Leaving your mark on the world.

You know if you have kids that they love to mark their territory. I've cleaned more crayon off walls and marker off of faces than I like to recall. With my youngest being 6 I like to think that those days are behind me. I know that's not true as I still find little pictures from my 8 year old every once in a while. And Dylan did start young as you can see.

A few nights ago we found some beautiful signatures from Dylan in the backyard. That's right, it couldn't be done with something like sidewalk chalk, that would be too easy. Where did the marker we found in the backyard come from? No idea. He found it and proceeded to tattoo the picnic table, the plastic chairs, the railing, the a/c and most large and beautiful, the patio.

I really can't get myself very excited about such things anymore. Irritated and frustrated, yes, but not really angry. More like a mild indigestion and a surrender to the inevitable. I own nothing that is perfect and that's just the way it is for a large family with animals. Cat scratches on the leather couch, dog chew marks on the wood cabinets, marker and pen on everything, a heat ring and scratches on my beautiful table, every plate chipped(not kidding), dings in walls, stains on floors, and now Dylan on the patio, just to name a few.

If we had perfect stuff then I would have to assume that we were doing something wrong. The "stuff" is not what is important. The lesson of scrubbing a patio is what is important. The stains and marks let you know that a family of boys lives here, and one perfectly tidy girl, and that we value them, since they are still alive after all of that destruction. Bless 'em.