My husband Matt is in the National Guard and was recently deployed to Iraq for 10 months.  I stayed at home with our two children.  When my husband left, Naia, our daughter, had just turned 4 and Jack, our son, was not yet 2.

I had a very hard time while my husband was gone.  Not only did I have to take care of absolutely everything by myself, but I also worried about whether my husband would come back to us alive and well.  I virtually turned into a single mother overnight.  As much as I love my kids, being with them 24/7 while worrying about Matt’s safety was enough to drive me insane.

The kids were just old enough to understand that their dad wasn’t home but not old enough to understand why.  I was left to deal with their confusion, sadness, anger, and a myriad of other emotions that they felt because of his absence.  As sad and scared as I was that my husband was in a war zone, my heart broke even more for my children.

My 4 year old daughter understood that daddy was at work but she didn’t understand why he was at work all day and all night for almost a year.  My son Jack, however, just didn’t understand at all.  Daddy would call almost every night and for the first few months Jack would get excited and babble to him on the phone with a big smile on his face.  However, towards the end of my husband’s deployment, Jack would turn his back on the phone and cross his arms over his little chest in defiance and anger.  He didn’t understand why daddy was always on the phone but not at home with him.

How was I supposed to explain that to a two year old?  My husband had a hard time hearing about how his absence was affecting our kids; it broke his heart.  He missed them desperately as well, but he also had to keep his head in the game when he was in dangerous situations.  This was not an easy situation for anyone involved.

Finally, the day came to pick up my husband and bring him home!  The kids were staying at my sister’s house while I went and picked up Matt.  When we got there, I told him to stay in the garage while I went inside and told our kids that I had a surprise for them.  When my husband walked through the door, the look on Jack and Naia’s faces was absolutely priceless!

Jack looked confused at first until he realized it really was daddy in front of him and not a trick and Naia just stood there from the doorway staring at her daddy in awe.  When my husband crouched down to talk to them, Jack ran across the room and flung himself in his arms.  Naia was a little more shy, but I have a picture of her hugging her daddy.  I have never seen a smile that big on her face before.  Needless to say there were many tears shed that day by everyone.  Seeing my kids reunited with their daddy was like a much needed and long awaited balm to my soul.

Matt has been home for a little over two months now and the difference in our kids is amazing.  They are much happier and more calm and secure.  In fact, I have never seen my son and daughter this happy.  My husband is an incredible dad and plays with our kids all the time.  During those first few weeks he was home there were many times that I would walk in and see him sitting down on the ground playing with both of the kids and I would suddenly burst out crying with relief and happiness.

I always intellectually knew that daddy’s were important, but I never quite grasped what that really meant until I saw the way my kids’ world just lit up when daddy came back home.  I still catch myself watching my husband with our kids and feel this overwhelming swell of gratitude and love in my heart.  I am so grateful that my husband came back safely.

My husband’s homecoming brought nothing but happiness to our family and peace and joy to our kids’ little hearts.  Welcome home daddy, we love you.