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A couple weeks ago I was feeling on top of the world. There was just this high optimism for life and everything in it. As I got into bed one night, the word hit me
JOY
I was feeling an immense amount of Joy, and for no particular reason other than I am healthy, I have 4 healthy kids, a wonderful husband, extended family that is amazing, a roof over our head and food in the cupboards.
Can life really be any more simple than those things? Those are the things that truly bring us joy. So I decided I wanted to display this Joy in my home. I knew I wouldn’t always be feeling so upbeat, but if I could create a constant reminder for myself to have Joy, then the down days wouldn’t have to be so bad.
I had this idea to create a sign that read JOY, and then next to it have some of my favorite family pictures displayed. Before I even had a chance to come up with my own design, I found myself
at a workshop with Steffany and Melanie from the blog Find it Make it Love it. I was so thrilled when the craft they shared fit into my JOY vision.
So of course, I picked up all my supplies right after the workshop and set to work making their
IKEA candle dish turned picture frame. Once I had the kids at school, and Prince L sleeping it was just me and Princess R. I set her to work with a new tracing book we bought, and I got started on my crafting. Picking a picture of each of the kids was extremely difficult! Either they were too close to their face, or too far away. I finally had my decisions, though.I did my cut outs slightly different, only because I’m very visual, and don’t trust myself completely – so I used the scrap from the circle cut out to trace my pictures.
Princess R was pretty distraught when I cut off Prince L’s feet, and she started taking off with all the pictures of her. I guess she was worried I was going to ruin all the pretty pictures. Once it was all done though, she thought they were pretty nice.
The large candle dish turned chalkboard was perfect for my new word – JOY. Mark kindly jumped in here and added his artistic talents to the sign. Just another little joy found in spending time with my husband.
Everything has a meaning on his design, but at the moment all I can remember is the stars represent our 4 children and our biggest joy. He’s got such talent.
Once we had these hung above the desk, I realized just what a mess I had allowed this space to become. So not only did doing something crafty add a nice touch to our wall, it also spurred me to get some extra cleaning done, booyah! I feel I can be much more productive in this space now instead of feeling overwhelmed.
What brings you JOY?
These are so adorable! I can't wait to do little D.I.Y. for my apartment!
I feel the same way. I really appreciate that I and my family are healthy and happy and that I don't want for food or warmth and I also have a great family and friends. I really think you got it Adelina… it is that simple.
Those are so cute! Great way to celebrate being happy and healthy! And thank you for sharing in my link up!
Love the project and I feel the same way – I'm healthy, my family is healthy, my husband is great, our families are wonderful, we have jobs, food, health insurance, a home and many friends. Life is good! Joy is the perfect word.
I love this project and the meaning behind it. What a beautiful way to decorate.
This is such a beautiful little project! I love that you hung the pictures above a work desk. Definitely makes work more enJOYable : )
How fun! It's always great to find ways to bring even more JOY into our days.
What a fun project! I love that your daughter was concerned you were going to ruin those pictures 🙂
Such an inspiring post and project – it's so easy to get caught up with the craziness of life and forget that we are all surrounded with so much joy. Love that you made something that reminds you of the things that really matter 🙂
So adorable! I love the simplicity and it looks so cute! Thanks for sharing on #SITSsharefest! 🙂
They turned out so stinkin cute!! Thanks for the shoutout. It’s always great to hear from you!