I'm not sure how old Elise is, but I had something similar happen when my youngest son was about 3. He found a purple ink pad and decided that he would try out his best Picasso impersonation on the walls and the brand new leather couches. Once I got over my anger, I realized that one of his designs was quite good...
Kids are a constant reminder of the strength of our patience and serenity....my son took a permanent black marker to the inside of my car. Found out that spraying Hair Spray and then dab it with a towel works wonder. Wish Aquanet was still around at $1 a pop :)
I'm sorry to hear it. I've never experienced a marker incident, but did have a child (much older than Elise) decide to play with neon orange silly putty before falling asleep. Next morning it was EVERYWHERE in their bedding. Inhale. Exhale. Google a solution. Good luck getting it out or covering it up. And I love the way the bedrooms turned out.
Been there and am sympathetic. I have found that the best way to encourage my delicious sons to destroy something is to tidy it up. Want them to play with something they should not? Pack it away neatly! It will be out in 5 seconds. I just try to tell myself that it is a home not a museum and most things are cleanable or liveable!
better or worse than peanut butter, personally i'd thing better....
my son did a mural on the white cabinets in our RENTAL and on the dog in SHARPIE, the cabinets had to be painted and the dog's hair grew out...(i was outside for a second with a tow truck driver for the car in -45 weather...he stood on a juice jug to reach the window sill where i kept them...)
To get marks off walls and finger prints off door jams etc. try the foaming scrubbing bubbles. The off brands do not work. I have been using this for 20 plus years. I always feel like a commercial but I promise it works. Also try it on outdoor furniture, the gunk that builds up on the floor at the base boards, kitchen goo around the stove, and it works really great on metal doors.
Oh no!! I did that when I was little and decided to paint my nails in my white bed. My mother was furious!
Just after we painted our front room and got a new little faux leather ottoman for storage, Emily took a knitting needle and stabbed it in the center. Now she keeps putting stuff in the hole.
My 5 yo just did an original design, in non-washable crayon, on his bedroom wall in our RENTAL. Thought he has skipped this stage but turns out he is a late bloomer. The crayons were part of a school box he received as gift; now we are back to washable only.
My children seem to be experts at these things as well. I actually have nail polish stuck to my bathroom floor and ceiling. I decided it will just have to wait for a new coat of paint to be rid of it.
Hubby and I had recently discussed being able to recarpet and paint, when we found out about the twins. Now we know that there are another 3 years of the really crazy messes.
We have found out that Windex takes out many stains (including blackberry and ink) out of many types of fabric (including stains on car seat cushions).
Be careful about using Windex! It may work on some fabrics, but I set down a bottle and some leaked on a brand new couch from Ethan Allen and it left a big stain that I could never get out. I had to turn the cushion over for as long as I had the sofa.
My four year old snuck a lollipop from my purse (our bank sends them through in the drive thru, and I save them for treats) put it in his mouth, crawled up on my new lovely creamy cotton duck covered sofa that I had scrimped and saved for, and proceeded to zone out watching Charlotte's Web, and drooled purple, sticky, artificial never-to-be-removed goo all over the arm. I knew my kids were watching too much tv this summer...shame on me, on too many fronts to name!
Ugh! This seems like it happens to everything I ever change or bring into my life. I'm sitting at a new-to-me roll-top desk that I got at a garage sale. I'm just waiting for some big spill or a hunk of the wood to get chunked off, or scratched.
And it seems that I always spill tea on white blouses.
I have no words of wisdom--only words of compassion and commiseration.
good thing it's white- bleach, while dangerously hazardous to our bodies & mysteriously bad for the environment, is VERY good for my heart when i'm sad about stains! we have much white in our home for this reason!
