Creative Christmas card allows military family to appear together for the holidays

TAMPA BAY, FL -- A military wife surprised her husband with a unique Christmas card that allowed him to be part of a holiday tradition despite serving overseas.

"Every time you go to bed, you're constantly reminded that they're not here. Every time you have a tradition you normally do and they're not there," Danielle Cobo said to ABC affiliate WFTS in Tampa Bay, Florida..

Cobo will spend Christmas with her twin boys but without their father, who is a Black Hawk helicopter pilot in the military. He deployed in early 2019, making this his first Christmas away from home.

"Even though we're miles apart, we're still close together. We're still a family unit and our hearts are in the right place," Cobo said.

Cobo had an idea. She asked him to take a photo for her where he standings with his hand out.

"He really had no idea what I was doing," Cobo said.

When she got the photo, she edited it together with a photo of her and their children. Together the edited photo connects the family.

"I wanted to find a way for us to capture a photo of us together even though we can't technically be together," Cobo said.

She said she hopes her story reminds people of the sacrifices troops and military families make, especially during the holidays, to defend America and its ideals.