Baby On Board

I am now completely convinced that God gives us children to make us better drivers. That first drive home from the hospital with the "Baby On Board" sign proudly displayed in the rear window is just the beginning. I remember sitting in the back seat of our compact car as we drove home from the hospital with Fisher in the pouring rain. I was hunched over his car seat the entire drive as if to provide a maternal airbag over my precious newborn son. I kept asking Eric to slow down, surely he was trying to set a new record, when he informed me he was only going 40mph in a 60mph zone. We survived that car ride and as time has gone by and the children multiplied I have learned it's not just the "sign" that makes us better drivers it's the little voices coming from the back that remind us to drive as if our high school driver's ed teacher was sitting in the seat beside us, pen and clipboard in hand.

For example, about three years ago, Fisher and I were driving down Highway 19 when I decided to stop last minute for a red light. From the back seat, and the four-year-old mouth of Fisher, came the sound of screeching brakes. I glanced in the rear view mirror, raised my eyebrows and made eye contact with the baby that I had so selflessly protected with my very own body during his first car ride. He sat there smiling and quite proud of himself. Now, if anyone knows Highway 19, they know how frustrating it is to just be getting up to speed then having to stop AGAIN for ANOTHER yellowish-red light. Little did I know my preschool aged backseat driver had been paying attention all along. Then today on our way to the beach, backseat driver number two, my darling Easton, innocently asked, "Mom, why did you slow down? The light was yellow?" Busted...again.

Finally, the texting while driving thing is a crime that should be punished by at least a month of having your hands tied behind your back while your phone beeps incessantly with incoming texts that you are not allowed to check. Maybe then the offenders will learn they indeed can wait five more minutes until they reach their destinations to check the text that probably just says, "what r u doin?" I will admit I have texted while driving in the past, but am now a reformed texter. After hearing about so many wrecks (not accidents) taking place because of people texting while driving I am a stickler to the "wait until you stop" texting rule.

So, Pinellas county drivers, rest assured. There is now one safer driver cruising the roadways below the speed limits, who is buckled up, has her cell phone put away and is no longer a yellow light runner. Now what's for dinner...

Smoked Sausage with Red Beans and Rice and Biscuits
1 lb. smoked sausage
1 green pepper, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 (8 oz) pkg Vigo Red Beans and Rice
1 can of refrigerated biscuit dough

Slice sausage in half length wise then into bite size half moons. Saute in 1 tbsp olive oil until lightly browned. Remove from pan and add peppers and onions and saute until tender. Meanwhile cook beans and rice according to package directions and bake biscuits. Serve sausage mixed with beans and rice or on the side with steamed broccoli. Enjoy.