A few weeks ago, my husband and I planned a family fishing trip to reconnect, as he works so much that we hardly see him. The goal was to spend quality time together, especially since our youngest is a 5-month-old breastfeeding baby.

We set out Friday morning to get our boat and head to our camp for the weekend. About 40 minutes into the drive, my husband got a call and started saying things like, “Yeah, I’ll be there soon,” and “What did you bring?”

After the call, I asked who it was, and he said it was Heath, a coworker I had never met. It turned out, my husband had invited him to join our family trip without telling me, thinking it wouldn’t be a big deal. I’d never heard a single good thing about this guy who had a reputation for making gross “jokes.”
I got angry and told my husband that the trip was meant for our family to reconnect, and I didn’t want to nurse our baby or watch over our kids around a stranger while he socialized. He insisted it wouldn’t be like that, but I wasn’t convinced, especially since he said that Heath had brought beer.
But my despair vanished when a perfect revenge plan came to mind. With a smile, I told my husband to go ahead and pick up Heath, while I stayed back to “pack a few more things” for the trip.

As soon as they left, I called my sister and asked if she could watch the kids for the weekend. She agreed, so I quickly dropped them off at her place. I then went home, packed my bags, and drove to a spa resort for the weekend.

At the spa, I enjoyed every moment of my unexpected getaway. Massages, facials, long baths, and uninterrupted naps. Meanwhile, my husband and Heath were probably just arriving at our camp, realizing that I wasn’t coming.

Late that night, I finally checked my phone. There were numerous missed calls and angry messages from my husband, asking where I was and why I wasn’t at the camp. I replied with a simple text: “Enjoy your trip with Heath. I’m taking a much-needed break. See you when you get back.”

When I returned home on Sunday, my husband was fuming. He started yelling about how I had ruined the trip and embarrassed him in front of Heath. I calmly told him that he had ruined our family trip by inviting a stranger without consulting me, and that he needed to understand the importance of communication and respect in a marriage.

He was silent for a moment, then sighed and apologized. He admitted that he had been selfish and inconsiderate. We talked it out, and he promised to prioritize our family time and consult me before making such decisions in the future.

In the end, my spontaneous spa weekend taught him a valuable lesson about respect and communication. And for once, I felt like I had taken a stand for myself and my family’s needs.