Planning a Surprise 40Th for My Hubby

HiAmy I love doing these kind of things.I would love to give you some suggestion. First round tables,balloons.as cener pieces,THE CATCH IS put either the #40 or his picture on the balloons. Then use balloon trees all round the place of the party for ____@____.com,Roast Him,allow people to get up and say something about him weather it be funning or serious.you will& He will have a great time. This is just a few things you can do. Hope this can helo you. YOUR FRIEND.

I planned a 40th for my hubby last year and got a tent and table and chairs down to the caterer. Basically shop around for the best price. I even got his friends to get him out of the house so I could get the tent in the back yard. I got Mustard Seed to cater, and they were awesome. The food was delicious. You didn't say where you are from, I got the tent table and chairs from A&B Tent Rental in Akron. They were very reasonable and will set up any time. As a gift to my husband, I commemorate every year of his life with a gift, i.e. i got his first hair clipping from his mom for his first haircut. I got his cub scout uniform, I got his graduation cap and tassel, a can of beer when he turn 21, golf clubs when he got his only hole in one, wedding pictures of us the year we got married, baby dolls for each of our kids and the final year was our SOLD banner from our old house that we finally sold our house after 2 years on the market. Everyone thought it was a cute idea and great sentiment to my husband for every year of his life. If you can think of 40 years of events in his life...with a gift funny or otherwise, it's a great idea.

Having crossed that milestone I have a few suggestions. My family hosted ours in this same atmosphere, backyard BBQ style.

If you can put together a memory book for the birthday person. www.picaboo.com is a great website for easily downloading and putting together a book. We had a video running during mine of a slide showing pics from childhood. It was great, but it forced people to have to go to a location inside the house to see the video. The book is great, you can include pages at the back for guests to sign and leave notes.

I hosted a huge event last summer, instead of the traditional route of a keg of beer, we rented a slush machine. We had strawberry daquiries in one side and mojitos in the other side. It was a huge success. You could even make one side non-alcoholic, different color to cut confusion. So easy to use, just rinsed it off and returned with the tent rental.

I always keep a spiral bound notebook for each event, clipping recipes, ideas, pictures and taping them inside as I go along that way I don't forget. Shop your local Sam's Club or Costco for your basic party supplies, much better prices, and they have some great patterns and styles in large quantities.

Delegate responsibilities to friends and family. Remember to have fun and enjoy yourself as well.

Whenever I am planning something, I scour eBay for things I can't get locally. I type in party supplies along with whatever theme and specialized stores pop up and sometimes you can find everything online which saves time. Also people won't see what you bought when they go to the store the next time--it'll be unique.

If you have time, Windows Movie Maker is great software for making slideshows for a show at the end of the party...
Our friend did a 40th a couple of years ago and she had placemats that were in the shape of a "40" and had people write on them & draw pictures as part of his gift. The slideshow was the absolute hit of the whole thing though.

I did a surprise party for my hubby on his 25th. It went well. I supplied the meat...burgers, hot dogs and chicken. I asked everyone to bring a favorite dish. I think it's better that way. You get more of a variety and it helps keep the expense down. Plus, it's a chance for new recipes! If you belong to a church it's possible to borrow chairs and tables from your church. Also to keep costs down, just get a keg. If anyone wants other liquor they can bring it.

Word of caution: Be prepared to allow for sleep overs. Some states will hold the host resposible for letting a guest drive home drunk and someone gets injured or killed by that guest.

Have a wonderful time and take lots of pictures. It will be great to do a memory scrapbook. Need lots of pics so you'll have a nice selection to chose from. :o)

If your hubby has a good sense of humor, get him some prank gifts (large print books, depends, etc., etc. - the stuff he'll need to "be old").

My question to you is where do you live? I know a great party planning company in my area. It's one of a kind - it's called execuevents. They not only cater the food, but pretty much do everything else for you. Maybe you can check in your area for something similar to this. They do a great job and a lot less stress for you.
p.s. I wish you were my friend - I'm turning 40 in July!

first thing is it is going to take a lot of hard work.You might want to set down and make a list of guest, that way you have an idea of how big it is going to be. You might want to get of hold of the catering company you are going through, they may have some ideas on your table and sitting situation. You may want to contact a wedding planner, they also may know where to rent chairs and tables.If you have any connections with your local YMCA Fire department, police department,or VFW they maybe able to help on table and chairs. I think you are pretty much on your own for decorations. Pary supplies store are a good source if you get the right sales clerk.
You might want to get a band to play music or if you like karoke someone that does that. I wish you luck.

You can rent almost everything at A Party Apart. They have tables, chairs, table clothes, silverware, plates, cups, etc. Their prices are pretty reasonable. I think they will also do the set up and tear down. I don't much about liquor prices. For my wedding, I just ordered stuff from Belmont Beverage. It really depends on what kind of alcohol you're providing. If you want kegs of beer, make sure to call around. I found that prices can differ greatly from one store to the next. Ask about discounts too. I think we wound up getting a 20% discount. If you order kegs, most of your cost will be in the deposits, and you get those back. One more suggestion. Don't provide pop. People have such widely different tastes when it comes to pop. Provide water, iced tea, coffee, and maybe a punch. Keep it simple for yourself. If you have any other questions, let me know. My family has gatherings all the time and I just planned a wedding, so I'm pretty good at organizing this kind of stuff!

Hi A.! Sounds like you're planning a fun party for your hubby! Lucky guy!

I run a (mom-owned) company called Nice Occasions. I make all sorts of unique party favors including wrapped hershey chocolate bars with customized wrappers (can include photos, names, dates, whatever you want on the wrapper). They are very cool. People like to give them as party favors at birthdays, showers, weddings, etc.

I also do dvd photomontage slideshows. I actually just did one for a 40th surprise birthday party. The woman surprised her hubby with a dvd slideshow. He LOVED it. It had pics of him when he was a baby, growing up, pics of the couple dating, from their wedding, honeymoon, and then pics of them with all their kids. When the woman brought it out and showed it at the party, she said there was not a dry eye in the house by the time it was over. These slideshows can be very sentimental and emotional or very fun and happy... whatever you want!

I'm actually offering a 15% off discount through mamasourse. My company is called Nice Occasions and the website is http://www.niceoccasions.com/

If you are interested, I can send you a copy of the 40th birthday dvd that I just did so you could get an idea of what it would be like. This one also included artwork (drawings) that their daughter had made. So you can include more than just photos if you want.

Good luck with the party planning, and I hope I can help you out!

A.

If you haven't decided 100% on a caterer and are located in the indy area my husband and I own a Italian Restaurant on the North side of town called Sangiovese and we cater. Also if you are looking for a cake i suggest Classic Cakes located in Carmel area. Good Luck

Dear A.,
I don't know your location, but I am a caterer, In Akron and Kent there is a store RSVP party store you can pick up all your needs there, they have every party supplies you will need. You need to start with a theme, colors,& how many people you are having. They have table covering of all colors and also serveware .
For tables and things to rent , also in Akron there are Millers ,Celebration Unlimited also in Akron, they have tables chairs Tents, coolers and things to put pop, beer and cold things in. They have it all.
Good luck with the party, you can do this.
L.

If you're looking for entertainment in central Ohio, the Jim Lynch Band is great! Jim also has a duo act if you think that would be a better fit. You can e-mail them at ____@____.com Jim has a load of experience, and he can really get people up out of their seats to work off some of that BBQ they'll be eating. :)

He's played at all kinds of restaurant/bars and events, and he's alwyas "on."

Good luck, and happy birthdya to your DH!