Anyhow, it bothers me from time to time that people think I'm holding my kids back. I have tried in the last year or so since having Baby G to allow him to test the boundaries a bit more than I did when his brother was little. (And test boundaries he does!) When Big B was young I was a typical 'first time mom' according to some, but his diagnosis also played a big part in my cautious nature with him.
Needless to say- when I heard that B's PawPaw (paternal grandfather) had bought the kids a 4-wheeler I didn't like the idea much at all. People get hurt on those things. Grown people. Let alone kids! So, I voiced my concern and as usual got some flak for not letting B 'just be a kid.' So, after much discussion back and forth the agreement was that he could ride with an adult and must always wear a helmet. This was over a year ago and as far as I know he has ridden it several times when he visits them including once by himself about a month or so ago. I was getting used to the idea and he seemed to love it and enjoy the independence he felt when riding it. This past weekend we were attending the family reunion with his Meme and PawPaw and of course my kid wanted to ride the 4-wheeler. I hated the idea, but decided that as long as his daddy rode with him and he was wearing a helmet he could go.....without me watching!
Silly me. I was in the garage when I saw his older cousin take off towards the back of their property in a full-on sprint. It wasn't until I came out to look for the two 4-wheeling companions and couldn't see them that I started to panic inside. All I could see was the line of trees about a football field away. No B, no Daddy, no 4-wheeler.... but I could hear yelling (or was it screaming?!). Once his cousin re-appeared from behind the tree-line with my baby in his arms I was fine. He was crying and a little bloody, but he was moving- and that was my main concern. The 4-wheeler had not flipped and the boys had not flown off. I wasn't angry- just concerned- and wanted to understand what had happened to be sure B wasn't seriously injured (or his daddy either). Apparently B had gotten scared because Daddy was going fast and clenched his fists which in turn accelerated them directly into the trees (he was holding the handle bars). Doesn't matter much how it happened, just that no-one was seriously injured. It could have been so much worse.
Accidents happen. Nobody's fault but my own. Went against my better judgement. Bumps and bruises are easily fixed, and I can guarantee many lessons were learned. Protective or not, nine-year-olds should not drive 4-wheelers and Momma's should trust their instincts.
