Here's the line

Back when Lukas was learning to walk, I instituted a rule that he couldn't go further down the driveway than a line in the cement (a seam in the driveway) that was about 10 feet from the street. I figured having a line that was a good distance from the street was the safest way to keep him from getting too close...and what does "too close" mean to kid, anyway? You have to define your terms, or the kid won't know what you're talking about.

Anyway, Lukas is quite aware of the line, and always obeys this rule, whether he's walking, riding his bike, or chasing a ball. I've mentioned it a couple times to Natalie when she was crawling, but now that she's walking, I've been talking about it with her several times a day, since we usually play in the front yard every day.

Today she walked up to a line in the driveway (not the line I had specified, but I was happy to reinforce her positive behavior), sat down, and pointed to the line. I said, "Yes, Natalie, that's a line in the driveway!"

She walked back up the driveway, then back down and actually came to the real line, and then I emphasized, "That's the line you don't cross, Natalie."

It was exciting to me that she remembered that there is a line she doesn't cross. That's not to say that she is obeying this well yet (she might be confused about which line is the line...we talked about painting a yellow line on the seam when Lukas was younger, but then it became not necessary because he learned which line was the line), but it's definitely a start!