Mothers Institute Days of the Week Themes

Mothers Institute Days of the Week Themes

Our goal in creating our MI Days of the Week themes and correlating action items is twofold, to be 1) direction defining and 2) action producing -- thus suggesting a general day-by-day focus for families which promotes thoughtful and heartfelt activities, helping to identify goals and accomplish tasks pertinent to individual families needs and desires.

Serendipity Sunday: A day for appreciating the Serendipitous nature of Motherhood and the wonder of accidentally discovering something fortunate, while looking for/expecting something entirely unrelated.

Mothers Institute Monday: A day for participating in Mothers Institute activities. Reserve some time on Mothers Institute Monday for posting updates and info on Mothers Institute Moms (MIM). Promote MIM via social networking sites, and to friends, family and our communities IRL. PLUS remember to enjoy the company of other Mothers Institute Moms during our weekly online chats at 8pm Central.

Teaching Tuesday: A day for educating ourselves, our children and others on what it means to practice Radical Responsible Mothering.

Weeding Wednesday: A day for weeding out material and/or mental clutter -- whether it be weeding the garden or weeding out unproductive thoughts and behaviors that get in the way of living the life we want.

Thrifty Thursday: A day for actively working to reduce our bills/debt and sharing a time/money saving tip with friends and family.

Family Friday: A day for spending significant quality time with our family members ... creating cherished moments and memories.

Seeding Saturday: A day for planting seeds as a compliment to Weeding Wednesday -- whether those seeds be sown to grow food … or food for thought.

Note: MI Days of the Week themes are copyrighted material

A Few Favorite Quotes That Resonate With Radical Responsible Mothering

"Good timber does not grow with ease; the stronger the wind, the stronger the trees."
- J. Willard Marriot


"I live ...
For the cause that lacks assistance,
For the wrong that needs resistance,
For the future in the distance
And the good that I can do."
~ Elizabeth Cady Stanton


"... The point is to live with courage and boldness, in the face of those things that terrify us. The point of life is to live fully, to engage in life with gusto and with faith, instead of quaking and trembling, crippled by anxieties and fears. Life is to be experienced in all of its wonders as the exquisite gift it is, and not missed because you're too scared of what might happen or what you might catch, who might hurt you or how you might lose what you have!"
~ Jeanie Miley, FaithStreams Archives


"If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace."
~ Thomas Paine, 1776


"If you think in seasons, plant cereals. If you think in decades, plant trees. If you think in centuries, educate your children."
- Chinese Proverb

Homeschooling/Unschooling Teleconference for Mothers for Liberty Moms and Friends

Mothers for Liberty Meetup Groups across the country are joining together for Quarterly Teleconferences beginning Tuesday, August 4, 2009. Our first teleconference will feature Mothers Institute Advisory Board Member, Lori Loranger, who will speak on the subject of Homeschooling/Unschooling. Lori is as a long time and successful unschooling mom herself.

I first "met" Lori back in 2005 when I started the Mothers for Liberty Yahoo Group, in an effort to connect up with other like-minded, liberty-loving, out-of-the-box-thinking moms. Lori's experiences, wisdom and philosophy-put-into-action made her a welcome addition to that early group and today she continues to provide valuable input to The Mothers Institute via her writing and now through her speaking.

The teleconference begins at 7:00 pm Central time and Mothers for Liberty Members (and their guests) are invited to join us on the call.

For more information, visit and join The Mothers for Liberty Meetup Group nearest you (links for all of our MfL Meetup Groups are available via The Mothers Institute Mothers for Liberty page at: http://www.themothersinstitute.org/mothersforliberty.htm or post your request for more information here.

Jan

Our Mothers Institute Forum

In an effort to make The Mothers Institute a more "hands on" resource for moms and families, we have created our own MI Forum/Discussion Board for sharing information, experiences, and a general Q and A for Radical Responsible Mothering.

We currently have a wide range of topics being discussed which include:

* Pregnancy and Birth
* Mothering/Parenting
* Homeschooling/Unschooling
* Schools: Private, Charter and Public
* Children's Books, Magazines and Websites
* Health and Wellness
* Gardening/Homesteading/Self-Sufficiency
* Hobbies/Talents
* Recipes (from A-Z)
* Mothers for Liberty Meetup Group Activities
* Politics - Local, State and National
* The Mothers Institute Book Club
* General information and news about The Mothers Institute
* And More!

