December first brought our first real snow this year, and our first biting cold. We had bible study this morning, and thus we had to brave the unpleasant weather. Tommy is still fighting wearing his snow gear, so by the time we reached our destination he had on no hat, no mittens, and he was missing one boot.
We were running a bit late, so I hurriedly clipped my keys into the bag, got out and shut my door, than ran around to Tommy's side to dress him and haul him out.
Only his door was locked. All the doors were locked.
Oddly enough, I don't remember locking the doors. That isn't my "autopilot" because that isn't my routine. I lock the doors using the passenger side door, after I have retrieved Tommy and my bag. My problem, typically, is forgetting to lock the car. Clearly, something threw me off this morning. I blame the cold!
Other women from my bible study were getting out of their cars, so I called out to see if anyone had a cell phone. I have one, but I keep it in my purse. My purse was in the car. With my keys. Someone did, and she suggested I call 911 (as opposed to AAA) because at 20 degrees getting Tommy out of the car quickly was the most important thing. I called, got transferred to the dispatcher for my city, and explained that I had locked my keys and my son in the car. She verified my location, and then asked "is the car running?" No. "Is there a baby in the car?" Yes, of course, not only had I already said that, but why else would I call 911? Who calls 911 just because they get locked out? (Answer: apparently lots of people). The dispatched let me know that someone was on the way.
It's hard to tell how long we waited, at least ten, maybe fifteen minutes before the officer showed up. The first question he asked me was "may I see your license?" I told him it was in my purse...in the car. He had to do some extra verification because our car is not in my name (it was purchased a few years before we got married), and then he got to work.
Up until that point Tommy was doing OK. I think the first few minutes he just thought I was having a little conversation before getting him out. After about five minutes passed, he started to get a little worried, but I managed to calm him down. When the officer arrived he was getting increasingly anxious and crying a bit. As the officer made attempt after unsuccessful attempt to break into the car, it freaked him out and he was howling.
The good news is, our car is hard to break into. Anti-theft locks make it very difficult for anyone but a locksmith to open. And pulling on the handles won't open the door either. The bad news is, our doors are pretty scratched up from the repeated attempts to open them. The worse news: after about ten minutes the officer decided we should probably break a window. Ouch.
Thankfully, one of the women who sat with me as I waited had a better idea, which she shared with the officer. He didn't think it would work, but thought it was worth a try before breaking the window. It worked! (I'm not telling what it was, because I don't want you breaking into my car).
So, we didn't have to break a window. Tommy was rescued in a timely manner- the inside of the car was even still warm. I'm not surprised since the heater was on high up until the time I turned the car off. I like to be toasty.
Tommy recovered well and decided he wanted to attend what was left of his class. He ended up having a great rest of the morning, which was fortuitous considering he had two immunizations scheduled for the afternoon. And, I accidentally injured his, um, boy parts while trying to adjust his car seat. Also, he crashed his head into the refrigerator while spinning and dancing in the kitchen. Poor kid. What a day.
We were running a bit late, so I hurriedly clipped my keys into the bag, got out and shut my door, than ran around to Tommy's side to dress him and haul him out.
Only his door was locked. All the doors were locked.
Oddly enough, I don't remember locking the doors. That isn't my "autopilot" because that isn't my routine. I lock the doors using the passenger side door, after I have retrieved Tommy and my bag. My problem, typically, is forgetting to lock the car. Clearly, something threw me off this morning. I blame the cold!
Other women from my bible study were getting out of their cars, so I called out to see if anyone had a cell phone. I have one, but I keep it in my purse. My purse was in the car. With my keys. Someone did, and she suggested I call 911 (as opposed to AAA) because at 20 degrees getting Tommy out of the car quickly was the most important thing. I called, got transferred to the dispatcher for my city, and explained that I had locked my keys and my son in the car. She verified my location, and then asked "is the car running?" No. "Is there a baby in the car?" Yes, of course, not only had I already said that, but why else would I call 911? Who calls 911 just because they get locked out? (Answer: apparently lots of people). The dispatched let me know that someone was on the way.
It's hard to tell how long we waited, at least ten, maybe fifteen minutes before the officer showed up. The first question he asked me was "may I see your license?" I told him it was in my purse...in the car. He had to do some extra verification because our car is not in my name (it was purchased a few years before we got married), and then he got to work.
Up until that point Tommy was doing OK. I think the first few minutes he just thought I was having a little conversation before getting him out. After about five minutes passed, he started to get a little worried, but I managed to calm him down. When the officer arrived he was getting increasingly anxious and crying a bit. As the officer made attempt after unsuccessful attempt to break into the car, it freaked him out and he was howling.
The good news is, our car is hard to break into. Anti-theft locks make it very difficult for anyone but a locksmith to open. And pulling on the handles won't open the door either. The bad news is, our doors are pretty scratched up from the repeated attempts to open them. The worse news: after about ten minutes the officer decided we should probably break a window. Ouch.
Thankfully, one of the women who sat with me as I waited had a better idea, which she shared with the officer. He didn't think it would work, but thought it was worth a try before breaking the window. It worked! (I'm not telling what it was, because I don't want you breaking into my car).
So, we didn't have to break a window. Tommy was rescued in a timely manner- the inside of the car was even still warm. I'm not surprised since the heater was on high up until the time I turned the car off. I like to be toasty.
Tommy recovered well and decided he wanted to attend what was left of his class. He ended up having a great rest of the morning, which was fortuitous considering he had two immunizations scheduled for the afternoon. And, I accidentally injured his, um, boy parts while trying to adjust his car seat. Also, he crashed his head into the refrigerator while spinning and dancing in the kitchen. Poor kid. What a day.
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6 comments:
Oh dear! I had read your post about the car but add all the rest to that and what a day indeed! May December 2nd be much better for you both!
All is well that ends well. No such problems would happen in CA.
Are you kidding me?!?! I had no idea that was why you were a bit late. So glad that Mr. Tommy is OK. "Bitingly" cold is an excellent description of the weather. Good times...
Once my sweet husband left our daughter in the car OUT ON THE ICE to keep her warm while setting up the fish house. She locked the door somehow, and the keys were sitting on the seat. Somehow he managed to get a two year old to unlock the doors, but some rules swiftly were put into play about cars and frozen bodies of water!
hahaha my mom did this to my cousin lisa once. poor tommy, but i bet you were more frazzled than him. miss you and can't wait to see you all!
That must have been scary! I'm glad you guys are okay!
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