40th birthdays are something to be celebrated.
A 40th birthday is the perfect time to show your friend or family member how much they mean to you, and you don't have to stage an elaborate celebration to put on a memorable birthday party. Just plan your decorations, party activities, themes and some fun games, and your event will be one to remember. Does this Spark an idea?
Decorations
Traditionally, the 40th birthday is when you've made it "over the hill," and it is often celebrated by using black decorations. Lovetoknow.com suggests taking this theme a step further by chauffering the guest of honor in a hearse, decorating her yard with black crepe paper and tombstones, or presenting him with a bouquet of black balloons. Gag gifts to capitalize on the "elderly" or "over the hill" theme might include adult diapers or a borrowed walker or wheelchair. Another idea is to decorate with a "through the decades" theme, with each room of the party representing a different decade of your friend's 40 years. To add to the fun, you could invite your guests to pick their favorite decade's fashions and dress accordingly.
Activities
All joking aside, a 40th birthday celebration is a time for reflection. Put together a nostalgic scrapbook featuring some heartwarming highlights of your friend's life, or better yet, invite friends, relatives and family members who will be able to reflect on those milestones. It will turn out to be a meaningful party for everyone. If the party is taking place in the town where the guest of honor grew up, turn the retrospective into a tour of important places, like the old football field or the burger joint where he had his first job. Another fun and nostalgic activity, is to perform karaoke through the ages, singing the greatest hits of the past 40 years.
Party Games
Celebrations.com offers a list of classic games, with slight variations for a 40th birthday party: Musical Recliners; Spin the Bottle of Mylanta; Hide and Go Pee; Simon Says Something Incoherent; Doc, Doc Goose; and Pin the Toupee on the Bald Guy. You can also prepare a slide show of the birthday girl throughout her life, as guests try to guess her age when each photo was taken. You could expand this to include all of your guests, and the various hairstyles and fashion statements are sure to make everyone laugh. In addition, prepare a roast of the birthday boy. Ask each guest to write down a specific memory of something funny that happened to him, then write them all down and have him draw them from a hat so the guests can tell everyone the story.
Tags: 40th birthday, your friend, birthday party, guest honor, over hill