Life and Times of the Sharp Family

Today was a rough day.  I am so not a hot weather person, so two days in a row in the 90s is a strain on me both mentally and physically. To make matters worse, I had a crummy day at school and I have been feeling sick the last few days. I'm really not trying to whine, here, honest.  I just want to set the scene for my thankful moment today. I came home right after school.  I had planned on working out, which I skipped, and taking in some clothes to the consignment store, which I also skipped.  I felt terrible and just needed to get home.  When I stumbled in the door, my sweet husband ushered me up to the bedroom, where he had installed a window air conditioning unit.  He had turned it on as soon as he heard I was coming home and didn't feel well. I laid down in the cool room and got some much-needed rest.  I still don't feel 100% and I didn't work out today, but being able to take a nap was a step in the right direction, for sure. Thank God for bedroom A/C! L

For as long as I have lived in the Parma/Spring Arbor/Albion area, I have attended or participated in the Memorial Day Parade through downtown Spring Arbor.  I'm thankful that I had the chance to take my family with me today, that the sun was shining, and that I got to see some of my students in the marching band, JROTC, homecoming royalty float, etc.  One of the most entertaining aspects of the parade for me was watching Breslin scramble after candy and then painstakingly open each piece, missing a large majority of the actual parade in the process. Part of the tradition is to go to my aunt and uncle's house on Lime Lake afterwards where we grill and swim.  On this insanely hot Memorial Day, I was grateful for the cool water and refreshing breezes down at the lake's edge. Thank God for the Memorial Day Parade! Lord, thank you for traditions and for the chance to share them with my family.  Thank you for the nice weather you blessed us with today.  Thank you for this

Today I'm thankful that there are so many things I am thankful for that it is impossible to pick just one. There are a lot of days where I wonder what in the world I am going to write about.  I even stockpile certain things I think of for said days, just so that if I have a really, really dry day I will still have something to write about. Not today. So, here's a list in bullet form, because it has proved impossible to choose only one thing to be thankful for today: I was super productive today.  Colby and I were like a tag-team whirlwind through the house.  We cleaned the porch from top to bottom.  Later in the day we went to Menard's and got some new rugs, some cool lights, and a new cushion for our chair.  It's made a HUGE difference and I can now fully enjoy sitting out here without cringing.  I mowed the lawn.  He vacuumed and did the laundry.  He cleaned the garage.  I went through all of the kids' toys and purged.  It was wonderful. It's our dear

Mmmmmm....the Turkey Hot Plate. My husband is full of phenomenal ideas and today was no exception.  He suggested that we take the kids to see their Uncle Sam play baseball in Charlotte (fitting for Memorial Day weekend, no?) and then swing by Cornwell's Turkey Farm for lunch on our way home.  I rode my bike to meet them at the 10:30 game (this was an adventure in and of itself...apparently Google maps doesn't care if you ride your road bike on paved or dirt roads, flooded over or not flooded over roads, etc.) and then we piled into the van and headed towards Turkeyville.  We had a delicious lunch of turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, and homemade noodles together.  It was delightful, but the kids were antsy to get outside and check out all of the turkeys that were wondering about the property.  Dharia Lou (naturally) chased the poor, ugly beasts around and around.  We saw some cows and goats too and played on some pretty wicked awesome playground equipment before calling i

There was no school today.  The students had a four day weekend in honor of Memorial Day weekend, but us teachers had to go in today for some end-of-the-year professional development.  At first, I was skeptical.  I couldn't imagine anything good coming from all-day meetings the day before a long weekend.  But, last night, it was nice to go to bed knowing that today would be low key from the get go.  Getting up and around was much more relaxed then normal, and I was much calmer mentally on the drive to school knowing that I would not be teaching classes.  Some days at school feel like 8 hour-long performances, where I run myself ragged pretending to always be in a good mood.  Today, it was so refreshing to not be on the spot.  Thank God for a day without students! Lord, thank you for my students.  Thank you for the chance to get some work accomplished at school without them there today.  Thank you for the comparatively relaxing morning and the chance to not feel the usual pres

