Can your house cope this Christmas?

We all love it when family and friends come to stay, but it can be added stress at Christmas with what is already a busy time of the year.

How are you going to cope with all the extra people in your house, where are they going to sleep, how are you going to feed them and how are you going to make it as stress free as possible?

Number one tip

Planning . . . planning . . . and more planning.

When my house is going to go into overload, I just make sure I have planned for this such event. Out come all the blow-up beds, I work out where everyone is going to sleep and make sure I have enough pillows and duvets. I happily will give my room up and sleep with the grandchildren if need be.

Remember

If you live in the country like me, everyone needs a reminder that at the height of summer half an hour showers are a no no! otherwise the tanks will be empty in no time.

Feeding everyone

I always write up a menu plan for the days we will all be eating or catering for others over the festive season. This makes it so much easier to plan what food needs to be bought, who can bring what, what you can make with leftovers, and it makes it easier to create a shopping list from this.

Pantry staples can be purchased in advance, and it is acceptable to ask family and friends to help with providing food items . . . we all know how expensive buying groceries is nowadays.

Preparing food in advance and freezing it means you won’t be tied to the oven all th et ime. Instead, all you need to do i sw hip up an exciting salad, pull out some lovely crusty bread, fruit, and cheese, thaw out the terrine and hey presto, …there is lunch!

Outside space

Hopefully you have an outside space where you can all dine, make sure you have extra chairs for everyone. Drag out the petanque set, th ecr icket set, volleyball net and the old croquet set. A llt hese games are fun for old and young alike.

If you have small children staying ,p ick up a blowup swimming pool. I bought one a few years ag ow ith a roof and I certainly have had good use from it.

Quiet time

Adults need time to sit and chat, there is nothing wrong with putting a movie on for the children, let them make a mountain of popcorn, find some large comfy cushions, and let them have some quiet time. After a fun day at the beach, just chilling for a few hours is a great option...you will probably find a few adults will join them as well.

Another good idea is to dust off the board games. I have a cupboard of games, books, and children’s activities, it is the first place the littles go when they arrive.

Don’t stress the small stuff

Accept that your pristine home is going to be a bomb site for a few weeks. Apart from a quick sweep of the floor, honestly so long as there are ample loo rolls, washin gg ets put on, everyone enjoys time together, there is plenty of food and laughter, you will have time when they leave to get your house back in order!

Remember make life count, make memories, enjoy your family and friends …. and by the way, white wine should get the red wine stain out of the couch!