Search Results for: social shareits

Hello, 2013. / Introducing: House Of Joyful Noise Social ShareIts

January 1, 2013 By Laura 2 Comments

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

Well now . . . . we’ve all talked about the coming new year enough. Don’t-ya-think? Now it’s HERE.
Time to just LIVE IT, People!

That includes us.
We’ve told you we have some all new and exciting things in store for this year, and I’m about to tell you about one of them.

At the beginning of last year (2012) I resolved to get back to my hand-created artwork skills. Many of you (may) know I went to art school, worked in the illustrating art field for some years freelancing (mostly doing large portraits of people), and then got more and more in depth with photography. Something I had always studied. But in the course of my 13 great years in my (photography) business, I really got away from my love for creating my own authentic artwork. : ( You know….artwork created on paper. With pencils, paints and palettes and other fun tools in my hands. I got to missing it so much, it almost hurt. I’m not kidding. But I had no time to spend with it! No time to really make a mess, and create something – mine. Without my camera. So in 2012, with putting my photography business aside, I found the time! I did. Not quite as much time as I wanted. But I did create a handful of things! Things that I found so much great joy in creating. In fact one of those things turned out to be our #1 most viewed project of the year 2012! Maybe because that one was made with extra love. Or maybe because the world was a little mesmerized with my doodling. (Something anyone can do, by the way. Just give it a go!) But back to the here and now.

This year, I will find even more time, for my artwork. Yes-I-will. And I know I will, because I need to so badly now. The more I indulge in creating, the more I just have to. After anything with my children, or singing a song that gives praise to the Lord, just sitting . . . . and fooling around with different mediums, is way too much fun for me. And therapeutic. And it just puts a happy in my heart and soul, that I would never be able to describe. All is right with the world, when that’s what I’m doing. Hours escape me. (“Really? I should have started dinner an hour ago? What in the world time is it, Honey?”)

Of course, along with hand-created illustration work, I’ll always have what photography and graphic skills I might have too.
And that leads me to what is in all of this for you, this year!

Using any one of those skills, I decided to create a series throughout all of the year 2013, called . . . .

House Of Joyful Noise ‘Social ShareIts’.

What are House Of Joyful Noise ‘Share Its’?
They are those little mini-poster sort of things, that you can share all over your social world.
You can Facebook them
Pin them on Pinterest.
Tweet them on Twitter.
Google+ them in your circles.
. . . or anywhere else you socially network.

I’m going to have a blast, making more and more.

They will be created with various forms of my artwork….and express quotes of my own or others (credited.)
Some will be hand hand-illustrated. Others will be created with photography or graphic design.
The bottom line is…..If they speak to your heart, or inspire you in any way, you’ll be so welcome to grab them and share them for yourself.

The test run has proved way successful.
(Thanks to all of you, who follow us on Facebook!)
I shared my first two New Year’s Eve morning, and they have already been SHARE’d hundreds of times over. AND counting.
Here are those two – and you are welcome to save them right from here, and SHARE them wherever you’d like.

As they are created, throughout the year, and just as I am inspired to make them, I will share them right here on our blog, and at the various places you may follow us.
(See links to follow us, below.)

There’s SO much more to come, here at House Of Joyful Noise.
Here’s to an AMAZING 2013, to all of us.
♥

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Mother’s Day | A Social ShareIt

May 11, 2013 By Laura 2 Comments

One night a week or two ago (have I told you how bad I am with time frames, yet?, lol) . . . Michael and I were having a casual conversation. So very casual in fact, that we were both in the bathroom, getting ready for bed, come to think of it. Anyway, I don’t remember (either) exactly what the conversation was originally about, but it was on the topic of Mother’s Day being around the bend. And the course of that conversation led me to state how “Mother’s Day was a way bigger deal to me, than my birthday”.

