You want to make you spouse’s next birthday extra special by planning a surprise birthday party, but you’re not sure where to start. Below are some tips to get your creative juices flowing.

Plan Ahead

Hopefully you’ve allowed yourself enough time to do some planning—at least a month. Otherwise you might want to plan the surprise for next year or really fool them by having the birthday party a couple of weeks AFTER their birthday. But that might not go over well if they begin to wonder why their birthday passed with very little acknowledgement. See why it’s important to plan ahead? Sneakiness and party planning take time.

Enlist Helpers

You’ll need help. No matter how amazing you may be as a spouse, you can’t be two places at once. You’ll need to have somebody with your spouse to get them to the party and somebody else to be at the party to greet guests. Good helper options include older children, your spouse’s best friend, or extended family members. You want to be sure you trust your helper to keep a secret and to represent you well.

Plot The Location And The Ruse To Get Them There

There are plenty of venues for dining or entertainment in San Antonio. Do you want to have the party at one of those places or at someone’s home? As you decide, you need to remember that you have to have a way to get your spouse there. Will your spouse think it’s dinner out for two only to discover a party at the restaurant? Will the best friend take your spouse out to celebrate only to bring them back home to a party? Whatever you decide, be sure the location and the ruse are compatible.

Guest List/Invitations

Now that you know the venue, you know how many people you can invite. When you send out invitations, do so covertly and mention to the guests that it’s a surprise so they don’t say something to your spouse. It might be a good idea to have one of your helpers mail or email the invitations to ensure your spouse doesn’t happen upon them accidentally.

Food and Entertainment

After you got your spouse to the party and everyone’s yelled, “Surprise!” then what? If you’re at a restaurant, it makes sense that everyone will eat. Maybe have a buffet line set up. At home, some cake or refreshments are plenty. But to really “wow” your loved one and make the party memorable, bring in a birthday party DJ. Music makes the party, and a professional DJ will have other options for entertainment, too. Maybe it becomes a karaoke party. Maybe the DJ brings a photo booth along for the occasion. Maybe dance music is enough to get your crew in celebration mode.

The party is for your spouse, so as you think and plan, think about what they like and would enjoy to make their special day that much more special.