I thought it was about time that I shared some snaps with you from my wonderful birthday last month.
After a yummy breakfast in bed opening all my lovely cards and pressies, P handed me the cutest card in which he'd written that he was taking me on a surprise mini-moon for a few days as my birthday present.
He told me I'd need my swimming costume and I got insanely excited - I hadn't been swimming since honeymoon and love an excuse to wear my beautiful cossie! I still didn't know where we were going so I began the very important task of being sweetie distributor as he drove us along the M25.
We then arrived at Southampton, where I spent 3 years at uni, and I got quite excited to be back. It felt a bit weird as I was such a different person then, coming back with my husband, but it was really lovely to spot some of my & my best friend's old haunts.
But just as I'd decided we were about to turn the corner to a hotel any second, he veered us into the ferry dock that brandished a big sign saying 'welcome to the Isle of Wight!'
I was so excited - I'd never been before and I know P spent a lot of time there as a kid with his Grandma, and we'd always talked about heading over one day so he could show me where he spent a lot of his childhood. We grabbed a coffee and very excitedly hopped on the ferry, flicking through leaflets and brochures and deciding what to visit.
We drove 20 minutes through the beautiful countryside then checked into our hotel - and 'oohed' and ahhed' at the amazing spa pool. We got changed and had a quick drink in the bar before wandering to the seafront to find a restaurant.
We had a lovely meal with lots of wine then stumbled across a jazz night on the walk home - we then spent the evening watching the band and sipping cosmopolitans and whisky, finishing up with a slightly drunken selfie on the way back to our hotel room!
The next morning we went for a wander up to P's old haunts, across the little railway bridge from which he used to watch the island train go by and up to find his Grandma's old house.
The locals were very friendly!
We then wandered back to the seafront and went for a lovely walk on the beach, stopping halfway for a coffee in the old Bandstand.
It was a bit of a blustery day so we ended up spending the afternoon on the pier - playing mini golf & far too many 2p machines. When I took the shot above we'd already cleared all the prizes out of that machine but we only wanted the jelly bean (his name is Hank, fyi!) who was clinging on for dear life. But, as I have the most determined husband in the world, Hank of course came home with us that day, along with Doug, the glittered strawberry that P had won me shortly before!
We then headed back for a lovely swim & dinner in the restaurant and talked about our plans for the next day over cocktails in the bar.
I donned my new birthday badger socks and off we went to Shanklin seafront, a 2 minute drive from our place in Sandown. The weather was glorious - there was the fresh sea breeze but felt just like a summer's day.
We played one round of 18-hole mini golf, stopped for ice cream on the beach wall then went back to play the other 18-hole mini golf course. It was such a relaxed day - it truly felt like we were on a proper summer holiday.
Later we moved onto Godshill, a beautiful little village with wonderful gift shops and the amazing model village. After having lunch in a café garden in the sunshine, we strolled up to take a look. It was the end of the day so by this point it was almost empty, giving us the perfect opportunity to wander round and enjoy every little part.
We finished up our day in Bembridge, the beach that P spent a lot of time as a child. We wandered along as the sun was setting and took in the fresh sea air.
And another evening of drinking cocktails back at the hotel bar whilst reliving some of our chess-playing evenings we had on honeymoon was the perfect way to end the day.
The day after we arrived back home was Easter Sunday, so off we went again to have a big family celebration of Easter and multiple birthdays. There were copious amounts of wonderful homemade cakes and lots of catching up.
This was my birthday cake made by Mumma Badger - isn't it a beaut!
It was such a wonderful birthday - and such a treat! To have a little holiday just P and I, AND a big family get together AND have it combined with Easter (my favourite time of year) was just amazing. I'm so grateful for all of the memories and love from that week.
And my little white orchid birthday present reminds me of that every day - plus it looks great in the new bathroom!
Have a fabulous week folks and see you again soon!
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