Tuesday, October 6, 2009

The Terrible Two's

Pens can be good.

In the hands of an author.
good.
In the hands of an almost 2 year old.
not so good.

Getting Mackenzie to nap in the big girl bed has been a
night.mare.
One particular day last week
I spent almost 2 hours trying to get Mackenzie to nap.
She was tired but refused to stay in her bed.

So after many time outs
and multiple times of me putting her back in her bed
there was finally quiet coming from her room.
I was so thankful that she was asleep
or so I thought.

After about 10 minutes
I began to hear some unusual noises
coming from the baby monitor.
I walked into her room and found
pen
ev.ery.where.

When I saw it I cried.
Everywhere I looked
I discovered more.
It was...

on her quilt and pillows
{that took me hours to hand make for her}

her pillowcase and sheets

glider

and ottoman

walls

shoes, clothes, etc.

changing table/dresser

I was so, so sad and mad.
All I could do was stick Mackenzie in the pack and play (AKA baby jail)
for a time out.
We both needed a time out.

Within a couple of minutes Mackenzie was fast asleep.
All that drawing had worn her out.

I quickly googled "how to remove pen"
and learned that rubbing alcohol would become my new best friend.

A hour of scrubbing
and an entire bottle later
I thankfully got most of it out of the sheets, pillows and quilt.

My little Picasso left nothing untouched.
She had colored all over herself too.
Even the bottoms of her feet.

We have had a week full of surprises.
The next day I noticed the bathroom door was closed
I walked in to find Mackenzie
fully dressed
inside the toilet.
Yes inside.
All wet.

Yesterday Mackenzie discovered a bottle of lotion.
Nothing is safe in our house.
Nothing.

I think we have officially reached the terrible two's.

24 comments:

Kasey said...

Just found your blog and I can totally relate with you. Both of my children were artists. I just had to paint the front wall. My 4 year old still draws on herself. Sorry about the quilts. I would have been crying too.

Amanda said...

I would have cried too! It may not be any consolation but the 'ahhh mess' I walked into a year ago was when Madison removed her poopie diaper during naptime! No need for details, I am sure you can imagine the mess. I hope things get better with the big girl bed!

~Kimberly said...

OH MY GOODNESS! I have a little mckenzie and her name is Addison, she will be 2 in december. I am with you on this! NOTHING is safe in our house. Thank goodness for google searches, right?!!??!

Amy C said...

Oh my! Sounds just like my daughter who just turned three. Since about 18 mths, she has become a little destroyer. Lotion, makeup, pen, crayons.....I MUST KEEP IT ALL AWAY FROM HER.

Aurora said...

Oh, I feel for you...we haven't had that happen (yet) but I know it's only a matter of time!! Avery has been into everything since about 18mo (she'll be 2 in Jan)! Sometimes crying is all you can do...

torinem said...

Oh, this made me laugh! My 2nd is the same age and going through the same stage. She has pen all over her face and arms today...the walls in my girls' bedroom still has sharpie on it from my first...who was about that age when she drew all over the wall and herself! Not to worry, it will pass. Hey, at least it wasn't pooh. Both of mine have gone through that lovely phase, too. I am sorry about the quilts, though, hope everything comes out!

Serena said...

I'm so sorry! I would have cried too. My niece took a sharpie to everything when she was little - my sister about had a heart attack until they called the sharpie company to see how to get sharpie out of different things.

Good luck getting it all out - I hope everything looks as good as new soon!

Crystal said...

Oh this sounds just like my girls. I swear it is mess after mess when you least expect it. I am glad you were able to get it out of everything-your stuff is so beautiful. I would have cried.

Anna said...

Welcome to my world! I usually can't find a pen to write with in my house since I hide them every time I see one. Glad you were able to get it out though! Check out my first giveaway at:
http://noodleheads.blogspot.com/2009/10/giveaway.html

Lo said...

Oh no!!! All those pillows are so beautiful!! Glad you got it out. You should see the ottoman to our glider. Orange and green sharpie all over it :( Got any tips on getting sharpie out?

Lynn said...

I feel your pain! Finally got my oldest the cutest Shabby Chic duvet cover....a week later it had red sharpie scribbled all over it. Arrrgh. Definitely had to give myself a mommy time out after finding that!

Julie said...

Bless your heart!

Honey, I've been there done that and I'll give you a great tip.

Magic Erasers!

Keep them on hand at all times!

I've had several budding artists at my house and Magic Erasers remove their art from the walls better than anything I've ever used!

Oh, and baby wipes are great at getting pen marks off babies ;-)

Mommy2Sophia said...

oh no Kristin!

welcome to the terrible twos! every time i have the thought come into my brain about a big girl bed, i quickly erase it from my mind...too hard for me to deal with!

hairspray works WONDERFUL getting pen out of clothing/fabric. Magic eraser is amazing for walls.

love the baby jail...lol!

Jennifer said...

OH, I have been there! My second child has not been an "artist" but my first one...oh my! And you really can't blame things on your little sister when you write your OWN name. I've found that Magic Eraser is really great...even with pink sharpie....the day before our open house. And now that my son is older, he would still take pens/pencils and draw around the house. I finally turned my pens/pencils into those "flower pots" that offices have when they don't want you to steal their pens...It has worked really well. I could always see when he was headed off with one of my pens. That's something that might help you later but for now, hang in there and good luck!

sfitz said...

I my gosh, this pains me. How you kept yourself under control is a class you should teach at NM.

2sisters said...

My son was a Picasso at a young age. He found a Sharpie marker and colored all over the fridge and kitchen floor. I hid all the markers, and yet the next day he found another one and did the exact same thing. I have to say, in the toilet takes the cake! :)

Unknown said...

oh wow! Good to know that rubbing alcohol gets pen out of fabric... i'll file that away for a later day. and i thought boys were supposed to be the michievous ones...

shannon

Crystal said...

I had two 'artist' also. My oldest didn't grow out of the stage of draw on everything til she hit 8. My younger daughter is now 3 and when I am having trouble keeping her in bed, I bribe her! Cookies for breakfast, 1 TV show first thing in the morning, anything goes if it will keep her down.

Becky said...

We are having the same problem with our 3 year old not staying in bed and getting into "trouble". If you figure out what works please let us know!

I am trying to find out what people think of my clothing swap idea. Please check it out and let me know what you think. Thanks.

http://beckywaldrop.blogspot.com/2009/10/clothing-swap.html

Nike@ChooseToThrive said...

Saw your comment on THRIVE and had to see the destruction for myself. WOW. Isn't it awful to walk into messes like that, especially when your daughter's room is so stinkin' cute! I, too, keep rubbing alcohol on hand.

It's a little after the fact, but a little hand sanitizer on a cotton ball will take ink--even sharpie ink--right off skin.

"Intentionally Katie" said...

Someone sent me to your post after reading about my daughter's pen adventures in her room today. I'm SO excited to try the rubbing alcohol on her bedspread after she wakes up from her nap!!! THANK YOU for posting that tip.

Kammie said...

Did you ever get the stains out of the glider and ottoman? Unfortunately mine has suffered a similar fate, but no one seems to be confessing!

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