Maybe think outside the paintbox to bead board on the walls or a durable vinyl wallpaper. If it is a hallway, maybe a handrail on one side to give their hands something to gravitate to.

Thanks for the suggestions graywings! I love the idea of thinking outside of the box! I found a pic from the other day that shows the hallway well.

The dining room has chair rail (see bottom left corner of photo) and I could extend that down the hall but the smudges all around both light switches and that would be above the rail. If extending the chair rail works, is that because it's white, wood, gloss, or what? Looking at the photo, what do you think would look best? Maybe some type of subtle pattern/texture gray wallpaper?

I just snapped a pic of the light switch to show what I'm talking about. It's terrible. Even their playroom walls don't look bad like this.

I think a more glossier finish might help minimize the marks and make it eaiser to clean, however in the end as long as kids are touching the walls staining will occur. Was thinking you could do a wallcovering, like grass cloth but that would be harder to clean.

I agree with sloyd and would go with a Semi gloss.

I would go looking for vinyl wallpaper in a print design with a background color that matches the taupe paint.

those look like stains from greasy fingers, if they come back after you clean. wash it well with a good grease cutting cleaner. If the stains don't come off, why not repaint that area every few months with the leftover paint? You can use a small sponge craft roller, which is easy to clean. Or, if this wall is a discrete area, and has a place where you can reasonably stop and start, have some of the same color mixed up in a semi-gloss and repaint just that wall. If the stains come through, you may have to use a stain blocking primer like kilz or BIN.

I'm just wondering, is that by any chance Sherwin Williams paint?

You said you like to think outside the box...so here's my thought. March all family members over to the wall while it's dirty and show them the problem (yes, even a 2 year old if you have one). Then discuss the ways to solve the problem, and include the strong suggestion that all wash their hands on entering prior to touching the walls.

We had a problem with the bathroom being left in a scary state after being used so that the next person had to deal with it. Even the preschooler understood when we used this technique and also added a sticker reward for leaving it looking good so "guests" or the next person using it didn't gag. It's worked for almost a year now. Try it, and you might be surprised that they just hadn't realized they were making a mess. I'd rather have a clean wall than a paint that hides it...though agree it's nice to not have it as visible.

Thanks for all the tips everyone!! The paint is Valspar No VOC.

There's no way to wash their hands before they enter, as there is no sink in between the door to enter the house and this hallway (our primary entrance into the house is on the right side of the hall). I do have a son who just turned 2 a few days ago, as a matter of fact :). I don't think they are doing anything unusual, as the wall did not have this issue before I painted. Before, it was a glossier finish in a light blue. I never once cleaned the wall prior to painting and there was never any noticeable marks on the wall.

I had not considered that it may be the same stains coming through. I use dawn to clean b/c it's so good at cutting through grease. I will clean it again and see if the stains come back in the same places.

I'm going to start looking at wallpapers and see if I can find something I like. If not, I will repaint in something glossier. Thanks again!!