A World without walls
everyday life while homeschooling overseas
I've never seen a total lunar eclipse before! About a year ago, when we found out we were going to Bolivia, and I was studying up on what the kids and I wanted to study for science this year, I saw that a total lunar eclipse would pass straight through La Paz while we were here! I was SOOOO excited! I've been looking forward to this and planning for it for over a year! There were a lot of challenges leading up to this, which I think made it all the better. First of all, I was SO afraid the telescopes wouldn't arrive in time! I mean, we just got them 10 days ago! It took 3 months longer to get here than they had previously thought--I was in a panic! And yes. I have 2 telescopes. And I'm SO glad we do! One was a big Christmas gift to me from Devin probably about 8 years ago. We only used it once in Finland, and since then, we haven't had any opportunities!! The other we got this year--it's computerized and was recommended in Josh's astrophotography books as a good one for taking celestial photographs... THEN I threw my back out this week. Ugh. I was bending over to pick up a laundry basket, when 'POP!' Something popped in my lower back! I fell over and couldn't get up for awhile, and spent the rest of that day lying down. I STILL don't feel fabulous, but between some back exercises that my uncle sent me a few years back when I had back problems, essential oils and lotions, hot pads, and lots of gentle stretching, I'm able to walk now. However, we had planned to camp out so we could have a darker space. That was out. :( SO sad! BUT, I think our alternative of just camping out in our front yard was even better!! We could come and go as we pleased inside the house, the little boys pooped out a little early, AND I got to sleep in my own bed, which was a plus. So, we went outside at about 10pm to set up our gear. The skies were clear and glorious! We checked out Orion and looked at him through binoculars while the telescopes were being set up. We used laser pointers to find constellations and point out fun things in the sky. We spread out a blanket to lie on and watch the celestial display... Then about 11:30, as the shadow started to darken the moon, the clouds started to pass through in earnest! :( NOOO!!! We could still sort of see the glow of the moon through the clouds, as they weren't thick, but we couldn't see it through telescopes very well. By about midnight, the clouds were thick and completely covered the moon! NOOOOOOOOO!!! I was praying and praying with all my heart that there would be a break so we could see the lunar eclipse in all its glory! We didn't give up. We had faith and stuck it out. While the clouds floated slowly by covering all the skies, Josh read all the telescope manuals. He learned how to steady them and set them up properly so he could mount his DSLR camera to take some pictures! We laid on the grass, shivering under our blankets, hoping that even a small break would come through so we could see the moon in all its eclipsed-ness! :D I can tell you, God answered my prayers! AS SOON AS the total eclipse moment hit, the clouds cleared around the moon!! AND it stayed clear around the moon (not the whole sky, just the moon!!!!) so that we could see the ENTIRE eclipse until the shadow started to move away and the moon started to become bright again! Josh got some AMAZING photos--I couldn't help dancing and squealing around the yard as Josh kept saying, 'THIS is why we stayed out here!!" Oh, WOW! Gorgeous giant red moon pictures! Even the boys came out to see it for a few moments and try to see the moon through the telescopes! It was worth every second of staying up until 2am! :D I'd do it again! We watched the moon SAIL through the viewfinders; Josh took a little time lapse of it moving across the path of vision. What an incredible, unforgettable experience! Hooray for science! :D
1 Comment
Terri Beede
1/26/2019 08:43:48 pm
Great sequence and sweet eclipse set up! Thanks for sharing!!
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Who Am I?
As a Stay At Home Mom of 4 wonderful children, I have the amazing opportunity not only to home school them, but to do so in many different places! I am married to the most amazingly wonderful (and handsome) man in the whole world! Together, we seek out, every day, that Joy in the Journey that makes life exciting! Archives
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Emily's books
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