What’s In a Jewels Joybox?

What’s In a Jewels Joybox?

by | Sep 2, 2026 | Celebrations

What’s in a Jewels Joybox?

Jewels Joyboxes are all about one thing. Bringing a little joy into the CICU.

Each box is filled with fun, festive items families can use to make their child’s room feel a little less like a hospital and a little more like home. Depending on your celebration, Jewels Joyboxes may include:

  • 🎉 Party supplies for celebrating milestones
  • 🌈 Room decorations to brighten up bare walls
  • 🎄 Seasonal decor to bring a little holiday magic
  • 🎈 Banners, signs and other festive touches
  • ✨ Fun surprises chosen simply because they make a room happier

There’s no other purpose behind a Jewels Joybox. They’re just for joy.

@sparklestrongfoundation She’s ¾ of the way to one—and 100% the sweetest girl in the CICU 💗 We celebrated with cookie favors, sparkly smiles + the most amazing care team. 🎉 Want to help other heart families celebrate these milestone moments? You can shop our wish list or donate to support more CICU-safe parties + caregiver gifts. Because even in the hardest places, joy matters. 🥰 #SparkleStrong#SparkleStrongJewels#CHDAwareness#HeartWarrior#HeartMom#HeartFamily#CongenitalHeartDefect#HLHS#CICU #MedicalMama ♬ Happy / Video CM / Ukulele ♬ Cooking / Family(897363) - ImoKenpi-Dou

Inspired by Our Jewelsy

Jewels Joyboxes are inspired by and named for our sweet Jewelsy, who never knew a bare wall.

We were well known in the CICU for making ourselves at home in her room, decorating it just as we would a typical nursery. We covered those sterile hospital walls with color, celebrations and little pieces of normalcy.

Because even in the midst of all the heaviness the CICU can hold, a child’s room should hold joy, too.

That’s the heart of every Jewels Joybox.

How You Can Get Involved

  • Request a Jewels Joybox. Have a child in the CICU? Request a Joybox for your child’s room at no cost to your family. Currently we serve Oklahoma Children’s and Children’s Medical Center Dallas, but if you are outside those units, feel free to fill our a form. We will try our best to assist or put you in touch with a similar program in your area.
  • Shop Our Wish List. Send something from our wishlist and help us keep the boxes full of color, celebration and fun!
  • Send a Monetary Donation. Prefer to give? A monetary donation helps us purchase the supplies we need most and keep Jewels Joyboxes available to families.

Every little bit helps us fill another box, brighten another room and bring a little more joy to a family who needs it. Thank you for helping us make that possible!

What’s In a Jewels Joybox?

3/4 Cup of Sweetness: Jewels’s 9 Month CICU Birthday

by | May 13, 2025 | Celebrations, Tips

In a place where alarms and uncertainty often fill the air, we’ve made it our mission to infuse every possible moment with love and a little bit of sparkle. And for Baby Jewels’s ¾ birthday, we served up just that in the form of sugar, smiles and the sweetest bakery-themed celebration the CICU has ever seen.

We dreamed up the sweetest party that was equal parts meaningful and magical because when you’re celebrating life in the CICU, you go big in every way you can.

We celebrate each of Jewels’s monthly birthdays, but the quarter marks get a little extra frosting. When you’re walking through the fire, every single moment is something worth making beautiful. Her half birthday was a turning point. When comfort care was suggested, hope felt like something we had to fight for. Now, at 9 months old, we continue to celebrate not just that she is here but that there is hope.

The Sweetest Details

For her ¾ milestone, we leaned all the way into our recipe-themed dreams:

🧁 A bakery backdrop binder clipped to one side of the crib and adorable banners draped around the room
📝 Recipe card station for visitors to share dishes or sweets she can try when she comes home
🍪 Cookie party favors
💅 Bakery-scented hand sanitizer favors
📚 A baking-themed book that became her guest book, signed with love
👩‍🍳 A tiny cupcake outfit and baker’s play set just for Jewels

Thanks to kindhearted professional photographer, Ellen Turcan (found through a local women’s Facebook group), we were able to capture the entire setup — and the joy — beautifully. And I even got to be in the pictures! We all know that moms are usually behind the camera, so it was great to be in the memories, too.

Staff stopped by throughout the day to sign her book, drop off a recipe or wish our girl a happy birthday. When it came time to sing, our amazing nurses made sure the hallway was full and the moment was all hers.

