A few weeks ago Grandpa Clark sent the boys a package with these models to put together of Ares I! (You can probably tell it was a big hit!) His company, ATK, is making the first stage rocket booster. Ares I is one of the next launch vehicles to be used in space exploration.Then, we made it to the launch of Discovery!
On February 24th at 4:53 we sat on the beach a few miles from Cape Canaveral and watched the last liftoff of the Space Shuttle Discovery.
We watched this horizon for more than an hour, while we waited. The shuttle was positioned 8-10 miles from us in the center of the photo.
Here's the "first row seat" Jared got for us. Jordan is in front of my knees on the rocks down the slope --close to the water. And Michael is in the orange chair. :) They watched some jumping fish and horseshoe crabs in the water and absorbed the excitement in the air until liftoff.A few minutes before the launch I realized I should get a photo. So the man sitting above us snapped this quick one.
When it got close to time, everyone counted down... and we saw "blast-off." Of course my photos don't do it justice. Everyone around us had telephoto SLRs. Jared was getting video and trying to experience it "live" at the same time.
As we watched the power of the shuttle liftoff, I was inspired at what men and science can do. We have a drive to learn and reach beyond our limits. We can attain greatness when we channel our energy toward good goals.
About this point was when the boosters dropped and the rocket left earth's atmosphere. It was headed to the International Space Station which was way up (200 miles or so) above the Pacific Ocean.We enjoyed learning with the boys a little about the history of Discovery. It's first flight was in 1984 and had 38 missions. To me the Discovery shuttle will always be the image of what a "rocket ship" looks like, although there are lots of other types that have now been developed.
I was proud to be apart of a little bit of history on Discovery's last flight.
Well, the traffic was horrendous. This picture is before the launch. Double parking was a minimum along the road. Ace Hardware and the steak house and most every other store charged $10 for parking along this Highway 1. It was a holiday.We, and the tens of thousands of other viewers along the coast, were stuck in a standstill on the roads after the launch. We waited in the parking lot of a shopping center and watched "The King and I." Then the kids slept in the car till we got to the hotel. At midnight, after our 45 mile drive (seven hours after the launch) Jared and I finally crashed too.
This trip was tense from start to finish for me. I checked the launch schedule 20-30 times in the last few months, including on the drive there when I nervously called my mom. I didn't reserve our hotel until the day before we left. This launch had been postponed since November and it might be the last one to happen while we are in Florida.
I like things to be set in stone on the schedule, not up in the air until the last second. I never would have made the trip to see it unless I had two little boys who are interested and love to learn all about "Space."
When we got home the neighbor said, "Oh yea -someone told me to watch the northeast sky and we would be able to see it. ...but she forgot... and I hope at least we got a better view from our spot.
The next day after the launch, we recovered and went to the temple in Orlando! It was wonderful! We love the peace of the temple. I took the kids to a nursery down the street and we walked around enjoying the flowers and citrus trees till Jared was done.
And we finally made it to this McDonalds in Orlando. It's supposedly the biggest in the world. Of course the kids loved it and Jared enjoyed something other than PBJs.
