A surprise party
(Sent by Lourdes Morillas Pujol, a student from Palma de Mallorca, Spain)

It was for my cousin's birthday. He was going to be thirty and I thought that it was a good moment to surprise him so I told his parents, his sister and his girlfriend to have a big party. Of course the answer was "Shoulders to the wheel!"

The party was fantastic except for a little problem I am going to explain to you later. But the preparation was absolutely hilarious because we all did it for fun and with love. At the same time we had to be careful with my cousin, he couldn't realize that we were up to this.

My husband and I made a movie with a movie maker programme. We had old photos when my cousin was a baby, with his parents, when he played football, his friends and his girlfriend, all this with music and photos. It was utterly unique. All that took us two weeks to finish it but our gift was worth it.

We let more family and friends know about the surprise. His mother-in law ordered a birthday cake with my cousin's photo, my husband made a tiramisu and I made a Russian salad, his mother made pies and my mother other things.

We told the people to arrive at 8 o'clock, he and his girlfriend got home at half past 8. The little problem was that my cousin surprised us because he had temperature two days before the party. We thought of calling off the party. But eventually we had it.

When he got home we all were in silence and hiding, suddenly we switched on the light and put the birthday song so it was a great joy to look at him in surprise and very happy.

Luckily he was better or rather he tried it. Apart from that, the party was enjoyable and when we put the movie everybody was laughing or crying with emotion. It was an absolutely brilliant and exciting moment, a touching scene.