(NewsNation) — It’s a story that would make every parent grimace.
Marissa Phiffer — mom to three-year-old twins Aiden and Aleiya — woke up from a nap to find her son was nowhere to be seen.
After immediately calling 911 to report Aiden missing, Phiffer learned her toddler had walked to McDonald’s alone.
Aiden woke up from his nap, put his shoes on and walked to the fast food joint located directly across the street from the Phiffer home.
Phiffer said a woman at McDonald’s found him and called the police to report that he was alone. That’s how Phiffer got a picture of him once she called the police.
She compared her 3-year-old son to an escape artist, explaining that he has been trying to break out of his room for a while now.
“He would wake up in the middle of the night and walk out of his room,” Phiffer said. “I put a baby gate in front of their door, but they broke the gate. So, I had to take that gate down.”
Because of his escape tactics, Phiffer said she added additional locks to the basement door but never thought to add additional security to the front door.