Destructogirl strikes again

Have I ever mentioned my daughters? Two of them? One is 8 and the other 5. One fairly responsible and the other...not so much.

Have I ever mentioned that our furniture is a hodge-podge of inexpensive, well-worn pieces? I always joke that we had to buy the living room tables with the "distressed" finish and the girls have added their own "distressing" over the years.

Have I mentioned that we recently bought a new dining room set? A nice pretty one. And that I waited until the girls had grown up some and were less likely to destroy it?

Yeah, maybe I ought to have waited a little longer.

This morning, L made me a picture with stickers that didn't stick, so I suggested she glue them down. A few minutes later she brings the picture back wet with too much glue. Another minute or two passes and I find her wiping the dining table where she has smeared the glue.

She didn't put down her protective plastic mat.

She used *my* powerful glue rather than her own washable glue.

She tried to clean up the mess on her own.

She couldn't read the warning on the back of the bottle that said "this glue will damage the finish on varnished surfaces".

Guess what? The warning was right!

I scrubbed that stuff with everything I could think of. The glue came off, but there are still large spots where the varnish is gone/mottled and the stain is a tad lighter.

Ooooo, I was so incredibly mad and upset at that little girl, who in one moment of not thinking ruined an expensive piece of furniture.

I checked websites looking for tips on repairing varnish and found nothing except to call a French Polisher (why he has to be French, I have no idea). I loaded the kids in the car and headed down to the furniture store to see if they knew anything that could repair the table. I got there right before they opened the doors and found all the employees coming to the front of the store.

And do you know what they did?

The general manager came up and offered to repair the table for me. I didn't buy the extended warranty or anything, but he listened to my story and said they would take care of everything. All I have to do is load the table in the van and take it to them. For that kind of service, I have to put in a plug for them. If you're in the market and the area, Value City Furniture at South Blvd. and 485 is an awesome company to deal with.

We left the furniture store, then went next door to Target and bought a small card table. That table and all the craft supplies are going upstairs to the playroom so that maybe our dining table will stand a chance of survival!