Tim Cornthwaite, 29, from Maroochydore, Queensland shares his true life story;
I felt a flutter of nerves as I clambered up the hill with my partner Chloe, 22, and our sons, Luca, two, and Theo, two months.
‘Darl’, will you unzip Theo’s onesie?’ I asked Chloe.
She thought nothing of it as she pulled down the zipper, then she gasped at the words written on his top underneath.
Mummy, will you marry Daddy?
Getting down on knee, I whipped out a ring.
“Chloe, I love you, will you marry me?” I smiled.
“Yes!” she squealed, pulling me in for a kiss.
I’d met Chloe when I was 22, after moving from New Zealand to the Sunshine Coast.
I’d played footy with her brother, Wade and her dad, Gerrad was the coach.
It was a close-knit team and we’d all socialise together at weekends.
I’d taken an instant liking to Chloe’s beaming smile and chocolate brown hair.
We soon started dating – initially in secret because I didn’t want to lose my place on the footy team.
But within months the cat was out of the bag and I was thankfully made to feel like part of Chloe’s family.
Now, after four years together, we were engaged!
We set the date for the following September and found an amazing chapel for the ceremony.
READ: Real life: My fiancé died three days after proposing
I proposed to Chloe with our beautiful kids.
There were also the bucks and hen parties to look forward to.
My best man Greg and mate Sam were planning mine.
“I don’t want a big night,” I warned them, “Just a relaxing day drinking near a beach.”
They found a three-storey house and booked it out for the weekend.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Chloe said as she kissed me goodbye that morning.
“‘Course not,” I assured her, ruffling the boys’ hair before getting Greg and Sam out the front.
I felt a rush of excitement as we pulled up to the house which looked out on to the crystal blue ocean.
Not all fiancés are as thoughtful as Tim. The Take 5 team heard from one unhappy bride who’s hubby-to-be cheated on her on her wedding night! Listen to the Take 5 Ripper Real Life Podcast below!
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The day was getting into full swing as I sipped on a beer and caught up with my mates.
“Time for your first surprise, Timmy! Here, put this on,’ Greg cried, throwing me colourful printed dress.
Rolling my eyes, I squeezed into the frock and everyone burst into laughter.
We headed out to the pub for more drinks and lunch and afterwards Sam presented me with a waiver form.
“I need you to sign this,” he said casually.
Scanning the page, it looked like I’d be doing a bungee jump.
I felt nervous but excited as I scribbled out my signature.
My little family before the accident happened.
The boys then tied a blindfold over my eyes and placed headphones on my ears.
All I could hear was music as they led me by the elbows back to the car.
Eventually, we pulled up and the music stopped. An audio about bungee jumping started playing through my headphones.
Still blindfolded, I listened to the safety procedure and was strapped into a harness before being led up to what felt like a platform.
I could hear the waves crashing and my mates cheering.
If I was that high up, there was no way I’d hear them that clearly.
I’d seen pranks before where the person was made to believe they were bungy jumping but actually belly-flopped into a swimming pool.
Convinced this is what was happening, I tucked my head in as I jumped so I didn’t face-plant into the water and make a fool of myself.
Smack.
There was a small splash and my body was drenched but I knew something wasn’t right.
My neck and shoulders felt stiff.
Taking off the blindfold to an eruption of giggles, my friends’ smiling faces quickly turned to concern as I yelped in agony.
‘I think I’ve got whiplash. I just need to sit for a bit,’ I reassured them.
Glancing around, I saw we were in a backyard and that I’d leapt off a picnic table into a kids’ paddling pool.
I didn’t blame anyone. It was a freak accident.
With the pain not fading, my mates helped me into a hot shower but it didn’t help.
My neck was throbbing but I was sure it wasn’t too serious.
I tried to put it to the back of my mind and enjoy the rest of the day, sitting still as I watched the fun and games.
Hitting the sack that night, I hoped a good rest would put me right but the next morning I was still in excruciating pain.
Back home, Chloe got gave me pain killers.
‘I’m sure it will go soon,’ she soothed.
A day later, things still hadn’t improved, so I booked a physio appointment.
Gently feeling my neck, the therapist explained she wanted to do an x-ray to ensure it was nothing serious.
When she came back with the results, her face was grim.
“Try not to move at all,” she said. “You’ve broken your neck.”
What?
I have to wear a halo neck brace for at least three months.
I’d been doing all sorts of things since diving into that kiddy pool – any one of them could have paralysed me.
I was transferred to another hospital for scans while Chloe dropped the kids off at her parents to come and meet me.
The tests revealed I’d broken my vertebrae and had multiple fractures in my neck.
Luckily, I wouldn’t need surgery, but I had to wear a halo neck brace for at least the next three months.
Three months?! I was supposed to be standing at the altar that Saturday, in five day’s time.
“What are we gonna do?” I asked Chloe.
We decided to go ahead with the ceremony but push the reception back six months.
My phone buzzed with messages of apologies and well wishes from my mates – but I didn’t blame anyone, it was just a freak accident.
Chloe, me, Luca and Theo at our wedding.
Although our big day wasn’t quite how I’d imagined it, nothing could beat the feeling I got when I saw Chloe walking down the aisle.
“You look beautiful,” I whispered to her.
Making light of the situation, I changed my vows.
“You’re always there for me, even when I look like a walking scaffold,” I grinned, standing there in my metal halo and my tux.
Despite the setbacks, it was a magical day.
The next few months are going to be tough, especially for Chloe, who’ll be looking after two kids as well as her needy new husband.
I have to be extra careful as there’s a chance the pins from the halo could get pushed into my brain.
But I know that this injury isn’t forever and eventually life will get back to normal.
Chloe’s already proven her ‘in sickness and in health’ vow and I feel so lucky to have such a supportive wife.
I’m looking forward to our reception, when we can get dressed up in our wedding gear and Chloe will see me as the cheeky but angelic husband I am – without the metal halo.
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