Pros
and Cons of a Surprise Party
by
Candice Pardue
A couple
you love dearly has a wedding anniversary coming up soon, and
you want to do something really special to show you care. You
might be considering throwing a surprise anniversary party. Surprise
parties are usually fun and exciting, especially for the one who's
planning the party. But is a surprise party a good idea for the
couple you have in mind? You might want to read over the list
of pros and cons below before making your decision. Surprise parties
aren't for everyone or every occasion.
Pros of a Surprise Anniversary Party
There are
several advantages to throwing a surprise anniversary party. For
one, you'll be able to plan secretly and have a tremendous thrill
when it's time to surprise the guests of honor. Just seeing their
facial expressions makes it worth all the planning and "sneaky"
techniques to get it accomplished.
Another advantage
is that your guests of honor won't have the stress of planning
the party. They can fully enjoy the party once they arrive and
not have to worry beforehand or afterwards about how the party
was put together.
Surprise
parties often attract a larger crowd because people in general
get excited about surprising someone. The party will more likely
be a huge success!
Your loved
ones will know you care because of the effort you put forth to
plan a surprise party. Surprise parties give most people a sense
of feeling "special" because of all the fuss over them.
Cons of a Surprise Anniversary Party
There are
also several disadvantages of throwing a surprise party for your
loved ones' anniversary. Probably the greatest disadvantage is
the fact that you'll have to carefully plan a date and time that
won't interfere with any of their other plans. For example, many
couples take off on an anniversary vacation at that time and often
spontaneously. With that in mind, you might want to plan the party
a week or two before their anniversary to be safe. Or, in casual
conversation, ask if they're planning anything special for their
anniversary.
Another disadvantage
is the fact that the couple is not able to give input as to how
and where they would like their party. One way to overcome this
is to plan everything according to what you know about them -
their likes and dislikes. For example, if you know that the husband
or wife hates barbecue, then don't serve barbecue at their anniversary
party.
Surprise
anniversary parties are often difficult to plan because you have
to get the couple there without raising suspicions. You can plan
ahead with them to go out to dinner at a nice restaurant or by
inviting them over to your house for dinner to celebrate, and
offer to pick them up. The problem is that any plan can backfire
when you're trying to surprise someone, so have a plan "B".
Based on
what you know about the anniversary couple's personality and the
advice of their family and friends, you can decide if a surprise
party is the best way to go. Either way, you can still host a
fantastic anniversary party with careful planning.
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