Photo Walking with Vicki, February 28, 2015

Saturday was a perfect day for a photo-walk: cool, and cloudy to the point of threatening. Couldn’t be more beautiful, in my books! 🙂 Normally we do these photo walks with the whole family, seven kiddos plus Paul and myself, with Oma rolling along in her wheely-chair. This time, Oma had plans with Jeff, the girls had plans to take Grandma Heidmann out for a belated birthday lunch, Jacob just wanted to stay home in an empty house by himself, and two fosters were on a visit, so our crew was just a few — and much more serene, if I may be honest; taking that many people anywhere is, as Vicki has observed, like herding cats.

Our first stop was to the Japanese Friendship Gardens. I had only been there once before, in January of 2013. The difference in a couple of months is very interesting in terms of foliage. January is a little like what my midwestern people would call “fall” weather, with leaves taking on gold, red and orange hues. By the end of February, those colors are gone, there are more barren branches, and there are the beginnings of cherry blossoms. It was beautiful in a different way!

It was also fun to let Junior feed the Koi and the ducks – it’s a great way to learn what the term “feeding frenzy” means!

After we walked through the garden, our plan was to head up to Dobbins Lookout at South Mountain Park. It was a good drive to get there, only to find upon our arrival that a policeman was turning cars away at the entrance. Flummoxed, we had to confer for a bit as to the alternative options… Desert Botanical Gardens? Papago Park? Camelback or Picacho Peak? Estrella? They all seemed either expensive or too far or too much climbing. We ultimately gambled on going downtown, and it was not a disappointment. We walked until my legs were wobbly and Junior was beginning to flag (even when he’s under the weather with a cold, that boy can run for hours. It bloweth my mind!), and the clouds were beginning to drizzle on us, which was a good indicator that we’d seen enough.