7thJoy Girls are Home for Christmas...the fun begins!!

And so it is Christmas, Yesterday it was October 31st….

Thanks to so many who visited with us at our annual 7thJoy Trunk Show. You blessed us in so many ways.

It's all just a beautiful blur!!!

And now I’m HOME, finished at the 7thJoy workroom….finished decorating other’s homes…finished baking goodies for other’s gift baskets. And it feels OH so nice!

After a couple of days of much needed rest, a quick girls trip to Canton, awesome band concerts and a precious Day School Christmas program featuring Mr. Jackson Abbott and his little sis Quinn, with an impromptu performance in the isle…I’m looking forward to just enjoying the next 12 days of Christmas!!!

On the first day of B’s Christmas…God gave to me! Rest, beautiful rest!

And now I’m looking forward to spending time decorating my “real” frazier fur with the boys and St. Philip, wrapping packages so I can walk through my bedroom and listening to every last Christmas CD while counting the days!

May your families be blessed knowing the true meaning of this beautiful season and celebrate the love that was born to us all that first Noel!

Merry Joyful Christmas to everyone, b

Trunk Show Busyness...will blog next week! Joy postponed!

In the meantime....if you didn't get the memo!

7thJoy's 2011 Christmas Trunk Show

www.pingg.com

With great excitement and much gratitude, we are hosting our 4th Annual Christmas Trunk Show!
This year features...
7thJoy, Unique Upcycled Gifts &
         Christmas Dressings
Alisa Parks, Silpada Jewelry
Cami Boyett, Funky Found Items
         & Accessories
Michelle Abbott, Hissy Fit Bows
         & Clothes
and of course knitted creations
        & homemade goodies
by our beloved family & friends!!!

So hold on to your Christmas Hats,
    wear them if you please....
    Just grab a friend &
    join us for great shopping,
    sipping, snacking & sharing....
    as we welcome Christmas with Gratefulness!!
Sincerely, Belinda & Robin

Remember, cash & checks only!!

September & October 2011

Hello Seventhjoy Visitor…

Due to an update on our website, you are temporarily redirected to my 7thJoy Blog. Please browse the additional pages for new creations and information about our 2011 7thJoy Christmas Trunk Show, scheduled for November 18th~    

Thanks, Belinda & Robin

Everything Falls….

Well, September just dropped by and I didn’t stop to blog for several reasons…

I was busy, doing Lord knows what! What was I doing Lord? Well, He might say…nothing of significance, Belinda! And to that I would say, You are so completely right Father! Design and sewing are my passions, not Yours!

In my constant state of “busyness”, sometimes I neglect the most important things. One of those is my prayer time. If I don’t spend that precious and much needed time in the morning talking with Him, then I find myself at night, head on my pillow, waking only to realize that I fell asleep…again, before I finished our conversation. I didn’t even give Him a chance to respond. No wonder I can’t hear his voice!!


Can you imagine how many conversations with God end just this way in one given evening? Yet each time we pray, He is there ready to hear us, never too busy, never distracted, never exhausted. Exactly the way a perfect parent should be. Oh, if I could only be that kind of parent…and child! Today, I had plenty of time to converse with Him.


A much too long to do list + a soaking sink left running + a multi-tasking 54 year old = A slippery laundry room floor!  Results… A comfy chair, an ice packed knee & a slow day of reflection...


Funny, I know God knows I am too busy right now for a knee injury and had nothing to do with my fall! I am just thankful that he is always there to pick me up and listen when I need him; regardless of our last neglectful and one sided conversation. Constantly I am reminded that there are so many others with much more serious trials, daunting obstacles, extreme hurt and heartfelt pain, than myself!


Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. (Ephesians6:18 NIV)

When we obey God, even in small ways, “we find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God’s grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise.” (Romans 5:2 MSG)

Eyes joyfully wide open, praying for so many friends who need God so much today! b

Just Parched!

In this relentless heat, my designing friend Robin and I agree that we are just PARCHED!

Partly due to the 109 degree Texas weather and partly from the lack of life refreshment we seem to be experiencing of late. It's bad enough that today’s world seems to be handing out more lemons than usual; but making lemonade from those lemons certainly can prove difficult, especially in drought conditions.

