valuable lesson as a Mother.

4.  Leave me your favorite quote about Parenthood.

5.  Tweet about the giveaway or announce it on your Facebook page.

6.  Visit my Etsy Shop and tell me your favorite item from the shop.
7.  Become a follower of my blog (if you are already a follower this counts too!)

Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

Contest closes at 11:59 PM CST onWednesday night.

Winner will be randomly selected and announced on Thursday morning.

My photograph made the front page today! 

♥

Thank you to Un Petit Reve by TippyToesKnits!

I would also like to thank therickrackstudio and AZCreativeStudio for including my photographs in their lovely blogs.  You can also visit their Etsy shops here and here.