The Hotel Del, A Staycation In Coronado

On February 10th my husband Henry retired from 21 years as a Special Agent for the FBI.  We celebrated by treating ourselves to a little staycation at the Hotel Del Coronado.
No dealing with a flight or long road trip, it's just a short 25 minutes from our house.

We were married here almost 17 years ago and haven't had the opportunity to enjoy another overnight visit since we were married.

We visit often, but haven't bit the bullet and enjoyed the overnight luxury till now.
 

When we checked in we were pleasantly surprised to be upgraded to a two room suite that had just been completely redone! 
Not sure why we got an upgrade, but it was very appreciated. 
The room was gorgeous!  The new room decor hasn't been upgraded on their website yet and I didn't take any pictures!  Think modern beach decor done in gray, silver, lavender, and dark wood. 
Very tasteful, understated, and elegant.
This was the view from the entry of our room.

We were married in this gazebo and seeing it always brings a smile to my face.

At Christmas we always take a family picture in the gazebo.
2012

The Del is a Victorian Hotel and it first opened in 1888.

This is a picture of the cottages and villas that were added to the property in 2005(time share). 
I think they start at 500k for approximately 30 days a year use. 
We didn't stay in these, but they look really nice.
They should be nice at that price.

Maybe we're weird, but we always workout when we go on vacations.
We had to work off all the fabulous meals we ate while we were there.
It was too cold and windy the first morning to run on the beach for me, so while Henry ran, I worked out at the gym, much warmer.

I'm a wimp in the cold!

It was sunny, crisp, breezy, and gorgeous, but too chilly for bathing suits at the beach or pool.

You can see Point Loma from the hotel. 

The university I attended is just on the other side of Point Loma.

At Christmas time this grassy lawn becomes an ice skating rink. 

Where else can you ice skate at the beach?

When it warmed up in the afternoon we went for walks on the beach. 

 We missed the girls, but it was really nice for the two of us to get away.
(C and C = Casey and Cami)

Henry indulged me by walking around the town of Coronado for some window shopping. 

This is true love because Henry would rather stick bamboo shoots under his finger nails than shop.  That man hasn't bought a stitch of clothing for himself, other than running shoes, since we've been married.  I love to shop so I don't mind at all.

I bought him a beer at Mc P's for his sacrifice.

It was just so nice to hang out together. 

source

It was pretty stressful leading up to Henry's retirement and the new career.  Spending time in Coronado was the perfect remedy to slow down enjoy the moment.  One minute he was thinking about getting his resume together and the next thing he had a new dream job!  He became eligible for retirement this last September when he turned 50.  The FBI has a mandatory retirement at 57 and there isn't a lot of benefit to staying past 50. 
The timing was perfect.
  There are still many Americans out of work.
I can't imagine the stress and hardship that family's face in this situation?
We are so grateful for this opportunity.  

He looks more relaxed already.

Hopefully we won't wait another 17 years to come back to stay.

Do you have any staycations or little get aways planned?

If you get a chance come visit the Hotel Del.

Thank you to everyone that left such nice heart felt congratulations to Henry and our family.

Thanks for checking it out.

A Sad Goodbye And A New Adventure

Last Friday, my husband Henry retired after twenty one years of serving our community and country.  He loved his job and more importantly, he loved the people and the relationships he had developed over the years.  His retirement was a standing room only event.  Unfortunately the room only accommodated 150 people.  There was a waiting list to get in.   It was a wonderful tribute to the camaraderie and respect his fellow agents had for him.  His friends and co-workers did such a wonderful job making this a memorable event.   It was funny, touching, and tearful all at the same time.  Cami, our youngest daughter, read a letter from her grandma (my husband's mom.)  When I say read, I really mean delivered because she memorized it.  She spoke like a pro with so much poise and maturity for an eleven year old.  We were so proud of her!  I was so nervous for her I forgot to take a picture!  Ugh!  There was a photographer there so hopefully they got pictures?

Alex, Henry, Dave



I overheard one person say they have never seen a retirement like this in their thirty one years as an agent.  He received a two minute standing ovation at the end of the two hour tribute.  Why retire from a job he loves?  An incredible opportunity came along that was too good to pass up.  Jobs like this seldom come around in San Diego.  Timing is everything and we feel so fortunate to have this opportunity.  One of the best things about this is we don't have to leave San Diego! 
On to the next adventure.

He starts his new career this coming Tuesday.

Our friend Danny.
 He's the one who introduced us nineteen years ago.

After the big day we spent the weekend in Lancaster for Cami's State Cup soccer tournament.  If you haven't been to Lancaster, you aren't missing much.  The city built a massive soccer complex to draw visitors.  Not much else to see or do there, unless you're into watching tumbleweeds roll by.  It was very cold and extremely windy, typical for Lancaster.  It's either blazing hot or freezing cold.  The wind made for some ugly soccer and was massive factor in what side of the field your team was on.  I've never seen so many kids kick and completely miss the ball.  I think the highlight of the trip for Cami was running up and down the halls of the hotel and playing hide-and-go seek with her teammates.  Before you go judging my lack of parenting disciplinary skills, just know the hotel was full of other soccer teams all doing the same thing!  There was chaos and mayhem everywhere.

Cami

We drove back to San Diego on Sunday night and then on Monday we dropped our girls off with my parents.  My husband and I spent two days celebrating his retirement at the Hotel Del Coronado.  We got married at the Del and haven't been back to stay since.
 It's one of the most romantic and beautiful hotels.
If you ever get the chance to stay here, jump on it.

I'll post more about the Hotel Del later.

 We came home for one night and then were off to our third hotel in one week. 
We had a party in downtown San Diego for Henry.  It was good to celebrate with old friends and colleagues.  Friends from Virginia and D.C. flew in for the party.

Henry's buddies
'Moon' and Jeff



Kristy

Johnny, Don, and Mark

 

I haven't been home long enough to work on any projects lately. 
All the coming and going has left my house in a shambles, but it was fun! 

Thanks for checking it out.