Looking back, I remember a time when I had been the host to a fantastic surprise birthday party. It was a 16th birthday party that took place at my home on a Saturday night in March. There was a lot of thought; preparation and planning that went into organizing the event. I sent out invitations about a month and a half in advance so that everyone could have enough time to plan ahead for the big night. I figured sending out invitations in the form of assorted greeting cards would be the best way for everyone to remember the date and mark it on their calendars.
As the day of the party drew closer, I double checked my list to count how many people were coming so I knew how much food to make and how many beverages were needed. There were 50 people coming. For those 50 people I had ordered 50 boxed greeting cards. On each card I wrote, “Thanks for sharing in my Sweet Sixteenth birthday” and included a picture of my daughter on it.
On the Saturday afternoon of my daughter’s birthday I began to decorate my home. I placed the pink and silver Happy Sweet Sixteenth Birthday banner up in the foyer and scattered the matching pink and silver balloons throughout the foyer, the kitchen and the dining room. I had ordered plenty of coordinating pink and sliver plastic plates, napkins, utensils and cups. Throughout the day I cooked and prepared appetizers, the main course and baked and created a two-tiered chocolate cake! As I finished icing the cake, I placed it on a silver platter on the kitchen table and surrounded the cake with pink and silver photo confetti. On the confetti were pictures of my daughter – just the perfect touch of detail to mark her special day.
At 8pm the guests started arriving and by 8:30pm everyone had arrived and the lights were out. We were ready for my daughter’s arrival. My daughter would be arriving at 8:45 from her dance class and we were all quiet and still ready for her entrance. I was the closest person to the front door and I heard the jingling of her keys as she was preparing to unlock the door. As she opened the door and reached to turn on the light, we shouted out “Surprise!”