As a parent working from home with children on the scene, you’ll already be struggling to find gaps in your agenda to fit things in. On top of your workload, looking after pre-school kids, cooking, cleaning and the many other day-to-day jobs that are involved, even just five minutes’ down time can be a luxury. However, if you’ve managed to keep on top of it all without the modern day convenience of a car then you should definitely be commended.
Many people take it for granted, having a car on the drive to nip to the shops or to ferry young ones around. Gone are the days when most people get by on foot. Maybe you’ve seen your friends packing babies, bags and accessories into the back seats and had a hint of jealousy. As a non-driving parent, of course there’d be positives to getting on the road.
The first steps to time and money saving would be to start studying a small amount a day, even just 15 minutes, and allocating some time to trying out mock driving theory tests. This way you don’t get caught under an avalanche of work when you go to do the real thing and you can pass first time. It saves time, money and effort rather than going in unprepared. It’s also a good idea to get a full understanding of the medical guidelines of fitness to drive.
If you have a partner with a vehicle, save the funds and keep everyone involved by getting out on the road with them. I’d advise getting your first few lessons in with a qualified instructor until you’re at a reasonable driving capability and with enough confidence. But after that you can save the money and the time out of the house by doing it together. Set some ground rules to keep arguments to a minimum, though, as you don’t want in-car tension spilling back over into the house!
There are some useful tips for driving as a parent available on the internet that also come in nicely for learning to drive. It might seem daunting to start learning a completely new skill, and one that can seem insurmountable when you first take to the wheel. But it will be very fulfilling and useful for a family at any age.
The statistics say that women in their sixties are still passing driving tests at a good rate, so there’s no reason why you can’t. Speak to a few instructors on the phone, find a vibe that you like and just don’t put it off any longer. It never gets easier and, like having kids, the time will never be perfect. Just bite the bullet.