Your County Commissioner, My Grandfather.

For those of you who know me well you know that my grandfather, Harold Bengsch, is a county commissioner for Greene County and is seeking re-election this year.  You’ve heard me talk about his campaign or watched us celebrate his elections.  This photo was taken during his first campaign in 2004.  Trysten was just a few months old.

  

I think this is when their close bond started;  they are two peas in a pod.   The kids try to “stump” him with all of their questions, but Grampsy has an answer for EVERYTHING.   He is wise beyond belief.

Here we are 8 years later at the 4th of July parade in Willard...  

   It was an honor to walk beside him that evening.

       We’ve added to the family since his first campaign in 2004. 

 There are even a few not pictured here.

I say this with the most sincere heart...you will not find a more honest, hardworking man who cares so deeply about Greene County.   Spend just one day with Harold Bengsch,  and you’ll see what I’m talking about.   The man starts his day before the sun comes up and ends it well after my bedtime.  He gets more accomplished in one day than I could dream of getting done in an entire year.  

Many of you recognize his name or face because he has worked in the public, and more specifically Greene County, for his entire career.  He spent 20 years as the Greene County Health Director, and even has a building named after him in Springfield. 

The Harold K. Bengsch Greene County Public Health Center

His amount of career accomplishments are almost unbelievable.  These are just a few that stood out to me. As a founding member of the Child Abuse Advocacy Center and champion of child abuse issues, he was recognized with the John P. Ferguson award at the Child Advocacy Banquet earlier this summer.  He is the recipient of  the first ever “Lifetime Achievement Award” by the MSU Alumni Association.  He serves on the boards of Caring Communities and the Salvation Army.  ..

I could go on and on and on.   And I probably should so you’ll understand what I mean when I say: “You will not find a more honest, hardworking man who cares so deeply about Greene County.” He served as the chair for the Missouri State Board of Health and is a member of the MC+ Quality Assurance Committee.  He was awarded “Humanitarian of the Year” by the Community Foundation.  

Seriously though, if I posted all of the awards and committees, and boards this would be a 10 page report.  You can jump over to his website www.vote4bengsch.com for a complete list of accomplishments over his lifetime and more specifically, his 8 years as commissioner.

Beyond his career accomplishments, he is a humble man who loves his family dearly.  He sets aside time for us without hesitation and understands what it means to be involved in the lives of children.  We are extremely thankful and proud to be the grandchildren of Harold Bengsch.

Primary elections will be held next Tuesday, August 7th. Harold Bengsch is seeking re-election for county commissioner in Greene County and we would greatly appreciate your vote for him. Thank you and God Bless.

Happy Birthday Trysten

My oldest is 8 years old today. It's weird. It doesn't feel like it's been 8 years since he was born but at the same time I feel like I've known Trysten my entire life. Trysten Chase was born in Muskogee at 9:02 pm on May 11th, 2004. Yep, my baby's an Okie from Muskogee. Can you believe he was born with jet black hair and dark skin. Being born in the Cherokee National Capital, he fit in well with all of the other dark headed cherokee newborns in the hospital nursery.

I received all sorts of parenting advice through out my pregnancy. Some I forgot, some I remembered. There were 3 simple pieces of advice that stuck with me.

The first one was from my Grandma Lankford and it's what this blog is named after.
 1) "Boys Come Washable." There have been times that I question this theory but for the most part, they can be hosed off.

 The second one came from a friend's father, Mr Sweaney.
 2) "Take him everywhere." And we did (I can't say the same for baby #3). He told us it is good to put them in social settings so they know how to act in public and how to talk to people.

 The third piece of advice came from Doctor Powell (he delivered Trysten).
 3) "You can't spoil a newborn." If he cries, pick him up. The first 3 months of a baby's life is like your 4th trimester. He said I could hold him all day if I wanted, and I did. I laugh now thinking about the first night at home with him. I had him sleep in his baby seat that vibrates with Norah Jones playing softly in the background and the lamp on in his room. I slept on the floor next to his seat. I remember worrying that he might wake up and not see me, so I just laid there on the floor.

