North Carolina - Part 2: MATTHEW COMES HOME!

I got to Jacksonville around 5 pm. Janessa and I had some good quality girl time. We hung out and I tried to distract her from the fact that her husband was arriving home that night! Matthew had been stationed in Afghanistan for the past 8 months. I tried to keep her focused on anything, but I probably did not help much. :)

We decided to have comfort food for dinner: Kraft Mac and Cheese, salad and chicken tenders. It was delicious and just what we needed.

We knew he was arriving at the base at 4:15 am the following morning. Around 8 pm Janessa called the hotline and got great news! They were running ahead of schedule and were going to be at the base at 2:15 am! We were so pumped.

Janessa started primping around 10 pm. We planned to leave at 12:45 to get there early to hang out with the other families and wives. Janessa has been volunteering and hanging out with a wives club that has been just super. I was excited to meet those ladies as they were coming out to support her when Matthew came home.

We were ready by 12:30 am and were antsy so we left early. Here is excited Janessa:


We got to the hanger a little while later. It was super cool! I was surprised by the quantity of kids that were out at 2:15 am. Not only were they out, but they were running around and having a blast.


I loved all the home made signs for everyone’s loved ones:
 

I even made one!


There was one sign and baby that just got me. I saw a stroller approach me that said , “Outta my way…I’m MEETING my DADDY Today!”  I about lost it. So I took a picture of the stroller and then I saw he baby inside. He was so sweet. Check out his onsie…
 

“Welcome home Daddy. I’ve waited my whole LIFE to meet you”. Oh man. How can you not want to see that man meet his new baby son?!? Amazing.

I enjoyed the whole experienced especially so much…


Janessa’s friends arrived and gave her a beautiful necklace. They were super sweet and I am so glad she has them.


We closely watched the time. As it got closer to 2 am people started collecting in the front of the hanger. 


We were all ready. I was going to video, Janessa had her sign and the girls all had camera’s and phones ready to document the moment they found each other.
 

We were ready! Then the busses pulled up and the crowd went crazy. The guys got off the busses and lined up as the crowd cheered. What a moment…
 

and then the buses pulled away…(get ready to tear up a bit)

Formations...

Matthew and Janessa's actual meeting:

After taking the video, I snapped a few more pictures…


Then I got my hugs and Matt got to enjoy my sign… 

It was an unexplainable experience. I loved seeing all the families find their loved ones.

From there we got all his gear and drove home. It was about 4:30 am when we arrived. I went inside to video Matthew and Janessa’s puppies reacting to seeing Matthew for the first time in 8 months.

Check it out tomorrow :)

Love and Hugs, Lizzie