Golden Wedding Anniversary Ideas please

[bluesky]

It is the in-laws 50th anniversary this summer.

But I have no inspiration, I seemed to use that up for their Ruby!

They've had the family photos, the rose bushes etc.

Anyone got any great/different ideas. Many thanks.

How about a book of messages from people who they have known over the last 50 years..

annecdotes favorite memories, it will take time and research but other peoples favorite moments could jog memories about things they have forgotten IYKWIM.

Could you get hold of their address book easily / do you know them well enough to know who they would / wouldn't want to hear from?

Just a thought.. HTH

that's a nice idea jingleyjen, but complicated as they are so far away. But they are having a party, perhaps a book that goes round the tables during the day would be something good to present them with, with some photographs we have taken of the day ..... definitely food for thought, thanks.

I made a little crock of gold for my DH's grandparents on their 50th anniversary. I found a pretty pot which I think I sprayed gold, tied a ribbon and handle onto it and filled it with 50 pound coins. They obviously want very little at that age and £50 was most welcome. If, like me, you haven't got £50 to spare all at once, start collecting a £1 coin here and there, until the summer.

I organised my parents golden wedding anniversary 18 months ago. They did NOT want a party or big fuss, and just wanted to come to a restaurant near me that we've been to a ton of times and have a quiet meal.

All my sisters live abroad, only the one in Spain (closest and with grown up kids) was able to make it.
They plus my cousins, aunts and uncles all sent cards which I took up to the place on the morning as I had everyone send them to my house. Also a tacky vase with a 50 on that I saw in a junk shop and had a florist make up a nice display. Everyone sent money to me which I converted into new £20 notes which we presented to mum and dad (cos they said they wanted a holiday) half way through a low-key meal after the waiters had come in with a cake I ordered and sparklers, with 'ITs amore' playing very loudly.
Big announcement made by the restaurant owner and piccies taken etc.
So it started off low key but all the fuss and surprises came out through the evening and they really enjoyed it.
BUT the best bit of the evening was the present from my sis in Australia (apart from her ringing on dps' mobile and speaking to mum and dad in the restaurant) was a cd she put together of songs:
The number one hit on or (if it was something like the birdie song ) about the time of their wedding, and each of their childrens and grandchildrens birthdays.
Mine was Moon River by Andy Williams
Each of us had a copy, she made a sleeve with a wedding pic, then pics of us and the grandchildren, but all as children or babies ifswim.
The loved it.
Sorry to be so long but maybe there are some ideas in there you could use?

Bluesky, I had thought more that you could email/call people for comment rather than send the book round.. But it is complicated to do.

thanks for those ideas, love the crock idea! Your party sounds lovely flibberty.

A scrapbook? My dad got one yesterday for his 70th birthday that his sister made, full of relevants dates, photos, a dvd of his birth year and various snippets of info. It's really well made. Lots of MNers do scrapbooking.

Or, as I did for MIL's birthday (she who wants nothing!), a dvd of the grandchildren. Not endless hours but half an hour of snippets of them from babies to where they are now. She loved it.

Or a dvd of the family, in a similar way, snippets of moments in time. I think they like that sort of stuff more than useless presents and ornaments!

Friend of a friend did a gold theme for the presents - got a box and covered it with gold paper and then bought lots of presents with gold associations - some silly, some better than others - eg, All Gold chocolates, Golden delicious apples, etc.

that's a great one to get the children going on alienears, thanks

My brother and I did the 'golden' presents thing for my grandparents 50th many, many years ago. The big hit with my grandfather were Golden Nuggets - he spent the party eating them from the box rather than the carefully catered buffet the my mum and aunts had arranged!

My dh bought my parents an original Times Newspaper from the day they were married. It came in a posh box with their names and date of marriage in gold, and a cert. of authenticity. He also sent them 50 red roses on the anniversary & we all (about 10 of us) went out for a nice meal.

I and my sis each gave them money for a weekend away in a nice hotel.