 His delivery was long and hard and I remember a few minutes after he was born sitting there thinking "Wow! There is no way I'm going to ever do that again. How am I going to tell Justin that this will be our only baby?" I obviously got over that thought.

 There is about a 4 second event that took place when he was born that I will always remember. The doctor laid him on my chest and Justin was standing to my right, at the top of Trysten's head. Justin said something and Trysten looked up to find him. His little forehead wrinkled and his eyes were so big. He stared at his Daddy for maybe 2 seconds but that is one of those moments when it seemed like time stood still.

 We lived in Oklahoma for the first 2 years of Trysten's life with no family within a few hours. Justin was in Optometry School and was either in class during the day or studying at night. Trysten and I spent A LOT of time alone. I think we have a special bond because of it.


 There are so many things that I love about Trysten right now...
~ He is absolutely hilarious. He can impersonate anyone. Sometimes at dinner we'll name someone in the family to impersonate and he comes up with the funniest stuff.
 ~He's not too cool to dance.
 ~He quotes movie lines.
 ~He would rather watch a good western instead of cartoons. He can name the western  on T.V. within 5 seconds of walking in the room.
 ~I love watching him play baseball, he has a beautiful swing.
 ~When given the decision between right and wrong, he usually chooses right.
 ~He knows the love of Jesus and talks about him often.
 ~He asks 3,569 questions a day. Then asks 5,252 follow-up questions to your answer.
 ~He wakes himself up at 6:15 when he doesn't have to leave for school until 8:00. There are tasks he wants to accomplish in the mornings and doesn't want to be rushed.
 ~He can't pass a turtle on the road without stopping to bring him home.
 ~He can't let a frog hop by without picking him up.
 ~We joke that his motto is "Safety First." He drove go-carts for the first time last weekend. I told him he may spin out but not to worry. He then asked "Will my airbag deploy?"
 
I laugh when I look back at this picture because it looks like he was wondering what would happen if he slid out of his chair...

 I could go on and on and on.......

 Happy 8th Birthday Trysten. Thank you for all of the adventures you have taken us on. I'm sure you think it's us taking you on the adventures, but it's actually the other way around. We look at the world in a whole new way because of you.

A morning at the Hart house

I'm sure some of you cringed when you looked at this picture. The 2 year old is laying on the table eating his cereal like a dog! Look closely and you'll notice he poured it directly onto the table without a bowl. I guess that's what happens when a 2 year old gets himself breakfast.






While others laughed because you have walked into your kitchen to similar situations.

I smiled. Big.

I was happy because Trysten and Grayson were playing the game "Battleship" without bickering. They were so serious about sinking each others ships. Who cares that Grayson is sitting on the table? On this particular day, not me.

But what is even more uncommon is that Remy was minding his own business.

So I patted him on the head and told him "good dog." He replied "roofy" and continued eating his cereal on the table. Laying down. Without a bowl or utensils.

The other two finished their game.

Cooking...it's our thing

When Trysten comes running in the kitchen in a frantic search for food, I know it's time for me to start dinner. That's usually when I say, "No snacks boys, I'm fixing dinner!" And they ignore me and try to sneak weird things like a plain soft tortilla or get a quick squirt of honey in their mouths.

Pick your battles, Sarah. Pick your battles.

So I usually let them win that one as long as it doesn't escalate into grazing all evening.

At some point, somewhere around six months ago, Trysten decided he would start helping me cook. It has become our thing. I am finding the older he gets, the less he needs me. At first, I had mixed emotions about him acting grown up. I liked it when he called the plug in a "flug in." And when he would call a propeller a prop-propeller. Okay, back to my point...I am finding that I really enjoy his company as a person, not a baby. Cooking is when we get to talk like friends. I don't have to correct him, send him to his room, or turn it into an educational experience. We just cook. He morphs into an adult version of himself ~ with the exception of sneaking spoonfuls of sugar from the cookie mix ~ wait I do that too.
