For some reason, that statement seemed to get Michael’s attention in such a way, that it got my attention, because it got his, so much. It was the surprise in his voice, and the tone of his sudden and very real curiosity, of how he said, “It does? WHY?!”.
Like he really didn’t get how Mother’s Day could trump my birthday. Which, to me, was just silly to wonder. I couldn’t believe I had to explain that.
But it was such an easy explanation. And so the answer flowed like honey, from my heart and soul:

“Mother’s Day means more to me than my birthday. Because while my birthday is a celebration of the day I was born, Mother’s Day, to me, feels like a celebration of the reason why.”

And then, after I said it so matter of factly, and maybe because it was late and I was tired, all of the power behind the sincerity of those words, that came so easily from the most sacred part of my heart, hit me. So I actually had to go into the other room for a minute, to just have a a little quiet cry with myself.
It was not a sad cry. It was a cry that just came from that overwhelming sense of love in the sincerity of the words I had just spoken, and knowing how truly blessed I am, with my children.
Truly.

I know we all are. All of us who are mothers, however we came to be one, and to whatever children God placed in our care.
We are all blessed to have this role, whether we know it or not. I know many really do.
I know I really do.

Someday, maybe I will share with you all the story of my children, and how God really did grant me their earthly lives, in a very special understanding between me and Him. Especially with the triplets; and the part their big sister played in their lives before we were even expecting them. It’s a quite deep and emotional story; so much so that it would take a lot for me to tell it all. And I know it would be a long post, and an emotional event to type. It’s another reason I’ve yet to tell it. But I can tell you this; Despite the hopeless odds and statistics, in one situation after another from the moment we learned of their conception, through the weeks following their birth, our trio are still here on earth because God heard my daily, sometimes hour-long prayers, from the 6+ month bed-rest I was prescribed to. He is the Ultimate Physician. Scientific odds and statistics are completely irrelevant, where His hand is involved. These children I have, are all here on His Creation of this earth, because it was HIS will for them to be.
And for as long as He intends them to be, He has named me; their mother.

Blessed, am I.

He gave them to me to care for, and raise, according to His will. As He did any mother who has been given a child or children, in any way they’ve been given to them. There are days I feel so very unworthy of His trust. But there are never days I don’t know what a gift it is. And so I count these 4 blessings daily, and do the best I can, with all of the love and gratitude I have, to fulfill my promises and His trust in me. I know there are days He is more pleased with me, than others. I know there are days much easier, for me, than others.
But if I pay attention, there are also days I feel Him right beside me; and the power of my role spills from a place beyond my comprehension.
We parents, we are not alone in this sometimes daunting, but always rewarding, task. Our Heavenly Father; the Father of us all, is with us every step of the way.

The journey that led to the day I held my first child in my arms, and the next chapters that led to our trio coming into this world, has shown me a conviction, of which no one can convince me otherwise:

Motherhood, is meant to be a vocation.

And it is surely mine.

Blessed, am I.
Blessed are you, mothers.
Happy Mother’s Day.

******

On Facebook, you can share this creation, if you feel the same about “Motherhood”, or any other ShareIts we have so far, from our Facebook Page’s ‘Social ShareIt’ Album.
On Pinterest, you can repin from our ‘House Of Joyful Noise Social ShareIts’ Board, or you’re welcome to just pin it right from this post.

Let us know what you think of this new ‘Social ShareIt’ below, and thanks so much for swinging by!

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Can’t We All Just COLOR? | A Social ShareIt

April 16, 2013 By Laura 1 Comment

I saw this question/quote on a T-Shirt online the other day, and it really cracked me up! It read,

“Can’t we all just color?”

I knew I had to make it into a House Of Joyful Noise Social ShareIt, for you all to grab and share online.
I’m guessing it’s a spin off of the saying, “Can’t we all just get along?” I don’t know for sure.

But I found it funny, because that’s not what it made me think of.
It made me think of all of the days when I had cleaning, or dishes, or laundry, or other more task-orientated things to do.
But all I really wanted to do, was COLOR! Or paint. Or design. Or create something (anything!) fun and exciting and creative.

