How to Prepare for House Guests This Holiday Season

With the holidays quickly approaching, many of you are probably getting ready to welcome family members and friends traveling from near and far into your home!  It's such an exciting time, but it can also be stressful and time consuming making preparations.  We live on the East coast while the rest of our family lives on the other side of the country.  Over the past couple of years we've been very fortunate to have several visitors, and I've learned a few things from trial and error when it comes to hosting.  Here are 10 things to do to prepare for your overnight house guests this holiday season.... 

1. Clean Your House
 If you're like me, you want everything to be just right, and you won't rest until it is!  But resist the temptation to deep clean your ENTIRE house!  While it may sound like a worthy goal, it's truly a waste of your time and energy.  Places you need to clean: the guest bedroom, guest bathroom, kitchen, common bathrooms, family room & other common living areas.  Be sure to clean all of the places where your guests will be spending time relaxing, but when it comes to your bedroom closet, your bathroom shower, or the garage- skip it! 

2. Make Up the Guest Bed with Fresh Linens.  
This is extremely obvious, but can't ever be overstated enough.  Never leave used sheets on the bed for new guests, even if the sheets were only slept on once or twice by a child.  Treat your guests how you would want to be treated.  Fresh sheets aren't optional.

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3. Provide a Place for Your Guests to Store Their Clothing & Luggage
Space in the closet to hang up clothes and keep their suitcase is essential, and a chest of empty dresser drawers is also a very nice touch.  I always like to leave an empty laundry basket in the bottom of the closet so that guests have an easy place to throw their dirty clothes during their stay.  

4. Leave a Stack of Blankets, and a Fan in the Guest Bedroom
While you can't control your guests body temperature, you can provide the things that can help them remain comfortable.  Some guests are freezing in the summer, while some are stifling in the winter- having blankets and fans available year round is always a good idea.
  
5. Provide a Stack of Fresh Towels and Wash Cloths in the Guest Bathroom
In my opinion, you can't leave too many towels, but you can definitely leave too few.  Make sure you alert your guests to where the linen closet is in case they need to re-stock their towels during their stay.

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6. Leave a Basket Containing an Assortment of Personal Items
For me, nothing is nicer as a house guest, than having a basket full of items I might have forgotten to pack: shampoo, conditioner, body wash, a mini deoderant, a razor, toothpaste, floss, mouth wash, bottled water, etc.  Most of the items probably won't get opened or used, but it's a very nice and welcoming gesture.

7.  Create a Helpful Household Reference
Leave a card in the guest bedroom with important household information that your guests might find useful: the WIFI password, instructions on how to work the television remote, the alarm system code, the garage door code, etc.  Also, leaving a spare set of house keys and a phone charger for your guests to use during their stay are good ideas.   

8. Leave a List of Recommendations
If your guests are going to have time to do a little exploring while they are staying with you, it's always really nice to provide them with a list of favorites: restaurants, to-do's, parks, shops, etc.  I always love it when people are excited to see & experience where I live!

9. Stock your Fridge and Pantry
When you're a guest, there is nothing worse than being starving but feeling weird about going to the kitchen to find yourself a snack.  Make sure you have plenty of snacks, drinks, and food on hand, and that you make it clear to your guests that it's all free game, any time of day or night.

10. Go the Extra Mile
Fresh flowers, yummy winter scented candles and potpouri on the stove aren't necessarily a requirement, but they are so welcoming.  Do the seemingly little things that will help make your guests feel relaxed and comfortable.

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Am I missing anything?  What are your tricks when it comes to preparing for house guests?