"Sundays are always football, and now that gets interrupted with a little, uh, Barbie time."
Aww. Have you seen the super-cute commercial about dads who are devoted to spending more time with their daughters, even if that means playing Barbies with them? The ad is part of Mattel's "You Can Be Anything" campaign and shows dads role-playing along, whether it's using Barbies to play teacher, astronauts, doctor or firefighter.
It starts off with the dads describing the "typical" guy stuff—OK, stereotypical guy stuff—they usually do, like dirt biking and watching football on Sundays, but then shows how important it is to prioritize playing pretend with their daughters: "Time spent in her imaginary world is an investment in her real world."
While the footage is full of some pretty sweeping gender assumptions (um, plenty of little boys love playing Barbie, too! And not all dads are macho sports fans, obviously), we love that it's a more nuanced and accurate portrait of modern fatherhood than just Little League games and fishing trips. The takeaway message for dads is an important one: playing with dolls doesn't make you any less of a man. (For context, it should be noted that the ad aired during the NFL playoff games last Sunday.)
As it turns out, beautiful daddy-daughter moments are pretty heart-melting. After seeing the commercial, parents shared some of their own sweet photos normalizing #DadsWhoPlayBarbie.
One of my fave moments ever. #dadswhoplaybarbie pic.twitter.com/XQJckdZFXS
— Jennifer Smith (@jennidarling) January 23, 2017
#hadleygevah isn't always excited with the outfits I choose when I play Barbie with her! #DadsWhoPlayBarbie pic.twitter.com/p4tRc2KkaS — Jeremy Burnett (@BurnettJeremy) January 23, 2017
Love this picture ! #dadswhoplaybarbie @Barbie pic.twitter.com/MAiIQL1clm — Kristen Taekman (@KristenTaekman) January 23, 2017
Now, who's going to make an ad celebrating all the tireless moms who play with their kids every day?!
Read more: Mattel has a new Game Developer Barbie and she’s totally awesome Barbie just got the best makeover and we’re loving it Confession: I hate playing with my kid
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