Do you drive?
How old were you when you learned?
Do you drive differently now that you are a parent?
How does being a parent affect the way that you drive?
Does it affect your speed, the routes you take?
I am 42 years old
In December I will have been driving for 8 years
I learned to drive as a pregnant mother of baby twins
I knew that with three children under the age of two
Public transport was not going to be an option anymore
We lived in a rural village
And though I had managed on the trains with the double buggy
Transporting a trio of babies did not sound like much fun
And so I learned to drive
I passed my test in December 2011
Just over four months before our third baby was born
It was wonderful in the last months of pregnancy
To be able to drive to all our classes and activities
We gained so much time!
By the time the baby came
I was feeling confident enough after a couple of weeks
To drive my babies around
Now 8 years later I am a much more confident driver
On roads that I know
But I avoid new roads
Do not drive on the motorway
And I do worry excessively about parking
And reversing!!
Perhaps I am not that confident a driver
But I am better than I was
And I am not alone in my anxieties
All Car Leasing have created the above infographic
After conducting a survey with 1200 parents
Who can drive, own a car and have had a baby in the last 5 years
I tick all of those boxes
I have four living children
Two of whom have been born in the last 5 years
The Baby Driver survey produced some interesting results
And these are well worth a read
The survey found that
Older parents are quicker to get back on the road but drive less than younger parents
Shopping is the most common reason parents drive with their baby in the car
42% of all respondents said they drove specifically to soothe a baby with no destination in mind
I have found that through necessity I started driving again
Much quicker after Edie than Bea
As we are now home educating
We use our car every day
We drive to classes and activities and social meets
We drive to visit friends and family
I have to say that I rarely take my children shopping
Our car journeys are mostly for educational purposes
Though I have never gone for a drive solely to get a baby to sleep
I do often plan our day trips and excursions around baby’s naptime
Hoping that they will sleep in the car
This does not always work
Worse is when you do not want the baby to fall asleep
And everyone in the car
Is on Operation Keep Baby Awake!
The survey asked parents about their driving worries
Other drivers are the biggest worry of driving parents
Women are twice more likely as men to be worried about getting lost
Older drivers were a lot less worried about driving with a baby in the car
Drivers from central or north UK most worried about other drivers whereas drivers from the south were most worried about their own ability
I found this really interesting as I would say that my biggest worry on the roads
Is other drivers
Fast drivers, distracted drivers
Other road users terrify me
We have had some car related crime in our area recently
And it does worry me that someone might stop the car
And perhaps try to get in
I also worry about my own driving ability
Especially with regard to parking and reversing
Where we live many of the lanes we have to drive
Are very narrow single track roads
I hate having to reverse
And have been known to cry while trying to do so
With all my children in the car
But what is a mummy to do
As with all tough parenting things
You just have to keep on keeping on
Forwards and back!
The survey asked about car journeys and car seats
Standard car seats are the most popular but ISOFIX gains popularity with older parents
37% of parents aged 25-34 have been in an accident while the baby was in the car
89% of parents use some form of distraction during the journey
Scottish parents the most chatty with northern parents most musical
Our children are in Maxi Cosi and Cosatto car seats
Esther and William have high back boosters
Bea and Edie are, as of this week, both forward facing
In our very old Maxi Cosi Tobi seats that we have had for years
If finances allowed I would get them all better car seats
Especially Bea and Edie
As having the children safe and secure in the car is a huge priority for me
I would never ever forgive myself if something happened to any of them
As a result of my driving
Having the very best car seats you can afford is so so important
In my opinion
We had a lie flat car seat from Jane for Edie
And have only just this week taken her out of it
Our in car entertainment consists of
Audio books
Absolute Radio
Talking to each other and playing games
Lots of singing
Daddy also tells awesome stories
And this has led to the children becoming great storytellers too
We also take food wherever we go
Our children are ALWAYS hungry in the car
There is lots of information in the All Car Leasing Baby Driver Survey
It is definitely worth a read
It feels good to know that we are not alone
On this journey
Driving and parenting
This is a collaborative post