I came this.close to losing my baby tonight.

[kep]

It's been an hour and I am still shaking.

We live down a long driveway in a heavily wooded area. I was taking the kids to Target tonight around 7:30. It was getting dusky out. I sent my two boys to get into the van while I finished locking the front door. My 18 month old toddled around on the front lawn while waiting for me. I pulled my keys out of the door, and followed DD to her side of the van. She climbed up into the car, and than into her seat. She fussed, and we spent 2-3 minutes with her yelling and arching her back. Just as I finished buckling her up, I saw something out of the corner of my eye.

Not even two feet from where I had been standing for the last five minutes, and where my DD had walked moments before, was a large, 2-3 foot, scary looking snake. I freaked a little, but I honestly thought it was dead. It was laying perfectly still. There was also a leaf/twig laying next to it's head. It looked like when I had backed down the driveway earlier in the day that I had run it over and killed it. It was partly on the driveway and partly in the grass/beginning of the woods.

I quickly shut DD's door, and ran around the back of the van to hop in. I climbed through the van to the front seat and grabbed my camera, thinking I would take some shots to show the neighbor. He's great at IDing snakes. As I was taking the 4th shot, all of a sudden the snake sprang to life and slithered rapidly back down the hill into the gully. I was completely freaking out at this point. I consider myself to be a fairly observant person, and I take every precaution with my kids safety. How did I not notice this huge snake mere feet from my baby?!? Yep, bring on the bad parent of the year award.

Our neighbor later confirmed it was a Copperhead. Very common in our area, but extremely disturbing to say the least. I am a third time mom, and pretty easy going. It takes a lot to rattle me at this point, but I am SHAKING, and so unnerved. DD is so, so small that she would have had NO chance at metabolizing any venom from a bite, and Copperheads are so dangerous. Ugh, ugh, ugh.

[arivecchi]

That is really scary! I am so glad she is ok!

[bubbaray]

OMG. Blech. I hate snakes. But, honestly, wow. Your DD has angels watching her.

[TwinFoxes]

Oh man! That is super scary. I'm so glad it left you guys alone.

[DrSally]

Wow! I would be totally shaken too. ITA that angels or something was looking out for you and DC. Don't blame yourself, how could you have known? I don't routinely look down at the ground when I'm doing other stuff.

[DietCokeLover]

We had a close call about 2 weeks ago as well. I'm still having frequent nightmares about it and scan the yard like a crazy woman before we go outside anymore. It's mating season for them here and I am not happy about it one bit.

[KrisM]

Wow. Scary, scary, scary. So glad things are okay.

[EllasMum]

Big hugs. When we were living in Australia, my mother had a similar experience. We had a small shed (really, about the size of a doghouse) in our yard which held tools, hoses etc). My mother routinely stuck her arm in there without looking. One day, a couple of our neighbors showed up with baseball bats, saying that one of their wives had seen a brown snake going into the shed. [as background, the yards were separated by fences and the neighbor across our fence had a second floor kitchen, which more or less looked out on our yard] We were ignorant Canadians and had no idea about such things as brown snakes, so my mom let them into the yard. They donned big heavy work gloves and boots and went looking for this snake. They never did find it. We learned later (thank you, Crocodile Hunter!) that brown snakes are highly venomous and can certainly kill an adult quickly. ACK. :eek:

My mother thought she was unbelievably lucky. She thinks she blindly stuck her arm in there a dozen times!

Good to hear your DD is all right. Sounds like the snake was as scared as you. :)

[niccig]

I've done that before when I was a teenager. The dog was barking and Dad sent me out to see what was the problem. I totally missed the 6' long snake curled up on the yard. Very easy to miss when they're not moving.

Have you had the snake chat with your kids? We go over this with DS before we go visit my parents in Australia.

Hug your DD extra close tonight.

[kep]

Thanks guys. I'm so freaked out still. When I was explaining how enormously lucky we were, DS1 (7 years), said that perhaps God had put the snake to sleep for a few minutes. Indeed. It truely is a miracle.

[missym]

Oh Kelli! :hug::hug: I'm so glad your DD is ok. Please don't blame yourself for missing the snake - who would be looking for that?

[infomama]

Thank goodness she is unscathed. Hugs to you.

[tmahanes]

Glad she is ok!! But I don't think that is something that you can blame on yourself..... How on earth would you have known?!?!? I think it's just one of those freak things that no one can control... who knows if you had seen it first you might have yelled and it might have tried to bite. :hug: For the scare though!! I would have freaked too!

