I hope the new tenants like chalk art, because this mess is their mess in two weeks.

I bought the kids some sidewalk chalk at the beginning of the summer, but then it was pointed out to me that our sidewalk is right next to one of the busiest highways in Ontario.

After a few weeks — during which all the poor little guys had to keep themselves occupied was playing outside with a ball, or with their blocks, or toy cars, or video games, or watching Treehouse TV, or playing at the park, or blowing bubbles, or using their crayons, or running in circles, or wrestling, or climbing mommy — it occurred to me that my wall would be a great canvas for their art.

So I gave Victor (2.5-years old) the blue chalk, and Andrew (almost seven) the purple chalk, but Andrew wanted the blue chalk, so I forced a switch and then I showed them what to do, so Andrew started drawing on a brick, but that was the brick that Victor had wanted to draw on since the day before he knew what chalk was, so I separated them with about four feet of wall but Andrew started singing about how his side was far superior to anything Victor had on his side, so Victor moved into Andrew’s space, so Andrew moved over to Victor’s space, which meant Victor had to retaliate and Andrew’s shirt ended up covered in purple chalk, and when I separated them again Victor decided he’d had enough of this chalk crap and threw his chalk off the balcony, and a few minutes later he got really angry at Andrew because Andrew had chalk and Victor had no chalk.

That was the first twenty minutes.

It was a real teachable moment.

Now my half of the balcony — the wall, the floor, my bike, the railings, the window frame, my futon, several blocks and toy cars — are covered in chalk.

Good luck, new tenants.