Three weeks of planning, an event organizer, a host, an artist — and the look on my wife's face that made all of it worth it. Why I wish I had done this years ago.
Yesterday I threw Nastya a surprise party for her birthday.
It was the first time in my life I had done anything like it.
And I realize now I should have started doing things like this much earlier. They give you an insane amount of fresh energy and motivation.
When you see the woman you love that happy, the feeling carries over to you completely.
I’ll gather all the photos and videos in the next few days and tell the story in more detail. For now, the short version.
I had been preparing this party for about three weeks.
I tried calling three or four venues myself to negotiate terms, and quickly understood I needed an organizer.
I found Olga, and from there she took over the venue negotiations, the menu, the decor and all the rest of the logistics.
Sasha Shadrov offered to host the evening for us. He brought in a DJ, arranged the sound rental and all the equipment, and put together fun contests and activities for the guests. Sasha also hosted our wedding, and did it brilliantly. A top-tier host.
Oleksandra Yaremenko painted a portrait for Nastya and made several sketches for the guests during the evening. Nobody expected to leave a birthday party with a drawing like that.
An event like this is the coordinated work of many people — but the most important part was done by the guests. They created the warmth and the memories.
Investing in the woman you love is probably the wisest thing a man can do.