Say Hello to my Little Friend

I'm very lucky that I didn't break anything. A couple of Sunday's ago I fell into a window well on the side of our house. I'm sure you're thinking what in the h*ll? And, where are the pictures!

Bubba came up from the basement after watching his sport shows and animatedly told me that our dog Cooper's second best friend was in one of the basement window wells. (I'm his first BEST friend) Trying to figure out the puzzle, I really had to think about his statement. I thought maybe he was talking about a tiny tree frog. We have found them many times before. So, with my dear son not far behind, I ventured outside to see for myself.

I looked in the first window well, nothing. Then I moved on to the next one. I saw at ground level that the metal grate covering the well was about 3 inches away from the wall. That gaping whole would be easy enough for something or any little critter to fall in. Sure enough, when I peered down... I saw *Chip scampering around in the rocks!

Our 7 year old Lab mix will sit for hours by the down spouts that are on the sides of our house off the gutters of the roof line. He will wait, and wait and wait for the *chipmunks that hide in and around the trees and bushes off the foundation of our home. One little guy must have been running along betwen the landscaping mulch and the basement brick and sky dove head first into a 4 foot wide by 5 foot deep window well. There was no way out!

I knelt in the mulch and slowly pulled the grate further to the right away from the house. In that area of landscaping is the air conditioner and heavy arbivitae bushes. The grate got stuck on a branch. I tried to jostle it free and the grate started falling into the well. It got hung up on the branch and then the area where my right hand was got hung up on the lip of the well.... and I started falling headfirst into the well, right behind the heavy metal grate.

I totally lost my balance and the next thing I knew, I hit the rocks with my left shoulder first, then my head and then the backside below my tale bone. I was still holding onto the grate when Chip jumped over my head to avoid being completely squished to death.

I layed there for a moment with my legs and feet sprawled up skyward. And then I began to assess the situation. I literally fell head first into the window well. Now what? I don't think I broke anything. I finally let go of the grate, moved my head from side to side and noticed I could easily peer into the basement window. Wow, I hadn't broken a window either... that was a good thing too!

Chip was pacing back and forth along the window sill. I'm sure he was pretty excited that he hadn't met his demise.

As I looked up to the blue sky, I was wondering where my son was. I thought he was right behind me. So, I started pounding on the window, trying to draw some attention to anyone in the house. Probably a minute later I see him peering down at me. "What are you doing?" he asks. I just yell up at him, " go get your father please!!!"

Chip and I both made it out alive. Honestly, I didn't freak out, especially about being stuck in the window well with a rodent. We have had so many little critters around the yard that I knew he was probably more afraid of me than I of him. He actually made it out all on his own. When I finally got up-right and stood up... he climbed up the screen of the window, jumped on my back and jumped to safety off the top of my head. He got the h*ll outta there when he got a clear get-a-way!

I climbed out with the help from my husband and a 6 foot ladder. I can laugh about it now. And really it was pretty funny right after it happened. I cried too! I was banged up and bruised on some of my bony spots, but I am very, very lucky that I had fallen and could get up!

Cooper now has a new spot to lay and watch for Chip. He just senses something really good happened around that window well!!