Cooper Van Gogh

Pen on the couch.  Cool.

Imagine the chances that some unnamed little 2 1/2 year-old will come across a pen that I accidentally left out in the living room.  What, you say?  100% chances??  Yep, you're right.

He found the pen, and things were just a little too quite as he sat so 'nicely' on the couch while Jeremy and I were busy in the kitchen.  He had quite the sad, fat lip when Jeremy's reaction was one of utter bewilderment.   But it was too hard to get mad at him--he thought he made a nice picture.

After browsing the Internet, I did find an easy solution for getting it off the couch--now the cushion is cleaner than it was pre-pen!  We even found Cooper scrubbing the couch one afternoon with a scrub brush.  He said he was "Helping." 

But I decided we needed to give Cooper a more agreeable outlet for his creativity. 

Meet Cooper Van Gogh!

Cooper Van Gogh.  August 2013

He was really into it!  Working so carefully to do his best :)

"Firefighters"  Can you spot the rainbow? Firefighters? Hoses? Fire Boots? Fire Truck?  It's all there!

 A few days after the pen fiasco, Cooper got to paint while Izzy napped.  He worked so carefully, and he was so excited to be doing something special that 'big kids' do.  He explained what he was painting as he worked, and I am so happy to see him enjoying some creating!  He really hasn't been very excited about drawing, coloring, or painting until now.  Even in his play, he's begun to get more creative.  It's really fun to see his imagination coming to life!

For now, I will work harder to keep pens out of the hands of my toddler (although in my defense, I did put it on the end table, where Izzy could not get it), and colors, crayons, and markers in his hands.  At the table.  On paper.  Let's see if this is the worst one we experience at our house... time will tell!!