Welcome Uncle Bruce

On Thursday night Emma Claire and I packed our bags and headed to Virginia Beach to see Uncle Bruce come into port on the USS Enterprise. He had been out to sea since January 12th on a 6 month cruise and it was time for them to come home! The neat thing was that PePaw was also on the boat, too! On Wednesday he had  flown down to Jacksonville, FL and boarded the ship on what they call the Tiger Cruise. They allow permitted family members to board the ship and ride up the coast with them for 3 days as they come into port. It was an exciting time for everyone in our family!

Left: When we arrived on Thursday night Emma Claire and Kalei worked hard on getting some posters ready for the Homecoming. Right: Just another ship on the naval base.

Left: A little red 'fire boat' (I think that's what they call it) rides beside the ship in case of a fire emergency.

Right: Here comes the USS Enterprise!!!

The sailors had been lining the rails since 9:30am! When they finally arrived at port it was about 10:45am and they had to stand in position until they were docked. You can see some of the civilians standing on the flight deck that were on the Tiger Cruise.

Left: Emma Claire and her cousin, Kalei. Right: I love this picture because as I snapped the picture the marine on the bottom right saluted.

Look who Emma Claire found!!

Out of all 5,000 aboard the ship look who I found on deck thanks to my new lense and my Dad's bright orange shirt he was wearing! My brother is the tall sailor standing next to him.

Left: They had moved down mid-ship but I could still see them thanks to that shirt! Right: My dad snapped this picture with his phone from where he was standing on the deck. There were soooo many people there. The tent on the right was full of mothers who had their babies while the daddy was out to sea. It was so amazing to see the looks on their faces as they carried their new babies out! Some a week or two old and others up to 6 months old already. I could not imagine missing all that time! I am so thankful for all our service men and women and what they do for our country.

Left: Emma Claire can find friends to play with anywhere. She amazes me how she will go up to anyone and ask them if they want to play. : )  Right: This cute little old man was sitting behind me. I loved how he had his American Flag stuck in his hat.

Left: I have no clue how this guy did not fall out of the ship. He was working to get the ship anchored. Right: Getting ready to let the sailors get off to see their families they hadn't seen in 6 months!!

Left: You could hear the crowd cheering as the first sailors started coming off the ship! Right: Bruce and my neice, Kalei.

Emma Claire loves Uncle Bruce!

Emma Claire was also excited to see PePaw!

Since the homecoming lasted longer than we thought we decided to stay another night and hang out with PePaw at the hotel. Emma Claire was so excited when I let her wear one of my shirts and go swimming in their pool!

Left: She is turning into a little fish. Right: What's a little vacation trip without having white powered donuts and a yoo-hoo as a late night snack. : )