Tatiana Whitlock: Infant-In-Arms Dry Fire Practice

Walther pro-shooter and nationally renowned firearms instructor Tatiana Whitlock steps into the spotlight with this guest post on how to train for one of the worst scenarios possible: what you should do if you are confronted with a threatening situation while you have your children with you. Find out how to conduct proper infant-in-arms dry fire practice.

Envision yourself in the following scenario … 

The sun is shining, not a cloud in the sky, mid-70s temps, and you have the day off with all three kids at home. The windows are open, and a beautiful fresh breeze flows through the house. You and your two teenagers are still in pajamas, and everyone is enjoying a leisurely morning. Right on cue, your 9-month-old drowsily surrenders to sleep and lays in her crib without protesting for a nap. Bliss! Time for a second cup of coffee and to take the dog for a quick walk!

While standing in the warm sun, you take it all in. How peaceful this rural community is where you can’t even see your neighbors through the densely wooded forest between you. After a short while, you head back into the house and lock the kitchen door behind. You chuckle at how your family members call you “paranoid” for doing so. Why bother? It’s daylight out; you have two cars in the yard, two mid-sized dogs inside and many people at home. Why carry a holstered Walther PPQ in your oversized maternity bathrobe pocket? Because despite your teen’s eye-rolls, you are most certainly “That 2A Mom.”

Strolling into the living room to ask your 13-year-old son to bring down his laundry and look up to see the face of a man you don’t know pressed against the window screen, peering in at you. “HEY!” You hear yourself shout. No response. Your son levitates off the couch in alarm. “Stay put,” you tell him as you rush towards the window.

Rather than announcing himself or making any gesture to communicate, the man takes off, running to the front door. Agitated, he tries to turn the locked knob with no success. You chase him from room to room as he tries to push in screens or lift windows. As he heads around the side of the house toward the back porch, you announce loudly and repeatedly, “LEAVE. I AM ARMED.” But he doesn’t stop; he rushes faster and tries harder to get into the house, heading toward the back porch. Only upon running into the black plastic dog fence does he startle, break his stride, and take off through the woods. 

The inner monologue running through my mind that morning; “Don’t make me do this. I don’t want my kids to see this. Your poor decision is about to change our lives. Please, please, change your mind.” Only after the police report was filed did the “what ifs” flood in. What if he had made it to the back door? What if he had gotten in through a window? What if the baby was in her highchair or, even worse, in my arms? We took some serious home-hardening measures and had many family discussions about home defense and preparedness. 

It’s easy to assemble a gear shopping list, hoping to buy our way into a sense of security. The more complex investment is cultivating the mindset, hard and soft skills and discovering who you are under stress. Big kids now have evolved roles and responsibilities – based on their ages – should this ever happen again at home, in the driveway or out in the world. That morning sparked a deeper study of infant-in-arms dry fire practice. It also revitalized my commitment to at-home on-body carry. 

Drawing from Concealment with an Infant in Arms

Safety Set Up

Before any dry fire practice, it is paramount that you do a thorough check of all equipment to ensure no live ammunition is present in the firearm, magazine or any tertiary gear. Remove it from the room entirely. 

Establish your safe direction and communicate clearly with other household members so they do not cross between you and your dry fire target. Practice all safety rules at all times, as though you were at the range and under the close scrutiny of the CRSO. 

Dry Fire Prep

Dress as you would on a lazy Saturday (or choice outfit) and stage your on-body carry holster, confirmed empty handgun and confirmed empty spare mag(s) accordingly. Select a collection of cover garments to test drive. Feed and change the baby. Don’t have a baby? Prep a range bag or backpack with 35 pounds of weight that can be carried without the straps in your non-dominant arm.

Relevant Distances/Environments

The shortest distance in your home could be from your bed to the bedroom door; how far is that? Mid-range distance could be from where the highchair in the kitchen is to the back door. The longest distance could be from the top of the stairs to the landing. Take your measurements and practice at these distances, or utilize them for your actual dry fire practice. (Draw the blinds. Please don’t scare the neighbors!) 

Practice Consideration  

Cover garments now pose a new challenge. With a child on your hip, half of your cover garment will likely be pinned under their weight. Clearing the garment, drawing the gun, pistol presentation and firing are now all one-handed. Not proficient in shooting one-handed? Time to hit the range! Your stance will almost certainly change from the heft of the squirmy passenger and the desire to get them out of the line of fire. Reholstering one-handed depends on your ability to safely clear the cover garment and access the holster. Different garments will either facilitate an easy reholstering or make it a frustrating challenge. Test driving these in advance is a great idea! 

TRIGGER TIME TV: Tatiana Whitlock demos how defend your family while around children

That morning in rural Maine shattered illusions that “it couldn’t happen in this neighborhood.” Just a few weeks later, Maine was subject to the evil of an active killer who attacked the city of Lewiston. Families with children bore witness to and lost lives in that violence. The call for action amongst countless families looking to arm themselves has been overwhelming. The prevailing theme? If it were to happen again, they would have a say in the outcome. 

Motivation, will to act and mindset are now the driving force behind a new wave of gun owners who are aggressively seeking the skills and the tools. They refuse to defer the safety of their children to anyone else. They are asking the hard questions similar to those I asked myself that morning. While improbable, it’s not impossible that it could happen again. If you were at home with your infant, outside by the minivan, or standing in the kitchen, and a stranger aggressively tried to break into your home – what would you do? Suddenly, a “bathrobe gun” doesn’t sound like such a crazy idea. 

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