Life and Times of the Sharp Family

After three babies, you find out that most diaper rash creams out there don't do jack compared to Desitin.  My poor little AJ has had about the worst diaper rash you can imagine for the past few days; all red and sore and at times even bleeding.  But a little Desitin seems to dry it right up.  Tonight I'm thankful that it can provide at least a little relief from the pain for her. Thank God for Desitin! Lord, thank you for the ability that Desitin has to help alleviate some of AJ's pain and discomfort.  But you are the Great Physician Lord.  Please help her to heal so that she can go back to feeling good again.  In your name I pray, Amen.

Someone called me "innovative" today at one of our professional development meetings.  It was just an off-handed remark, but I was totally floored, nonetheless.  I am pretty sure that's the first time I have ever been described by that word.  I have never considered myself to be a super creative person or an outside-of-the-box thinker, so I am not sure how accurate of a claim it was by this colleague, but it made me feel pretty awesome today.  And while I would not say that I am necessarily super innovative, I am super stoked about a lot of the new things that I will be trying this school year.  I have standards-based grading to tackle in my classroom, I am one of the new student council co-advisors, I am doing a research project with iPod touches that I won through a grant, and I am helping to implement "Power Play" (which is an intervention and enrichment initiative that we created in our building).  There are a ton of exciting things happen...

This may be one of the most ridiculous posts that I write throughout this entire experience.  But, I was so genuinely thankful for this today that I couldn't just ignore it. I am notorious for losing things, especially my iPod, my phone, and my keys.  Today, it was my keys.  Our new building principal surprised us today during our meetings by telling us to meet her in front of the building at 11:30 am.  There we were greeted by a big yellow bus which took us to a unexpected lunch at Gene Davis and Sons, where we ate a deliciously fancy meal.  Or, should I say delicious and fancy?  It was definitely both.  Oh well.  Moving on... When we were riding the bus back to Western, I realized that my dad-blumed keys were at the restaurant still, which posed a huge problem.  Literally every key that I need was a part of that set: car, classroom, home.  And there was the smallish issue of how I would get clear across Jackson to the restaurant....

I got back from a three hour bike ride this morning with a sore butt, missing my family. To add insult to injury, this workout was supposed to be a brick.  That is, a bike followed immediately by a run to simulate the transition during a triathlon. The run wasn't long, but I just didn't feel like doing it.  I wanted to hang out with my kids and husband; kick back and drink some coffee on the porch and watch the children play. I decided that to make it a little more manageable, I would take Dharia Lou with me in the jogging stroller for the run.  You'd think that pushing a 30 pounder in a jogging stroller after riding a bike for three hours would make a run harder, not easier, but you'd be wrong.  Here's a sample of what Dharia entertained me with as I pushed her through the streets of Albion: "Mommy, what's your favorite color?  Mine is purple.  Some ice cream is purple.  Mommy, do you see that kitty cat?  It's black. Do you love it? ...

Tonight, I am thankful for Noxzema. I use it every day to wash my face and have pretty much done so since the sixth grade, when I got a free sample at school. I love its characteristic odor and they way it makes my face all tingly and cool. It's cheap, effective, and classic.  I look forward to using it every shower.  It's small pleasures in life like this that I so often take for granted.  A warm shower and a clean face can make me feel like a new person on any given day. Thank God for Noxzema! Lord, thank you for the little things in life that I so often take for granted.  Please help me to be more aware and appreciative of these sorts of things as the blessings that they are.  In your name I pray, Amen.

Tonight, Colby and I ventured into downtown Jackson, "one of the best kept secrets in Michigan", according to the city's own website for one of the Friday Night Cruise Ins.  I guess that title was catchier than "one of the armpits of society", but that's what I would suggest. But, seriously, I guess I can't really say that Jackson is the pits.  They do try hard to bring fun things in like the Cruise Nights, and we have the Civil War Muster and the Cascades Falls and the Michigan Theatre to make up for things like the huge prison and the Jackson County Fair. So, I gotta give some props to Jackson.  It has come a long way and there are some very positive things happening.  The Cruise In was cooler than I expected too.  I have never been to one.  There were Elephant Ears, so naturally we had to have one of those. I have to say that this one was even better than the one I had at the fair this year. Score! Colby and I enjoyed picking...

Today was our first cross-country meet at the Barney Roy Invitational in Marshall, Michigan.  It is one that I will remember for the rest of my life. One of our female runners collapsed at the 2.5 mile mark during the race and was unresponsive for over 4 minutes.  It was one of the scariest moments I have ever lived through. I could feel God's hand on us during the whole situation, however, as two of the spectating parents from another team who just happened to be standing right there were registered nurses.  Furthermore, once our parents caught wind of what had happened, they rushed over to help, including one who is a physician.  Other parents called the girl's mom, arranged to take care of her stuff, and even rode with her to the hospital until her mom could get there. After a few short, scary minutes, she was alert and responsive thanks in no small part to the good hands God placed her in . I felt so blessed that He arranged those people so close ...