Soldier Surprises Son in Giant, Wrapped Present for Ultimate Homecoming

— -- This little boy was super excited to rip open a big present he found waiting on his doorstep in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

"I said the lord sent him a special surprise," the 5-year-old’s mother, who wished to remain anonymous, told ABC News.

Little did he know, the surprise inside was better than anything he could’ve imagined. It was his dad, a Fort Bragg soldier, home from deployment.

"Papa! I missed you so much!" the overjoyed little boy shouted. "I didn’t know you were the surprise!" Their reunion moment was captured in a video posted to Facebook that now has nearly 10,000 views.

"We have been waiting for a long time for him to come back," the boy’s mom said. "My son kept saying he wanted to get his dad wrapped in a present for him. It was his idea. I don’t know where he got that, but he kept saying that. He [the boy’s father] wasn’t able to be here for Christmas. But when he called me and told me I’m heading home, he said, 'I want you to get a box big enough for me to fit so we can give him a surprise.'"

Finding a large enough box to fit her husband inside on short notice was no easy feat.

"I went to every single store, but eventually Big Lots helped me find a box," she said. "I had a crazy day wrapping the box without him knowing while he was at school. He went to a friend’s house to keep him distracted while I got my husband all wrapped up on the doorstep."

The father-son duo couldn’t be more thrilled to spend time with each other after their heartwarming reunion last week. The boy's mom said her son is devoted to his dad. "He looks up to him for everything."

"They are so close to each other," she continued. "He was having a hard time, the time my husband was not here, asking when his dad was coming home. Right now he’s so happy."