How to get a friend back to her house for party

[DiscoC]

So its a friends surprise party at her house. Her husband is arranging it. A few of us girls are going to take her out for drinks and then we need a reason to get her back to her house? Any ideas?! We are stumped

I would try a double bluff, accidentally let slip that the reason you are taking her out for a drink is that her DH is cooking a surprise birthday dinner for her at home , then apologise profusely for spoiling the surprise, beg her never to tell her DH because he's been planning it for weeks, get her home..........

Only works if she hasn't already had fish fingers and chips with her DH before going out [ grin]

Arrange early evening drinks before she needs to go home because her dh is going to take her out for a lovely birthday meal.

Oh and the surprise party that was held for me was partly spoiled because I'd eaten a huge meal just before my surprise party where they had gone to great lengths to provide lovely food. So make sure she doesn't eat before hand if there is going to be food.

Make it a two-part night out. The first late-afternoon/early-evening part is friends going out for a drink/cocktails, the second part your partners/spouses are joining you for a night on the town.

Keep the first part casual-ish, so you're going back around to hers to put the glad rags on, pick-up the partners/spouses (who are going to meet up and have a beer with her husband/watching the football/whatever) and then you're all supposed to be getting the taxis from hers to head out for the rest of the night.

You need a believable plan for the night that already includes going back to theirs.

Donkey has a point. Yes, you would assume the woman’s husband would know whether she’s likely to enjoy being surprised, but not just once but twice I’ve had to foil DH’s mother’s and sisters’ plans to throw him a surprise birthday party he would have absolutely hated — the second time even after he’d explicitly told them he would have hated it if the first one went ahead. They can’t get past the fact that they would love it themselves, and think everyone should.

viques idea above is good

I would get her husband to call and say he has locked himself out whilst putting the bin out or something. Very apologetic, maybe a bit defensive to make it seem real. Everyone else who might have a key can’t be reached.

You all chivvy your friend along ‘Don’t worry, lets all just get in a cab, go to yours and let your DH in then we’ll carry on somewhere else’.

You arrive at hers, husband is outside with no shoes on looking very sheepish. You all bundle out when she gets out and start taking the piss out of him as a distraction.

She opens the door and SURPRISE!

I quite enjoyed that

Thanks for the ideas, I think we will go with leaving a phone or purse at her house. Donkey no I don't think she will guess and I do think she will enjoy it. She had planned her own house party for her birthday a month a go but it was cancelled as she was sick so now her husband has decided to arrange a surprise one and as its a month after her birthday I don't think she will click on to it

If you can sneak HER purse/phone out of her bag that might be even better and less suspicious. "Oh no, I definitely saw it on the sofa and just didn't think to pick it up... So sorry! We'll have to go back. I could really do with some plasters for my rubbing heels so I'll come with you" etc.

I was going to suggest locked out husband too. Barefoot, without phone or keys, rings from a neighbour's house...

Does she have kids?