SINGLE DAD GOES AGAINST THE NORM TO MAKE SURE HIS DAUGHTER FEELS SPECIAL, INSPIRING A TRAIL OF PEOPLE

 

Raising a child might arguably be one of the toughest jobs one could ever face. A parent and a child would know the constant struggle that every day brings. Even for the case of Greg Wickherst who is a single father living in Colorado Springs, Colorado, raising his daughter Izzy is not an easy task. He has been doing his best to do whatever is in his power to raise his daughter the best possible. It comes with a lot of struggle and countless decisions that would shape her future…

Who Is He?

This Greg Wickherst. He is a single dad who keeps one thing above all else. He has a very big priority. What is it, you ask? It is the duty of taking care of his lovely daughter, Izzy. He wants nothing more than to raise his baby girl in a loving home, with the best of his abilities and what he can offer. And to top all this off, Greg is actually looking after his daughter all by himself.

A Close Pair

And for single dad Greg the time he spends with Izzy is the best thing in the world. “My favorite part of the day is when I wake her up and get her out of bed and she’s still sleepy, so she nuzzles her face into my neck,” Greg expressed to interviewers when asked about the thing he likes to do most with his girl. It is clear from his statement that Izzy and he are a very close pair.

Anything For Her

As a father, his main concern is the well-being of his little girl. There is nothing in this world that he would not do for his little baby girl. Also since he is a single dad, there are so many obstacles he faces and has to deal with on a daily basis. He loves his daughter a lot and would do anything for her, but things are not always that easy for him.

What Really Matters

There have been so many instances while raising Izzy that Greg feels he is incapable, but the love he has for his daughter always keeps him going. And he does not hide that fact that it can get pretty difficult at times. But there is always something that drives him to do his best. What might that be? Well, seeing Izzy smile is the only reward he could ever wish for and it keeps him going…

A Hands-On Father

When we think of single parents, it is common for most of us to imagine a woman. We usually see that the mother takes charge of the child when the other parents cannot or fails to be there. And since Greg is indeed a loving and hands-on parent, he did not want to leave the care of his child in another person’s hands. He had made it his own mission to take care of one challenge he was facing…

The Big Challenge

We know that there are countless obstacles one must face as a parent while dealing with kids. There are major issues and there are minor issues. What Greg was facing was something that was not a serious issue, but one he had to take care of nonetheless. Since he was a man, he was never exposed to hair and how people style it. So styling Izzy’s hair in the morning was a big challenge for him.

A Task

As a determined father, Greg was not about let this challenge get him down. We all know that kids have to be well groomed so that they do not feel conscious and thrive in school. Knowing all this, Greg wanted to make sure he perfected taking care of his young girl’s hair. “I started trying to put ponytails in, and for some reason, I couldn’t figure it out,” he confessed in an interview he gave later.

Getting Some Help

Greg works at a trade school. Even with a job of his own, he wanted to do whatever he could to make sure his baby girl was not having trouble at school. He knew nothing about styling hair but he was not about to give up that easily without trying. He then went on to do something about this problem he has. He approached the college’s cosmetology department hoping that they could help him somehow.

Getting The Hang Of Things

So when Greg decided that he needed to get trained with the setback he was facing, he was happy to see that his efforts paid off. Greg, after receiving some much-needed lessons from the school, was finally getting the hang of things. After he felt that he was capable of handling things on his own, Greg made a decision to put his newfound knowledge to use by teaching other dads as well.

Helping Other Fathers

Since he was a single dad, he knew all the struggles that came along with handling a daughter all on his own. He was set on doing the best for her and was willing to learn anything for her, even if it was something as odd as going to grooming classes. After getting enough training, Greg figured that other fathers like him could make use of his newly adapted skills.

A Revolution

So as Greg was set on imparting his knowledge to other needy dads, his aim was to hopefully teach them to be able to groom their kids as well. He wanted to make sure that no one was struggling like he was, and even if they did, his assistance could possibly make it better. And in the process, Greg initiated a toddler hairstyle revolution although this was never actually in his plans.

The Hair Dad

Greg was a quick learner and what he had been taught, he quickly put to use. He was now helping many other dads to be able to style their own daughter’s hair as nice as possible. Greg even went on to post instructional videos on YouTube and he even started a Facebook page of hair inspiration photograph. He has actually come up with quite the suitable title for his page: ‘The Hair Dad’.

Taking It Home

After getting trained by the cosmetology department of his college, Greg was able to grasp how easy it actually was to style hair. He soon learned the tricks that went on in creating hairstyles for his little girl. So, after a short while, Greg was able to give Izzy different hairstyles that any top model would be jealous of. It did not even take Greg that long to be able to do all this in the comfort of his own home.

His Training

Greg was the type of guy who would not give up on something he had set his mind on. So, even though this kind of training was completely new to him, he was ready to absorb and learn anything that they could teach him. “I spent a couple hours just working on a mannequin and [the instructor] showed me how to do a bun, a French braid, all the different styles,” he explained.

Getting More Complex

After going to his training a few times, he was slowly learning the art of hair-styling. Greg was becoming slowly better and once he managed to get a few skills locked into his repertoire, it was only natural that he learned some more. He was beginning to enjoy hair styling more and more after getting down with the basics. He wanted to learn the more complex styles each time he got done with one.

Izzy’s Hairstyles

Greg would constantly practice until he got better. And he has become quite the expert at styling Izzy’s hair now. He always tries to push the envelope with Izzy’s looks, and the risks are certainly paying off because she looks beautiful. He has become an expert in braiding Izzy’s hair. She now looks like she had come out of a salon each time her dad styles her hair for school in the morning.

