This Is Something All Parents Need to Know About...

Do you remember when your child rode a two-wheeler for the first time? I do. I put my little Bitchy on the bike, pushed her and watched her go. Something in my heart gave a little lurch, and I wanted to just run with her and protect from and falls that might occur. Well, I couldn’t, and what tremendous falls she had!

I remember one nasty fall in particular that occurred after she went flying down the hill on the bikepath behind our house. I heard a crash and her screams and flew down that hill like I’ve NEVER flown before, in bare feet no less!

Now that she’s driving, however, my fears are ones that only a parent with a teen driver can understand. It’s a fear that grips your heart with an icy hold and doesn’t let go. It knows that your little girl out there driving with a weapon under her control that could not only kill herself, but others as well. This fear knows that her many friends and classmates, as inexperienced as she, are out there driving, too.

I know, I know, we all went through it. I remember those years of being invincible. Do you? We were to young, at 16, to really understand the consequences of the quick turn of the head, of grabbing for an eight track tape on the floor, or of a moment of being caught unawares.

These days, the people at AllState are doing their very best to help spread the words about measures that teens, and all people, frankly, can take to ensure safety while on the road. Cell phones have become a teen’s right hand- and we know that there is nothing that anyone of us can do about it.

However, as parents we are bound to educate our children who drive about the deadly consequences if they choose to use their phones while driving.

Many of us are hoping to get the word out about the dangers of texting while driving and The Allstate Foundation’s “X the TXT: Thumbs Up for the Safest Holiday Ever” campaign. Studies have shown that teens are particularly susceptible to dangerous distractions while driving, especially from the use of their cell phones. But parents have a tremendous ability to influence the driving habits of their teens, making it all the more important to sit down early on with them to discuss safe driving behavior.

Please join me, and many others, by visiting the “X the TXT” website so that you can learn about the 30-city tour and download the family pledge. I've signed it! I hope you all do as well.

As many of you know, my dear sister and her husband lost their young driver at 16. We grieve for him every day, and pray that others do not have to go through this same devastation. We are committed to helping others in any way, to be safe while on the road.




I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of The Allstate Foundation. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate. However, and don't tell them, I would have done this for free. THAT'S how important it is to me.