Ohio + Eclipse

Sometime last September I remembered that there would be a total solar eclipse in April 2024. My parents had gone to one in Alaska and it seemed like an amazing experience. I started looking into hotels in Ohio but they were already triple the normal cost for those dates. Then I checked Airbnb.  Some were already expensive, but many in the smaller towns were still really low. Jon wasn't thrilled with the idea, but after some prodding from a friend (thanks, Sarah!), he agreed. 

Our Airbnb was in the cutest little town with a tiny little main street and adorable old houses that had been well cared for. There was a cool park not too far from our house so we made that walk a few times. Elijah made friends with a cat in the window along main street on one of those walks:

Both of them were quite content to stare at the other.

The eclipse happened to fall on General Conference weekend, which meant we got to spend most of our time there sitting in front of the TV. Not my favorite, but it is what it is. Jon made sure to take the usual time to mediate on the words of the speakers:

But meditation was interrupted by an Aaron who needed snuggles:

I love that Aaron still needs lots of snuggles.

Good dads play games with the kids in the evening after Conference:

I like to think that we are pretty good at the whole camping thing by now, but I freely admit that it was really, really nice to NOT be camping. Beds are nice, electricity is nice, flushing toilets and warm showers are nice. 

Monday was eclipse day! Part of the reason Jon agreed to the drive was that we would only be about 45 minutes from Kirtland. So we could double it as a church history trip! I figured we wouldn't be the only ones with the idea, but I was not expecting Disneyland-level lines to get into the Visitors Center:

We were in this line for TWO HOURS.

Have to admit that I was a little frustrated by the lack of planning on the missionaries' part. They didn't start admitting bigger groups or condensing the tour until right before we got into the building (we were the last group in). Seems like a no-brainer, but considering the fact that the Church had only acquired the temple a month ago and only opened it to tours a week or two ago, I'll give them lots of grace. Thankfully the kids had lots of grassy areas to run around on while we waited. 

Finally made it inside!

I can't believe that it's been almost exactly 20 years since I was inside the Kirtland Temple with my BYU Nauvoo group. Crazy how time flies. It was cool to be back and to be there with my family. I wish we'd had more time and that the tour hadn't felt so rushed because it's a powerful place, but I hope my kids got something out of it.

Inside the temple.

Please note the anxiety on Aaron's face as the eclipse was literally about to start and he was stuck inside.

The rest of our group in the temple

Since I had been there before and since I love Aaron deeply, we left the tour early.

By the time we got it, it had already started.

And it was SO COOL!

Glad I decided to actually buy glasses instead of assuming there would be free ones around.

There were not.

The rest of the family joined us pretty soon after:

I was actually cool and remembered to bring things like a colander and paper with a hole punch so we could see the tiny crescents:

We were originally told we'd all have to leave the temple grounds during the eclipse for liability reasons, but apparently they gave up on that plan and just let us all stay. It was pretty cool to be able to watch on the grounds of the Kirtland Temple:

Even Jon got a pair of cool glasses:

We had a really cool app that talked us through the whole event. It was fun to get to look for things we never would have noticed on our own. Some of them we didn't get to see because it was slightly overcast, but it was still awesome. Especially as the temperature dropped and the sky got darker and darker. 

I thought the whole experience was super cool already, but when totality hit...I literally don't have the words for it. Surreal? Apocalyptic? Amazing? It was like nothing I've ever experienced before. I can now understand why there are so many historical accounts of people mass panicking during an eclipse! It was so, so cool. Absolutely worth the time and effort to be there. 

Enjoying totality! Looks like twilight but it was like one in the afternoon.

Me and Elijah during totality

Stole this picture from my dad since my phone couldn't get a good shot.

But this is exactly what we saw!

There was even a cool red spot at the very bottom for some reason.

Because we knew we'd have a long drive home after (and because we knew there would be traffic and the kids had school the next day), we left right after totality. I could still see the eclipse out the window as we drove but poor Aaron in the back was frustrated. 

It ended up taking us 9 hours to get home instead of 6.5, almost all due to a single road with construction on a bridge. But we heard that it was even worse for people who spent the night and drove home the next day, so I'm not complaining (Jon complained). The kids all even made it to school the next day, even if they were a bit late. 

I am SO glad we made this work. The eclipse was amazing, the Kirtland Temple was amazing, and it was nice to just be together as a family for a few days.