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Do you have a new driver in your home?  Your child has just received their learner’s permit, so someone has to go out on the road with them.  Hmmm…..who is the lucky person? I quickly learned that teaching teens to drive isn’t for me.

My nerves are NOT set up for this!

A Good Place To Practice With Your New Driver

People will tell you to start your teen driver in a large empty parking lot.  That is good advice, but let me tell you.  There’s a difference riding with them in a vacant parking lot and on the street.

I don’t care if there are NO cars on the road with you.  Other obstacles are waiting.

Let me keep it real with y’all.  I rode with our new driver twice!  Once in an empty parking lot and she drove me home once.

Yes.  I kissed the ground when we pulled into our driveway!

My nerves aren’t set up for teaching our teen to drive.

Here’s my advice to any parent teaching a teen to drive.

Two Things Parents Need When Teaching A Teen To Drive

After taking the written test, you’re ready to hit the road with your child.  The excitement hits because you’re on the official countdown of no longer needing to chauffer your child around town, and you have someone to run errands for you.

The reality is, there are some things you will go through before getting to that point.  And I quickly learned that my nerves aren’t set up for those things.  However, I did learn that there are two very important things every parent needs before starting this journey of teaching teens to drive.

Patience

I was thinking….”you’ve been a passenger in my car for 15 years.  You see me turn the steering wheel.  Use the brakes, blinkers, and windshield wipers.”

“Did you make this turn and not use your blinker nor brakes?”

“SLOW DOWN when you turn!”

“There’s a pedal over there called the BRAKE!”

“You cannot make that turn that short.”

“Oh, LAWD!  BRAKE!”

“I know there was a question about making turns and using the brake on that written test!”

“Ok, don’t yell.  Yelling will only scare her more.  Just sit over here and use your imaginary brakes.”

“No!  Just stop the car!  Get out of my car right now!  Daddy will do driving lessons.”

My nerves aren’t set up for this.  You need patience while teaching teens to drive.  LOTS of patience.

New Driver Decals

We didn’t think about New Driver Decals until our new teen driver ended up on interstate 95.

Remember, I passed this job to my husband because my nerves aren’t set up for things like this.

They have a weekly driving date.  He loves it!  She drives him around town, doing errands, gassing up for the week, etc.

Interstate 95

They were out driving one weekend, and he instructed her to make a right turn too soon.  They were headed out to get gas but made that right turn a little soon.  That turn ended up taking them to interstate 95.  Hmmm…..we live in Metro DC.  I HATE driving on 95.  Shoot 95, 495, 395…I’m all kinds of confused.  To think my baby, who is still learning to drive, is out there.

I think my husband was planning to “forget” that part of the driving report.  He didn’t utter a word, but my teen was proud of herself and told me all about it.

We hadn’t thought much about adding New Driver Decals to our car until this day.

As they drove along 95, our teen driver maintained the speed limit, keeping up with traffic and remained in the far right lane.

Yes, people.  If you are NOT passing anyone, please stay in the far right lane.

My husband said he instructed her to get off at an upcoming exit.

She put on her blinker, checked her mirrors, and started to move over.  Now, this was at an exit with cars merging on to the interstate and vehicles exiting the off-ramp.  A car behind her that had been behind them for a while decided to speed around her.  As she went to move over, the vehicle suddenly moved over and sped past riding half the lane and half the shoulder.

Would the New Driver Decal stop drivers like this?  Possibly, possibly not.  But it may help other drivers stay clear because they are afraid of the new driver’s maneuvers.

Anytime I see that decal on a vehicle; I tend to stay clear, make no sudden movements, and bit more patient.

Oh…wait.  I said I’m a bit more patient.  Hmmmm…..but, my nerves still aren’t set up like that to be a passenger.

Be sure to buy and use those New Driver Decals! 

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