Our forum is open to mothers (and others) and is a great place to converse with like minded moms who support the time honored traditions of reason, logic, creativity, civility, discourse, debate and dissent.

Come join the conversation at: http://themothersinstitute.org/forum

Jan

Can You Give a $1 to The Mothers Institute Today?

Can You Give a $1 to The Mothers Institute Today?

The Mothers Institute Needs YOUR help!

We all know that non-profit organizations rely on donations. And we also know that with an uncertain economy, many families are watching their budgets a bit more closely these days.

That said, expenses still go on at The Mothers Institute and donations are still needed! So we've come up with the "Can You Give a $1 Today" idea which hopefully will be do-able for most individual pocketbooks and family budgets.

If all of The Mothers Institute's members, readers and friends would chip in and give just $1, MI would have some much needed funds to help cover our ongoing expenses such as rent, utilities, advertising, educational and promotional workshops/events, office supplies and more.

So, for all the mothers (and others) out there who appreciate the work The Mothers Institute is doing, and can contribute $1 today -- it would be much appreciated!

To give your $1 online, visit our website's homepage at: http://www.themothersinstitute.org/ and click on the "Support The Mothers Institute Today" Donate Button at the bottom of the page.

Thanks for considering this --- and as always your support is greatly appreciated!

Jan Stover
Founder and Director
The Mothers Institute

The 20 Daughters of Liberty

The 20 Daughters of Liberty
By Anonymous~ 1768 ~

Since the men, from a party or fear of a frown,
Are kept by a sugar-plum quietly down,
Supinely asleep--and depriv'd of their sight,
Are stripp'd of their freedom, and robb'd of their right;
If the sons, so degenerate! the blessings despise,
Let the Daughters of Liberty nobly arise;
And though we've no voice but a negative here,
The use of the taxables, let us forbear:--
(Then merchants import till your stores are all full,
May the buyers be few, and your traffic be dull!)

~~~~~

Stand firmly resolv'd, and bid Grenville to see,
That rather than freedom we part with our tea,
And well as we love the dear draught when a-dry,
As American Patriots our taste we deny--
Pennsylvania's gay meadows can richly afford
To pamper our fancy or furnish our board;
And paper sufficient at home still we have,
To assure the wiseacre, we will not sign slave;
When this homespun shall fail, to remonstrate our grief,
We can speak viva voce, or scratch on a leaf;
Refuse all their colors, though richest of dye,
When the juice of a berry our paint can supply,
To humor our fancy--and as for our houses,
They'll do without painting as well as our spouses;
While to keep out the cold of a keen winter morn,
We can screen the north-west with a well polished horn;
And trust me a woman, by honest invention,
Might give this state-doctor a dose of prevention.

~~~~~

Join mutual in this--and but small as it seems,
We may jostle a Grenville, and puzzle his schemes;
But a motive more worthy our patriot pen,
Thus acting--we point out their duty to men;
And should the bound-pensioners tell us to hush,
We can throw back the satire, by biding them blush.

This poem was published anonymously in the Pennsylvania Gazette in 1768. It is thought that it was written by a Quaker lady who lived in Philadelphia. It was dedicated to the Daughters of Liberty during the Revolutionary War.

The Value of a Mom

The Value of a Mom

A father came home and found his three children were outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud, with empty food boxes and wrappers strewn all around the front yard.

The door of his wife's car was open, as was the front door to the house and there was no sign of the dog. Proceeding into the entry, he found an even bigger mess.

A lamp had been knocked over, and the throw rug was wadded against one wall.

In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a cartoon, and the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing.

In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled onthe counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog food was spilled onthe floor, a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sandwas spread by the back door.

He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles ofclothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she may be ill, or that something serious had happened.

He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way out the bathroom door. As he peered inside he found wet towels, scummy soap and more toys strewn over the floor. Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls.

As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled up in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel.

She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went. He looked at her bewildered and asked, "What happened here today?"

She again smiled and answered, "You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world did I do today?"

"Yes," was his incredulous reply.

She answered, "Well, today I didn't do it."

~ Anonymous