Pencils

Every Monday the kids come home from school with their bags full of homework assignments for the week. After a snack and some play time, I reel them in to start their homework.

Within a few minutes of beginning comes the inevitable statement: " I can't find a pencil".

This is a great mystery to me because I know that last Monday when they asked me for a pencil, I sharpened 5 and put them in the pencil tray on the counter.

My question is: Where Do the Pencils Go?

Are there beings from another world who steal into our house at night to take the pencils back to their galaxy to provide fuel for their home planet?

Do pencils actually spontaneously combust after one use, leaving no trace they ever existed?

Perhaps beavers have taken up residence in our backyard pond and are using the pencils for the construction of their lodge.....

I think the most likely reason is our budding young artist, Morgan. Lately he has been showing a real interest in drawing. Here are a few samples of his recent drawings from a How to Draw Sea Creatures book (Note: He drew these himself, not traced):

I guess one day I will be on the ladder to his bunk bed, attempting to change the sheets and I will discover hundreds of missing pencils under the mattress. Until then, I guess I will keep on sharpening!

Sherri