Marker

Oh, how I wish I had gotten this on video, I fear my wordy rendition of the story will not do it justice. But I'll try.

Jesse writes on everything, and I mean everything, so all markers have been taken away and put up. All pens in the children's area have been confiscated as well. It's been this way for a couple of months now. At some point he's going to grow out of writing on everything, and I'm hoping it's soon.

The boys got an easel for Christmas-it's great. One side is a chalk board and one side is a dry erase board. It has clips to clip on papers so they can draw or paint.

The other night I got out a dry erase marker for Eli to work on his spelling words. You know, even spelling can be a little fun if it's on a dry erase board. Then we finished and I needed to go make dinner. Jesse had taken the marker from Eli and was writing on the dry erase board. I was worried about him having it, but I was watching him. Then I really needed to go start dinner and Jesse assured me that he wouldn't write on anything but the dry erase board. I was so hesitant, but I thought I'd let him have a few minutes while I got some things going.

I've been a mom for almost nine years, when exactly is it that I'll learn?

While I'm in the kitchen Tim comes home and into the kitchen and we started talking. I forgot that Jesse has a marker. Tim has that effect on me.

Jesse walked in the kitchen holding the marker.

My heart skipped a beat. I remember now that he has a marker. Oh crap! How long was he unattended?

He sees me, and is so proud of himself and says, with his pointer finger up in the air, "I did not write on anything." Then he makes a sweeping motion with his hand flat as he says, "I did not write on any chair. I did not."

Which would be reassuring if he wasn't two and when he says he didn't do something, he usually did.

I run to check the damage. In the living room where the easel is I don't see any foul play. So far so good. Then I turn to walk back to the kitchen and I see that he wrote on the wood frame of the easel. Not the worst thing, but that doesn't make me super happy.

Then in the Hall I see that he wrote on a chair, but I've gotten ink out of that one before so it should be okay. Next I see the chair that we just moved in the Hall from the Library the day before, just to see how it looks. It has marker too, but it's not super noticeable. Then I see the rocking chair in the corner, the one I love, with a BIG streak of marker. I run for the rubbing alcohol and a rag.

It looks like he was good almost the whole time, but on his way to the kitchen wrote on most every chair he passed. We're getting closer, I think. I hope.

I sent Jesse to bed, he got a spanking for lying. We don't lie at our house. Ever.

The rocking chair doesn't seem to be coming out, I worked on the other chair from the library, it's mostly coming out but the pattern makes the spot that's still there okay. The other chair it comes right out, at least one is okay.

As I'm scrubbing the chairs Jesse tries to come downstairs, but I send him back. The punishment for lying is stiff at our house, we have a zero tolerance policy for lying. Even at two.

Then I made him scrub the rocker, it's still there. He'll keep working, even though he cries cause he can't get it. He's got to learn to stop writing on stuff.