San Antonio Botanical Garden — Tranquil Trophy Wife

An easy 10-minute drive from the Harry Wurzbach gate of Fort Sam Houston, the San Antonio Botanical Garden makes for a fun day outside. Admission cost our family of four $70. Standard adult tickets are $22 each ($20 with a military ID), kid’s tickets are $15 each, and if you’re under the age of three, you’ll get in free. You could also save a few bucks by making this a weekday activity. Tickets are good for the entire day, so you can come and go as you please.

Although there isn’t a restaurant on site, there is a gift shop and a coffee shop with cool treats and cold drinks. To my surprise, the prices weren’t bad! We spent around $11 for four drinks and two Mini Melts— which are similar to Dippin Dots. The Charismatic Girl chose cookies & cream, while The Thrill-seeking Boy chose rainbow. After tasting his sister’s Mini Melts, he decided that cookies & cream was superior. This meant he had to eat his quick enough to get a few more bites of hers.

This was our first time visiting a botanical garden, so I don’t have much to compare this to. I’ve actually been procrastinating on learning how to use my Canon Rebel camera that Papa bought me 10 years ago when we lived in Okinawa. Better late than never, right? And I couldn’t imagine any better place to practice than being surrounded by beautiful florals lit with natural sunlight.

We spent about 2-3 hours walking around the garden. Truthfully, we could have slowed down and embraced things more if I had worn more supportive shoes. Rookie mistake, I know. Also, for those unfamiliar, the sun actually lives in San Antonio— which makes days outside feel much longer. Although nothing beats organic vitamin D, we’ve yet to acclimate to the Texas heat. According to The Charismatic Girl, “Everything is bigger in Texas, even the sun!”

Towards the end of our trip, we finally reached the lake. We were all hot, sweaty, and quite exhausted. The Thrill-seeking Boy was barefoot— per usual— because he decided to wear his sneakers in the splashpad. This, of course, called for alternating piggyback rides shared between Mama and Papa. By this point, we were ready for lunch— but not before appreciating the serenity of the lake. The lake was full of fish, ducks, and turtles. We were kindly greeted by two ladies that offered to share their turtle food with us. They directed the kids on the safest approaches to feed the ducks, and it was the highlight of our day. Thanks to these generous ladies, we now know to pack turtle food for our next trip to the San Antonio Botanical Garden.