As delightful as it might sound at times, being away from the hustle and bustle of home can be a double-edged sword. Vacations relax and revive you, but you can still feel a little lost and displaced without the comfort of your own 'things' around you - I know I do!
If you're lucky enough to avoid a hotel and be invited to stay at a relative's or friend's home instead, it's a wonderful thing. Good food, good company, and a comfortable bed. Even without a separate guest room (our 'guest room' is a sofa bed in the living room), a lot can be done to accommodate overnight visitors and to make them feel at home.
One of the best ideas I ever heard about was the "Welcome Guest" box. Upmarket hotels and bed-and-breakfasts have been doing it for years - a small box containing toiletries, first aid items and a few small luxuries is set aside to make the guest feel special. I loved the idea, so I began doing it for myself at home.
I recycled a little straw storage box from elsewhere in the house and with each weekly grocery trip added an extra couple of items to my list - things like dental floss, spare toothbrushes, pretty soap, bandaids, hand lotion, individual purse packs of tissues and paracetemol. Travel toiletries (mini bottles of favourite brands produced to comply with airplane regulations) are perfect for this because guests should generally be given unopened bottles, although there are exceptions depending on the product (larger bottles/packages of lotion or paracetemol, for example).
While guests should always be free to take the whole kit-and-caboodle home with them when they leave, I've found it works equally well to keep a box in the linen cupboard, and just restock it as needed. Either way, feedback has been 100% complimentary and guests love knowing they can arrive with almost no notice and hardly anything packed and still know they're well covered with life's little basics!
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