I bought this sweatshirt at the art fair on Saturday and put it on today when I got home from my run and swim workout.  I bought it because I thought it was really cute.  But, when I put it on, the material felt so incrediblly nice on my skin.  I'm in love. Thank God for my new art fair sweatshirt! Lord, thank you for small things in life that make you feel good.  Thank you for my new favorite sweatshirt and providing me the means to purchase these sorts of things.  In your name I pray, Amen!

Mr. E is my co-teacher.  We teach together two hours a day in what are called "Team-Taught Chemistry" classes.  These are two of my hardest hours of the day.  The students are very low academically and need a lot of extra help.  Mr. E is a special education teacher and is there to help provide some of the support that these kids need to be successful in the class.  Unfortunately, there tends to be a lot of behavior and management in these classes too, so Mr. E is nice to have around as another set of eyes.  He's great moral support for me too.  It's nice that we can tag team and have each other's backs when things start to get dicey. When I first began at Western, I had not had experience teaching special education students before.  I was stressed out and I had no idea how team teaching was actually supposed to work.  Three years later, Mr. E and I have it down to a pretty smooth system.  We know each other very well and try to use our strengths to our advantage

Seriously...need I really say more? These guys were SO MUCH FUN and today I bid them farewell and good luck as they completed their time at Western High School.  I was emotional, as is to be expected, but I was surprised at how many of them were too.  Even some of the guys I never would have thought would even care that our time together was over gave me great big bear hugs before they left.  It was awesome and sad and fun and heart-wrenching all at the same time.  There are so many more things I wish I could have shared with them, so much more I want to know about them, so many more conversations I wish I could have had with them.  But time flies, as we all say.  Now they are big, bad graduates and I get to watch them fly. :) I just know in my heart they are going to be absolutely phenomenal.  But I will miss them greatly. Thank God for my advanced chem class of 2011! Lord, thank you for my seniors and for the great year we had together.  Thank you for their sincere hearts, fu

In my third hour class of advanced chemistry seniors, I was approached by a young man with an envelope toward the end of the hour.  When I opened it up, I saw a card with the signatures of almost all of my seniors inside, thanking me for a great year and for being their teacher. Dang if I don't love those guys. Thank God for a thank you card! Lord, thank you for my seniors and for the kindness they showed me today.  Thank you for the time we spent together and for the chance to be a part of their high school experience.  I pray that you would bless and guide their futures.  In your name I pray, Amen.

Today I headed out in the beautiful sunshine for my bike training of the day, which was to be followed at some point by a short, easy run.  When I returned from my biking adventure (I say this because my route seemed to me a parade of hills to climb more than anything else), I was soaked with sweat and ready to relax.  The kids were all up and awake and I desperately wanted to spend some time with them, but nagging at the back of my mind was the run that I still needed to get in.  My training did not specify that it needed to be directly after the bike, but I kind of just wanted to get it over with before it got too much hotter.  After a super-long week of training, I was definitely annoyed at this last, short afterthought of a workout.  As if I hadn't done enough already!  Was this really necessary? To solve this problem, I took AJ and scooped her into the jogging stroller while Colby took Breslin and Dharia with him to return our recyclables.  I went for my short run and had a

Today was Art Fair Day!  The East Lansing Art Fair is something I look forward to to all year, every year.  My mom and I have a long-standing tradition of spending all day at the Art Fair, and I hoard up my cash for months in preparation for the event.  This year, I started the day by getting up insanely early and riding my bike up to Holt to my mom's house.  My sister-in-law met us there for breakfast and coffee, which was delightful.  Then, we all headed out to the campus of Michigan State University so that we could start shopping as soon as the artists opened their booths.  It was a beautiful day.  We enjoyed each other's company and conversation, the sunshine, the artistic talents of the vendors, and double dips from the MSU dairy.  We loaded up on unique treasures and, thoroughly exhausted, headed back to my mom's house.  Here we met up with all of our husbands for dinner.  Colby brought up the kids, Bob fired up the grill, and we spent some quality time together as a

