Yesterday afternoon, Thing 1 - with his shiny new driver's permit, and I headed over to the large parking lot at a local elementary/middle school so he could start practicing his driving.
It's the same parking lot that his younger brother learned to ride his two-wheeler in.
Note to self: Bring a magazine to the parking lot.
Going round and round and round and round in a herky jerky motion gets a little bit long after only 7 minutes. The kid needs lots of time to practice so it's best I keep myself entertained.
We felt awfully brave after an hour of circles so I drove over to an elementary school nearby my little brother's house so that Thing 1 could drive around one block to show his uncle was he could do now.
As we s-l-o-w-l-y drove by the house so we could park around the corner on the side, thereby having to avoid doing any pulling into the driveway or pulling out of the driveway in case he felt confident enough to drive home, I saw my little brother at the kitchen sink, who - at the very moment we were parading by - saw us, too. By the time the kid had actually turned the circle and put the car in park, my brother and his wife were out the door.
They were as excited as we were!
We went inside so he could tell his 20 year old cousin what he just did. When we were leaving, they all decided to come out and watch. Somebody thought it would be a good idea to take the three of them for a drive around the block (We are either very confident or very foolish) Everyone got in and we were all talking and laughing when Thing 1 tried to drive away, but realized he'd left the car in park and was just revving the engine. My God! I thought I'd pee my pants, laughing!
We went around the block, slowly and curb-hugging, arriving safely back where we'd started.
Thing 1 decided he was ready to drive home. He wasn't ready to take the "big road" home so took a side street that has absolutely no stop signs in either direction. I about had a nervous fit when he sailed right through one without slowing down. Thankfully there was no oncoming traffic.
I don't think he's ready for the road just yet.
If any of you have tips, or stories to share about teaching your teenagers to drive - now is the time to share them in the Comments section! (I like to pretend that I Open and Shut the Comments section for you)
On Health Watch - Twin Cities - Thing 2 still won't eat right. Thing 1 didn't get his toenail clipped but got an antibiotic for now, with threat of permanently taking care of the ingrown toenail. Thor needs to have his head examined. His quality of life pretty much sucks right now and he's leaving no survivors.
9:17 a.m. - August 31, 2006
Recent entries:
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