A couple recently celebrated the reunion of their family, with a Washington dad meeting his five-month-old daughter for the first time in person.

Lt. Lee Watkins, a pilot in the United States Navy, returned after an eight-month deployment in support of Operation Inherent Resolve in the Arabian Gulf, he said.

The family was reunited July 12 when Lee Watkins flew into Virginia Beach Oceana Naval Base from the U.S.S. Harry S. Truman carrier, and met his infant daughter, Marin Faye Watkins, for the first time.

Wife Noel Watkins, oldest daughter Norah and Marin — the girls dressed in matching patriotic dresses — met Lee Watkins on the tarmac at the base.

“It was incredible,” Lee Watkins said of the reunion. “It was very emotional to see her. I’ve seen her on Skype and in pictures, but to actually meet her for the first time, it was just amazing and breathtaking. It was almost the same as when your baby is born and you get to hold it for the first time. It was awesome.”

Lee Watkins left for deployment on Nov. 12, 2015. At the time, Noel was pregnant with the couple’s second child and had Marin Faye on Feb. 24. Marin means “of the sea,” a tribute to her dad being at sea in the Navy, according to Noel Watkins.

According to Noel Watkins, Lee Watkins’ return to the family was very emotional and relieving. The night before, she couldn’t sleep not only due to the excitement, but also because she was nervous about how daughter Norah would receive her father after such a long period of time, Noel Watkins said.

“I can’t describe the feeling,” Noel Watkins said. “He’s kind of the foundation to our whole family. It was just crazy and exciting, and I was definitely nervous and anxious for it to happen. I mean, we couldn’t get to him fast enough. It was the best day ever though. It couldn’t have been more magical to see him again like that, and for him to meet Marin and see the big girl Norah had become.”

During the eight-month-deployment, Noel Watkins kept Lee Watkins constantly plugged in to what was going on with the family, she said. Lee Watkins and Norah are very close, so prior to his deployment, he prerecorded videos of him reading Norah’s favorite bedtime stories, as well as other videos of him talking to her.

The couple was concerned as to how Norah would receive her father upon his return, they said. However, Norah was not too shy or distant when seeing her dad again for the first time in eight months.

“I doubt there was one or two days throughout his entire deployment where we didn’t spend a minimum of 20-30 minutes watching videos of him. When (Norah) saw him, she wasn’t sure, but within a minute, it was like, ‘Oh, I have my dad back.’ She doesn’t want me anymore. She just wants her daddy. I was a little nervous about her forgetting her dad, but she’s her daddy’s girl.”

Lee Watkins said he credits his wife for the smooth transition back from deployment. Throughout his time away, Noel Watkins worked every day to keep him a part of their lives, according to Lee Watkins.

“I’m super grateful for that,” Lee Watkins said. “That was a big thing — other than meeting my daughter, my oldest daughter was not too shy. I was worried and had prepared myself for the fact that she might not remember me or be afraid of me. She instantly wanted me to hold her. It was like I was never gone, and to me, that’s because of how hard Noel worked to keep me a part of their lives.”

The couple has been together since they were students at Washington High School, according to Noel Watkins. They’ve been together for 12 years, and the eight months away from one another was tough, according to Noel Watkins. Having had Marin without Lee Watkins being there, Noel Watkins said there were many days when she told herself, “I can’t do this.” But perseverance and technology to keep Lee Watkins part of their daily lives throughout the deployment made the distance a little bit easier.

“I was extremely excited to have my partner back to help,” Noel Watkins said. “He’s a great father. Our oldest is literally day and night different from when he left. She’s gone from a baby to a little girl, and now, we have this little baby, and he doesn’t have any grasp of who she is yet. It was extremely emotional for me to see him with them. I can’t describe the relief in him being back.”