A man from West Yorkshire in the U.K. has captured hearts online for his sweet approach to doing his daughter’s hair.
In a clip on TikTok posted by his wife, dad of two Michael Lickley brushes his toddler’s hair into little pigtails. He finishes the look by brushing her fringe and she seems delighted by his efforts.
“When me and my now husband first met, one of the first things we talked about was having babies, specifically daughters, and he told me that he always imagined himself to be more of a girl dad,” Fiona Bishop told Newsweek. The couple were only 19 and 25 at the time.
Fiona Bishop, 25, told Newsweek that while her husband has been getting “better and better” at styling their daughter’s hair, he’s still not as good as her with a hairbrush.
@fionasbishop
Some fathers report wanting a daughter because it allows them to experience parenting from a different perspective or to better understand a female upbringing.
A 2010 study indicated that men may view parenting a daughter as a way to engage in reflective self-growth and to become more attuned to gender equality issues.
Now, four years later, Lickley and Bishop have two daughters and couldn’t be happier. “My husband is the softest, kindest man I’ve ever met and this shows through how he is with our daughters,” the 25-year-old said.
Lickley has been practicing doing his daughter’s hair since she was one, and improving ever since, Bishop told Newsweek, and believes that it’s not just the mom’s job to do the girls’ hair.
“My daughter loves it when daddy does her hair and always asks for him to do it instead of me probably because he’s gentler,” she said.
The clip, posted on Bishop’s TikTok account (@fionasbishop) and captioned, “POV: you married a man who always dreamed of being a girl dad,” has clocked up over 6 million views and counting.
Thousands of comments were also left by other social media users who shared that they’ll be holding their future husband to such a high standard.
“It’s not a want, it’s a need,” one user wrote. Another shared that he’s soon to be a girl dad in February and is “beyond excited” to meet his daughter.
Bishop told Newsweek that the reaction to her post has been “crazy” and she also received private messages that the clip gives other people hope or reminds them of their own dad.
“Before posting I hadn’t realized how uncommon it is for dads to do their daughter’s hair,” she added.
“Where can I order a guy like this?” another user joked.
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