A very sweet reunion

The man in our house is home after over 8 months at sea and we couldn't be happier.  His homecoming was highly anticipated and wrapping my arms around him was everything I had hoped it would be…perfection!
My day started with a great workout in order to release some anxiety and keep myself busy.  Once I came home I got busy making the house look perfect for his arrival!

Once the house was ready, I got myself and the boys all ready to finally see daddy.  Some people may think it is silly but I wanted to wear the perfect outfit.  I wanted to look great for my husband and I wanted our boys to look handsome…they had both changed so much in 8 months…I had too!  We wanted Daddy to be in awe of us…

Once we were ready to go we hopped in the car and headed to the airport…way ahead of schedule!  I didn't want to take any chances….Once at the airport we had a good amount of time to kill so we headed into the USO kids room and let Aiden play a little…

While we were waiting we were able to get some additional information on how the process works…the passengers come off of the plane and walk through a glass hallway as they head downstairs to customs and immigration as well as baggage claim.  So depending on which way Leif exited the plane we would have a chance to see him through the glass but we wouldn't be able to hug him yet…

After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, we got word that the plane was on it's way in….we decided to wait at the window in order to get the first glimpse possible of Daddy's plane…

There it is...

Now we had to wait some more…It was so hard to make Aiden understand that we couldn't just run out on the tarmac, get on the plane, and get daddy…I honestly couldn't understand it myself!  As the passengers started down the hallway we were so excited to get a glimpse of Daddy…

Our friend Tom spotted Leif at a different window than I was at and I seriously TOOK OFF RUNNING!  I grabbed Aiden and Easton and we started banging on the window to get Leif's attention…this was our first look at each other….

My favorite <3

I really wish I could find the right words to describe this moment.  It was amazing…to see him, standing there, smiling, waving…so so close to us!  I couldn't touch him yet but he was HOME…he was OURS again!  My eyes were locked on him and I couldn't smile big enough.  I was beyond thrilled.  As I backed away from the window with the boys I looked down at Aiden and his eyes said it all…he was in tears…happy tears…tears of excitement…tears of joy…tears of accomplishment!  He's 4….in that moment I couldn't even contain myself…my sweet 4 year old is crying tears of JOY!!!  That says everything that I can not!

We spent a lot of time staring at Daddy through the window…

Once Daddy was no longer visible we headed downstairs to wait for him to come out….the wait was torturous…

Talking to Daddy while he waits in line...

waiting for word that he cleared customs

any moment

As I held the boys and walked toward the front I saw the glass doors open and he walked through…."there he is" I said to Aiden and we both took off toward him….Leif immediately dropped down to embrace Aiden and then we were able to hug him all together as a family!!!  It was amazing to hold him and kiss him...

The boys had changed so much…

Aiden WOULD NOT let go…

Our family is whole again…we did it…we survived and we thrived!!!!  All is right in the world for us….we are so happy to have daddy home!  We are back to normal now…just being a family!