Teen gets behind the wheel

This means that she has started driving. Along with her lessons I bought for her birthday she has been encouraged to "practice" in my sexy, new Fiat 500C twin air turbo with extra fat wheels and a talking woman in the dashboard.

So, I went to GREAT lengths at GREAT cost to insure her to drive it - this is because the car is deemed to be a "performance" vehicle - despite being no bigger than Noddy's thumb.

For a single moment I missed by old, trusty Getz.

I took her to Highcliffe on Sunday. I learnt to drive in Highcliffe. The roads are very wide and the bungalows are set very far back and the only cars on the roads are other learners or mobility vehicles.

She pulled away well, she practised stopping, she started up a hill and she even reversed.

"Can I change into third yet Mum? I know what I am doing now"? She asked on straight

"Okay" but my heart lurched as we touched 30mph. "Now brake slowly and change back into second, there's a blind bend ahead." There wasn't really, it was a small bend, but my heart was jumping about all over the place.

"Don't worry Mum, I know what I'm doing."

I thought algebra homework and learning how to swim were tough, but now I am sitting on the passenger side of the car while the Teen takes the wheel and scarier still, her foot on the accelerator.

To be fair, she does listen and mostly follows instruction, but she has clearly learnt some very bad habits from Burnout Paradise or Need for Speed or something, because feeding the wheel through her hands at ten to two seem to be taking a while to grasp. And she flicked her hair with one hand on the wheel as she negotiated a corner.

I am doing my best to remain calm.

I told the former LOML about the wheel thing.

"Well, she clearly has picked crossing her arms from you."

"Don't you cross your arms then?"

"No"

"You mean you drive at ten to two and feed the wheel all the time?"

"Yes".

Oh. I have always thought he drives like a very old age pensioner, but I have never taken that much notice of his hands.

It's been just one week since her first lesson and we have been out in the Fiat everyday.

While the teen is learning with me or the instructor by her side, I actually feel sort of safe.

The problem will be when she passes.

The numbers of crashes are disproportionately high in drivers aged 18-19. The deadliest month is June; the deadliest day is Saturday; the deadliest hours are between 6pm and 9pm.

So, I can either hide the car keys on Saturday evenings in summer, hope that she decides to travel around Australia where the only thing she will come upon is the odd Kangaroo or read The Sacred Flight of the Teenager: A Parent's Guide to Stepping Back and Letting Go - which sort of says it all.

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