Riding in a car with little kids is always a challenge.

You’ve got to keep them entertained, but at the same time, safety is always front and center. Unfortunately, serious accidents still happen from time to time.

In June, a routine family trip to dinner in Tennessee quickly spiraled into every parent’s worst nightmare.

Sitting behind his dad

As a parent, there’s a lot to keep track of to make sure your child stays safe and protected. Most people would agree, though, that toys made for little ones should be safe — meant to entertain without causing harm. That’s something many of us take for granted.

But it was one toy in particular that nearly put 1-year-old Lachlan’s life at risk.

In June, 2025, Jordan and Rachel Flom were driving with their four young children, including toddler triplets and their 4-year-old daughter, when disaster struck.

On the left is my Dad balancing me and on the right is me balancing my son Locklan! All 3 of the triplets love doing it! I am honored to carry on the tradition. Love you dad!

Their 1-year-old son, Lachlan, was sitting behind his dad, playing with his Xonteus Telescopic Suction Cup Giraffe Toy — sold on Amazon — when he suddenly started acting strangely.

“I started to notice a [weird] noise coming from him,” Jordan told. “It was almost like trying to clear his throat.”

Realized something was wrong

Thanks to a small dashboard camera aimed at the rear-facing car seats, Jordan and Rachel immediately realized something was wrong.

“Right away, just was kind of like, ‘Hey, babe, I think Lachlan is choking,’” Jordan said.

“So then we looked at it, and he started to look more panicked; his hands were going.”

Rachel quickly unbuckled her seatbelt to get a closer look, confirming their worst fear: Lachlan was choking.