Kosmonation: Next Generation

Here are some other gems from the trip. Of course the moment of totality was by far the most majestic moment of the trip, but there was so much other great fun too: Wakeup snuggles with Grandma      Coffee time  Morning yoga   Jake feeding his Mommy yogurt  (note the smears of it on her face, and back of the head) Hannah and Jacob playing and sharing like pros  Beautiful Vermont sunsets  Cheering from locals, wishing us safe travels as we passed Ben & Jerry’s head quarters! And of course, some letterboxing along the way! That concludes the blogging for our trip to see the April 8, 2024 Total Solar Eclipse. 10/10 would recommend   

  There really are no words to describe how witnessing Totality takes your breath away… but I’ll try my best The hour before totality, at ‘first contact’ when the moon first began shifting in front of the sun, it was like an internal stopwatch began and the sense of excitement started to multiply with the passing minutes. As you see others in the crowd place their glasses on to look up and check the progress, you couldn’t help but feel the need to put on yours and also look up. It was like a chain reaction, and even though we knew the exact timed moment that totality would begin, you couldn’t help but keep checking to make sure you weren’t missing anything else. Each phase as the moon covered more and more of the sun felt unique and special, and the last 10 minutes before totality you could feel yourself just vibrating with anticipation.  Now Grandma had already seen a total solar eclipse in 2017, and Sara / Jake had joined her for the annular eclipse in October 2023, but I (E...

 

 We have arrived to our Eclipse viewing event in Newport, VT! Somehow, we had zero traffic until the last 4 minutes of the drive, which then resulted in around 45 minutes of standstill before we could park - but all in all that is not bad for the kind of traffic that was predicted.  We trekked a mile from our car with the strollers and gear to arrive to the lake front location, where there was a large park with a playground. This was a great way for the kids to stay entertained for the next three hours before the Eclipse began.  Thank goodness for our snack bags and ample preparation because there was only one food truck at the entire event, and it stopped serving food about an hour in. There was also nowhere near enough portapottys for the large crowd that came. Emma tried her best to just metabolically reabsorb her need to pee, but eventually surrendered to waiting the almost 45 minutes in the bathroom line that you can see behind Hannah here:  Potty break aside, t...

Today is Eclipse day! After checking the weather forecast in the morning, we decided to travel further east to Newport, VT to outrun any clouds. So another 1.5hrs in the car for the kiddos, but totally worth it to make sure we didn’t miss the full Eclipse experience.  We took a lot of backroads on this drive, following beside a good sized river. The route was very scenic, passing through a wide assortment of valleys, mountains, farmland and for the most part total cell service dead zones (hence why these posts are coming through a day late!!)  Emma spent the drive canvassing the riverbed, hoping to spot a bear hunting for fish. There was a questionably shaped large round object sticking out of the river at one point, but inevitably it appeared to more likely be a rock rather than bear. The drive was gorgeous nonetheless! Really makes you appreciate the spirit of adventure, and how worth it it is to take time out of our busy schedules to enjoy a road trip together. As some famo...

 It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.  Not really sure how one would gauge success when having two toddlers attempting to share a bedroom, but I would call night one a success overall. Hannah and Jake went down to bed at the same time, with no fuss. Big win! And we all got around four hours of uninterrupted sleep; another win! Around 2:30am Jake was inspired by the excitement of our vacation to wakeup and start happily  telling us stories. Somehow this didn’t wake Hannah, but the rest of the early morning hours between 3-7am were spent with hourly wakeups from one or the other child. Surprisingly though, not waking each other (at least not the first night).  By 7:30am we were all quite tired from our efforts of repeatedly trying to fall back asleep, so we got up and started our day. Overall, we were very impressed at the kids smooth transition into bedtime, and we will choose to block out any of the rest of the night… Miraculously, despite their initi...

