A father who works as a UPS driver received a warm welcome when he surprised his children after a long week of deliveries.
In a video posted to TikTok on 18 July, TikTok user Alexis (@lifewiththebegnoches) shared the sweet moment her three children were surprised by their dad before bedtime.
“When your dad has been working crazy hours, missing dinner each night, and oftentimes bedtime but tonight he had a delivery in our neighbourhood,” Alexis wrote over the viral clip, which has since received more than 106k views. “Surprise!”
The video showed their three daughters - Bryleigh, seven, Ila, six, and Eliana, two - waiting outside their home in their pajamas, as their dad’s UPS truck pulled up to the front of the house. As soon as the girls spotted their dad, they immediately screamed with joy and ran towards the delivery truck.
“Hi, daddy!” their youngest daughter could be heard saying, while another asked: “What are you doing here?”
Their father then disembarked the UPS truck and bent down to hug each of his three daughters. Alexis captioned the clip: “The pure joy”
Speaking to The Independent, Alexis revealed that she initially filmed the video as a keepsake to show her children how hard their father worked, and how excited they always were to see him. “For a while, my youngest associated every big brown truck with her daddy, thinking he was the one behind the wheel. Eventually, she caught on that the drivers we see in our town aren’t her daddy,” she explained, noting that her husband delivers about 30 minutes away from their town.
When her husband helped a co-worker with their delivery route, which included a stop in their neighbourhood, he called Alexis to come outside the house so he can surprise their daughters. “He called me and said: ‘Hey, get out some chalk or take the kids on the front porch. I have a delivery on our road and I’m going to surprise the kids.’”
Alexis was initally heartwarmed to see how excited her daughters were from the surprise, but it then made her feel “sad and guilt”.
“Sad that he often misses dinner and bedtime, and guilty that he misses those things so I don’t have to,” she explained. “My husband was of course happy to see them, but his heart broke as our youngest cried as he drove away.”
The heartwarming video instantly received praise from TikTok users, who applauded the parents for giving their daughters a core memory they’ll have forever.
“Made me emotional! Kids are so precious. You can tell he’s a great dad,” one person commented.
“Sooo sweet,” another shared.
Some viewers also took the opportunity to share what it was like to grow up with a UPS driver as a parent, like one person who said: “My dad worked for UPS for 30+ years. I remember doing this as a kid. Definitely fun memories racing my siblings up the driveway to see Dad.”
“My hubby is a UPS driver as well. Many do not realise how hard they work and how much they don’t see their families,” another person said. “Glad they got to see their dad.”
“This made me smile,” a third user wrote. “Made me think of the joy I had when my own dad would come home and the joy my son has when I come home now.”
After reading the comments under her viral post from fellow UPS parents, Alexis shared an empowering message for families to know that “they aren’t alone”.
“Just keep going,” she said. “To the spouses on the road missing core moments at home, thank you. Thank you for working so hard for your families. Your hard work doesn’t go unnoticed and you are appreciated more than you know. To the spouses at home holding it down alone, I see you, I feel you, I am you. You are not alone. I know at times it doesn’t seem fair, I know it’s overwhelming, but you’re doing a great job.”
As for those who view her viral TikTok, Alexis said she hopes people realise “how hard delivery drivers work” and to show a little “appreciation and kindness” the next time they see one in their neighbourhood.
