Okay guys, I am not going to lie.  We have a new driver in the house and I could not be happier.  On Tuesday, Reese took her driver’s test and she passed.  In case you have been busy and did not read Monday’s blog, this was a day after she turned 16  much to her dismay.  You see last year she turned 15 on a Sunday and alas the DMV is not open on the weekend. This meant that she could not get her driver’s permit until Monday, May 1st.  The law states that you must have your driver’s permit for an entire year.  It does not say you can have your driver’s permit for 364 days, when you have completed your 50 hours or just somewhere around  a year you can go take the test.  Nope, you have to wait 365 days to get your license. They will not let you take the test until one year from the date you took it last year.  So, Reese had to wait until Tuesday to get her license.  It’s been rough.  She will probably be 65 and still saying, “Well, if I had been able to get my license on the day that I turned 16 this might have made all the difference.”  Perhaps this delayed license will scar her for life or perhaps this was a time in which a day made all the difference. Only time will tell, but I believe this feeling of injustice will pass and, in fact, may already be forgotten now that said license is in hand.

Reese is our third daughter we have taught to drive.  We knew what to expect.  We knew when to be scared and when to fear for our lives.  It wasn’t easy to get back in the car after the middle child.  She still frightens me from time to time and I will never know how she passed her test on the first try.  The only thing I can guess is that the instructor never wanted to get in the car with her again.  So, you can imagine getting back in the car with another 15 year old was high on my list.  Our only saving grace was that it was our last daughter we had to teach to drive.  Some days in the car this was my mantra:  This is the last one.  This is the last one.  This is the last one.

Wednesday she drove herself to school for the first time.  She left early so she could park wherever she wanted and she drove herself home after her conditioning class.  Yes, I held my breath while she was driving to and from school and I was very grateful when she pulled in the driveway at the end of the day. I mean she is ready, but maybe I’m not totally ready?  It’s the first time in 23 years that I don’t have to drive anyone anywhere and it’s kind of strange. I think I might need a minute and it just so happens that I have a lot of extra moments each day to process this milestone.

Don’t get me wrong, I am so thankful to be through the learning to drive phase of all of my girls. In fact, the hubby and I high fived this accomplishment last night and yelled something like, “FREEDOM.”  Okay, maybe it won’t take me that long to get over it.