Dad Waltzes Into Nursery School Drop-Off As Superman, Wins Over Internet
This dad went above and beyond to help his daughter feel good about her “boy” costume at a preschool theme day.
Theme days are part of the fun when you’re in preschool. Silly sock days, crazy hair days, pajama days, they all make for little breaks from normalcy and help kids get a little silly and creative. For superhero day, Danny Arnold bought Phoebe, his three-year-old daughter, a Batman costume only to learn she felt like she couldn’t wear it because Batman was solely a “boy’ costume. Wanting to teach her to have fun and build her self-confidence, Arnold did something equally hilarious and inspiring.
He dressed up as Superman and walked his daughter to school.
Phoebe’s mom, Claire Phipps, told Today, “He told her if anyone said anything, that their opinions didn’t matter because the costume wasn’t just for boys — girls could wear it as well.” What’s great is that he didn’t just tell her this and send her off to school feeling insecure and uncertain, but he showed her how to do it by putting himself out there, too, proving that if you’re having fun and if you feel good about yourself, it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. And his actions did even more than just make her feel comfortable on superhero day.
“What Danny did made Phoebe feel so confident about what she was wearing. And now, she’s obsessed with superheroes — Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman are who she talks about now,” said Phipps.”This was the first time I’ve seen my little one feel less about herself — which to me was heartbreaking — but because of Danny’s actions, she’s back to her normal, outgoing little self.”
A parent’s heart is always saddened when they see their son or daughter losing their joy. Knowing your child is struggling with feelings of self-doubt and insecurity is one of the worst experiences for a parent to face because they can feel helpless and confused as to how to handle the situation. Because each incident is unique, both parent and child are navigating the negativity for the first time, and it’s difficult to know what words to say or actions to take in order to bolster your child’s self-worth and return them to the happy go-lucky kid they once were. It’s not easy. Nothing about parenthood is.
It probably wasn’t easy for Arnold to pull out a Halloween costume from a few years ago and wear out in public, but he did it because he wanted his little girl to feel confident in who she was and what she was wearing, to know she could be whomever she wanted and be whomever she wanted regardless of what anyone else may have thought. He modeled those ideals to her as he walked with her to school and helped put the light back into her eyes. There’s no doubt that he is most definitely a super dad.
