Graffiti Artist

April 2, 2012

I’m the mother of a graffiti artist. A vandal. Elizabeth is on a path of either criminal or artistic renown. If she doesn’t in end up in time out for the next 15-20.

And how has she been tagging up the joint?

Let’s count the ways:

1. Walls: Our walls are her canvas. Which was annoying when we lived in a house we owned. Heart stopping in a house we rent.

2. Sheets: I have a bad habit of buying only while sheets which she then “makes pretty” with vibrant slashes of color.

3. Carpets: Did you know you could color on a carpet with a crayon? And did you know it’s hard as hell trying to get said crayon out of the carpet? Well, I do.

4. Tables: You’ve heard parents encourage coloring outside the lines. Well, Miss E colors outside the book. My beautiful wood tables are filled with scrub marks only a magic eraser and prayer will remove.

5. Windows: Who needs stained glass when you have Elizabeth and her ever present markers? And stickers. And, on occasion, glitter glue. Do you know how difficult it is to get glitter glue off surfaces? Brutal.

I put the poor child in time out after she tells me how pretty her work is. And then I sit and fret I might be inhibiting her artistic creativity. What do you do when you have a little Picasso?

Mandy Dawson is the creator of In Mandyland, an almost daily blog recording her adventures in juggling a full-time job, two active children, four arguing hens, a fluffy bunny, and one ex-husband. A self-diagnosed gardening and crafting addict, she often finds herself gluing together clay pots and trying to discover the cure for brown thumb. When she’s not writing, she can be found burning dinners while she stares off into space with a story idea. She was a regular contributor for Makes Fun of Stuff, Aiming Low, and Six Kitchens, and has been featured on BlogHer and Mamapedia. She is an Assistant Editor for Write on Edge and has had her fiction featured in three anthologies currently available on Amazon.