Meredith, I LOVE all the home improvements you have been doing! Where you find the energy to do all this with three young children, I have no idea, but good for you. Your home looks warm and inviting, and the colors just bring everything together. My 3-yr-old boy has drawn on our leather furniture with a permanent marker, drawn on the tile floor with a pen, and drawn all over his bed frame and wall with chalk. I know some of those are not too bad, and the chalk wipes right off, but still, ya know? And it's not like I don't give him paper... I do! :) Thankfully, somebody invented Mr. Clean Magic Erasers! I think they were made just for moms with young children, hehe. Thanks for posting pics of your projects! Laurie in FL
I know it is frustrating, but in the scheme of things, it just isn't important. My daughter recently lost her three year old in a tragic accident. Give that little girl an extra hug.
Meredith, just read up on the post where you painted your children's rooms. I love that idea! It looks terrific, so nice & clean and bright looking. I would love to rip up our carpet and stain our concrete in the downstairs of our house. Have to talk the hubby into that one.
I'm sorry Meredith, but when I read this I laughed and laughed ;) My son is now 21, but I remember those "marker in the bed" days soooo well! And marker on the wall, crayon in the clothes dryer, eggs and cocoa on the carpet (I'm making brownies, mama!), paint on the puppy...
I remember being torn between wanting the shake him silly and wanting to laugh. I hope I laughed more than I scolded ;)
No sooner had we put the house back together than Elise snuck a pink marker into her white, white bed.
39 comments:
I'm not sure how old Elise is, but I had something similar happen when my youngest son was about 3. He found a purple ink pad and decided that he would try out his best Picasso impersonation on the walls and the brand new leather couches. Once I got over my anger, I realized that one of his designs was quite good...
Bless your heart! But, a home with no accidents is a home without soul. I'm sure you'll find a creative solution!
Big Hugs. I've been there many times.
I feel you pain.
When my daughter was 3 or 4 yo. she drew on our white bathroom cabinets with bright pink finger nail polish. UGH!
I think all mothers have had this experience many times... LOL
I am so sorry :-(
I feel your pain.
I love love the new white floors!!
Kari
Ah, yes blue marker on the yellow couch here. Luckily it was a cushion we could flip over.
she's a sneaky one! :)
nicola
http://whichname.blogspot.com
Kids are a constant reminder of the strength of our patience and serenity....my son took a permanent black marker to the inside of my car. Found out that spraying Hair Spray and then dab it with a towel works wonder. Wish Aquanet was still around at $1 a pop :)
I'm sorry to hear it. I've never experienced a marker incident, but did have a child (much older than Elise) decide to play with neon orange silly putty before falling asleep. Next morning it was EVERYWHERE in their bedding. Inhale. Exhale. Google a solution.
Good luck getting it out or covering it up. And I love the way the bedrooms turned out.
Been there and am sympathetic. I have found that the best way to encourage my delicious sons to destroy something is to tidy it up. Want them to play with something they should not? Pack it away neatly! It will be out in 5 seconds. I just try to tell myself that it is a home not a museum and most things are cleanable or liveable!
I always have to re-welcome myself to the real world when things like this happen to me girl...
(sigh) - so so sorry to hear that -
She IS an artist you know...
sniggle...
latrice
better or worse than peanut butter, personally i'd thing better....
my son did a mural on the white cabinets in our RENTAL and on the dog in SHARPIE, the cabinets had to be painted and the dog's hair grew out...(i was outside for a second with a tow truck driver for the car in -45 weather...he stood on a juice jug to reach the window sill where i kept them...)
they do keep us on our toes....
I know how you feel!! Just know you are not alone in this struggle! LOL. Have a good day!
at least pink matches the rest of her things :)
it could of been black.
To get marks off walls and finger prints off door jams etc. try the foaming scrubbing bubbles. The off brands do not work. I have been using this for 20 plus years. I always feel like a commercial but I promise it works. Also try it on outdoor furniture, the gunk that builds up on the floor at the base boards, kitchen goo around the stove, and it works really great on metal doors.
Oh no!! I did that when I was little and decided to paint my nails in my white bed. My mother was furious!
Just after we painted our front room and got a new little faux leather ottoman for storage, Emily took a knitting needle and stabbed it in the center. Now she keeps putting stuff in the hole.
sigh!
Was this art work before or after the visit from the in-laws?