So after a couple of months of just waiting for a breeze, much procrastination and lots of “we know we shoulds”; she and I pulled our wheels out of our extremely dry ditches and found a “very cool” way to begin our preparation for 7thJoy’s 2011 Christmas Trunk Show!

We turned the air down, to heck with limiting electrical use and we played in some snow…well kind of! What better way to remedy PARCHEDNESS than making parchment/paper snow people.

Finding a respite from the real world at my kitchen counter,

we quietly talked and prayed for winds of change, life rejuvenation,

cold hard rain (warm soft rain will do!)

and lots of lemonade (absolut.ly!)

Thought I’d share just a tiny preview of our “cool” diversion, urging thoughts of blessed Fall being just around the corner and even beautiful Winter, hopefully not too far behind.

May your day be refreshed with the “cool” spirit of God’s love and the thought that this “parchedness” too shall pass!!!!

Joyfully sipping lemonade sans the absolut, b

A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
Proverbs 11:25

“A woman is like a tea bag, you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water”
- Eleanor Roosevelt

Oh, the comfort - the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person - having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are, chaff and grain together; certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then with the breath of kindness blow the rest away. Author unknown

Stand!

School begins and I'm left standing in the driveway wondering where time goes!

My prayer for these, my precious sons and for everyone I know, call friend and love...is that today and always you will stand in God's love and power!

In Christ alone, my hope is found


He is my light, my strength, my song


This cornerstone, this solid ground


Firm through the fiercest drought and storm


What heights of love, what depths of peace


When fears are stilled, when strivings cease


My comforter, my all-in-all


Here in the love of Christ I stand

There in the ground His body lay


Light of the world by darkness slain


Then bursting forth in glorious day


Up from the grave He rose again

And as He stands in victory


Sin's curse has lost its grip on me

For I am His and He is mine


Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death

This is the power of Christ in me


From life's first cry to final breath


Jesus commands my destiny


No power of hell, no scheme of man


Can ever pluck me from His hand

Till He returns or calls me home


Here in the power of Christ I'll stand

Till He returns or calls me home


Here in the power of Christ I'll stand

Here in the power of Christ I'll stand

(Owl City singing In Christ Alone)

        Be sure to listen and have a wonderful joy filled first day of school or whatever your Monday holds!!
                                                STANDING in his love...thank goodness, b

Protected nest!

Ask any Texan, and you will no doubt learn that the mockingbird has the prettiest song of any bird native to North America, making it the chief reason the "mocker" was adopted as the state bird of Texas in 1927. The mockingbird is also known as a fierce protector of its nest and environment. It is sometimes seen swooping down on a dog, cat or ME for venturing too close to the bird's protected territory.

I have spent the last month intrigued by a mockingbird couple who took up residence in a basket on my front door. One day their nest just appeared and sometime later I discovered beautiful blue speckled eggs. Then of course I anxiously snooped each morning until the eggs hatched! Baby birds…how adorably ugly!!! Little did I know the down side of having a nest at the front door, but a quick trip to the mailbox and back, taught me a lesson about a watchful mother and the lengths one will go to protect their young! My head still hurts a little!! Good thing she can sing!!!

Sweetly, St. Philip reminded me that I would do the same thing if I thought someone was going to hurt my babies….

just use the back door!!!

He was right, I would do the same thing…I pride myself in being a good mother, a loving mother, a protective mother…but sometimes these attributes don’t always work well together for the greater good! As a mother of a teenager in “love”, I realize that to be protective is not always seen as loving or good in their eyes. I also have to say that I must have missed this lesson with my oldest son…or maybe I was just too busy chasing toddlers to be protective of their handsome, “glad I was busy” 16 year old brother. I am learning, slowly, that my being protective can put me in the “enemy category”. The mockingbird swoop isn’t working! Instead of making things better, I’m making things worse. My attempts at making things clearer, just muddy the waters. Apparently, things are different now than they were in the “olden’ days! If only I could sing….someone might adopt me as the "State Mother". Maybe I should just busy myself with the grandkids…I’m better with toddlers ~ Or maybe I should just use the back door, it’s safer!