Sort of off topic but maybe good for a laugh to make you feel better... DH was at work on Sat and a little like 10 inch garden snake came out from under the counter. He HATES snakes.... He managed to get a pad of paper and fling it out the door. Where it proceeded to "try and get in my car" (exact statement from DH). I will say I did kind of make fun and ask if it was going to open the car door!! :ROTFLMAO: He jumped over the snake and tried to back over it.... when that didn't work he jumped out of the car, ran inside and got a battery (a CAR battery, like you know 40lbs worth of battery!!!) and threw it at the snake. So apparently he got the poor harmless little garden snake buuuuttttt he left the battery (in the middle of the parking lot!!) until today!! Did I mention DH is built like a FB player and like 250lbs????? Can you imagine the picture of him jumping over the snake to beat it too the car!?!?!?!

But anyways I am glad she wasn't hurt and don't beat yourself up over it!

[kep]

Have you had the snake chat with your kids? We go over this with DS before we go visit my parents in Australia.

Hug your DD extra close tonight.

You know, I actually drill them on snake safety all the time. We don't have a sandbox, keep the backyard & flower beds cleared of underbrush and so forth. It's on my mind all the time. That's why I am still so shocked that I didn't notice it.

In my (slight) defence, the snake's colors were VERY similar to the asphalt and the green grass, esepcially at dusk. And that sucker was perfectly still.

[BelleoftheBallFlagstaff]

A very big :grouphug:. It takes a while for the body to calm down after an adrenaline rush like that, so give yourself some time.

[g-mama]

OMG, how scary. I absolutely despise snakes. I'm so sorry you had such an awful scare.

[hellokitty]

Wow, how scary! I'm glad that everything turned out ok, but I'd be freaked out for a long while after that incident as well!

[sewarsh]

Ok, I am completely spooked out about your story. Chilling to say the least. So happy you are all okay. Seriously, I'm freaking out just envisioning the situation. Good luck sleeping tonight! :)

[niccig]

You know, I actually drill them on snake safety all the time. We don't have a sandbox, keep the backyard & flower beds cleared of underbrush and so forth. It's on my mind all the time. That's why I am still so shocked that I didn't notice it.

In my (slight) defence, the snake's colors were VERY similar to the asphalt and the green grass, esepcially at dusk. And that sucker was perfectly still.


I wouldn't beat yourself up over this - you're not supposed to see a snake because of their colouring. As I've said, I've done it too. I do the drill with DS as well - my neighbour of 20 years in this area said he's never seen another other than garden snake - I don't care, can't be too careful, and then we visit my parents where you do get very venomous snakes.

[Melbel]

Yikes! Your story brought chills. Hugs to you and your sweet baby girl.

[amandabea]

Scary! I'm so sorry this happened, but so thankful your DD wasn't harmed.

[wimama]

Oh Kelli! :hug::hug: I'm so glad your DD is ok. Please don't blame yourself for missing the snake - who would be looking for that?

Thank goodness you both are ok! I agree with the previous posters and your son. There must have some divine intervention.;)

I think I stepped over a snake hiking once in Colorado. Lots of rattlesnakes around there. My BFF and I were hiking on a busy hiking trail and she told me after the fact that I stepped over a snake. I was like, umm why didn't you tell me there was a snake. She said I didn't realize it until it wasn't there anymore. I must have thought it was a tree root or branch and stepped over it.

[boltfam]

When I was explaining how enormously lucky we were, DS1 (7 years), said that perhaps God had put the snake to sleep for a few minutes.

Awww...how precious! God was definately watching out for you all! Glad to hear that DD was not harmed.

[elektra]

How scary-I can't even imagine!

[resipsaloquitur]

I'm going to have nightmares!!! You poor thing. I am so glad this has a happy ending. It all makes me remember how precious life is.

[mommy111]

I would have nightmares for months!!!

[SpaceGal]

How scary!! So glad everyone is okay.

[boogiemomz]

O.M.G. I might have nightmares from that one myself! SO scared of snakes. I might have had an actual heart attack if I were you! So glad your baby is okay... and don't feel bad, snakes are sneaky and easily hide themselves in plain sight. ((shudder)) So sorry that happened!!

[ThreeofUs]

:hug: So completely scary - I'd be shaking in my socks!!! Very very glad to hear everyone is okay.

[kep]

Thanks, guys. I am doing slightly better today. Can't stop scanning the yard for predators now... :sulkoff: :)

[resipsaloquitur]

You won't believe this but after reading this last night (no, I didn't have nightmares but I was sure I was going to) I woke up this morning, took DS to the bus stop with DD, and came home to find a snake half in our house underneath the door jam. Now, it was a small snake but I screamed like the world was coming to an end- long and loud. And I made a neighbor come take it away.

I would never have looked that closely at the door jam if it had not been for your message. And that awful creature could have gotten into my house. So I guess I should thank you for making me more cautious- and the nightmares that are really, really sure to come tonight.