January at Dad's Place: A Month of Family, Sunsets, and the Three Boys Together
Our 2024 season opened the way the good ones do: with family. We started off our journey from Joe and Mel's place in Camp Verde and headed down to Kurt and Nancy's place in Black Canyon City, where we stayed for four nights. There was entertainment at the Black Canyon City VFW, a shuffleboard tournament, and an evening of music. We also enjoyed visiting over small fires in the morning with coffee, and got to see Barb - who seems to be doing well, having lost Lanny over a year ago.
Across Phoenix, Again
Upon leaving Kurt and Nancy's on a gorgeous sunny morning, we headed for Dad's place in Florence. I included footage of this portion of our travels to share some of the scenery encountered on this drive. I am still amazed by how long the distance is across the Phoenix Metro area - from the northern edge of Phoenix to the southeastern side of San Tan Valley is over 70 miles, all of it city landscape.
Once the trailer was situated and set up at Dad's, a very enjoyable month began. My brother Alan was there when we arrived, giving us a chance to visit with him for a couple of days before he headed home to Wyoming.
Chloe in the Desert
Taking Chloe for walks in the surrounding desert was a daily occurrence, and I had a good time getting footage of her cavorting about. One particular afternoon the cloud formations were spectacular - they had a wave-like look that only became more spectacular as the sun set and reflected great colors of red and orange.
Having received my new Ace Pro 360 camera, I enjoyed getting familiar with it while walking west of Dad's place around the fields of a local farmer. The days were bright and sunny with clear skies, allowing for clear viewing of the surrounding area. One of the great aspects of the lifestyle Cindy and I live is the ability to get in long walks and spend large amounts of time outdoors.
Chloe has been with us for over 16 years now, and she is still going strong, enjoying getting out and exploring. She has a bit of a hip problem, but she has not allowed that to stop her from exploring and sniffing.
Coolidge Runs and Solar Farms
Cindy's sister Linda has a place just outside Coolidge, about 7 miles from where my brother Larry lives. On one of our days at Dad's we ran over to visit with Linda and Larry. Though I did not get footage of the visits themselves, I included footage of the drive out - most of this area is farming, with cotton and alfalfa as the main crops. Just west of Linda's place they are constructing a rather large solar farm, which has been interesting to watch come together. Having worked on a solar farm's construction in the Chino Valley area myself, I find these fun to watch.
Dad and the Three Boys
We were able to get a photo with Dad and the three boys - Alan, Larry, and myself - before Alan headed back to Wyoming. We had not all been together as a group in over six years, so the opportunity for a photo was a good thing. I also got footage of our rig set up at Dad's, his front yard, and the surrounding desert. While Mom was alive she had a love for cactus, so there is ample cactus in the front yard - and brother Larry built Mom a cactus out of iron for the yard.
Enchanted Lights and Prime Rib
One of our last adventures during this stay was going to the Enchanted Lights display in Phoenix with our daughter Alicia, her husband Brandon, and our youngest granddaughter Ava. The display they have put together is amazing and well worth going to. It is set up at the spring training facility for the Arizona Diamondbacks, with an ice skating rink, lighting displays of every kind, and vendors around the upper deck.
A bit more footage of Dad's place, plus my fascination with cloud formations. Then the smoking of the prime rib for our New Year's Day meal, which turned out wonderful. After that it was time to say our goodbyes and head for our next stop: the Painted Rock Petroglyph BLM site, west and slightly north of Gila Bend, Arizona.