I want you to understand why I am going to beat you.

After a hearty meal last Saturday night, we went back to the condo.

Eli was trying to convince us how he can superhumanly jump over the hood of the van. Dave let him out in the near - empty parking lot to try. While the van door was open, and Eli was revving his own engine trying to find the courage to hurl himself mid-air, Tripp snuck out the door.

Around about the same time as Eli finished flailing around, Tripp decided to take off running. By himself. In a dark parking lot. While a van was backing up.

I was absolutely petrified. Dave screamed. I screamed. Eli just stood there. Emma - well, I don't know what Emma did.

The van stopped. I ran and got Tripp. I then carried him back to the van, where I checked him out. I have to say that it was one of the scariest moments of my life. Not as scary as the concussion, but scary enough that I was crying.

After I checked him out, I told him that he should never, ever, ever do that and I told him that he could have gotten squished, that I would not have a little boy anymore if he got squished.

And then I blistered his hiney.

I told him I spanked him because I loved him, and I wanted him to understand that he should not run in parking lots. We all went in, recollected ourselves and hung out for the rest of the evening.

But, this episode really got me thinking of how many times I discipline the kids and I don't tell them why. I am pretty good about not spanking in anger. All the kids are different with their individual needs for discipline - to some degree. Emma, for example, will start to cry on her own when she knows she is in trouble, and sometimes that is before I have said anything. Tripp always gives me the routine "I am just so, so sorry" and Eli pretends that he has no idea that he has or ever will do anything wrong.

I think, as parents, that it is important to explain why, what and how. I am going to work on that.