MY backdoor ~ Prayer… prayer that 17 year olds will open their eyes and see that God has a wonderful plan for them, that may or may not include each other, prayer that my loving concern and protectiveness will one day be accepted, and prayer that a few years from now we will all look back on this, understand and smile!

If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children,

how much more will your Father who is in heaven

give good things to those who ask Him
Matthew 7:11

Joyfully swooping from the backdoor, b

It’s been so dry around here lately, in more ways than one….

As I look out at my nearly departed grass and try to determine which section needs water more, I think why bother??? Let’s just pray it will come back next year; maybe we’ll be blessed with more rain…God willing!!!

I have to laugh at myself, my contradictory self! I pray for rain, just not in my life. Even though I remind myself quite often, after the storm comes the rainbow!

It’s funny how we depend on the rain to nourish our world, our crops and gardens, our surroundings, ourselves. Without it we would have no food for strength and growth, no water for cleansing and purifying. And as our bodies need the blessed rain, so do our hearts and souls. The not so welcomed rain or storms of life, give us reason to look upward, to depend on our heavenly Father for comfort, strength and rejuvenation. Confirmation of this is all around me!

My son said the other day, “Mom, you need to water the back yard…it is starting to crack and soon this “old house” is going to get swallowed up.” I was amazed at the thoughts that came to mind as I begin to look at the need for rain in more ways than one. You see, if we go too long without heavy rain in our lives, we too begin to harden, so much so that even when it sprinkles a little, it bounces off and we forget to look up and be grateful. After a while, we have no choice but to crack and get swallowed up. Swallowed up in the things of this world; keeping us from truly remembering the source of our blessings.

I for one have been feeling a little hard & dry skinned lately…honestly a little dry hearted.

That’s exactly why I haven’t blogged in a while; felt I really had nothing beautiful or creative to share!

But yesterday…it rained here. Not outside (sad to say), but in my “old house”.  In short, the heat of the Texas summer…teenage boys who have been a bit overindulged…and having to tag team in the parenting game of late, finally brought me to my knees. It has been sprinkling for a while, but yesterday the downpour came. And needless to say my St. Philip Umbrella was in Austin. Then I looked up! Through the rain I saw the rainbow! So the boys and I had a Come to Jesus “in the rain” Meeting.

I finally figured out what God had been trying to tell me for a while! I am happy to say that we are all rehydrated. Full of God’s grace, I am strengthened and rejuvenated, praying that from this day forward, me and these precious boys of mine will stand strong together and get through this season with our steadfast St. Philip working in another city!

 So let the rain fall in Tomball,
reminding us all to look upwards & be joyful, b

Happy Father's Day Philip!

My gift this year is strength on this end, never ending love and no more whining!

As I listen to this Mercy Me song, thanks to a sweet friend….it all becomes ever so clear!

Bring me joy, bring me peace

Bring the chance to be free

Bring me anything that brings You glory

And I know there'll be days

When this life brings me pain

But if that's what it takes to praise You

Jesus, bring the rain

Definition of MEMORIAL \mə-ˈmȯr-ē-əl\

1: serving to preserve remembrance : COMMEMORATIVE

2: of or relating to memory

                                           

Memorial Day, the day for remembering and honoring those who have died in service to our country! And we should not forget those who served and are still serving our country all over the world. Let us honor their sacrifices and the families left behind by lifting them up constantly in our prayers!

We must not take our freedom, every day blessings or each other for granted!

...and for us believers, remembering starts out by recalling God is the source of all good things, of every Joy! b

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously 2 Corinthians 9:6

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give Up. Galatians 6:9

Doing Floors...Extra Grace Required!

One of the best things I’ve ever experienced was studying “The Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren, with my old church. It just helped make so much of God’s plan and purpose for my life close to crystal clear!

However…once in a while the crystal still gets a little fogged up!! It seems to happen when I start steaming as I can do on occasion or maybe just breathing a little too hard in exasperation. But if I’m honest, most of the time it is caused by those out of control tears that I thought by now I’d be in control of, being 53 and all! If you know me, you know I’m a crier, happy, sad, commercials, kids, music, friends…you name it, I’m moved to droplets! Well anyway, you get the picture.


