NEW BRITAIN, Conn. -- The homecoming of the Army company that returned Tuesday from a tour of duty in Iraq was bittersweet, because one on the company members was killed in action.

But for the families who reconnected with their soldiers, there was joy, relief and a lot of other emotions on their faces.

"It's good to be home," Spc. Steven Whalen said.

His father, Bill Whalen, cried as he watched his son get off the bus at the Army Reserve Center in New Haven.

"I just missed him," Bill Whalen said. "I missed him. I love him to death. I missed him."

Spc. Mike Dimanno said his family hadn't arrived by the time the soldiers returned.

"We were about an hour, an hour early, so they're on their way," he said. "They'll be here."

Paul Frechette, Dimanno's best friend since first grade and a fellow soldier, said he can't wait to get out of his Army boots and into a pair of Nike Jordan sneakers.

"I already got an outfit picked out," he said.

Once Dimanno's family arrived, his father, Bob Dimanno, said, "We're just so, so excited he's home safe. We met my other son and his fiancée on the road and started flying. He kept calling, 'Where are you? Where are you?'"

For Spc. Chris Dutton, who received a Purple Heart after being injured in the line of duty, coming home means readjusting.

"Coping with all the different stresses I've had throughout the deployment, trying to get to sleep at night," he said.

Though Dutton spent Christmas by himself in the hospital last year, he said that this holiday season he'll be at home with his family and his family's new puppy.

The soldiers said they've been in the U.S. for about a week, readjusting to life back home. Many said they missed "real food." One said he was going to a Chinese buffet, and another said he was going to his mom's for a steak dinner.