From Deutschland to Dumfries

  

4 kids, 15 suitcases and still smiling!

We made it!!!! America Sweet America!!! Ok, so I didn't exactly feel that excited on our first day back but I am slowly starting to get used to life here in our Good Ole USA! Our 9:30 am flight (which meant we were all up at 4 am) from Ramstein to BWI was probably the most painless and uneventful flights I have ever taken. We got the bags, all 15 of them, checked in, and had no stops at security.  We met a homeschooling family with 4 kids just like ours except 3 girls and 1 boy who were headed to DC to visit family for 3 weeks which was "totally a God thing" as my good friend Jennifer Roehrman always says! Gracie made friends with their oldest daughter and we barely saw her for the entire flight. Tommy slept for 6 hours out of the 8 hour flight and Sam and Jack were entertained by endless reruns of Happy Feet and Angry Bird playing time on Matt's i phone.

The Tomster crashed out

                                                                            

                                                                         

I think I dozed off for about 15 minutes but had very little sleep total. As we were about 20 minutes from landing I had this moment of clarity. This was not just a trip we were taking to visit family for a few weeks or a vacation from Europe this was for good. As this reality started to sink in there was little I could do to keep the tears from coming. My throat began to ache because I was trying to do the silent cry while pretty close to the "ugly cry." Everything that I had come to know these last 3 years and that my children knew and for some of them this was all they knew was quickly unraveling and there was nothing I could do but pray for Christ to hold me close and help me keep my head up. I pulled myself together but nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to experience.

Me, Sam and Jack Jack right before our landing

                                                                           

While in Germany we had a wonderful television network called AFN. This little network actually has a power punch of information about all things military. It keeps us up to date on news stories about todays REAL heroes and current events that actually matter. At one point in time I saw a news story about a retired military man in D.C. who made it a point to go to the airport every day and welcome home all of the military service men and families that were coming back from overseas. This retired Veteran and numerous volunteers would come to the airport every day, rings bells, shake hands, kindly say the words "Welcome Home and Thank You For Your Service", pass out hand made cards and goody bags with waters, candy bars and crackers as a thank you for all that our military men and women have sacrificed over these last ten years.

Operation Welcome Home Maryland...Check It Out!

http://youtu.be/ILgHTnXQkcY

 Well, to my surprise this was our welcome as soon as we walked off of the plane. I don't think I have ever experienced anything so emotionally overwhelming in my entire life. The tears turned on like a faucet and were almost impossible to turn off. In this moment of sheer patriotism I realized that I was home and I was proud of my husband,  my family and though not perfect my country and countrymen. At one point this lady shook my hand and said thank you for your service and I said "Oh I didn't serve my husband did." And she said "Oh no you served too and your sacrifice was just as great." In that moment I was so proud of myself and all that we as a family had accomplished in these 3 fast years away from our homeland. I also had an immense sense of grattitude for these men and women and for their devotion and commitment to come to the airport everyday to give our soldiers a proper heroes welcome!                         

  

Operation Welcome Home Maryland! Check it out!

      http://youtu.be/ILgHTnXQkcY                        

As I pulled myself together and we gathered up our 15 suitcases, which at one point came crashing down to the ground like a jenga block constructed building, we headed to our rental car. Matt took Sam and Jack, jumped on a bus and went to pick up our rental car and I stayed behind with Gracie and Tommy and the bags and waited for him to come back. I actually enjoyed people watching and just getting an opportunity to let the enormity of the situation sink in. Matt was back in 20 minutes and we decided to do a kid swap. So Jack, Tommy and I jumped in the rental car (a 2012 Sienna) with the bags and headed to our new home while Matt jumped in a taxi with Grace and Sam to pick up our family van that was waiting for us in Maryland!

I could not believe that I was actually nervous about driving again on American Highways! I kept telling myself  "Erin it's your country and it's all in your language you can do this." Eventually it sunk in. Nothing could prepare me for the conclusion that I quickly came to......MOST AMERICANS CAN NOT DRIVE!!!!!! Why have we not adopted the German Autobahn system!??!? To be quite frank I don't think most Americans  know the rules of our roads. And why do we drive SOOOOOO slow?! What the heck! I was being completely and utterly judgemental but once I got over my road rage I was fine and the rest of my drive went pretty fast.

As I made my left onto Exeter Drive, 5minutes from our new home, I was sweetly greeted by a forest of what appeared to be freshly snow kissed trees, I could feel my heart begin to soften. Virginia is beautiful too I thought. It's not Bavaria but it's still beautiful and all of the graces that God blessed me with in Germany would be mulitiplied here as well. I finally for the first time in months felt a calm come over me.

The sweetly snow kissed trees that lined Exeter Dr. 

                                                                           
                                                                           

 

As I slowly and with some hesitation made the last left onto OUR street, Anglia Loop, I began to cry again and quietly mouthed the words "I trust you God." At once I knew which house was ours. I did not need the house number to confirm it. I had it's exterior details memorized and from the moment I walked in to our house I felt with great certainty that this was HOME. Usually a place for me especially in the Army does not feel like a HOME until our "things" are in it but for me there was no mistake, God's grace and the Holy Spirit were no doubt present and I knew we were HOME.

Our Home

                                                                               
~ I thank God.