I do have to set a good example for my four blessings, though. I’m the Mama! Right? So I have my one-liners I remind my kiddos of all of the time, and trust me . . . . they sound really good and convincing, coming out of my mouth. Like:

“First things first, Guys!”
or
“Work hard, then play hard. That’s our motto!”

When sometimes what I’d really like to say, but can’t, is . . . . . .

Who doesn’t love coloring? Right? Although I have to admit: crayons is not my favorite medium to work with. I don’t think I really rock at coloring with crayons. Especially after I saw my sister-in-laws coloring one time. We were both at the coffee table, (I think with our kids? I can’t be sure. lol. But we were definitely adults.), and I looked over her page, and was like, “Wha-what?”. Her coloring was so awesome. And I thought I was the artist. So then I was like, well, . . . . let’s just say I put my crayon down.
But HEY, one can color with all kinds of other things! And I do!!

So what to do with this, if you love it? On your Facebook, you can share this creation, “Can’t We all Just Color?”, or any other Social ShareIts we have so far, from our Facebook Page’s ‘Social ShareIt’ Album, as soon as it is shared on our Page. On your Pinterest, you can repin from our ‘House Of Joyful Noise Social ShareIts’ Board, when you see it, if you are following us there. (You may consider that an invitation. ; ) OR, you’re welcome to just PIN IT right now from this post! You may notice that if you hover over our pics, a PIN IT button conveniently shows up for you now!

Hope you like our new Social ShareIt! It’s all yours!
Remember to take a little time to color, along your day.
After your work is done, of course. : )

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Love is the Beauty of the Soul./ A Social ShareIt

February 14, 2013 By Laura 7 Comments

With yet another mess on my sun room table to share with you today, you may be interested in an update on how the art studio is coming along.
Yes, no, maybe?
Well, as of this week, it is all wired for the electricity. So we’re happy to have that part finished.
Also, the entire studio is all primed and painted. Which is just all white. I’m thinking that would be pretty boring photos for you all. But it sure looks a lot nicer, and brighter, then it did, with just the sheet-rock. I believe the ceiling is next, and that may be something to see. We’re going with something a little different than traditional, with that. So stay tuned if you care to see.

No big story on this ‘Social ShareIt’. I think the statement speaks for itself, and the heart I painted is just what I envisioned for it.
This was a challenging painting, trying to get the effect I wanted. I was going for a glow or light from within the heart. Watercolor painting is such an ongoing learning experience, for me. There are so many techniques you can use, to get different effects. I can feel myself learning more and more, each time I paint, and it only adds fuel to the fire. I just want to paint more and more. Wet on wet is always fun, and it really pushes me, because I need to work quickly.

Still wet.

After scanning it into the computer, and adding some text design, here is the finished ‘Social ShareIt’ . . . .

I was pleased with how it came out.
On Facebook, you can share this creation, “Love is the Beauty of the Soul’, or any other ShareIts we have so far, from our Facebook Page’s ‘Social ShareIt’ Album.
On Pinterest, you can repin from our ‘House Of Joyful Noise Social ShareIts’ Board, or you’re welcome to just pin it right from this post.

More of what we’ve been up to, and some other show-and-tell, coming up soon.
Let us know what you think of this new ‘Social ShareIt’ below, and thanks so much for swinging by!

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Let Your Happy Shine! / A Social ShareIt

January 27, 2013 By Laura 2 Comments

I’ve been spending lots of time painting lately.
I can’t tell you all how much I love just sitting, and doing artwork. Any kind of artwork. Drawing or painting. It doesn’t matter.
Hours will escape me. But they are such happy hours.
Without the drink. Ha ha.
O.k., maybe sometimes with a drink. If it’s weekend night. lol

It seems I must love creating. Because I seem to make a great big mess in the process, every single time, that I have to clean up.
I sure am looking forward to that art studio being ready, for me to move right in!

Oh, the happy hours I will spend there!
And I won’t have to pick up projects I am working on, before I’m actually done.

