- Tim Hopper and his partner Kymberley had their hands full with three lively boys and a baby girl on a supermarket trip
- Tim decided to take the boys, Darcy, Elijah and Ethan to leave Kymberly and bub Sophie to shop in peace
- To entertain the boys, Tim spotted a claw machine when he turned his back to get change, three year old Ethan had climbed in
- Tim Hopper shares his story below…
Walking around the supermarket with my partner, Kymberley, keeping tabs on our three lively boys was getting hard.
Growing restless, they were disrupting other shoppers.
“I’ll take the boys and leave you to do the shopping in peace,” I said to Kymberley.
Read more: Playground horror! Our boy lost his TOE on the merry-go-round
I herded Darcy, 10, Elijah, eight, and Ethan, three, out, leaving Kymberley, 33, with our one-year-old tot, Sophie.
Glancing around the busy mall, I spotted a free bench near the claw game machine.
“If you three settle down, you can have a go,” I told the boys.
Their faces lit up.
As we wandered towards the bench, the boys started mucking around and Ethan dashed over to the machine.
“Wait here on the bench,” I ordered Darcy and Elijah, before going to grab Ethan.
But just before I reached him, he pulled back the flap where the toys came out and crawled into the machine.
Seconds later, his head popped up among the toys.
“What on earth?” I asked, trying not to laugh.
Examining the chute, I realised it was big enough for a wiggly three-year-old to shimmy his way in but not out, meaning he was stuck!
“Great,” I sighed.
Darcy and Elijah came running over, laughing their heads off.
Ethan smiled, too, until he realised he was trapped.
Seeing fear start to creep over his little face, I tried to reassure him.
“Don’t worry, buddy, we’ll get you out,” I said.
People started to gather.
“How did he manage to get in there?” questioned someone.
“What a little rascal,” exclaimed another.
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My face was burning red, but Ethan was loving the attention.
“Free toys for everyone!” he announced, flinging teddies down the chute.
“Stop that,” I hissed.
I looked towards the supermarket and realised Kymberley was at the checkout looking over.
Catching her eye, I gave her an apologetic smile.
She knew too well what Ethan was like. He was a climber and was forever getting himself into trouble.
At home, he’d scamper up drawers to reach stashed Nutella or jam.
Someone raced off to find the shopping centre manager and when she turned up, I sighed with relief.
Only…
“I don’t have a key,” she said. “Only the owners of the machine have one.”
She suggested I try the number on the side of the claw game.
I called and explained my predicament.
“Are you using a Visa or Mastercard?” the operator asked, confused.
“Neither,” I said. “My child is inside your machine, and I’d like him back.”
After we cleared things up, they advised me to call emergency services.
Thankfully, the police were already on their way.
As we waited, I snapped a picture to send to my dad.
“Get some coins and win him back,” he replied.
Kymberley came rushing over once she’d paid for the shopping.
“Is he okay?” she asked anxiously.
By this point, Ethan was playing with the toys. He’d been in the machine for 45 minutes when two officers arrived.
“We’ll need to break the glass to get him out,” said one.
The machine was made with safety glass to shatter downward when broken, but Ethan moved to a corner and cover his eyes to be safe.
All it took to break the glass was a tap on the corner with one of the officers’ batons.
When Ethan realised he was free, he leapt straight into an officer’s arms to the cheers of the crowd.
“He’s a big fan of the police,” Kymberley laughed.
The officer smiled and gave Ethan a cuddle.
Ethan was offered a free toy as a souvenir, but we refused it.
“Naughty boys don’t get toys,” I told him.
At home, we explained what he’d done was unsafe.
“I won’t do it again,” he promised.
Ethan all over the news the next day.
Then we got a call from the police!
“Can you pop in for an interview?” an officer asked.
It turned out to be a press conference.
Police commended Ethan for being cooperative and brave and presented him with a police koala toy.
Overwhelmed, poor Ethan even tried giving the toy to his sister!
Now, we can’t wait to break out the funny story at his 21st.
Until then, we hope there won’t be any more claw machine capers!
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