WATCH: Lexington military family reunited after husband deployed for over a year

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) – Any deployment is hard on a family, but because of coronavirus the Laubys spent even more time apart.

Nate Lauby is a staff sergeant in the Army Reserves Military Police.

He was deployed July 6, 2019 and was expected to come back home to his wife Joanna and 2-year-old daughter Annelise in May 2020. Coronavirus extended their time apart.

Nate Lauby’s new return home date was re-scheduled for August.

But when he found out he could come back a little bit early, he linked up with Lauren Sizemore, owner of LEXlense Photography, LLC, to plan a special surprise for his family.

On Friday, Joanna Lauby thought she was doing a mommy-daughter photo shoot at the Kentucky Castle…but really it was family photo shoot with Dad coming in to surprise them both.

And Sizemore was there to capture it all.

Nate Lauby says he’s thrilled to be back of course and can’t wait to get back to his photography business.