Every wall in my house is colored, penciled, markered, or painted on by the hands of my two boys. I am not saying all when it's only a few just to make a better story...I mean all! I think the only ones I think that haven't fallen pray to this fate is the one hallway by the bathroom and my moms room...only because in that particular room they were too busy coloring on the sheets.
The very first night in our new home Logan found a pencil...I don't know how we hadn't even fully unpacked yet and marked the entire upstairs. I yelled in a not so dignified way and told him not to ever color on my walls again...he calmnly looks at me and replies...you mean OUR walls. I love it when whaat you teach them gets thrown in your face like bucket of ice.
I've resorted to time outs...to slaps on the hand...to making them wash the walls...to taking away a favorite toy...to yes even a spanking...a mother can take only so much...
We've painted the walls twice in our downstairs alone. The cielings are ten feet and too many square feet to do on a regular basis...this mayhem has to stop. They just don't care...it's too much fun. They will take the licking and keep on ticking...or scribbling...
Last night my darling husband gets up to get LT's nightly bottle and I hear a gasp. It's never a good thing when your manly husband gasps like a girl. He yells for L our middle child and asks who did it. He quickly responds to LT...he insists it's him and he's sticking to it. Dad asks again and he tells him he has a choice...a hard spanking if you lie to me again or a little spanking if you tell me the truth. L finally says "Okay I did it." He gets a slight pat and a hug and told to go to bed...now please realize...it was already bedtime. L promptly stomps upstairs and yells I hate you Daddy...I haven't seen my husband run that fast. L is swooped up and taken into the bedroom and put into bed...lights out...which is bad because he usually gets a night light...door closed...and the screaming begins.
He comes downstairs and asks if we need to cut the little man some slack and I take him by the hand and show him all the walls...and by this time I got up to see how bad the damage was this time...and I mean damage. He found red and green paint...it was found under his sisters bed in a box...I guess it now needs a lock. I had red and green on my white trim...on my white cupboards...on my tile...and on my freshly painted walls. I ended in the kitchen and said he is only four but this isn't norma.l We can come to the conclusion that little spankings and the threat of spankings is not working...too much like mommy and daddy...they never worked on me either. We need to get creative...and I haven't thought of a plan yet.
When J finally got that bottle and went upstairs he hears L calling for him and he enters to see what he wants. He says he is sorry, and that he won't do it again...the lieing...the painting...the yelling of I hate you...he will be good. "Now may I please get out of bed?"
As I am scrubbing my kitchen and trying to get it all clean I am not ashamed to say I am stumped...but it is almost 5 and we've almost made it through a whole day without any tom foolery...so I may be stumped but I am hopeful. Let us keep our fingers crossed.
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