Welcome Home CPT Simons!

I woke up yesterday morning with Brian next to me and had the most surreal feeling. It was as if this past 18 months hadn't even happened. It was back to how it should be in an instant. It's strange how time and change is like that. I had waited and waited and suddenly he was next to me as if he had never left. It really is the strangest feeling. I know I've changed a lot, but I've come to the realization that I am completely fine letting this past year disappear into the annals of history, only to be recalled on occasion.

Brian's flight was scheduled to come into Ft. Campbell at 11:30 Thanksgiving night. The kids and I were so anxious, it felt like time was at a standstill. We made a giant welcome home sign out of Christmas packaging and wrapping paper. We cleaned and organized. . . and we waited. The anxiety was killing me. I couldn't focus so I took the kids to Walmart and let them pick out TV dinners for Thankgsiving dinner. We bought a Blu-Ray player as a welcome home present--which I knew at the time was a stupid idea--Brian decided to take it back yesterday :). But, it was my gesture of love. He preferred the foot and head rub I gave him while he watched the BYU game two days later much better :).

We found out Brian's flight had been delayed 2 hours--which I was pretty much expecting--so we waited even longer. We finally left the house for the Army airfield at 10:50. We arrived at a giant hangar on post around 11:15. They loaded us all in tour buses and drove us across the airfield to another hangar lined with bleachers. They had snacks and drinks for the families as they sat around the bleachers. The kids and I played games and they ate treats (I was so nervous and excited I hadn't eaten anything the entire day).

Finally at 1:15 AM, they announced the plane would be landing in a few minutes. All of the family members filed outside to wait for the plane. There were gates set up, so we tried to find a spot for the kids to squeeze in to see Brian when he got off the plane. It was freezing cold, the middle of the night, and they were so excited to see Brian that they weren't holding still well. The kids were trying to stand by the gate, but were moving around a bit. Apparently, while I was trying to take video facing the opposite direction of the children, Giselle grabbed on to some little boy and tried to make her way into the fence. (Note, it was taking FOREVER for the soldiers to get off the plane and the kids were already restless.) This child's grandmother started yelling at me to watch my children and get them out of her way. She said she was going to sue me if my children touched her grandchild again. I was shocked. I said to this woman, "You know, we've all been waiting for this day for a year. They haven't seen their father in a long time, and you know it's Thanksgiving. Maybe we could all be patient and make room for each other." She just went off on me telling me I was a bad mother. Then she physically pushed Sophia out of her way, moved over so Chloe couldn't see and threw an elbow into Oakley's ribs who was trying to get pictures of Brian marching. I couldn't believe the hatefulness of this woman, especially on an occasion like that. I was pissed, but I didn't want to retaliate and be just as mean as her. I did say, "Happy Thanksgiving to you, too." I bet she's just charming on Christmas. I brought the kids over and tried to lift them up to see, but I couldn't video and lift kids at the same time. I think of the scripture that says, "The love of many will wax cold," and I am so sad that at a moment of such happiness, this woman would be downright selfish and mean. I want to be angry at her, but really you have to pity a person that hates the world that much.

Brian got off the plane, marched with all of his kevlar and M16 into formation. The families went back inside and waited AGAIN for seemingly forever. Finally they opened up the giant bay doors and the soldiers all marched in formation into the hangar. I cried and cried. Brian told me later that most of the soldiers were all overwhelmed and crying when they came in and saw so many people cheering for them. It was a beautiful moment. Of course, they had a ceremony, because what is an Army function without some pomp--even at 2 am? They then released the soldiers for 15 minutes to say hello to their families. We hugged and kissed and the children climbed him like a jungle gym. Following our brief reunion, the soldiers formed up again and marched out of the building where they boarded buses that took them over to another hangar, next to the first hangar where we had parked. Then we as families were forced to listen to a briefing from the chaplain at 2:30 am. I don't think the chaplain was all that excited about giving one either. Then we all had to wait again for our turn on the buses to be taken back to the original hangar where the soldiers now were. (Nothing is easy where the government is involved--this is what we all have to look forward to with government healthcare--pure ridiculousness and wasted time and money.) Finally, after waiting for another hour at the original hangar, Brian was released to come home with us. The kids had fallen asleep on the benches and floor of the van by the time he got out. We then had to fight all the traffic to get off post and finally brought our soldier home at 4:15 am.



We carried the sleeping children into their beds and sat down to eat a bowl of cereal alone together. It may have been one of the sweetest, most romantic moments of my life. I am so thankful he's home. He belongs with me. I met so many woman throughout the night that told me they were on their fourth or fifth deployment. I just kept thinking, "That's not for me. I don't want to be a tough Army wife, I want to be a wife who has a husband around." It was a long, ridiculous night and both Brian and I firmly decided that we will be getting out of the Army when he finishes his committment in 2.5 years. We're not okay with being apart for year after year. We don't like being owned by the government and we're not particularly fond of some of the people in the military. (Side story: Brian said that after all of the families went back into the hangar after the soldiers got off the airplane, some woman called a soldier's name and then yelled, 'boobies' as she flashed all of the soldiers. Very classy folks around here! If I was that dude, I'd be finding a different ride home.)

We are so thankful to have Brian home. We've learned a lot and our marriage has been strengthened, if merely for the fact that we don't take each other or our life together for granted. It is a lot easier to overlook trite issues when you understand that being together and dealing with annoyances is way better than being apart.

Friday, we had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal of crab legs, cold boiled shrimp, garlic bread, a gourmet spinach salad, and several bottles of Martinelli's!! Life is good and we are a family again!