Solar Eclipse 2017

On Monday, the kids' school dismissed at 11:30 for the Solar Eclipse!

(The school had originally planned to have the kids view the eclipse at school....they ordered glasses for every student, sent permission slips home, etc. But they ended up changing their minds due to liability. I scrambled to find some glasses for myself, but luckily a friend had extras.)

We headed to Government Plaza for a free viewing party. We met the Townsends there, and had so much fun! The event lasted 12-3 pm, and it was so fun to glance at the sun every few minutes and see the different stages.

It's starting!! David & Abby were in awe.

Anthony, Nate, Abby, David

They couldn't get enough!

Even Baby Thomas wanted to look :)

My cutie!

PSA: Selfies are hard when you're looking through pitch-black eclipse glasses :)

At one point, I looked over and Abby & David decided to take a walk. Waaaay down to the far end of Government Plaza. Guess they wanted to chat :) They aren't in the same class this year, so I think they miss each other! #younglove

Alba & Joe Townsend with Baby Thomas

Look at those long legs!

Eclipse shadows through the trees

So glad I got to experience this with the kids!

The gang

Unfortunately, Tuscaloosa was not in the path of totality. But we had 90% coverage, and it got a *little* bit dark around the peak at 1:30 pm. For those that didn't view the eclipse with special glasses, this is what it looked like:

The far right image was what it looked like at the peak. Then, it took about an hour & a half to reverse and get back to the full sun. SO COOL!