Hubby is H O M E !

Actually, he has been home for a little while, now. I apologize for not updating the blog sooner. Things have been busy, and life gets in the way sometimes.  Pat is now home, for good. He is on what the military calls "Terminal leave" , which means he gets to use up any un-used vacation days, personal days, and what have you, before his retirement date. Also because he came back from an overseas assignment, they gave him an additional 30 days for "house hunting" although we already have a home. They get that 30 days no matter. So that is a good thing, for him. When he first got back, his body took a while to adjust to the time differences- he was 13 hours ahead of us when he was in Korea. So when it would be, like maybe noon here, he would be totally wiped out and ready for bed, as it would have been 1am in Korea. So it took about a week or so for him to re-adjust his body (and mind, ha ha) to the time differences.

So I had this whole plan in my mind, as to how to greet him when he arrived at the airport. The kids had made a big, huge, long banner that said "welcome home Dad" on it, and decorated it and signed it. We were going to get there early, and be there in a line with the banner out, to welcome him. Pat had sent me his flight itinerary, and for whatever reason, his intinerary said he was landing at 00:30, (which means 12:30am, military time), and I mistook it for 1:30am. Not sure what I was even thinking. I had let the boys fall asleep that night, and then I woke them up when it was time to get ready to leave. We got in the car and we're driving on the highway in to Boston, to pick him up. I checked the clock, and it said I had 45 minutes until what I thought was his landing time. My phone rang. It was Pat. He says "Sooo, where are you?" I said, well, we're on the Southeast Expressway on our way in. Don't tell me you have already landed" And he said "Yes, we landed about 15 minutes ago" and my heart just sank. We missed it. I messed up the time in my mind (what is left of it) and there was nobody to greet him at the airport. I was so upset with myself.  We pulled up to the curb at the airport, and there he was, waving. Not the best situation for a homecoming, I will say. I was just so bummed out. But at the same time, I was so excited to see him! We all jumped out of the car and hugged him, however we were rushed out of the way by police and other vehicles that needed to pull in. Pat was hungry, so we drove around a little bit, looking for a place to grab breakfast. Nothing was open. So we came home, and I made everyone bacon, eggs, & toast.  He was so glad to be back on U.S. Soil, and even more happy to see his family.

Now our family, we love camping. We have a camper, and we love going with our friends and have fun at different campgrounds. We had pre-arranged a camping trip for this particular weekend, not realizing at the time, that it fell on the day that Pat was coming back from Korea. So after we got in from the airport, we all ate breakfast (at 2:30am, lol) and went to bed. The kids and I were up later that morning, but Pat slept a little longer. He was totally wiped out. Our friends had already left for the campground, but there was no way we were going to be there. Pat was too tired. We ended up heading down to the campground the following day, on a Saturday. Pat was still exhausted, but he wanted to go, and see our friends, and hang out. The kids had lots of fun, they got to go trick or treating at this campground (it was a Halloween themed weekend), and Pat was still out of sync with his body, so he slept frequently. Not only that, but he was used to being on his own for the past year. He could come and go as he pleased. Coming home to a wife and kids, 2 dogs, etc- was going to be an adjustment. Noises, barking, the kids running around, at first, it was a little bit much for Pat. But now, after a month of being back home again, he is fully adjusted, lol !

So when they first come home, yes, there most definately is an adjustment. One night, Pat wanted to head out for an evening with a friend, and our 9 year old went ballistic. He did NOT want Dad to leave. Not even for a little while with a friend. He was so upset with the fact that Daddy was leaving, even though he was nearby. He had treated it, as if Daddy were leaving again for Korea. He just would not accept it at all.  All that night, he cried, and was so sad, he was just inconsolable. Daddy even called a few times to talk to him on the phone. He finally went to bed, (it was a school night) and I reassured him that he would see Daddy again the following day. I explained to my Husband that this is a transitional time for our family. It was hard to understand, but it is definately what had happened. Our son was so afraid of losing his Daddy again. He just clung on to his Daddy for a few weeks after he got home. Now that it has been a month, things are getting back to normal again.  The boys are constantly asking their Dad to do things with them, and they signed up for basketball, so they go and practice with Daddy, too. They just love that. It took about a month or so to feel like things are back to normal again, but we are definately getting there!