FARGO (AP) - Abbigail and Isabelle Carlsen are back home, no longer conjoined, and their parents hope for more normal lives with their 6-month-old twins.

Amy and Jesse Carlsen and their daughters flew home Tuesday from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., where they had been staying since February. Doctors separated the girls, who were born attached at the diaphragm, pancreas and liver, in a lengthy operation May 12.

"I just want to thank everybody for all your support and prayers," Amy Carlsen told the group who welcomed them at the Fargo airport. She said she was looking forward to a family life "not living out of hospital or a room the size of my bedroom."

Doctors have reported steady progress since their separation surgery last month. The twins, who were born Nov. 29, will continue therapy in Fargo and return to Mayo for checkups.

Jesse Carlsen said his daughters still are close, and sometimes go back to their former ways.

"When we sit them on our laps and they're within arm's reach, they go right for each other's mouth, nose," he said. "They're reaching for fingers and hands and stuff, and they hold hands a lot."

The experience of the past six months has made him and his wife stronger, he said.

"Any parents anywhere, when their kids need you the most, you'll step up to the challenge and be there for them the whole way," Carlsen said.

Signs and balloons welcomed the family home to Fargo.

Among the well-wishers Tuesday was Eunice Peterson of Dilworth, Minn., who said she did not know the Carlsens personally, but hearing about the twins' progress was uplifting news.

"This makes a person feel happy," she said.