I wouldn’t change a thing.

This celebration was a reflection of everything Sparkle Strong stands for: Finding joy in the in-between, choosing celebration in the CICU and giving families something real and tangible to hold onto. These moments are our lifelines. And I can’t wait to pour even more sweetness into her first birthday party (spoiler alert: it’s going to be magical!).

@magicmemoriesmayhem Happy 9 months, sweetie girl!! We love you big!! 🎂🩷💎💪🏾 #SparkleStrong #SparkleStrongJewels #CHDAwareness #HeartWarrior #HeartMom #HeartFamily #CongenitalHeartDefect #HLHS #HeartTransplant #CICU #CICULife ♬ a dream is a wish your heart makes - christina perri
Celebrating Our CICU Heroes: Nurse Appreciation Week from a Teacher’s Heart

Celebrating Our CICU Heroes: Nurse Appreciation Week from a Teacher’s Heart

by | May 6, 2025 | Celebrations, Tips

The first week of May is a special one! Nurse Appreciation Week and Teacher Appreciation Week fall at the same time. And as a teacher currently out of the classroom, I was feeling that absence hard. But this year, with our sweet Baby Jewels in the CICU, I decided to channel that energy into celebrating the people who’ve become our lifeline: her incredible nursing team!

A Teacher’s Love, Reimagined

Teaching is all about showing up for others in creative, meaningful ways, and that’s exactly what I wanted to do for the nurses who care for our girl like she’s their own. So, I got to work creating a little joy right there in the hospital.

The Treat Cart: Snacks & Sparkles for the Whole Team

For the broader team of nurses, techs and RTs who care for Jewels around the clock, I repurposed something we call Jewels’s cuddle cart (more on that in a future post!) and turned it into a rolling snack and self-care station.

On the cart:

  • Iced energy drinks (I feel bonus points are in order for the creative use of the hospital tubs!)

  • Leftover motivational classroom stickers (because who doesn’t love a sticker?)

  • Salty snacks and candy

  • Donated mocha cakes from MGQ Food & Design

The cart was parked in our room but easily rolled out into the hallway whenever I could, making it accessible but still J-Co friendly, just in case food out in the open became an issue.

DIY Goodie Bags for Jewels’s Care Team

For her primary care team, I put together personalized goodie bags using canvas makeup bags personalized with HTV (heat transfer vinyl) because you know I had to get crafty. I filled each one with:

  • Lip balm

  • Pretty pens

  • Hair clips

  • Hand cream

  • Electrolyte water enhancers

They were simple, useful, and fun, just like something I’d give to my fellow teachers in a past life.

Tips for Doing It Your Way

I didn’t go super budget on this one (shopping has been an outlet), but I did snag great Target Circle deals and coupons to keep costs in check and take advantage of Target 360 delivery to the hospital. If you’re looking to save:

  • Check clearance bins and Easter closeout

  • Skip the HTV and use pre-printed pouches or simple kraft bags

  • Keep your cart or drop-off gifts limited to one or two days instead of a full week

Planning Ahead

One little thing I did that I highly recommend: I offered a quick “favorites” questionnaire to Jewels’s core team so I’d have ideas for future holidays or hard days when I want to treat them again. (Nothing over the top—just fun info like their favorite snacks, drinks, pens, etc.)

A Final Word

Next year, I hope we’re not spending Nurses Week in the CICU, but if we are, I may scale it down to a day or two depending on time and finances. After all, I’m still a single, unemployed teacher. wink

Honestly, though, the best part wasn’t the cart or the gifts. It was watching nurses and staff stop by, smile and pick up something that said “We see you!” That’s what appreciation is all about, Charlie Brown.

@magicmemoriesmayhem Happy Nurses Week! 🩷 #SparkleStrong #SparkleStrongJewels #CHDAwareness #HeartWarrior #HeartMom #HeartFamily #CongenitalHeartDefect #HLHS #HeartTransplant #nurseappreciationweek #NursesWeek #cicu #icu #iculife ♬ Candy Dream - chill kawaii girl

Free Printables

Want to create your own nurse appreciation cart or decorate your door? Don’t forget to slip them in a page protector or laminate them if you’re putting them up on your door.

Download the free Nurse Appreciation Week sign (PDF)

Download the free Thank a Nurse sign (PDF)