"I didn't mean to!"

It has become one of Liesl's, and by the miracle of copycat-ism Sebastian's, favorite phrases. Spill your milk? I didn't mean to! Pee on the floor? I didn't mean to! Fall off your chair? I didn't mean to! Hit your sibling? I didn't mean to!

We've tried to talk with them about the problem with acting in such a way that you could expect a bad thing might occur, either based on experience, common sense, or mommy's warnings, and why it is important to pay attention.  But Steve at dinner tonight decided to take a different route.  He gave them a lecture on fault and criminal liability - I lost track, but there was talk of intention, and negligence, and recklessness, and strict liability...  There may have been some Latin terms thrown around.  :)  We'll see if that works.

In a side note, I am feeling much restored from my previous post.  The children and I went on some lovely hikes over the last few days, on different parts of the Wildwood trail and around Hoyt Arboretum. The redwood and cedar trees in the arboretum were particularly wonderful. Sebastian and I have decided we'd like to hike the whole 27 miles of the Wildwood trail through Forest Park, bit by bit. I'm going to print out a map so we can start coloring in the parts we've already done.  It's so fun to watch Liesl growing so much faster and stronger - she ran and skipped and kept up for a whole hour-long hike on Saturday morning. We also went to the farmer's market and bought tasty things, and ate some meals out, and I played frisbee today and had a fantastic time again, and in general I'm ready for another week. Phew.