Family and Eclipse

We are a little behind in our posts. Most of you realize, the eclipse has already happened. We were there.

Our planning started in 2017 after the last solar eclipse in Oregon. On our way home, I called my nephew in Texas and asked for reservations for his couch in 2024. He graciously accepted and said he would be ready for us.

We arrived a few days before the eclipse. It was wonderful to see Matt, his wife and 4 kids. They are wonderful parents and the kids are just fabulous. We had a great time playing in the backyard, going shopping and exploring the Fort Worth area the few days before the eclipse. We even got to go out and have a grown up dinner.

Monday, the day of the eclipse, the kids and Mandy had events scheduled at their schools. Matt drove us to Hisllsboro, TX for what was supposed to be a huge festival with 60,000 people. It turned out to be about 100 people. Since there was not a lot of traffic, we went to Slovacek’s a Czech bakery and souvenir shop. We grabbed some yummy sandwiches and pastries. Then off to the festival.

The festival was in a mall parking lot. There was a DJ and several science experiments set up along with a scientist explaining what would happen. Of course Dave and I protected our brains by wearing our homemade aluminum foil hats. They worked, no alien sucked our brain out.

We were a little nervous about the weather. It was partly cloudy and we were worried that we would not see it. Just as the eclipse started, the clouds separated so we could see the eclipse.

It was amazing. If you have never seen a total solar eclipse please go to spain in 2026 so you can experience it. It is an awe inspiring event. As the moon passed in front of the sun, it started getting darker and cooler. When the sun was totaly covered, it was dark, colder, and we could see stars. Totality lasted 4 minutes and 23 seconds. WOW!

Thank you Matt, Mandy and our great nieces and nephews for making this trip truly memorable.