One of the most inspirational things I remember about the study was that we can worship God in anything we do…even something as simple as doing the dishes. My understanding or the way I see it, is I should feel His presence even next to my sink, thanking him for the dirty dishes that were moments before filled with food, the fresh water to clean them and working hands to do so…not everyone is so blessed. Doing so with Joy in my heart is a form of worship!

And no, I don’t always wash dishes with JOY….but it’s something to aspire to do!

  Today I’m doing floors…finding the Joy in cleaning hardwoods…again, not so easy!

Extra Grace Required!

But one of the most important things I learned from the study was that there will always be people in our lives who require an extra amount of grace…myself totally included. Each of us have those people in our lives at some time or another; someone who makes your life crazy (St. Philip knows), someone that you try and try to make peace with, but fail and feel guilty…We must learn not to feel guilty, some people are just flat out difficult. I remind myself of this often with my teenage boys. Thankful I am that our issues are minor, still they are challenging! You see, 15 and 17 year old boys, excuse me “young men” don’t dance well with a 53+year old hormonal mother! Lots of unclear crystal & extra grace required on both parts.

So whether it be a spouse, a child, parents, siblings, friends or not…

Give them to God and focus on pleasing Him!

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Romans 12:18

Jesus said, "I only seek to please Him who sent me." John 5:30

“Find a quiet, secluded place so you won't be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.” Matthew 6:6

Everyone needs It!!

Can’t think of a more secluded place than down on my knees, with sponge in hand, cleaning the old oak…Praying with every circular motion and rinsing with the droplets!

Asking for grace, joyful grace! b

Springtime...Eastertime...God's Face Shining Upon Us!

This Sunday our tiny Quinn will be baptized, a precious moment in the time of her life when her parents, family and friends join together in a promise to love her, teach her and keep her with God’s face shining upon her; so that one day she will understand and know His redeeming love!

People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. But Jesus called the children to him and said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.' " Luke 18:15-16

I love being reminded of God's rejuvenating love each Spring!!!

May the glory and promise

of this joyous time of year

bring peace and happiness to you

and those you hold most dear,

And may Christ,

Our Risen Saviour,

always be there by your side

to bless you most abundantly

and be your loving guide.

Joyfully hoping for a shiny hopping Easter for all of you!! b

Choice, Purpose, Life Encompassed

I have some choices to be made of late and lately I dread making choices!!

I’ve been offered a position in a great decorative shop in Tomball, I have some wonderful clients I’m working with right now and I have been asked to be a part of a wonderful holiday show that will take an enormous amount of time to prepare for …..Hhmmm????

Not to mention, the boys, the grandbugs, Gracie (the sweet pee dog) and the "ever needing attention" Charlton House!!! Oh, and the two upcoming weddings I’m working on; I just love weddings!!!

It’s true, I love being busy, work better under pressure, and all that good stuff, but as I get older, I have a harder time focusing and doing it all without “stressing” too much! And these days just making a decision is stressful, what’s with that?

Add to all this...I spent the weekend thinking about purpose, what is mine?

(A question we should all ask ourselves from time to time!)

Am I using my God given talents? Yes, I think so!

Does what I do help others? Yes, I think so!

But is it what God wants me to do, does it glorify Him?

That I’m not so sure of!

When I took these pictures of the old house on our family farm, a house that used to be a home to someone, a home that was painstakingly built, simply but thoughtfully decorated, cared for and lived in for decades…it reminded me of many things.

It reminded me of how time and things pass so quickly.

It reminded me of how without care, things deteriorate.

And it reminded me of how in an instance, or years, things are gone!

Leaving just memories to reflect on…

But it also reminded me that our homes are where those memories are born, the experiences, the laughter, the love, the warmth, all the joy along with the tears, the tragedy and the sadness; life encompassed.

So for now, I think I am doing what God wants me to do…helping make houses into homes that will encompass lives full of wonderful memories. And I pray that with each home I enter, I will warm it with God’s love, shade it with God’s grace, and leave it with God’s blessing, plus a few beautiful accessories to boot!