Today, we managed to scrape some time together to get the lawn mowed.  Oh man, was it bad.  As I began, I got this weird feeling.  It was kind of like that feeling you get when when you start cleaning after you let your house get really dirty or when you start to begin working out after a long hiatus and realize how out of shape you are.  On the one hand, it feels really good to be taking care of it.  On the other hand, you're sort of disgusted with yourself for letting it get to this point in the first place. Anyway, mowing the lawn is one of my favorite things to do.  Today was a bit frustrating because a brush hog would probably have been more appropriate for the work I was doing than my little push mower.  It kept bogging down every couple of yards or so, which made for a very long process.  But, I love to be outside in the sun, smelling the fresh cut grass, and I love how my lawn looks when the whole thing is complete.  So, here's to the first lawn mowing of the season,

Tonight, I am exhausted.  I am thankful that my husband is going to let me go to bed just before 8.  He is typing this as I have just fallen asleep again on the couch. Lord, thank you for letting me get some much needed rest after a crazy hard week.  Please help me to feel refreshed tomorrow. In your name I pray, Amen.

Guess who truly walked today?  And I'm not talking about one little shuffle step and falling down, here.  I mean at least 8 steps from one side of the room to the other. My little baby AJ is walking! The combination of excitement and exertion must have worn her out, however, because she went to bed before 7 tonight. I am thankful for these milestones and for the chance to witness my children progress from one stage to another. It's always a bittersweet moment because it simultaneously reminds me how fast the time goes and how lucky we are to have healthy children who are growing normally. I feel so blessed to have been a part of AJ's first walking experience.  Even after seeing the first two kids go through the process, it was still really exciting.  Furthermore, it seems like I haven't been able to spend a whole lot of time with AJ lately, so I feel fortunate that I didn't miss it completely.  Someday I'll be able to tell her all about watching her weav

My dad got me the greatest triathlon training tool I have ever owned for my birthday.  It is a Garmin GPS unit.  I wear it like a watch and it keeps track of my speed, distance, average pace, calories burned, and lots of other statistics that I'm sure I don't even know about yet whenever I run or go for a bike ride.  One of the really cool things about it is that it connects up to my computer and creates a map of my workout.  I love getting home and seeing where I went, how long it took, and what the elevation changes were (dang, that hill was big!).  I'm thankful because it really helps me to see how my training is progressing.  It's a very valuable tool that I never would have gotten for myself, so I am beyond grateful that my dad was so thoughtful as to give it to me as a present. Today I had a 1 hour bike ride and a 30 minute run to complete.  Here's just a sample of what my Garmin told me: Thank God for my new Garmin! Lord, thank you for this cool new

Uh-oh!  You'd better guard your lilac bushes! I love lilacs so much that I feel the need to put lots of o's in love to get my point across: I looooooooooooooooooove lilacs. There are few things in life thatmake me more giddy than those couple of weeks when the lilacs bloom.  I'm obsessed with them.  I'm ashamed to say that most of the time while I've been driving lately I'm simultaneously keeping my eyes peeled for unsupervised lilacs.  I have a tendency to park on the side of the road and raid unattended, unsuspecting lilac bushes.  I will stealthily nab a handful or more of the fragrant, purple blossoms and then hop back in the car before anyone who could rightfully claim ownership yells at me.  Just so you don't get the wrong idea, it's not like I'm blatantly trespassing...usually these bushes are on the side of the road somewhere that no one would even notice they were there let alone that a few flowers were missing, but it does give me a

