Just wondering if my mother lives with me 6 months out of the year to provide care for my children, can I claim her as a dependent? I provide food, shelter, vehicle,etc. She works part time as a hair dresser and has a small income, does this matter?

Her income does indeed matter - if she earns more than $3400/year, she can not be your dependent. Also, you must provide more than 50% of her support throuhgout the year. See discusson about the definition of a "qualifying relative" on pages 8 and 9 of:

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p501.pdf

Ebines is correct.
It is not required that your mother lives with you. You must provide more than half of her support and she should not earn more than $3500 in 2008.
Read about Qualifying relative
Your U.S. Tax Return: Requirements for claiming a dependent