When I started Momcents my oldest son was 6 years old and now he is 16!!!! And you know what happens when you are 16: you can get your driver’s license.
The process isn’t easy or free, as you have to pay for Drivers Education, the written test, the physical driving test and then the actual license. So, in short, know that getting a license isn’t cheap!
But with getting your driver’s license comes with many opportunities to learn about the expenses and responsibilities of being a new driver.
Here are a few of the lessons we were able to teach Ty before and after getting his license.
Cars are not cheap. We shopped around. We were looking for the best safety features while he was looking for what was “cool.") But we all agreed on a budget. Budget was certainly important to Ty as he was expected to pay for part of the car. He had saved up money from his lawn mowing business and buying a car was his biggest purchase of his life so far. Buying his car came with learning about the huge amount of taxes and other fees. They add up.
Next came insurance. We knew insurance would be expensive for a teenager but holy moly it was a big shock as to how much it was. These days in doesn’t matter much if you have good grades (it helps a tiny bit) and we learned there is not much difference insuring a boy verses a girl. We went over the insurance policy with Ty so he would know what a big expense it was for us and how a ticket or accident would impact it.
Now that Ty is driving around he is finding there are expenses that come with that freedom. We pay for gas occasionally but he is responsible for that expense most of the time. I will never forget the first time he filled his tank, I thought his eyeballs might pop out of his head. Ha ha. He is also driving to fast food more often and he has to pay for that. He is slowly watching his savings go down and will quickly realize he can’t do that as often.
Although I truly miss our time spent together when I drove him to school, sports, the gym and so on, I am so proud of the responsibilities he is taking on as a young adult. Lots of good lessons come with getting your license and I happy to teach him along the way.