So far, there has been only 1 item that has made its way through all three children in the Sharp household.  That doesn't mean there might be more.  In fact, I'm sure there will be more, but this morning was the first time that I saw AJ in something that Breslin and Dharia both wore as well.  This morning, AJ needed a change of clothes, and because Sunday is laundry day, there wasn't a lot to choose from.  When I reached in the drawer, the only real option was a pair of pajamas that we bought shortly before Breslin turned one.  So, I guess first of all I should be thankful that there were any clean clothes to put my child into and then for the fact that now we have lots of clean clothes (they just have to be distributed to their proper locations...quite a feat, actually).  As I wiggled and finagled AJ's limbs into the snug-fitting, flame retardant material, I laughed as I saw and remembered what the jammies had on them: Bad Hair Day.  It was entirely appropriate based o

Goofy the Fish was a good fish.  We purchased Goofy at Meijers on the 4th of July, 2009.  Breslin gave him his name (it was during his "gotta-watch- Mickey Mouse Clubhouse -at-all-hours-of-the-day" phase).  Goofy lasted almost two years before we had to say goodbye about 1 week ago.  He was just your average goldfish, nothing special.  I honestly didn't even think the kids would notice that he was gone.  Dharia, however, was inconsolable for the entire day after she asked where he was and I responded that he "left to be with his friends in the river."  She cried and cried and cried, asked where he was, and asked when he was coming back.  It was horrible.  Today, Dharia and I made kind of a random trip into town to go shopping, just to get out of the house, really.  We stopped at Meijer to pick up some things and walked by the pet aisle.  I wasn't sure how she'd react, but I asked if she wanted to pick out a fish to take home.  When I lifted her out o

Today was a long day away from the kids. After school, I had a 2 hour bike ride to do for my training, so I asked Colby if he would pick up the kids from day care and just meet me at home. I figured that way I wouldn't have to spend a ton of time away from them in the evening. While I was doing that, he managed to secure a babysitter for us, so that we could grab a bite to eat together after I finished my bike. By the time we got home, we were all pooped. I was holding the baby on the couch, and Colby was a pile of humanity next to me. We watched as Breslin took every single item of his clothes off. Then, Lou Lou did the same. There was no explanation to us as to why they were doing it, they just simultaneously disrobed. Then, Breslin asked Lou Lou, "Kitty, did you know what we are?" It seemed like she desperately wanted to be able to tell him, but could not. I couldn't help myself any longer at this point, so I asked, "Breslin, what are you?" Completely s

Okay, I promise this was done yesterday...Girl Scout's Honor!  Blogger was down ALL DAY AND NIGHT, so I couldn't post it until now, but I did do it on a Word document before retiring before the evening.  I was pretty stressed about it, though. My two girls took a bath tonight. I love watching them play and splash in the tub and I love that afterwards they are squeaky clean-- so I can rest easy knowing that the next day the day care workers will not wonder whether or not the Sharp children ever see the inside of a bathtub. Tonight I’m thankful for Wacky Melon Body Wash, which is an integral part of the scrub-down process. It is 3 in 1, which means I can use it on their skin and in their hair (efficiency is paramount when you have to bathe three children). Throughout the next day, I can smell the watermelon scent on my skin from lathering them up and in their hair when I breathe in deeply as they sit on my lap. It is a wonderful reminder of these precious moments in the bathtub

"So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and steady, always enthusiastic about the Lord's work, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless." Sometimes I need a reminder that my job is not about the joy or pride it brings me.  It is not about how good I am or how bad I am at it.  It is not about how great the kids are or how difficult they can be.  It is not about the friends I have on staff or the frustratingly negative attitudes I find myself surrounded by on a daily basis (including my own).  In short, it is simply something that God has asked me to do.  It's my calling and mission field and my career and livelihood all in one.  Sometimes I get so downhearted about my work.  I feel discouraged because it often seems as though what I am doing isn't making a lick of difference in anybody's life.  I am thankful for this verse today, because I needed to be reminded of the fact that nothing I do for the Lord is useless.  When I start maki