My 5 yo just did an original design, in non-washable crayon, on his bedroom wall in our RENTAL. Thought he has skipped this stage but turns out he is a late bloomer. The crayons were part of a school box he received as gift; now we are back to washable only.
My children seem to be experts at these things as well. I actually have nail polish stuck to my bathroom floor and ceiling. I decided it will just have to wait for a new coat of paint to be rid of it.
Hubby and I had recently discussed being able to recarpet and paint, when we found out about the twins. Now we know that there are another 3 years of the really crazy messes.
We have found that Windex works wonders on many fabrics (including cars) on many stains (ink & blackberry stain included)
We have found out that Windex takes out many stains (including blackberry and ink) out of many types of fabric (including stains on car seat cushions).
Murphy's law for you! ;)
Be careful about using Windex! It may work on some fabrics, but I set down a bottle and some leaked on a brand new couch from Ethan Allen and it left a big stain that I could never get out. I had to turn the cushion over for as long as I had the sofa.
I would write more here but I am busy trying to get our three-year-old son's artwork off of the basin and lid of the toilet.
Have a great weekend!
It never lasts long....AMEN!
My four year old snuck a lollipop from my purse (our bank sends them through in the drive thru, and I save them for treats) put it in his mouth, crawled up on my new lovely creamy cotton duck covered sofa that I had scrimped and saved for, and proceeded to zone out watching Charlotte's Web, and drooled purple, sticky, artificial never-to-be-removed goo all over the arm. I knew my kids were watching too much tv this summer...shame on me, on too many fronts to name!
You've just described my life :)
I'm sorry it didn't last a little longer for you....
Ah, yes, I remember ...
Those are the years I really learned about patience! LOL.
She's still a little dolly in my mind ...
Ugh! This seems like it happens to everything I ever change or bring into my life. I'm sitting at a new-to-me roll-top desk that I got at a garage sale. I'm just waiting for some big spill or a hunk of the wood to get chunked off, or scratched.
And it seems that I always spill tea on white blouses.
I have no words of wisdom--only words of compassion and commiseration.
good thing it's white- bleach, while dangerously hazardous to our bodies & mysteriously bad for the environment, is VERY good for my heart when i'm sad about stains! we have much white in our home for this reason!
No..it never does! Hang in there!
sandy toe
Meredith, I LOVE all the home improvements you have been doing! Where you find the energy to do all this with three young children, I have no idea, but good for you. Your home looks warm and inviting, and the colors just bring everything together. My 3-yr-old boy has drawn on our leather furniture with a permanent marker, drawn on the tile floor with a pen, and drawn all over his bed frame and wall with chalk. I know some of those are not too bad, and the chalk wipes right off, but still, ya know? And it's not like I don't give him paper... I do! :) Thankfully, somebody invented Mr. Clean Magic Erasers! I think they were made just for moms with young children, hehe. Thanks for posting pics of your projects!
Laurie in FL
I know it is frustrating, but in the scheme of things, it just isn't important. My daughter recently lost her three year old in a tragic accident. Give that little girl an extra hug.
Meredith, just read up on the post where you painted your children's rooms. I love that idea! It looks terrific, so nice & clean and bright looking. I would love to rip up our carpet and stain our concrete in the downstairs of our house. Have to talk the hubby into that one.
Oh, no! Bless your heart. I've been through that, but with black marker. Aargh!
God bless,
Elizabeth
we haven't heard from you in a while. Hope everything is going OK with you and your family...
My daughter attacked the walls at my MIL's house with a sharpie. She just wrote, "Art by the Girl" underneath it and left it up. I was far more upset.
I've learned to never buy any thing but washable markers.
I'm sorry Meredith, but when I read this I laughed and laughed ;) My son is now 21, but I remember those "marker in the bed" days soooo well! And marker on the wall, crayon in the clothes dryer, eggs and cocoa on the carpet (I'm making brownies, mama!), paint on the puppy...
I remember being torn between wanting the shake him silly and wanting to laugh. I hope I laughed more than I scolded ;)
I am sure you took a deep breath first!
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