our reunion.

So. If you follow me on any other social media platform or you have a direct mode of communication with me [i.e. the phone or you're my mother/father/former-boss-turned-friend], you know that Aaron's home.

That's right. You heard correctly. & it's time I shared the welcome home [right Jackie]?

Originally, Aaron's orders claimed he would arrive back on American soil in October. But a few months into his deployment he discovered that he would be arriving home a month later.

Let me backtrack real quick. When Aaron was in Afghanistan two--almost three--years ago, he was supposed to be deployed for 6 months and it turned into 9. For my civilian readers, please know that date changes--or any changes, for that matter--are not uncommon. In fact, when I hear of military members arriving home on the date written on their orders, I'm totally shocked. That never happens. The military dictates anything & everything in our life, so when these changes occur, you have to find a way to accept them. Their word is law.

[This is about to get complicated. Sorry.] Six months turned into 7. For a while we believed he would return the Monday during Thanksgiving week. Of course, this turned out to be just a rumor, but I was devastated nonetheless. And because of my reaction, Aaron was hesitant to give me a return date unless he actually had his travel itinerary in hand. No one wants to disappoint a loved one. Especially one that's been patiently waiting for 7 months.

As the time neared, though, he told me they'd be arriving on Thanksgiving day! And then he found out the Monday of Thanksgiving week [the 21st] that he was leaving his deployed station on Thanksgiving day and arriving in the PNW around 5P on Saturday, the 26th [two days later]. As always, I cried and told him how unfair all of this was... Normally, after such a tantrum, I buck up and just adjust. But I was totally beside myself. I had been counting on his Thanksgiving day return; staking my emotional well-being on that Thursday. I cried throughout the day and goaded friends on when they shared my pain in the form of angry, curse-filled text messages about the military.

Some really great friends invited my sister and me to spend Thanksgiving [day] with them. I spent the afternoon eating my feelings the best apple pie I've ever tasted. A few glasses of wine were consumed later.

Friday morning, the 25th, I woke up unnaturally early [9A, which is early for a work-free day] and did not go shopping. When I checked my phone, I found 3 text messages, a few missed calls, and a voicemail [I sleep with it on silent].

It was Aaron! He was in Baltimore. & he had the best news ever: He was arriving at SeaTac around midnight. On Friday. That very day.

I cannot even begin to describe the intense feelings of excitement + nervousness + elation + I-need-to-cry-because-I-have-so-much-joyous-energy that coursed through me. Before the phone call was done, I had started coffee, laundry, vacuuming, and dusting... Simultaneously. I had heard a rumor that this base allowed spouses to pick their military members up at the airport [something I wasn't allowed to do at Edwards] and he quickly confirmed that this was true!

What did I do for the next 15 hours? Everything. The house got a deep cleaning [not because he cares about cleanliness but because I needed to do something]. Hurley got a bath. I hung up a Welcome Home! sign on the garage. I finished crafts that had been unfinished for months. I cleaned up some dog messes in the backyard. I took a shower. I picked out my outfit.

And then I paced the house. Apparently this totally drove my sister crazy, so she suggested a trip to Barnes & Noble. But around 8P I hit a wall. My intense emotional high wore off as if I had run full speed at a brick wall. So I got a venti coffee with extra shots [big mistake]. And we sat in the aisles reading books about dogs and saying rude things about the authors that either (a) ignore the Pit Bull breeds all together or (b) talk about how inherently aggressive they are... [Which doesn't affect my story whatsoever. Just makes my blood boil.]

After a while, I couldn't sit in Barnes & Noble anymore. A place that requires their patrons to be semi-quiet and semi-non-spastic. Two things I most definitely was not at the time. So around 9P we drove to the airport...

...Where we sat around for an hour and a half playing 20 questions. For the record, I was horrible. My mind wasn't interested in guessing "sand" or whatever other obscure [heavy sarcasm] mineral my sister tried to dupe me with.

Fast forward.

Around 11:30P Aaron called me to say they had landed! From the tone of his voice I knew he was tired. He had been traveling for 30+ hours with multiple delays, no shower(s), and some drinking [like any good military member after they're forbidden to drink for 6+ months]. All I wanted to do was fly through the airport, grab him, and take him home. No more travel. No more being surrounded by people at all times. No more uncomfortable uniform. None of it.

Instead I waited for 15 painstaking minutes. Like, painstaking. So many planes landed at the exact same time [false. That would have been catastrophic] and so many passengers were spilling into baggage claim. The once empty airport was suddenly flooded with a ton of people.

Crowds = Ultimate bane of my existence. And in the middle of such an emotional moment, I just could not handle the people.

[My sister was videotaping all of this.]

All of a sudden I saw him walk into a glass tunnel and turn towards the escalator. [Talking all nonchalantly to his buddies.] My favorite smile + laugh greeting me. And when he reached the top of that escalator? I jumped on him. Like, hair everywhere, arms reaching, feet off the ground. [I had warned him, so he was prepared.]

I didn't cry [but I did later]. I didn't scream [but I did randomly exclaim "You're home!" throughout the car ride back to base]. But I did have a really hard time wiping the smile off my face. All I wanted to do was hold his hand.

After 7 months of waiting, it felt like a dream. It was so easy to fall back into our old banter--sarcasm, teasing, laughter, jokes, witty remarks, laughter, sly smiles, touching cheeks, laughter [etc.]... And that anticipation leading up to the moment I was able to jump into his arms? Killer, guys. Killer. That anticipation had been welling up inside me for months. It was so much bigger than our wedding day[s]. It was so much bigger than his return from Afghanistan. It was almost too much for me to take. And right when I thought I couldn't handle it any longer, he was there.

Perfect timing.

We spent the next day eating good food, buying him some clothes, playing with Hurley, and other totally indulgent things. [Back to the purchasing of new clothes, though. Can we take a moment to congratulate Aaron? When he left in April, he was a size that he didn't anticipate hitting until he was older. For being such an active dude, it was hard on both of us. When he returned home a short week ago, though? Size 32/33. & his arms don't fit in his large shirts.]

I'm really happy for him. For us!

Here are some photos of his return.

 Top left photo: Taken in the airport parking lot.

 Bottom left photo: Aaron is stronger than an arcade game!

 Bottom left photo: First photo taken with my new [and first ever] iPhone! He likes spoiling me.

Thank you so much to everyone. The community that gathered around us during his absence was amazing. We truly couldn't have done it without you. I'm sure I'll be posting a lot more now that I'm able to carry a mini-computer on my person at all times. At the same time, though, I've been quite neglectful of contact with the outside world since his return. Oh well... I think it's allowed.

Also. Follow me on Instagram! Username: MrsGigantor