Beach Surprise

I came home from doing an errand Friday afternoon to find Stace waiting in the living room. My dad had been over to pick up the girls, and I now needed to pack my things for a weekend away.

The destination would be a surprise, but I should bring clothes for warmer weather, cooler weather, swimming and exercising. Stace had already gathered most of our things, including snacks and reading material.

Our 11th anniversary had gone by two weeks ago, with Stace telling me not to worry about it - he was taking care of things. The day itself was a nice (but rather normal) family day, but I remembered him saying that I shouldn't worry about things, so I didn't mind the lack of candlelit romance.

Still, I wasn't expecting an entire weekend away together! What a fun surprise! Once we pulled off the highway, I figured out where were going - the Embassy Suites Mandalay Beach Resort. Resort is the right word, with the Pacific Ocean just steps away from the back gate, not far from a gorgeous pool area.

One of the treats of staying at any Embassy Suites is the evening reception, with free drinks and snacks.

On Friday evening, after unpacking, we got in line for our pre-dinner drinks. This was my Long Island Iced Tea, with the faintest splash of cola.

We had dinner at the hotel restaurant, and then Stace went for a swim.

In the morning, we enjoyed another Embassy Suites benefit - the cooked-to-order breakfast, with just about anything you could ever want for breakfast.

Since it was a cloudy morning in Oxnard, we took a long walk down the beach, and back along the Oxnard marina. We were out for nearly two hours.

Later in the afternoon, we went to Main Street in Ventura to have an early dinner and check out the scene. It was packed - our visit coincided with a beer festival, and there were loads of people around who'd obviously been enjoying many beers.

We got back to the resort in time for happy hour, and this time took our drinks out to watch the sunset. What a perfect moment, shared with the man I've loved these 11-plus years.

On Sunday, after another big breakfast, we used the hotel's gym and then got ready to check out.

We were able to get a different key card after checking out, so we could stay and use the pool and beach gate.

After more time in the water, it was time to head on. On our way home, we stopped at the Camarillo Outlets to do a little shopping.

Then we needed to get back home to our girls. We missed them!

But what a great couple of days we had, to rest, reconnect and recharge our batteries. Thanks, Stacey, for a beautiful weekend.