This morning, I was awed and amazed at the power of a thunderstorm on the drive to school.  I got goosebumps as the van shuddered in the wind and was pelted with frozen chunks of hail, which Breslin described as "popcorn". I didn't dawn on me until I pulled into the parking lot of the daycare that I would have to actually get out of the relative calm and dry environment of my van and face the fury of this storm, with children in tow.  With a sinking realization, I remembered that as an irresponsible adult I don't do things like carry an umbrella with me when it looks like rain. I glanced around the van quickly, hoping that maybe there was one just stashed in between a seat and a door or maybe that one had rolled underneath a seat, hanging out with petrified french fries and goldfish crackers.  No luck.  Then, on a whim, I leaned down and pulled out on the drawer underneath my seat.  A black umbrella sat neatly in the drawer, a leftover from the van's previous

When I made the right turn onto Erie Rd. this morning headed east, I was caught off guard by the blinding sun in my eyes.  As I drove further down the road, I found that I needed my sunglasses to fight the glare of the sunshine, even at a mere 6:40 in the morning. So many of the mornings I drive to school are shrouded in complete darkness.  In the deep of winter, it is alarmingly black when we leave for school.  As the school year progresses the mornings begin to get teasingly lighter until you get a day like today, where we experienced sunshine from the very start of our journey.  It was a wonderful way to start the week, and another pleasant reminder that the end of the school year is right around the corner. Thank God for a sunny start! Lord, thank you for being my hope in the morning.  Thank you for the sunshine you provided to us on our way to school and for the way it opened up the week.  Help me to use this energy to finish the school year strong and steady, in a way that

Duh!  It's Mother's Day!  What could I be more thankful for than being a mom?  Sure there are moments where I want to jam a sharp implement through my eyeball or just curl up in the fetal position and cry myself to sleep.  Mostly, though, it's entertainment and emotion and laughter all rolled up into one goldfish-cracker, sticky peanut butter and syrup-covered package. I remember having to live through a Mother's Day after our miscarriage with my heart aching so badly to be a mom that I literally felt it re-breaking into a million pieces. I was sure it would never go together the right way again.  I know that there are people out there who long to be parents, but can't or just aren't yet and I feel for them.  I know how that feels.  So tonight, I will say a prayer for them and thank my lucky stars and my heavenly Father who created them that I have my three amazing children.  I am a mom!  Thank God! Lord, thank you for giving me children to raise.  Pleas

Today we had an idyllic trip to Binder Park Zoo.  The weather was perfect.  I watched my Breslin and Dharia walk through the zoo in wonder and amusement, laughing and smiling.  I held them as they rode the wooden giraffes on the carousel and grinned as they fed the real giraffes lettuce in the Wild Africa exhibit.  There were several moments where I felt as though I needed to pinch myself because I honestly couldn't imagine life getting any better.  Strolling through a beautiful setting, experiencing God's awe-inspiring creation, and spending quality time with my beautiful family are all things that I am very thankful for today. Thank God for the first zoo trip of the year! Lord, thank you for the Binder Park Zoo and for the amazing time we had as a family there today.  Thank you that the weather held up during our time there and for the fun experiences my kids had at this cool place.  In your name I pray, Amen.

My son gave this to me today when I picked him up from daycare.  It is my newest and favorite piece of jewelry.  Not only is it super cool and fun and meaningful, but I can only imagine how much fun he must have had making it, stringing those letters on in the correct order. Thank God for my newest piece of jewelry! Lord, thank you for this gift from my son.  Thank you for these cool moments where I am reminded how precious this short time is with my kids.  Thank you for the wonderful people who helped him to create this and for the fun I'm sure he had while doing it.   In your name I pray, Amen.