Did I make a decision about what I will focus on this year…no not yet, but it is just March after all! Joyfully considering my options, b

Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
Proverbs 19:21

7thJoy Bloggett for March 8, 2011

                                                            What is green?

                                                  by Garrison Shaw

Green is the smell of pine

The color of prairies and peaceful pastures

It is good fortune in a time of distress

It is a tree bearing fruits

Green is the tall grass that waves in the wind

 which peaceful serenity will never end...

It is unexplored land beyond feeble man's grasp

It is the heavenly peace we long for

It is peace

It is promise

It is home

Azaela Trail 2011

Garrison, my full of surprises son,,,strolled in this morning offering to read a poem he wrote in English yesterday. With his permission, I share.   That Garrison...he just amazes me sometimes!!!!  A little ahead of St. Patrick's Day, have an awsomely peaceful and joyfully Green Day!  b

Paint Choice.. Can B Easy

Sometimes painting can be a hard step to take, but it is so well worth the cost and time in transforming your space. My philosophy….IT’S JUST PAINT! And if you do it yourself, it's JUST time! The results can transform dull to cheerful, cold to warm, stark to opulent, house to home!

B’s Close-to-full-proof Plan:

Step 1: 

Find an inspiration piece; artwork, fabric, rug…

any current or new piece to be used in your room.

Or simply find a magazine setting that you love and want to work toward.

Not my favorite style or colors, but works for tutorial.....

Step 2:

Visit your favorite paint store/supplier!

Take all the samples you want in the color you have in mind.

Many offer color visualizers on-line… http://www.sherwinwilliams.com/

Fun to play with, sometimes helpful, however, PC monitor colors are NEVER true!!

Sherwin Williams, easy access & used by most contractors in my area,  but my favs are Behr & Ben Moore!!

Step 3: 

Pick your favorites…2-4 that work the best with your inspiration piece. 

SPEND the money on samples (Avg. Cost $5 each)…

Purchase an 8x10 Water Color Pad (available in most craft stores)…

Paint solid coat of each color on water color paper, clearly labeled w/color name.

Watch those taupes....read pink without rose colored glasses....I usually steer clear!  I'm a warm girl myself!

And yes, I get a little carried away...too many beautiful choices!!

Step 4: 

Tack up DRY samples on your walls in different areas of the room,

taking advantage of the room’s lighting.

View the colors & how they change with natural lighting during all times of day.

Take your time, determine which feels best before making your final choice!

See how the light changes the look!

Step 5:  Pray, then Paint!

Things to keep in mind but not be stifled by!

BEWARE: Paint FINISH (flat, satin, eggshell, matte) will affect the color slightly and each paint manufacturer offers several finishes and label them differently!!!

Better to spend $50+ on paint samples…than purchasing a room full of paint based on that beautiful “Apple Green” color card; only to find out on your walls, it reads more like “Infant Diaper Green”.

Dark colors require AT LEAST two coats, sometimes a primer!

Bold colors CAN work in a small room!

Don’t forget ceilings…painting them can finish off a room

 “like nobody's-business”!

Lighter shades are “IN”...for now!

And last but not least “IT’S JUST PAINT!”

GO FOR IT Joyfully, b

Wheels, Ditches, Ruts!

Robin and I often joke about "getting our wheels off in a ditch” …a phrase she coined after spending a little too much time looking for inspiration on the web and something I do when trying to figure out my direction and the where’s & why’s of life in my way too analytical mind! I read this the other day and found it extremely fitting for whatever ditch or rut I seem to find myself in lately….

On an old dirt road a sign was posted that read: "For the next two miles, choose your rut." Think about that for a moment. Today you will make a choice about the rut in your life. The options are plentiful, however, remember some will lead to happiness and joy, while others will try to destroy all that is good in your life. But the choice is yours. What will you choose? Godspeed!

Each Monday morning, as I drink the coffee that St. Philip makes for me (he gets to work in Houston on Mondays and Fridays), I plan my weeks activity. I can choose to work/or NOT, a blessing of unbelievable abundance! And as I think back on the many years as a single mom, when I longed for a day to just stay home and catch up on housework and a favorite soap opera (yes I do occasionally) or do nothing at all; I know that life doesn’t get much better than this…. As much as I love my path at this juncture with limitless choices and plentiful options, I can still manage to get in my own self-induced RUT!

