Having a baby on my hip is what convinced me to get a CHL in the first place.jbirdswife wrote:That being said - I am having a hard time wrapping my mind around the idea that I would have a pistol on one hip and a baby on the other.
I had grown up around firearms, was competitive with them in college and then spent 11 years on active duty in the Army. For some reason, I had never felt the need or desire to get a CHL until my youngest child was born.
It had been many years since I had been around little kids (I have three older teenagers) and had forgotten what life was like with a little rugrat on the hip. To my suprise, I was suddenly being approached by unsavory looking strangers asking for spare change, the time of day, or directions to some obscure location on a regular basis. It seemed like everytime I left the house with my youngest, some stranger would approach me.
After giving it some thought, I realized the only thing that had changed in my life was the image I portrayed to the world. Instead of a big unfriendly looking guy, I was a smiling dad with a little baby on my hip. I looked and felt like food.
Now, although I may be willing to occasionally venture out by myself and not carry a sidearm, there is a 0% chance I would do the same with one of my kids. Since getting my CHL, I can't imagine NOT having a pistol on one hip IF there is a baby on the other one.