There's a reason they sit in the back

Due to a mishap at the oil-change store, the skidplate fell off the bottom of my car while I was driving home from work. Prior to that, I didn't even know cars had such a piece, and now I'm driving around with it in the back seat.

Mark is thrilled about it. I wish I could say that when I first told him the story, he was filled with concern for my well-being. Instead, upon seeing the skidplate in the car, the first words out of his mouth were, "Cool, I get to ride in the front seat!" (To which I answered, "Yes, I'm fine, thanks for asking, son.")

And after carting him around up front the past couple days, I have a new-found appreciation for the back seat. I think the barrier between the front and back seats provides a safe, healthy distance for us all.

For example, in the back seat, he can't reach any of the following buttons: radio volume, radio pre-sets, a/c, heat, hazard lights, or windshield wipers. He can't touch the gears, the parking brake or the a/c vents. And I can actually drive with both hands on the wheel, instead of slapping his little hands away and saying, "Don't touch!" every two seconds.

Besides easy access to all buttons, the front seat gave him a new sense of confidence as well. He acts like a too-cool teenager, rolling down the window, turning up the radio, slouching in the shotgun seat. He nods through the open window to drivers in other cars and says, with a slight nod, "S'up?" Now, instead of feeling like his mom-chauffeur, I feel like I'm out cruising the town with my (somewhat shorter) friend. It's pretty weird.

But it's also got its perks. Yesterday, when he started pressing the radio buttons, I turned up the volume from my steering wheel button.

"What are you doing?" I yelled at him. "Turn it down!"

He panicked, and yelled back, "I'm not doing anything! I don't know what's--" Then he saw my thumb pressing the button and said, "Mooooom!!" as I burst into laughter.

"Just kidding," I said, and we laughed about it all the way home.

I haven't had time to take the car back yet, but I will tomorrow. And somehow, I just know he's going to be disappointed at being demoted back to his old seat.

Especially since it's the weekend, the best time of all for cruising the neighborhood from the front seat.