I had planned to/I was planning to

[Topstudent]

Guy 1: Where did you get the RV from?

Guy 2: I bought it a few weeks ago. I had planned/was planning to surprise my family with a trip to Disney World next week, but then Karen (Guy 2's wife) told me she wanted a divorce, so...


I wrote this, but can't figure out which one of 'had planned' and 'was planning' that would be correct/more natural here. Could anyone help me? Thanks.

 

[jutfrank]

I suggest you use had planned with a stress on the auxiliary had, which is a good way to show that things didn't turn out as planned.