Parenting: "Child, please stop drawing on the walls"

"zeontestpilot" (zeontestpilot)
10/19/2016 at 20:00 • Filed to: Parenting

Ztp junior has recently decided coloring anywhere except a coloring book is a great idea. Especially this patch of wall, where her most numerous offenses occur. So I got her a whiteboard in an effort to direct her toward coloring something specific as opposed to the wall, the counter, her chair at the table, and so on. Now to get her to put the marker caps back on...

DISCUSSION (34)

FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:06

Good luck with the market caps. My seven year old still doesn’t put them on half the time.

Matt Nichelson > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:08

Ah, the joys of patenthood. I know how it is. My stepdaughter decided one day a while back that it would be a great idea to color all over her bedposts. The ones my wife had painted maybe a month before.

WRXforScience > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:11

I prefer to use operant conditioning , go to pet smart, get a shock collar, and every time she goes to draw on the wall, ZAPPP. She’ll stop pretty quick. Alternatively you can spray her with water, but you have to make sure you do it every time or the conditioning won’t stick. Should only take a dozen or so times to get her to change her behavior, and the conditioning should last a couple of weeks at a minimum.

Having a small child is essentially the same as having a dog. People don’t like to admit it, because children are precious (lol). Children from 18months-2yrs are essentially pets (dumb ones) after 2 they are like really drunk people or Chimpanzees (without the super scary strength), and after that they are sociopaths until they are about 20.

If it weren’t for all the euphoric hormones that are triggered from having kids, we’d have died out as a species a long time ago. Kids are mostly terrible and occasionally great, kinda like a classic ferrari or brittish roadster.

Phyrxes once again has a wagon! > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:12

Whiteboard or chalkboard paint a wall or section of wall in her room?

arl > FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com
10/19/2016 at 20:13

Good luck with the caps. The 30 year olds in my office don’t put them back on in the conference rooms.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:16

Kinja'd!!!

Just buy a roll of paper and cover that wall.

LongbowMkII > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:18

The walls needed to be repainted anyways.... not a hill worth dying on to me.

BJ > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:21

One thing I never got worked up about was colouring on the walls. I don’t see why it’s a big deal, personally - it adds colour and life to the house.

And Crayola washes off, so the kids can learn to clean up after themselves, which teaches them to stop colouring on the walls... :)

Blondude > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 20:30

Two words: chalkboard paint

wafflesnfalafel > FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com
10/19/2016 at 22:08

My wife does that... pen caps, the cap on toothpaste, doesn’t close chips/cookie/cracker/cereal bags, milk cartons, etc... It is oddly consistent and I’ve come to admit it just must be some genetic thing or something but it still drives me bonkers... but I know saying something isn’t going to help so I just smile now. :)

zeontestpilot > BJ
10/19/2016 at 22:13

We did that the first few times. Then we let the second to last one stay on the wall (under the whiteboard currently). Then she started to expand to the kitchen with her coloring. That’s when we got the whiteboard. We got a smaller one, we’ll see how it goes.

We’ve been wanting one anyways, so the mrs and I can write weird stuff to each other.

zeontestpilot > WRXforScience
10/19/2016 at 22:15

I agree with the logic about kids being similar to pets. Except dogs feel no guilt, which is why she wears a bark collar almost all the time.

zeontestpilot > FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com
10/19/2016 at 22:15

All the washable ones are dead. I’ll hide these if I have to, lol.

zeontestpilot > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent
10/19/2016 at 22:17

Not a bad idea, and I wonder if that would of been cheaper. Our setup cost $15; $9 for the board and $6 for supplies.

WRXforScience > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 22:18

I work with teenagers, and most of them feel no regret. I had to deal with a 17 year old who drew on a wall because his parents failed to teach him boundaries. Don’t be one of those parents. You are better than that.

zeontestpilot > Blondude
10/19/2016 at 22:18

I considered it, but since MrsZtp said no to it, and is at home longer, I figured I should listen.

zeontestpilot > Matt Nichelson
10/19/2016 at 22:18

What color did she color it?

zeontestpilot > Phyrxes once again has a wagon!
10/19/2016 at 22:19

Her room is tiny, and none of her toys are in it. All the toys are in the living room, so she rarely heads into her room during the day.

zeontestpilot > LongbowMkII
10/19/2016 at 22:21

I started to not care, until she started drawing on the cupboards, which we plan on keeping. The idea is fivechwr a dedicated place to get creative. We’ll see how it pans out though.

FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com > wafflesnfalafel
10/19/2016 at 22:28

Oh god the toothpaste is the worst. My wife also leaves bread open and it goes stale. I never thought of that before but I bet my daughter does get it from my wife. Every time I go into the kitchen I find a cap or twist tie from some random thing just sitting on the counter.

wafflesnfalafel > FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com
10/19/2016 at 22:35

yes! bread too - forgot about that...

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > zeontestpilot
10/19/2016 at 22:58

The crayola washable are great and so far come off whatever my boys put them on.

Tapas > zeontestpilot
10/20/2016 at 04:12

Tie each cap to the marker.

Cover Jr. in Chalkboard painted clothes.

You’re welcome.

TheRealBicycleBuck > zeontestpilot
10/20/2016 at 06:01

This too shall pass.

They now sell whiteboard paint. Our conference rooms are painted with it so we can use any/every wall as a marker board. In this context, she’s just building her business communication skills.

zeontestpilot > WRXforScience
10/20/2016 at 06:07

I like to think that I’m a strict parent, at least stricter than my parents. My daughter is pretty cute, but I make sure she gets away with nothing.

She knows when she’s in trouble too. If she’s done something bad, she won’t make eye contact, or hides. Last time she drew on the wall, I sat down with her and explain how doing this “hurts mommy and daddy’s feelings” and was a “bad girl thing to do”. Also, trying to emphasize a point to a 3 year old is sometimes difficult.

zeontestpilot > Tapas
10/20/2016 at 06:09

There should be a whiteboard paint.

zeontestpilot > merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc
10/20/2016 at 06:09

No sure if she even has crayons. I know we pitched the markers since they all dried .

zeontestpilot > TheRealBicycleBuck
10/20/2016 at 06:12

It’ll past until my month old son becomes old enough to follow her example, lol.

Phyrxes once again has a wagon! > zeontestpilot
10/20/2016 at 07:05

Fair enough, my two year old is the same way. He only goes to his room to sleep. We were just gifted some of the Crayola markers that only mark on the specific paper, I’m hoping he doesn’t try to drawn on the cats.

Matt Nichelson > zeontestpilot
10/20/2016 at 07:54

The bed is a white 4 post with pink accents. She colored it purple so thankfully it wasn’t too off, but it’s just the fact of the matter. I assume yours may be worse.

zeontestpilot > Matt Nichelson
10/20/2016 at 08:40

Mine didn’t do too bad. She has colored and stickered her chair at the table though.

BJ > zeontestpilot
10/20/2016 at 08:58

Our kids love their whiteboards - the have little boards the size of a sheet of paper that they can carry around.

Matt Nichelson > zeontestpilot
10/20/2016 at 08:59

Fun times. Parenting is hard stuff, especially when you have no kids of your own and are an only child coming into a family with two kids. It’s been a learning experience.

zeontestpilot > Matt Nichelson
10/20/2016 at 09:14

I’m the oldest of three, MrsZtp is #6 of 8 (so a middle child). I can empathize with my oldest, she’s the prototype child (like I was); we figure out what works as a parent and change it with the next one , lol.