Heartwarming Video of 2-Year-Old Girl Giving Her Military Dad's Photo a Hug Goes Viral

Two-year-old Natalie is looking forward to her military father getting back home. An emotional video of her hugging her father's picture created a huge sensation on the Internet.

The past year has been hard for Megan Healey as she has missed her husband, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. Her daughters, Noelle, 4, and Natalie, 2, have experienced the same difficulties.

On April 26, Healey shared a video of Natalie eating breakfast while looking at a framed photo of her father on Instagram. She wrote: When I told my 2-year-old Daddy was coming home from deployment."

As Healey explained in the first video she posted, Natalie immediately grabbed the framed picture when she was told that her father would be coming home soon. The doting mother added:

"Military kids are also heroes, huh?! HUGS to all who are missing their mommies or daddies right now!"

In a recent interview with TODAY Parents, Healey opened up about how her daughters begin their days by eating breakfast with a picture of their father nearby as a way of coping with his absence.

If she looked for small moments of happiness, she could find them.

Healey was used to separations and deployments as a military spouse. However, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic ultimately put her in an unusual position of single parenthood.

The lump in her throat had been bothering her for quite some time. Throughout the time her husband was away, she would also constantly worry that one of her children would fall ill or be seriously ill.

Despite the challenges of pandemic deployment, Healey said her daughters, along with her stepsons, have kept her going. If she looked for small moments of happiness, she could find them.

Noelle is already ready for her emotional reunion with her father after eleven months apart. "She has been saying 'When is daddy coming home? It's just taking so long'," Healey explained.

In related news, Captain John J. Klein III had an emotional reunion with his family in November after making a surprise return from a deployment to the Middle East. For the first time, he met his baby son.

Meanwhile, Bryan Graves greeted his children at their elementary school when he returned from deployment. He appeared when the teachers were reading a book about families and the military.