Fun Gifts for 50Th Bday

Haven't read responses so sorry if I'm repeating, I went to a 50th party and several of us brought as a gift something that was invented the year of the person's birth, so for example, I brought a styrofoam cooler bc it was invented the year he was born. Those were fun gifts. . .

I went to a 50th b-day party that was set up like a funeral... complete with a "casket" and a scarecrow type body in it that resembled the guy... and they wrote it on the invite that everyone should come with a prepared story to tell, and the people who brought funny stories stood up at the "alter" and delivered a truly hilarious and sentimental "eulogy".

It sounds morbid, but it was really funny... and seriously? how many people get to sit and hear what people will most remember about them before they die? It gives everyone a chance to express how much they care about him, and gives him a new look at how many friend he has even at his age.

At the end of the "ceremony" someone stood and read a poem... link attached... and then invited all the guests into the next room for a "wake"

They all had a blast and the guy said it was the best party he could have asked for!

http://jesusnjim.com/poetry/dash.html

I do an over-the-hill gift bag for my friends, with things like hemorrhoid cream, ace bandages, denture tablets, rolaids, a can of spray-on hair, a cord for eyeglasses, bunion pads, tweezers(for nose and ear hairs), stuff like that. I shop at Dollar stores for cheap stuff, and it's always funny.

When my oldest brother was turning 50, I sent him an anonymous "50th birthday" card every single day for 2 months before his borthday. It was driving him CRAZY. Mailed them from all over the city so he was not sure at all about the sender.
Then on his 50th I bought him a very sentimental "To My Brother..." card and signed it "GOTCHA!"

Hmm - I would venture to say that most who've posted here have not yet turned 50... ;o) Being 51 I've been there and the thing I really wanted most was a spa day - facial, massage, someone to run the kids to all their various practices, someone to do the laundry, etc. Now, ayear later, I don't really mind being in my 50's but I have to say I would not have appreciated the gag gifts at the time.

That being said, the things that would hit home most for a man would be things that speak to his, ahem, performance. You can buy vitamin supplements that are supposed to boost performance, Geritol, Centrum Silver, reading glasses, prunes or prune juice, "Depends" for men, a cane, borrow a walker or portable commode, preparation H. If he's a huge sports fan something that's directed that way - if he plays softball get him those wiffle-ball sets for little kids that have a huge, fat bat, etc. You can also request information from a nearby cemetery and use it as wrapping paper, or a home-made birthday card, energy drinks, etc.

There are catologs that specialize in supplies that help the elderly - you can find them online I'm sure - also Rite Aid has a great deal of surgical supplies and aids for the disabled - you may be able to find some stuff there.

I had the best time when my sister turned 50!!! I did an over the hill basket with items from Dollar store...such as, granny panties, bladder control pads, gas meds, knee highs, etc. We also went out to eat for her bday...so, I made a HUGE poster that read "my sister is 50 today!" and took it with me. We put it on the table, made sure to show everyone walking by AND I carried it while we walked down the street (it was an outdoor mall) and showed to everyone walking or driving by. Some people told her she was too young to be 50, some honked the horn, etc....we met some really awesome people and she got an ego boost at the same time :o). Soooo much fun!!! Have a great time celebrating with your brother!

We recently celebrated the 50th birthday of a friend and his wife asked us to bring any small item we wanted - just make sure there was 50 of them! He loves Diet Coke so we packed a small tub with 50 cans of Diet Coke. Others brought 50 of his favorite cookies, 50 pieces of his favorite hard candy, and one even brought 50 rolls of toilet paper as a joke. You can make it very simple by choosing inexpensive items that could really make him laugh. It was a lot of fun watching his reaction of getting 50 items of small things.

For one friend we did the OVER THE HILL thing - bingo cards and marker, creams, parking pass, cane with horn...

For a guy, it might be fun to take it a different way - tv themes. Hawaii 5-0, Cops, 1980's style Mustang 5.0; 50 cent pieces; 50 dollar bill, etc.

Give him 50 items of several things he likes- 50 mini-bars of his favorite candy bar, 50 pencils, 50 pieces of his favorite gum or packages of crackers, 50 dimes tapes to a big card - things like that! 50 is a great milestone - so celebrate!

My husband got a dead flower arrangement delivered from a florist.

I too have not read all the responses, so forgive me if I restate. Similar to one of your responders, my aunt gave her sister (my mother) 50 gifts on her birthday that had something to do with 50. Either there were 50 pieces or there were 50 items and then it all culminated with the 50th gift being something special between the two of them, I think it might have been a Michael Jackson CD (he's the same age). Mom ended up with a lot of usable stuff, 50 pencils, 50 rubber bands, 50 ziplock bags, etc. and loved the fact that her sister took the time to find all these items.

A bottle of Geritol might be funny, unless he's sensitive about the age thing. Some boys are you know? And as long as he's getting a real present too! Have fun!

The over the hill stuff is fun and great at the office or with people you don't know well. But since it's family and he's your brother, why not make it more personal. Do things that remind him of your childhood. Blow up embrassing pictures of him as a little kid. Have his favorite childhood foods. Show home movies of him. Tell embrassing stories, With a prize for the most embarassing. I bet he would get a lot more out of that - you all will, as you try to come up with the best zingers and old stories. You can look up the "wehn you were born" so and so was president, the #1 hit song was.... etc. You can even carry that into the gift and make him a scrapbook of your childhood.