Coming Home

In order to be cleared to come home, we needed to get a call from ICPC telling us it was okay.  We had been in New Jersey for 10 days now, and we were coming up on the weekend, which ICPC does not work.  Then, that next Monday, was President’s Day, which they also don’t work.   We were desperately hoping to hear from them before the weekend.  At about 3pm we got a call letting us know that we were cleared to leave New Jersey, but not yet cleared to enter Wisconsin.  We decided to get a flight as soon as possible and fly to Illinois and stay with my husband’s parents until we were cleared.  We got a flight at 5:30 that night to Chicago.  No problem.  2 ½ hours to make it to LaGuardia Ne and catch our flight.  We literally stuffed everything into suitcases and ran out of the hotel.  We jumped in our car and headed into New York City...on a Friday...in rush hour.  There was absolutely no way we were going to make our flight.  Luckily, as we were going through a tunnel into NYC, we got a call clearing us for Wisconsin.  I was then scrambling to try to change our flight.  I kept losing cell phone connection, so I called my mom to try to get everything changed for me.  We also called a friend that my husband works with to see what she could do.  Will was starving at this point, so as we were on 5th Avenue, trying to change our flights, stuck in traffic, I also had to give him a bottle.  It was a little stressful.  After many phone calls and telling a very nice woman on Midwest Airlines our whole story, we got our flight changed (and to a later time, so we could make it!)  The flight home was uneventful.  Will slept the entire way home.  Arriving at the airport was such an amazing feeling.  It was the first time our son got to meet a family member.  My dad was the one to pick us up.  As I write this, I am getting teary.  I will never forget the look on my dad’s face.  Anyone who knows my dad knows that he tries to be a tough guy, but he is a softy.  He absolutely loves his grandkids.  He had tears in his eyes and the biggest smile on his face.  He couldn’t even speak, he just grabbed Will from me and stared at him.  We got home at about 9pm and were welcomed by my mom, mother-in-law, father-in-law, brother, sister-in-law, and my nephews.  My nephews had made a huge “Welcome Home Will!” sign for him too!  My best friend and her daughter also came over shortly after we got home.  We ate pizza and told everyone what our past ten days entailed.  Although we called each of them multiple times a day, it was great to be able to tell it to them in person!

The next few days and weeks were flooded with family and friends.  I couldn’t believe how amazing everyone was.  We got so many gifts that I had to buy thank you cards just about every day! It was so nice to get to share our happiness with everyone around us.  Our baby boy was already so loved and welcomed into our family and community.