Our 5th Homecoming

I am, what I guess you would call, a “seasoned spouse.” We have been an Army family for quite a while. It seems like only yesterday that I was sending my husband off for his first deployment. I was young, scared, and pregnant with our first child.  I’m a little older now, but I am still learning new things every day about this military life.

A few weeks ago, we welcomed our soldier home for the 5th time. It feels amazing! I love homecomings!

Each deployment has been different. My husband has missed many holidays, birthdays, sporting events, and many years of our marriage. Our first child was born while he was on his first deployment. Sometimes I worked, sometimes I didn’t work.  Sometimes I stayed with family, sometimes I didn’t.

Everyone handles deployments differently.

This time when he left, someone said to me, “You’re used to this, right?”

No. I will never get used to him being gone.

I certainly didn’t get married to live alone. I’ve handled each deployment differently, depending on whether I had a job or not, how old our kids were, and where we were stationed at the time, but I have always stay focused on the importance of why we make the sacrifices we do and on how amazing the homecomings feel.

Our love has grown stronger through the adversity of each deployment we have faced. I love my husband more today than I did when I married him. We prayed that this was his last deployment.

(Truth be told, we have said that a few times already.)

Our kids were older this time. They were more aware of how much he missed out on, and I honestly believe this was the hardest deployment for them. I admire my kids so much. They did not choose this life, but their strength inspires me.

As we settle back into some normalcy at our house, I can tell you that our family is the strongest we have ever been. My husband was gone for almost a year this time. When we found out he would be coming home a few weeks early, we decided to surprise the kids.

The joy on their faces was such a beautiful sight.

Our family, our love, and our faith are even stronger than they were on the day we were married. We are so grateful for each time he returned home safely.

When I meet new military spouses or ones who are facing their first deployment, I tell them to take it one day at a time. You do what works best for your family during the deployment, and I tell them this: the homecomings can be amazing!

Check out our surprise homecoming video here.

What do you love most about homecomings?  Share with us!