His absolute favorite thing to do is shred cheese. He really, really wants a cow-bell shaped shredder for his birthday. I have NO idea where he has even seen one, but he tells me about it 5,278 times per week.

I will cry the day I start buying cheese that is already shredded. So until then I will purchase it in blocks, so Trysten will always have a job in my kitchen.

Remy Rooster

It occurred to me a few weeks ago that Remington has one speed. If you know him, try to picture him walking through the house. YOU CAN'T... because he doesn't! He jogs everywhere. No really, he jogs everywhere. Which answers my question of why he is so skinny. He eats NONSTOP! It is not uncommon for him to eat 3 bowls of cereal for breakfast only to find him 45 minutes later rummaging through the pantry saying "I need food." Really Remy, You need food??


He gets his little yellow stool (which he holds very dear to his heart) and begins the search for snacks.
























Onto how Remington has so graciously earned the nickname Rooster. Sure Remy Rooster sounds cute but I think you'll see some similarities...

He is the first to wake up in the morning. As soon as the sun comes up he comes running to our room.

He always has a "tuff" of hair in the back of his head. And no, I did not prep his hair for this photo. This how it looks all the time.























And lastly, he is LOUD. The only word to describe it is squawking. If he feels like he is not being heard, he will start squawking so that you can't hear what Trysten or Grayson are trying to say. It is actually kind of funny when I know it's coming. Trysten will get two words out and Rooster will start squawking.

Trysten: Hey Mom
Rooster: SQUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWK SQUUUUUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWK

then silence

Trysten: Hey Mom
Rooster: SQUUUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWK SQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWK

silence

Trysten: Hey Mom
Rooster: SQAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWK SQWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWK SQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWK


He doesn't even have anything to say, just squawks so that no one else can talk.

Everyone needs a Rooster.

A New Year's Resolution

When I sit down to think about it, I have so many New Year's Resolutions:
I want to run consistently
I want every room, closet, and garage to be organized.
I want to make time in 2012 to be spontaneous and not have every second of every hour planned.
I want to be better about taking pictures of the boys with my actual camera, and not my phone camera.
I want to be more consistent with daily bible studies.
I want to update this blog at least every week.

Whew, I have some serious changes to make!

I am well on my way for having every room, closet and garage organized. I always go into crazy organizing mode the week after Christmas. I guess it is to make room for all of the new toys, I don't know. Every cabinet I open, MUST be organized. I even arranged my spices into cute little trays. The label maker will be coming out this week so watch out kids. (I promise not to label everything, like your lamps, mirrors, toilet paper, etc). Go ahead boys, ask me where something is and I will take you straight to it!

My spices...they are categorized by item and theme. Like: Italian, garlic, popcorn seasoning, etc. I am making their labels this week.





I had ALOT of work to do on getting my craft room back to order after Christmas!





Some girls were born with glitter running through their veins. I am one of those girls. I found this shelf (an old spice rack) at a thrift store for $1.99. I gave it a few coats of white paint and now I have a new place to keep my glitter!





Boys. This is called a toy shelf. Look at it, study it, memorize it. This is how it should look.




Next on my list is to make the coat closet, wait for it, a coat closet. Not the hat, coat, bag, lamp storage, popcorn maker storage closet that it is now.

Country Boys

Wow, have we been busy the past few months. We finally moved to the country. It is something that Justin and I have been wanting to do for a long time. It has been enjoyable watching the kids change to country boys. Before we moved, I thought it was neat when Trysten found a rock he liked, he was afraid to hold a frog, and wouldn't walk in tall grass. Now he finds a frog daily, and I do mean everyday. He hides in the tall grass and actually went looking for snakes the other day. Now with this I have some very dirty and tired boys. Oh they get filthy dirty! We stay out till dark to catch fireflies. Our fields and trees look like they glitter! The boys carry these cute glass jars around the yard and collect fireflies. They bring them in at night for a little extra night-light. More stories to come soon! I'll try not to wait so long for the next post! If you look really close at this picture you'll see Trysten in the white shirt and Grayson in the yellow shirt. They are having fun on a snake hunt.