So if you have teens that are of driving age then join the club of parents who sit teeth chattering, chanting quietly on the edge of the passenger seat clutching the seat belt and praying to God that they make it out alive.

When we were 16 we just went to drivers ed, got our license and were out on the road with all the other crazies the first day.  Gallivanting all over town with our unlicensed friends.  But then we turn ‘old’ and have our own little driver.  And God help us, all those wonderful memories of our early driving years go completely out the window and we suddenly develop a sense of conscience that we didn’t have back then.

Well I’ve learned a couple things now that I’ve had one get her license and one in the process.  First is above all remain calm.  It’s really not as bad as it seems.  Start out with pulling the car out of the garage and make sure no other cars are in the driveway. (That could be an insurance nightmare)

Second, always always always start out slowly.  The best place to take the kid driving is the cemetery of all places!  Look at it this way….they can’t kill anyone…everyone is already dead.  Plus there are lots of little narrow streets with signs to practice on.  We used to go from cemetery to cemetery for months.  The worst part early on was letting her drive on the actual main roads from one place to the other.  (The goal is to go to the cemetery for a visit, not to stay!)

It took a good couple weeks to let her drive alone after getting her actual license and about 6 months since we stopped insisting she call when she gets there, and when she leaves.  We had her program our home phone into her cell under I.C.E. so that police, fire or paramedics could contact us in case she couldn’t.  Very scary stuff.  Far cry from our parents just letting us go wherever, whenever.  But, in their defense, it’s a very different time.  And if there’s one thing we’ve learned is that the memories of our own past definitely shape the way we raise our own kids.

Just remember, it’s alright to cry (yes, I mean us parents).  And you will.  You may also drink a little.  It’s very scary to see your life flash before your eyes.  Especially when they drive around the corner without tapping on the brake.

Once they are legal (and they will eventually be God help us all) make sure some rules are enforced.  Like the number of kids they can have in the vehicle, no cell phone usage while driving,  both hands on the wheel, yadda yadda yadda.  Our own personal ‘law’ is the requirement that they hold a job to pay for gas and insurance.  When the money runs dry I cannot afford to pay for gas for another vehicle.  Fortunately Kaylee has held a job for almost 2 years now.  I admire her ability to save some money and she admires her ability to spend it.

I suppose it will be fine in the long run.  As long as ‘Middle Child’ can find the spot to plug her IPod into and use the navigation to get to the mall… life will be good.

So, Kaylee, my oldest had been pestering me for a tattoo.  “Not a big tattoo, mom, just a little one!”  This all transpired shortly after her 17th birthday.  “I don’t want like a tramp-stamp, I want something like a shamrock on my ankle”  (appealing to her father and his Irish heritage.  Yep, that would normally work – smart kid!)

Mostly our reaction was “No…You can do that sorta thing when you are 18.”  Or, “Why would you want to mark up your body?  If you want to get a job in the medical field, you should’t have a tattoo.”

We figured the whole idea would wear off but it didn’t.  I can compare it to when she was like 4 and the ice cream truck would cruise down the street.  Eventually you just give in.

So about 6 months later, Shane decided to go ahead and sign the consent form and take her for the Celtic Shamrock tatto on the ankle.  He became elevated to “The Best Dad EVER!” (you know, despite not understanding anything that she ever said, felt, wanted since becomming a teen.  Isn’t it funny how all that ‘hate’ they have for you turns to ‘love’ when they really really want something?)

So they went to All Tattoos in Strongsville after quite a bit of research on all our parts to find somewhere that was sanitary and took the proper precautions so that we didn’t end up with a kid spouting Hepatitis and endless co-pays for it.   (We all know how hard it is to come up with those endless co-pays!)

The artist called her name.  It was her turn!  She followed him into the room and turned to ask her dad if he was coming in with her.

Shane said,  “No,  you wanted to do this, you can do this by yourself, I’ll just sit out here.”  And then when she was in the room… he added from across the room…. “If he tells you to take your pants off… leave… you don’t have to take your pants off to get a tattoo on your ankle!”

(You know, there’s never NOT a good moment to embarass your teenager)

Yeah, so it wasn’t that long after the tattoo business that Kaylee needed a nose piercing.  “Just a little teeny one Mom”.  At this point I just throw my hands in the air and say, “You can wait til you are 18 for this one.  We did the tattoo thing, but if you’re going to want to put another hole in your head, you can do it when you’re old enough”.

So a few weeks later I had to take her to the dentist to get her teeth cleaned for senior pictures.  I had a horrible sinus headache.  My whole head ached.  As it turned out, All Tattoos (where they also conveniently do piercing!) is right down the street from the dentist office!  Wow!  Imagine our luck! 

With a raging head ache I was in no mood to delay the inevitable and we pulled in the parking lot.  This time I got to sign the consent form.  Now Kaylee is allergic to nickel so I had to make sure that there was no nickel in the piercing.  After talking with two employees there I was assured they only used surgical stainless steel which doesn’t contain nickel.  So great!  Everything was panning out nicely for this adventure.  Her nose got pierced with a tiny little sparkly stud and we went home.  It bled a lot at first but then slowed down.  She asked how it looked.  Studying the new addition to her beautiful face I said “Well, with the blood around the stone it sorta looks like a zit!”

Not impressed with my humor but still elated that she had won and got the piercing, we went home.