Baby on Board

So I have always secretly thought that parents with the "Baby on board" signs were kind of cheesy (no offense to anyone). But I think I figured out today why people actually have them.

I had to take Noah to the hospital today to get some blood drawn for his bilirubin (jaundice of the newborn). I wanted Danielle to stay home and rest so I took the little man by myself. I actually had to take him twice today because the lab girl didn't draw enough blood. So I had to take my 1 week old newborn 30 minutes there, 30 minutes back, to sit in a germ filled hospital...twice. On the way there it's like every idiot on the road was trying to run me off the road or hit my bumper. If they only knew what a fragile little life I had in the back seat, would they be driving like the Dukes of Hazzards just to turn into a 7  Eleven?

If I was completely honest with myself, before I was a dad I drove relatively similar to those idiots accept with a different purpose on the road.  See, for some reason when I have taken it upon myself to be the enforcer on the road. Anytime I see someone not using their blinker (my biggest pet peeve) I tend to ride their bumper or do everything I can to not let them over.  I don't mind if people cut me off in traffic, I understand that you think you're better than me and wherever you're going is more important than where I'm going, just let me know you're gonna cut me off by using a blinker.  When I am stuck in traffic and there are a few cars riding in the emergency lane just to try and bypass traffic, I block them with my Explorer to not let them pass, while still staying in my lane.

That was the old way I drove. Now, with Noah in the car I am constantly a defensive driver. I don't blare my music, talk on the phone, switch songs on my iPod, or even pick fights with other people on the road. Whenever I drive it reminds me of a game we played on a college ministry retreat, where we had our own egg that we had to protect, while everyone else was trying to smash it with a newspaper.

So I may not have the "Baby on Board" sign but with the way I drive now, people probably don't need a sign to know.