Tech Sgt. Ashley Reese pulled off a surprise homecoming seven months in the making on Thursday.
Reese's children locked eyes on her walking out of the dugout to throw the ceremonial first pitch at the Kane County Cougars game, then made a mad dash into her arms.
"I'm super excited. I've definitely missed these guys a really long time," Reese said.
Reese has been deployed in Qatar with the National Guard since January.
"My oldest got honor roll and I wasn't there," she said. "All the little things that I just kind of missed."
Her mother wanted to do something special to welcome her home, so she organized the surprise appearance that the children knew nothing about.
"They didn't think their mom was coming back for another week, so we just pushed the date out a little for them," said Reese's husband Michael Hommowun, who also serves in the military.
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"Seeing my baby come home and seeing her with her babies, it's just incredible," her mother Diana Reese said. "I'm so happy for all of them to be back together."
Reese said she's ready to get back to her other job of being a mother, with a camping excursion as well as a trip to Dollywood in Tennessee planned for the family.
"It gets hard but I'm happy to be home," she said.
