Five Simple Things (April 12)

 Hello.

Here are five things this week.

1. This button.

Found on our eclipse road trip, I can't wait to see what I can make with it for my shop.

2. This stove.

It really came in handy while traveling.

3. This nightlight.

We are Stranger Things fans and this Hellfire Club LED light find was totally awesome!

4. This worm.

Inch worms are always my favorite. This one was hitching a ride on my Komuso Shift necklace at my parent's house this week.

5. This star.

This star was in El Paso, Texas. As we passed through on our eclipse road trip I looked across to the Mexico border. All of the people in Mexico just going about their lives just like all of us in the United States. I hate how awful humans are to other humans. We are all floating in space on a round ball, yet we can't seem to check our own egos in order to live in peace on the ball. I am glad I am raising my own son to respect all people, no matter where they are from. We have so much racism and discrimination in the United States, even in our own family, and I am just glad to know that I am putting forth into the world a good hearted, kind, caring, and compassionate human being. I wish others could see themselves through the eyes of people like us. I would like to think they would be ashamed and embarrassed by seeing their own actions.

One last thing:

This stuff has been incredible for me while we are on the road. I spray my pillows and the surrounding air. They name says it all, "this works." It helps me calm my mind and actually helps me to fall asleep faster and in a more relaxed state.

THISWORKS Deep Sleep Pillow Spray

Positive affirmations this week:

Sometimes alone time is necessary in order for our minds to be more relaxed and centered. Alone time can mean anything, from just being alone, to separating ourselves from family, or even taking time away from the internet and social media. If you are a person that is always high strung (which I totally understand), or someone that just needs a break, don't even feel ashamed at taking time for yourself and stepping away from whatever it is that is draining you. Selfcare comes in all forms, and alone time is one of those forms.

You can do this!🌈

Have a nice weekend.

Day Nine (Eclipse Road Trip)

 🠊 Crystal Springs, Arkansas

We woke up on the morning of April 8 and had breakfast and set out all of the fun things for the eclipse. It was just all of the immediate family, sans Will's two boys (Henry and Harry). We missed having them with us, but we are looking forward to seeing them before we leave. We set up everything outside, chairs, drinks, snacks, and we were all just waiting for the festivities. Jeff, Skylar, and me have all seen what happens with the solar eclipse when it was visible in Oregon in 2017. We were excited to see everyone else's reaction when it went dark, and we weren't disappointed. It was especially fun to hear them all say, "Wow, this is cool!" when the moon completely covered the sun.

The start of the eclipse is always interesting to watch. The progress it makes moving across the sun is amazing. Seeing it twice so far has been such a great experience for us.

My niece (Natalie), Skylar, and Jeff all had their solar glasses on and ready to go. We all even had custom shirts made for the experience.

My dad (Mike), my nephew (Ryan), my mom (Dot), and my sister (Kendra) all were waiting patiently. My sister and my mom had all solar eclipse-themed snacks for us. Sunkist, Moon Pies, SunChips, etc.

I had made a few cards with holes punched into the paper to be able to display the moon's path without having to look up at the sun. My brother (Will) let us try it out on his black shirt. It showed perfectly against the black. It was similar to a partial eclipse when it looked like this.

My parent's dog, Calvin, had all his gear on ready to go, and my mom's pants were a good backdrop, too.

We were slowly getting there. Not long now...

The moment it hit Totality, it got dark quick. It lasted about three minutes and then it started moving away. In that time, people shot off fireworks, and even in the country where my parent's live, you could hear people cheering. It was such a "come together" moment. We experienced the moment in 2017 where we live and the cheering was awesome in the city. Everyone experiencing something so incredible at the same time, no one mad, no one sad, no one complaining. Everyone just being at that moment always is a great time. I wish, we as a nation, and even world, could come together more without moments like this.

Once the sun showed once again, we were all bummed to see it end, but we ended up still watching until the sun was full again.

With the eclipse over, we cleaned up and still wanted to hang out. The kids all played and we all sat around and ate the snacks, and caught up on things. It was nice to sit with my family and just enjoy being part of the family. Living in Oregon I miss a lot of things, but I value the time I do spend with each one of them. Saying we drove a converted school bus across the United States to watch the solar eclipse is one thing we can check off our bucket list.☺

Day Eight (Eclipse Road Trip)

 Hinton, Oklahoma 🠊 Crystal Springs, Arkansas

We left Hinton, Oklahoma, and headed towards Warner to visit with family before continuing on to Arkansas. Going through Oklahoma City one of our three gallon water jugs fell from the shelf of the kitchenette and broke a small piece from the bottom, which resulted in a lot of water rushing towards the front of the bus. Luckily, we were able to corral a lot of it and push it out the front door. Picture this, we are driving a school bus through Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, while three gallons of water is steadily pouring from the front doors of the bus. I can't imagine what the other cars around us, or behind us were thinking. It wasn't fun at the time, but now we laugh about it. No one honked, or did anything, so hopefully it wasn't as bad coming out the doors as we thought.☺

Hardy was enjoying the sun laying on the dash of the bus. He stayed on the dash until we reached Warner, and then again as we arrived at my parent's house in Arkansas.

It was neat seeing all of the Solar Eclipse billboards and signs. It made us feel like they were put up just for us and our trip.

 

Once we got close to Warner, Oklahoma, I called my "Aunt" Paula and had her meet us to show us exactly where to go. What's funny is, my Uncle Paul had asked us to call him when we got close so he could tell us where to go, but with our planning, we were able to surprise them and make them think we weren't there yet. It was a great plan, and we were grateful Paula was leading our way, because these backroads we might have gotten turned around.

There farm was just as I had remembered when I was young. We stayed a few hours and visited with them and my Aunt Paula (who is really my cousin, but she was a lot older than us, so she's always been called "Aunt" Paula). I love this side of my family so much. They are down-to-earth, kind, and they love us for us. I am so happy we were able to fit them into our trip, because I sure do miss them. On our way back we have plans to spend more time with them. Once we left Warner/Porum, Oklahoma, we were back on the road headed towards Arkansas.

We crossed the Arkansas state line around 5:00 p.m. We were right on time to reach my parent's house before it got dark. We were on the homestretch. I was excited to see everyone already and was still teary-eyed from leaving Oklahoma.

Once we went through Mansfield, Arkansas, we all started getting anxious. Anxious to see family, anxious to get off the bus, and anxious to take a hot shower.☺

We came over the mountain and we were there. My mom was standing near the driveway as we came around the corner to their driveway. She helped Jeff get the bus up the driveway and then was thrilled to see us and hear about our trip. My dad and my sister had gone on a short bike ride to kill some time until we got there, but they came shortly after we parked and situated. It was such a wonderful evening, catching up and telling them all about our travels. My mom immediately loved the bus!🚍