Sibling love (or something like that)

So at age what can you stop using the excuse, "She just doesn't know any better. . ."

The Spam, who is 4, just came barging into the room bawling.  Big crocodile tears running down his cheeks, holding his head as if it were about to fall off.

"She hiiiiiiiit me!" he sobbed.  Apparently his sister hit him with a  magic wand (a wooden Harry Potter magic wand, hand carved by a very cool uncle).

I doled out the appropriate amount of condolences and we headed off to find little sis, who was sitting on the floor of the living room waving around the wand and jabbering to herself.

She did not look remorseful.  In fact, she was mumbling and scrunching her face up like she does when she's yelling jibber jabber angrily at her brothers, while swinging the wand back and forth like a menace.

"We do not hit!" I told her and took the wand away.  "Tell Coggy (that's what she calls him) that you're sorry."

Well, that 21 month old spit fire looked at me and said, with her face still scrunched up, "NO!"

I gasped.  You know like a pretend gasp that I'm outraged and appalled, even though I was really trying hard not to laugh.  "You tell him you're sorry!" I said again.

"Sowee, Coggy," she then said very sweetly. Then came running into my arms and gave me a big bear hug, looking oh so proud of herself.

Coggy wasn't so sure she was sorry.  "SHE'S MEAN!" he kept yelling.

So then I used the phrase, "Honey, she just doesn't know any better."

BUT, looking at that little manipulator who was sweetly sucking her thumb in my lap, I wasn't so sure.  I think she knows exactly what she's doing.

I don't feel too bad, however.  Because it was less than ten minutes later when I heard a loud thud, the sound of Little Miss beginning to cry, and a very panicked 4 year old whispering, "SHHHHHHHHH!  It's okay!  SHHHHHHHHH!"

I'm pretty sure my Little Miss can hold her own this those big boys, and that when she does actually get a good whack in every now and then, it's all just fair game. 

Plus also I can distinctly remember myself using that panicked "Shhhhhhh!" when I once tied my younger brother up with rope, picked him up from his feet and caused him to fall forward and smash his chin open on the kitchen floor.  I hissed "SHHHHH" over and over again as blood started gushing out, as if that somehow would take me back in time so I could decide not to tie him up.  Or at least to leave his arms free so that he could catch himself :) 

Oh life with siblings.  It's pretty much just what we need to figure out how to handle the real world, isn't it?