It is likely that deployed military members and women miss home the most out of all the things they have to miss. It provides them with a level of comfort and safety that they do not have while they are deployed. This may be particularly challenging for parents who are unable to see all of their children’s “firsts.” The first steps, the first word, and, for those of you dads out there, the birth itself are not things that they are there for.
Skyler Cooper was an example of a military father’s role. It was reported by CBS that he served with the Kansas Army National Guard in Kuwait for a period of seven months. His wife Cydney and their two boys, Leighton and Corbett, were left behind when he passed away.
During the time that Skyler was gone, Cydney was still carrying twins. The illness struck her while she was just 33 weeks along in her pregnancy. Their twins, Emma and Kyla, were born prematurely to Cydney, who gave birth to them. As a result, they were had to remain in the NICU.
The whole encounter was fraught with a great deal of anxiety. Because she had two kids at home and twins in the neonatal intensive care unit, Cydney was, in her words, “hanging on by a string.” She told Good Morning America that she missed her hubby more than she ever had before.
Cydney, who was fatigued, went to the hospital one day to see her two little girls since she was there. Upon receiving a text message from Skyler, she inquired about the twins’ well-being.
It was at that very time that he entered the hospital room with balloons and flowers in the shape of the American flag. Cydney was unable to accept the news. Her eyes welled up with tears. In an interview with Good Morning America, Cydney said that she was both surprised and relieved.
In light of the fact that Skyler had returned, he and Cydney were able to keep the surprise going for a little bit longer. When they found out that their father had returned to the house, his two sons overflowed with excitement.
In a post on Facebook, Cydney mentioned the upcoming reunion. Over the course of their “one year of crazy,” she provided the data. The way that Cydney calculated it was as follows: “thousands of miles, one pregnancy and delivery on her own, 48392 Skype calls, a few plane rides, twelve days spent in the neonatal intensive care unit, a great deal of assistance from family and friends, and a great deal of tears…” According to what she wrote, her soldier had finally arrived home after all of that.