Dad encourages daughter to wear her superhero costume with pride

"Danny had bought Phoebe the costume, but she didn't want to wear it because she thought it was a costume for boys and people would laugh at her."

When superheroes day came round and everyone had to come to school in costume, 3-year-old Phoebe was too embarrassed to wear the awesome Batman suit her dad Danny gave her.

Thinking that she would get laughed at for wearing something ‘meant for boys’, Phoebe didn’t want to to show up for nursery class.

“Danny had bought Phoebe the costume, but she didn’t want to wear it because she thought it was a costume for boys and people would laugh at her,” said Danny’s fiancé Claire Phipps who posted the adorable candid shot of the pair to the Life of Dad Facebook page.

But her dad Danny Arnold didn’t allow the little cutie to be defeated. Dusting off his old superhero costume, Danny walked side by side with Phoebe as she proudly wore her Batman costume.

“He told her he would take her to nursery dressed as Superman, and that it didn’t matter what anyone else thought just as long as she was happy,”Claire 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.”

As of this writing, their photo has nearly 11,000 likes and has been shared for almost 1,000 times.

photo: facebook

“My boyfriend Danny, and our daughter, Phoebe. It was superheroes day at her school and she said she felt silly wearing her costume. To make her feel better, he put on his superman outfit (had it from a few Halloweens ago) and said she shouldn’t worry or care about what anyone else thinks. As long as she’s having fun and is happy, that is all that matters.”

Arnold says while he originally thought the photo would make people laugh, he’s pleased that it is also sending a positive message about fatherhood.

“I wanted to show everyone what a good dad Danny is and how he would do anything to make his baby girl happy. He loves his girls and they are his world,” added Claire.

Danny sure is a cool dad to his girls: Phoebe, 3 and Bella, 1 (photo: facebook)

“I very much love doing things for my girls,” Arnold told TODAY. “The responsibility of looking after my family and protecting my girls is very much a happy and natural role for me. I’m of the belief that, if I show my girls how they should be treated by men, then they will have very high standards when they are older…so I am making sure to set the bar very high.”

Thanks Danny’s simple gesture, Phoebe has become more confident and has a newfound love for superheroes like Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman.

“This was the first time I’ve seen my little one feel less about herself — which to me was heartbreaking,” confessed Claire. “But because of Danny’s actions, she’s back to her normal, outgoing little self.”

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