TouchstoneZ

Mindful Mama Blog Carnival

In 2011, I started the Mindful Mama Carnival on a whim. I posted a call for submissions hoping that I could find a couple of other bloggers who might be interested in writing about it. I even planned to beg some friends to write, if no one signed up. But, sign up they did, much to my relief. And to my joy, the submissions sent in exceeded my expectations.

As the second Mindful Mama Carnival approached, I knew I was going to need help from someone I could trust. Of course, I asked Kelly of Becoming Crunchy, who honored me by saying yes. Without her hard work and patient support, the two carnivals since we partnered would never have gone as smoothly as they have. I am grateful to know I can rely on Kelly and I hope she feels the same about me.

Kelly and I have been honored that each of these talented writers have joined us in exploring issues around parenting and living mindfully. We have enjoyed reading each of their posts and watching the connections between the MindMaCar community grow.

Before we look ahead to 2012, this is a wrap up of of the 2011 Mindful Mama Carnivals.

June 2011 Mindful Mama Carnival:

• First Carnival
• Topic: Do You Have a Mindfulness Practice?
• New Participants: All
• Total Participants: 10
• 3 of my favorite posts:
• The Lost Art of Chill One Rich Mother explains how she overcame her habit of screaming through mindfulness.
• Ritual of Affirmations Patti @ Jazzy Mama finds out that a simple evening ritual can take on new importance when it is done with thoughtfulness and intent.
• Keeping My Sanity by Losing My Mind CJ at Imperfect Happiness describes how she connects with reality by disconnecting from her mind.

September 2011 Mindful Mama Carnival:

• Kelly of Becoming Crunchy co-hosts
• Topic: What does Mindfulness Mean to You?
• New Participants: 8
• Repeat Participants: 5
• Total Participants: 13
• 3 of my favorite posts:
• Define: Mindful Alicia C. at McCrenshaw describes the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings for Engaged Buddhism and attempts to describe how she can apply them to her non-Buddhist life on her new journey toward mindfulness.
• I REALLY Miss Being Mindful! Tracie at Purposeful Practices shares what it’s like to find and then lose your mindfulness practice.
• Stepping into the Unknown To Rachael at The Variegated Life, mindfulness is a way of stepping into the unknown.

December 2011 Mindful Mama Carnival:

• Topic: Staying Mindful During the Holiday Season
• New Participants: 10
• Repeat Participants: 12
• Total Participants: 22 (23 entries)
• 3 of my favorite posts:
• Choice And Consequence In Conscious Mindfulness Luschka at Diary of a First Child shares her realisation that consciously monitoring our thoughts have a powerful effect on our lives, regardless of circumstances or influences.
• Enjoying Busy Times Moment by Moment Amy at Peace 4 Parents offers a handful of simple pointers to make the most of any busy season in your life.
• Can a collection of moments be more than the whole? Tat at Mum in search asks how do you turn a holiday from hell into a series of beautiful moments?

Please stop by Kelly at Becoming Crunchy’s post for some of her favorites.
2012 looks to be a fruitful year for the Mindful Mama Carnival. Kelly and I hope you will join us whether it’s your first or your umpteenth MindMaCar.

The Mindful Mama Carnival is scheduled quarterly (March, June, September, and December.) So, please keep an eye out for the call for submissions posts on both of our blogs. We also send a reminder email to participants. So, if you would like to be added to this list, please drop us a line.

Stay in touch:

• Bookmark the Mindful Mama Carnival Homepage, and check back for future themes.
• Subscribe to our RSS feeds: Becoming Crunchy’s feed and TouchstoneZ’s feed, as well as the Mindful Mama Carnival Participants feed

• Follow us on Twitter: @BecomingCrunchy and @TouchstoneZ, plus the Twitter list of our #MindMaCar Tweeters.
• Connect with us individually on Facebook: Kelly at Becoming Crunchy and Zoie at TouchstoneZ

Updated Participant Badges (now links to Mindful Mama Homepage): If you are a (former or current) participant or supporter and want our button to put in your sidebar, grab this code and let everyone know that you participated in Mindful Mama Carnival! If you have a badge from June, please replace it with this one.

<div align="center"><a href="http://touchstonez.com/currentprojects/mindful-mama-carnival-home-page/" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6088/6104475337_2081e669dd_m.jpg" alt="Mindful Mama Carnival" width="150" /></a></div>

We hope that you will continue to connect with us and with the other participants in the future. We would like to invite you to have another look at the diverse bloggers who have been a part of Mindful Mama Carnivals in the past. Some may be new to you and some may be familiar. A list of links to all participant’s blogs, Twitter and Facebook is below.

Amy at Anktangle  Twitter   Facebook  1: September
Kelly at Becoming Crunchy   Twitter   Facebook  3: June    September    December
Terri at Child of the Nature Isle  Twitter   Facebook   2: June  December
Erica @ ChildOrganics   Twitter   Facebook  1: December
Kerry @ City Kids Homeschooling    Facebook  1: December
Luschka @ Diary of a First Child   Twitter   Facebook  1: December
Terri at Eco-Crazy Mom    Twitter   Facebook  1: December
Lauren at Hobo Mama    Twitter   Facebook  1: December
Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama    Twitter   Facebook  2: September    December
Charise @ I Thought I Knew Mama    Twitter   Facebook  2: September   December
CJ at Imperfect Happiness   Twitter   Facebook   1: June
Erin @ it’s OK    Twitter   Facebook 1: September
Patti @ Jazzy Mama  Facebook  3: June    September    December
Amanda at Let’s Take the Metro      Facebook   2: June    September
Mandy at Living Peacefully with Children   1: December
Moorea at MamaLady   Twitter   Facebook   1: December
Sylvia at MaMammalia      Facebook   1: December
Alicia C. at McCrenshaw     Twitter   Facebook    1: September
Nada @ minimomist    Twitter   Facebook     1: December
Adrienne at Mommying My Way      Facebook   1: December
Jenn at Monkey Butt Junction      Twitter  Facebook  2: June   December
Tat at Mum in search     Twitter   Facebook    1: December
Free Range Mama at My Healthy Green Family    Twitter   Facebook   1: December
Kat at My Mental Oddities    Twitter  1: September
Sasha at One Rich Mother      Twitter   Facebook  1: June
Amy at Peace 4 Parents     Twitter   Facebook 2: September    December
Darcel @ The Mahogany Way    Twitter   Facebook     1: December
Melissa at Vibrant Wanderings    Twitter   Facebook  1: June
Tracie of Purposeful Practices    Twitter   Facebook   1: September
Rachael at The Variegated Life     Twitter   Facebook  3: June    September    December
Zoie at TouchstoneZ    Twitter   Facebook  3: June    September    December

We wish you a Mindful and Healthy New Year. Happy 2012!!

Kelly & Zoie
~*~
Becoming Crunchy and TouchstoneZ

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• Mindful Mama Guest Post from Hybrid Rasta Mama (touchstonez.com)