I followed all steps, knew my passcode, and now my passcode does not work

My kids disabled my ipad permanently. I followed all the steps under the support. It seemed to work at first. Then it said disabled only 30 minutes. I wait and then it allows me to put in my passcode, which works. But then it sends me to a white screen that says restore, and asks for my passcode. For whatever reason my passcode no longer works. I tried to contact apple support but when I put in the serial code which I have verified like 5 times it says that the code is for a different product. But there is literally no option to choose which product you're getting support for. How do I fix my ipad, or am I doomed to complete factory reset?