Of course, there are many things that make me happy. So many.
I was thinking a lot about that kind of thing, all throughout painting this little piece I’m sharing today.

Do you know those kind of people, who just always seem to radiate happiness? Surely there are people like that in your life. I know there are some in mine.
They are the ones that are just always smiling. Always hugging. The ones that light up when they see you, and are eager to talk to you. They make you feel so special, just the way you are, for who you are. And yet, you see them the same with others. Or the kind of people who you can just watch from afar, and see they are finding the real reasons to celebrate life, right there in that moment. What a blessing they are to know, and have in our lives. What good examples for us all, too.

They are the ones who inspired this piece I painted. The ones I am personally blessed with in my life. But also the ones you know.
Or strangers we all happen upon in the course of any day, who we noticed made others smile or laugh around them.

Knowing first hand how it feels so nice, to be a part of their happiness, should inspire us to let our own, SHINE a little more, onto others.
I know I personally am not always beaming happiness! I can let the little things get me down. The things I know will be all but forgotten, tomorrow.
Maybe some are just better at believing that in the moment, and letting those little things go sooner. So I don’t think for anyone of us, it’s a matter of pretending.

It’s a matter of choosing joy, moment by moment.
And letting it SHINE, to show our love, and help lift others, who may truly be facing bigger problems than our own, that day.

Being able to shine our own happiness for others more often, when we can, is probably a matter of choices too. Don’t you think? To me, I think happiness derives for anyone from always counting your blessings. From knowing God, and having a great relationship with Him. It comes from truly loving those in our life who we have to love in our life, while we do! Our families and friends. And it comes from our own unique gifts, that we DO all have. (I’ve talked about that soooo many times, here on the blog.) Everyone has at least one gift, they are meant to use in their life. But all of these things I mentioned, I think are gifts in and of themselves, given to us by God, to know happiness. When we accept them for all that they are, we can’t help by SHINE HAPPINESS, for a time.
Why not shine it on others, and spread the love and joy?

So what have I been painting? Well, I’ve been working on some more ‘Social ShareIts’.

Do you know what our ‘Social ShareIts’ are?

You see them all of the time on Facebook, and maybe Pinterest or Twitter or other social networks. I just named them, for me. : ) I’m talking about those little mini-posters/pictures, that make you laugh, or smile, give you an A-HA moment, speak to you in some way, or just have a message you want to spread. So you ‘like’ them or ‘share’ them. Well, I am having so-much-fun, creating our own line of them. Many will be illustrated by me, maybe painted, drawn, or using some other mediums. Others may be using my own photographs I took, and adding text in Photoshop. Or at times, I may use stock photography. And, some will be complete graphic design work. Whatever I feel like doing, in the moment. I find joy in creating in many ways, and I just go with the flow.

So I’ve told you about the inspiration behind this one.
Here is the finished artwork for you . . . . . .

I hope you like it. It’s watercolor paint, and an art pen.

How do you TAKE any of our ‘Social ShareIts’?

I SHARE them with you, to take for yourselves, so that you all can SHARE them with your family and friends on Facebook, or where ever. I often will do a post like this one you are reading, here on our blog, if it was a real creative process, or I have a bit of inspiration behind the work, to tell you about. So you can just’save the image’ from here, and use them as you will. But easier, I will always put them on our blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE, for you to to be able to click SHARE from there. That way you will be SHARING it with your friends and family on Facebook as well. So please be sure you are following us there on Facebook, to see our Social ShareIts as they come out, or any other projects or recipes we are sharing, by click HERE and clicking the LIKE button. If you look under PHOTOS there at our blog’s Facebook Page too, I am building an album named ‘House Of Joyful Noise Social ShareIts’. So you can grab them from there also, or our board under the same name on Pinterest, any time as well.

You can find all of our buttons for all of the places you can follow House Of Joyful Noise, are below this post, as well as at the top right of the blog here.

Now, go out there today, and make the world a brighter place!
I’ll do my best, too.
Thanks as always, for coming by.

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“Can’t we all just color?”

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