Homecoming and life after!

Last week, many of you could only imagine how excited I was that I would be reunited with Caleb. The night  before, I was jumping from wall to wall, trying my best to contain the excitement, but there was just no possible way to do that. I made pineapple cake, banana bread, and a pot roast that I prepared at 2:30am so that Caleb would have a spread of food waiting for him when he got home!

Here's a picture of the yummy pot roast that I cooked for the first time. Success! It needs to be cooked in the slow cooker for 10 hours, but it was very easy to make. Definitely will have to make it again! 

I was able to sleep for only an hour, but that didn't stop me from being wide awake for the homecoming! Many of you saw the pictures already on Facebook, but I'll post it here as well: 

My awesome friend and neighbor who went with me to the homecoming to take pictures. 

Since all our men grew mustaches in Afghanistan, we wanted to surprise them with ours! 

It was FREEZING cold that morning. The cold air was unbearable and I was not dressed for it! 

THEY. ARE. HOME.

I was one of the last girls to find my man. I was so anxious to find him! 

Found him.

Nothing sweeter than this. It was very good to be in his arms again.

the Gowans, reunited.

My other friend caught us in our first kiss! So lucky to have friends that captured this very special moment for both of us. 

Angel went CRAZY when she saw Caleb. I didn't even have to say anything. When I opened the door, she couldn't stop jumping and licking Caleb. It was such a sweet moment and I will post a video of it soon! Here are the pictures after their reunion =) 

Angel and Caleb. 

She was SO HAPPY!

Then she started acting like a baby and wouldn't get off his lap.

WELCOME HOME DAD! I"VE MISSED YOU!

That night, she stayed in this cradling position for over ONE HOUR. Spoiled, yes. She takes after her mama.

Last Saturday, we went on our first date to our favorite restaurant, Amos Mosquitos. I told the owner how excited I was that my husband just came back from deployment and he gave us a free appetizer to show his appreciation. This is one of our favorites...it's a lobster dip with french bread. It's AMAZING! 

So happy to be together again. 

Yesterday, we went to our small group and had a Thanksgiving party, and on Thursday, we'll be going to another church family's house for Thanksgiving. I'll be making a corn casserole and a green bean casserole, and maybe a pumpkin dip! =) 

Thank you all again for being there for me throughout this deployment. I will always be forever grateful for every message, every email, every thought, and every prayer that you sent my way. 

XOXO