Deployed Soldier Comes Home Early, Surprises 3 Kids at School Events

— -- U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Jeremy Freeman pulled off the ultimate Thanksgiving surprise.

Freeman, an engine mechanic, arrived home in Keller, Texas, Thursday after a seven-month deployment in Afghanistan. Just hours after landing, he surprised his three children at their schools.

Freeman surprised his middle child, daughter Makenzie, 13, as she was trying out for her middle school's basketball team.

Video of the surprise shows Makenzie running down the basketball court only to see her dad and keep running right into his arms.

"She really got me, her reaction," Freeman's wife, April, said about Makenzie. "Just seeing them together made me happy."

The Freemans then surprised their oldest daughter, Lauryn, 16, at a ceremony at her high school. Also surprised was their son, Stanley, 10, who thought he was visiting his sister's school for a pep rally.

April Freeman said her kids thought their dad would be home closer to Thanksgiving, but now they are giving thanks even earlier this year.

"They had no idea," she said. "They're so happy."

Freeman said her husband, who was on his second deployment, is now home for the foreseeable future.