Our Parents 50th Anniversary Party - Casual Golden Wedding Anniversaries

by Kristine
(Michigan, Usa)

When my sisters and I planned our parents 50th Wedding Anniversary Party we decided to keep it simple and casual. We decided on a lunch party, so scheduled it to start at 1:00 p.m.

We reserved a private room at one of their favorite restaurants for the party. We sent out invitations to family and friends, asking them all to join us in the celebration. We requested that they not bring gifts, just plan on paying for their own meal. In keeping with the casual theme, many of our invites went out via email and personal phone calls.

My sisters and I took my mother shopping for a new outfit, but kept it casual too, getting her a nice pants outfit dressy enough to feel dressed up mid-afternoon, but still comfortable enough for a long day of sitting, standing, and hugging everyone. My mom wore a corsage, that my father pinned on her new blouse.

For entertainment, my sisters and I took the melody of a family favorite hymn, and changed the words in a clever (and very silly) way to include childhood memories of growing up as their daughters. We had a CD of love songs playing in the background as we ate our lunch, including many oldies but goodies that the older folks really enjoyed.

We also had family and friends lift their glasses in a toast to my parents, sharing a fond memory or giving them best wishes for many more years together. We decorated for their anniversary party with framed photographs of my parents and our childhood home, their children, their pets, as well as their siblings and parents.

We presented them with a photo album that was made by combining all of our old photos in new prints and putting them in chronological order. Though I searched for anniversary party ideas, the games just didn't seem to be what our family wanted to do, so we settled for visiting, eating, and just catching up.

We had arranged ahead of time for the restaurant to give us all the time we needed in case we wanted to linger and just talk, which they did! We ordered a nice sheet cake for dessert, with "Happy 50th Anniversary" and my parents names written in icing, with lots of flowers for decoration.

We brought our own paper plates and forks for this, as well as imprinted napkins for the special day. We kept the cost of this anniversary party on the low side; the meals averaged between $8 and $12 depending on the entree chosen, and nobody had an issue with paying for their own meal. It was by far less expensive than purchasing a gift.

My parents stated that after 50 years together, they really didn't need (or want) anything else to display or dust. Everyone had such a great time just catching up and spending time together. We loved it because there was no clean up, and no real expense.

We took care of the gratuity and the cake, clothing and photos, but split between the sisters it was really a nominal cost for a truly great and memorable anniversary party.