Getting Creative

Now the father-daughter duo is tighter than ever, and Greg would style Izzy’s hair every time they need to step out. The two have so much fun planning her hairstyles because they get to harness their creativity and show other people the different hairstyles Izzy can rock. Also, they love to add photos to their Facebook page where many followers get to adore their updates.

Closer Than Ever

We have all heard about mothers combing their child’s hair and having sweet talks with them. Since Greg is the only parent, he ends up having the responsibility to do this. And so, it was not easy for him in the past as he had never been made to take care of hair. After he took up the grooming classes, the bond between them has grown stronger and indeed Greg and Izzy are having more fun together than ever.

A Dad For A Change

The people who follow the dad and daughter on social media love to see them do their thing. They are constantly waiting for the pair’s updates because of what Greg does to his daughter’s hair. These followers love the fact that he is doing all this for his daughter. They enjoy seeing that a father is actually taking over styling his dear daughter’s hair rather than the generic mother taking charge.

Big Thanks To Him

They can see that he had done what he can do to make sure his daughter feels loved. They appreciate the fact that he had put in so much effort into making Izzy’s life a little better. Also, they are thankful that they get to learn from him and apply what he can teach to their own daughters. Because of his guidance, these followers get the chance to style their kids as well.

Not Full Of Himself

For someone who had been able to go from a person having zero knowledge about hair styling to actually teaching so many other people, Greg had indeed come a long way. Would you not feel accomplished if you had done something like what Greg has done? However, Greg is not at all full of himself when it comes to the final result. He does not take pride in himself much.

Admitting His Flaws

Even though the photos that have been posted and everyone can see the beautiful hairstyles that Greg creates for his baby girl, he admits he has a lot to learn still. He even confesses that his attempts at making an awesome look do not always translate to being picture-worthy. He has certainly made a lot of mistakes and has given his daughter less than flattering looks too…

He Will Get Better

Greg knows that he is clearly not the best and that he still has a long way to go when it comes to hair styling. He does not deny the fact that he still needs to practice and get better at making his precious baby look and feel special. As a matter of fact, Greg knows that he can always make progress and that he would surely become more talented as time goes by.

A Recent Example

You would think that his fan following on Facebook would push him to want to look professional and an expert, but Greg does not hide his mistakes. He disclosed one particular information about what went wrong in the recent past wherein he admitted, “Last weekend, I ended up with ten ponytails in her hair, and I tried to put them together and it didn’t turn out very well.”

Sticking To It

But as a man who does not want to stop but keeps trying, this slight problem did not stop him. He quickly thought of another hairstyle that could work for his baby girl. So Greg stuck with his endeavor and was able to pull off and nail a hairstyle that Izzy was happy with afterward. He never even knew that he could be this creative with something he had trouble with in the first place.

Inspiring Many Others

Although it was never his intention, Greg has become quite the popular man. All thanks to him and his daughter’s social media page, they have man people following whatever they do. They have become an inspiration to so many people especially other dads everywhere. These dads have seen that it is not necessarily a mother’s job to take care of a daughter’s hairstyle.

Other Dads Too

After a while, the college he works at even ended up hosting a Daddy-Daughter Hairdo Day. This is quite self-explanatory from the name itself. It is where local dads can get trained to do looks ranging from a simple chignon bun to a complicated double-Dutch braid. It has become quite the popular thing for the dads living in the area to come and get trained to do these hairstyles for their precious baby girls.

Still A Priority

Their newfound fame on social media has not gotten into their heads. Greg and Izzy still maintain the same kind of relationship that they shared from the beginning. And even with some amount of fame, at the end of the day, the thing that Greg keeps above everything else is a special time he and Izzy share. This has a new addition with him doing her hair every morning now.

What A Way To Bond

The father and daughter have gotten way closer than before. They spend so much time together and this is exactly what Greg had wished to accomplish. The two of them love to experiment and share ideas on what to do with her hairstyle. It is no secret that this is not the most common way of a parent and child to bond but it has definitely been working for them thus far.

Simple Pleasures

So for single dad Greg, the thing that makes him happiest is knowing that he and his daughter can spend time doing her hair together every morning. He simply adores the time that they can spend brushing, braiding, and giggling together while he does her hair every morning. It may seem like nothing to others, but Greg is glad his daughter enjoys it as much as he does.

His Original Goal

The classes he went to take and the techniques he had struggled to learn are now paying him back in abundance. And it is lucky for him because this was a goal he set for himself to be able to bond with his daughter. His aim was to improve his skills as a  single parent, and it paid off in a big way! Not only are they getting closer, but they are also doing it in style!

Unaware But Happy

Although they share a Facebook page, little Izzy does not know that she had become well known. She is not aware of the fact that her everyday hairstyles are making raves across social media, that people actually wait to see what she will rock next. Even though Izzy does not comprehend the reason behind her dad getting os much attention from others, she does enjoy his new skills.

The Future Perks

There is one other thing that Izzy would be very glad to learn about. It is the fact that her dad’s skills will be of use for many years to come. She still has a lot of years for her father to do her hair so that she looks perfect. She would not need to spend money on going to hairdressers or salons that would take up so much of her allowance money. This will surely be good news as she grows older too…

 A Good Parent

From this story, there is no denying that Greg is an inspiring dad! He took those lessons only because he wanted to improve and be of help to his daughter. Although it was not an easy journey, he still made it happen. He has not only been a blessing for his baby girl but also to all the other dads and social media followers who learn from him every day. If that isn’t evidence that he is a good parent, then what else?