 Inevitably this keeps me from moving in the direction I am meant to travel!

So this is my new plan for avoiding nonjoyous ditches and ruts….i’ve added the little tidbits to the right!

Live with intention.                                  ... God's purpose is evident!

walk to the edge.                                              ... just avoid the RUT!

listen hard.                                                       ... closed lips required!

practice wellness.                                                  ... RUT prevention!

play with abandon.                                               ... abandon routine!

laugh.                                                              ... it's the JOY vitamin!

choose with no regret.                                  ... pray before choosing!

continue to learn.                                        ... open mind, open heart!

appreciate your friends.                                ... they keep you honest!

do what you love.                  ... and love those who make it possible!

                                          (St. Philip)

live as if this is all there is.          ... but look forward to going Home!

                                            it’s why we’re here!!

-mary anne radmacher                                                                     -b

So today, choose your RUT! May it be God driven and full of JOY! B

p.s. follow my upcoming blog posts, CHOICE being the topic!  Who knows, I may learn something??

God's Love to You!

On first love….
If I had a single flower for every time I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden. ~C. Ghandi

On lost love…
No love, no friendship, can cross the path of our destiny without leaving some mark on it forever. ~Francois Mauriac

On unconditional love…
Suddenly, quietly, you realize that – from this moment forth – you will no longer walk through this life alone. Like a new sun this awareness arises within you, freeing you from fear, opening your life. It is the beginning of love, & the end of all that came before. ~Robert Frost

On true love…
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. ~NIV 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

May you all have a JOY filled, truly loved Valentine's Day! b

Meet Phoebe Grace….or just Gracie

Latest addition to the Shaw family…she was a bit of a surprise…in a round about way!

You see, a sweet friend’s Mama Yorkie, Daisy, gave birth to Phoebe Grace and her sister on November 10th ,one promised to her son and Phoebe promised to another friend; but after much deliberation and the unexpected adoption of a stray, that friend was unable to give this little one a home, so guess who said yes………

And we are having a “splendid time”, between the puddles! If you know me, you know I’ve never been much of a “house dog” person…OH, I’ve attempted it a couple of times, an unavoidable life experience with boys!

Just never fared very well, not the dogs, me! But at this mellow (right!) age, I have been thinking about it quite a bit and just felt the need to care for something tiny and sweet that doesn’t talk back!

Genesis 1:26    Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

 or wees on rugs! 

See GRACIE, God says I’m in charge!

So far she has been a delight. She is quick, smart, loves her big brothers and the grand babies! I’d say she’s a keeper. Who knows, I might even become one of those “dog purse” carrying women.

Oh my goodness, Save Me!

Just waiting for the day I can put a bow in Gracie’s hair, you knew it was inevitable!

Not so Joyfully walking around with paper towel in hand, b

White Wagon Wondering....????

I’ve noticed that many of you sweet followers/blogcheckers/bored but loving friends, check on my White Wagon Progress post occasionally and you’re all probably thinking...

 Wagons are slow, but this one is off in the ditch!!

Well you’re right about the off in the ditch part, except it’s not my little white wagon, it is little ol’me….and I use that term loosely for sure! It is my well known nature or tendency to get off track, off task, off in a direction all together different. But occasionally, where I go brings loads more Joy than if I had kept my wheels in line as intended.

By way of the ditch and better late than never, here is the finished product….

 The room was actually finished in time for our 7thJoyTrunk Show in December.

But due to the fact that I have way too much STUFF,

it remains my tiny little 7thJoy Design Showroom

(my larger workroom yet a dream!)

And More Stuff!

 

And it occasionally plays guest bedroom to friends/sisters who bless our home ever so often and need a comfy place to sleep that isn’t otherwise occupied by stinky teenage boys! 

  The color-Straw Harvest, the floor-60yearold Painted/Now Polished Cement, the dust ruffle & window treatments-made from yardage I purchased some 15 years ago…trust me, I knew I’d find a use for it someday! And the rest…just things or stuff collected for another time when I find just the right need!

 So stop by, enjoy and come visit me anytime!

Joyfully keeping the light on!!! b