 We made it to Stowe around 6pm Sunday night. Checked into the Riverside Inn, where the 5 of us will be staying in a single room. We were very lucky to get this accommodation last minute, let’s hope the luck continues tonight as we try getting two toddlers to fall asleep simultaneously without keeping the other up!  We had dinner in a noisy bar at a high top table. Totally not conducive for the low height of high chairs, but Hannah didn’t mind. This was definitely a meal we were thanking technological advancement for creating iPads!  Fun fact we’ve discovered about Vermont - most restaurants allow dogs indoors, and apparently everyone loves owning HUGE hairy dogs (we’re talking like size of a small horse!) Hannah and Jake easily could have ridden the dog at the bar. it is not surprising that gen 2 can settle into a local pub so easily!  Hannah waved at the locals and Jacob chatted up as if this was a normal night at dinner. Proud of them both!

 We only needed to take one pit stop on our drive to Stowe. The welcome center in Vermont had a lovely indoor garden that continuously recycled the bathroom water. Above each toilet was a sign that indicated this water was NOT potable … (Wait, are there really people out there drinking water from toilet bowls???)  The kids enjoyed the quick stop and walk around the plants. There were large rocking chairs, and even a singing drum that Hannah and Jake really enjoyed playing. 

  Here’s an example of the clouds we hope to NOT see tomorrow 🥲 We’ve made it from CT to MA, now through NH, where we’ve crossed into snow territory. As we approach the Vermont line, more and more fellow drivers are cheering us on! We only hit a bit of traffic, and lost GPS signals a few times,

 With Grandpa out of commission, we decided to ditch the minivan and take the Suburu forester. Grandma has been driver, with Emma as copilot, leaving Sara in the back with the two kids. It’s a tight squeeze back there, but thankfully they both napped the first half of the trip! Well done Hannah and Jake. For the sake of all our sanity - keep it up!  Well done to Sara too for not demanding rocks paper scissors so she could drive! And Emma did a great job navigating when the demand for cell service outdid the supply, and the mountains took away the rest of the service! First trip in ages where we brought PAPER maps!

 We started this journey with two babies, and now somehow we have three!  After buckling Hannah and Jacob into their car seats, Sara found herself unable to buckle herself (whether it was lack of coping skills or the buckle hidden under a car seat - who knows?) so Emma has spent the trip also needing to buckle our third and biggest baby in. And while Hannah is the only one known to get car sick, Sara almost beat her to the punch by nearly vomiting approximately three seconds into the drive (we were still on Sara’s street, at the stop sign) because she was laughing so hard after needing to be strapped in.  But hey she’s succeeded in keeping the kiddos entertained so far, so we will try not to mock her… much 

 We decorated the car with Totality signage and are attracting lots of attention on the road. We’ve gotten honks and waves, smiles and thumbs up. A few have snapped pictures as they passed - funny to imagine our pictures may end up on someone else’s blog. So many people open their windows to wave and share in our excitement - the love of adventure is contagious!  Shout out to Sara for her home made car paint! ☀️🌚

 Beyond our travel plans changing due to Texas cloud coverage, there was also an earthquake on Friday that hit CT. Crazy right? Conspiracy theorists are trying to draw connections between the 4.8 magnitude earthquake and the eclipse happening on 4/8, suggesting this is the end of times… how dramatic 🤣 Unfortunately one more disaster has struck the very morning of our trip. Poor Grandpa isn’t feeling well and has had to bow out of the trip. So we are one man down, much to Hannah and Jake’s dismay. Feel better soon Grandpa! 

And we’re off! Our preparation for this solar eclipse has been a wild journey. We spent months planning our trip to Texas: rented the perfect house, purchased flights, found a rental car, researched local events….. but you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men.  So two days before our adventure began, the weather forecast now predicts clouds, tornados, and general chaos in Texas. We cancelled our flights, threw caution to the wind, started all over and planned our NEW adventure. We are road-tripping our way to northern Vermont! Two toddlers in tow, and about 6 hours to go, wish us luck!