Husband returns early from deployment to give pregnant wife sweet surprise at the hospital

People deployed in the armed forces often miss some crucial moments with their families while they are away serving the nation. With her U.S. Army National Guard officer husband deployed in Iraq, Cara Rahming thought that her husband would miss the birth of their child. However, a sweet surprise changed everything on September 18. Her husband, Harold Leroy Rahming, surprised her while she was in the hospital a day before giving birth. Harold told Good Morning America, "There were times that I didn't think I was gonna make it. I figured I probably could make September 22, that was kind of the plan, to be in the hospital by the time the baby was discharged."

The captain, who is also a doctor, was stationed in Iraq for about three months when he started making calls to see what he could do to be there for his wife. However, a few days before her due date, Cara noticed that the movement of her baby was changing. She was rushed to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois, where the doctors said that she would require additional monitoring. She went there with a neighbor who insisted on staying beside her till she got settled in. Little did she know that her husband was there to surprise her. 

Cara took a washroom break and was shocked when she returned. As soon as she opened the door, she saw multiple nurses recording her and was extremely confused. She recalled, "I saw multiple nurses with their phones out. And I was like, ‘Wait, why are they recording me coming out of the restroom?’ "

It was then she saw Harold in his military uniform waiting to surprise her. "Then I see him to the left in his full military uniform. And there's like no words to express that," she said. "Because I didn't know he was coming home. I just knew I was in the hospital, I was being induced and there was a baby coming soon. And there were a lot of emotions to process, but I know the definite emotion I felt once I saw him was joy."

Harold had "rallied up the nurses" and everyone was in on this big surprise. He said that it turned out "great" and he was delighted to see his wife after three months. "I just had to keep the faith and everything worked out," he said. 

Their child is now more than 2 weeks old and is doing really well despite the birth not going quite to plan. Harold said, "I'm extremely proud of her. She's very resilient and very courageous. She took seconds to say, ‘You know what, this is what we have to do to ensure my safety and the baby's safety.’" The child has been named after Harold and the couple is extremely excited for their new life ahead. Cara said, "He has a really, really sweet spirit. You can see like, just the softness in his spirit and the gentleness. You'll see him smiling and wanting to play with you." Harold added, "He's very calm and collected."