Today I am thankful that I didn't  have to be anywhere until 9 am!  YES!  I had a reprieve from the normal school day to attend a conference on Standards Based Grading at Spring Arbor University.  So I got to sleep in.  Woot woot!  Even with the extra sleep, I still had time to drink some coffee, do my devotions, watch the news, and take a nice long shower.  I honestly can't remember the last morning I felt so relaxed. I drove to the conference in the beautiful sunshine and dropped off my pleasant, rested children at the day care. It made such a difference in my day to begin this way.  For that, I am so thankful. Thank God for a late start! Thank you, Lord, for the chance to have a relaxed morning and the positive impact on the rest of my day.  I am so thankful for the opportunity to grown in my profession.  Please help me to make good use of this time away from my classroom.  In your name I pray, Amen.

This morning, AJ woke up a bit earlier than normal and put a kink in our well-worn routine.  Normally, we wake her up just before leaving, give her some milk, and whisk her off to the van in her car seat.  When she gets up before we're ready, we have to rearrange our finely-tuned morning schedule.  This morning, Colby had taken care of her while I showered and dressed, but had to hand her off so that he could do the same.  So, I held her in my lap while I did some devotions.  I patted her back and hummed while I read.  A few minutes later, I looked down.  The girl was passed out!  Lightly snoring and drooling, she dozed on my shoulder until I finished and could lay her down in her bed. Then, after dinner tonight, I held her while walking around the house.  I was listening to some music and singing softly when I realized that she was awfully still.  I looked down and chuckled to see that she had surrendered herself to sleep once again in my arms. I guess that AJ doesn't subs

One of Dharia's favorite phrases lately has been used at bed time when we ask her if she is ready for bed. "No, mommy.  I wanna play all day." It really is terribly cute. As a kid, you do anything to not have to go to bed, it seems.  Breslin is in the habit of making himself run laps around the living room when he's really tired because as soon as he sits down, he starts to crash.  In my mind, this is his equivalent of sticking your face out of the car window to stay awake while driving. As an adult, I tend to think more along the lines of what I could do to make it so that I can go to bed, or at least have to do as little as possible. Perhaps I need to adopt a philosophy more in line with that of my daughter.  When was the last time that I "played" at anything?  When was the last time that a weekday night was not an exercise in exhaustion and tedium? My daughter is very wise in this regard.  She plays with reckless abandon, savoring every last min

1 cup boiling water 1 package strawberry jello 1 and 3/4 cups chilled applesauce 1/2 tsp cinnamon Prepare the jello according to package directions.  Instead of cold water, add the applesauce and cinnamon.  Refrigerate.  Soft sets in 30 minutes. Apple snaps remind me of being 5 years old, sitting at the dining room table.  My mom would make apple snaps and pour them into fancy glasses, which she would whisk out from the kitchen and set in front of us with a spoon.  I would let out a whoop when I realized that they were on the menu for dessert. They are easy to make, delicious, and healthy.  I made a batch today and was grateful for this family tradition that I can pass on to my kids too. Thank God for apple snaps! Lord, thank you for this healthy snack that reminds me of being a kid.  Thanks for the loving hands who showed me how to make them and for the opportunity they provide to pass on traditions in my own little family.  In your name I pray, Amen.

We have this goofy calendar thing in our kitchen that Colby got as a gift from one of his former 4th grade students several years ago.  It doesn't exactly suit my home decor style, but there is something strangely satisfying about turning the blocks to commemorate the passing of the days and months. The bottom of the calendar contains three rectangular blocks.  Each block has the name of a month printed on each of its four sides.  When you start a new month, you have to turn the bottom block, and every four months, you have to bring a different block to the front.  Today is one of my favorite days of the year, because when you grab the block for May, you can see that June, July, and August, are printed on its other sides.  You are essentially bring the summer to the front while sending January, February, March, and April packing. It's like running a race and realizing that you just have to turn one more corner and the finish line will be in sight.  One more turn of that bott