Hospitality

I was looking through my photos and found some that took my breath away.  Alaska always does that to me.  Trent and I had the fortunate/unfortunate opportunity to go to Alaska last year.  Unfortunate because the occasion was a funeral - a sad "see you later" to a great man.  Fortunate because we got to go on a trip together (with our nursing babies, but without the other kidlets), and also because, come on, this is ALASKA!

It was a wonderful, whirlwind trip.  I was not anticipating how tired I would be, travelling four thousand miles and taking two red-eye flights - with two babies - within a week.  I was also not anticipating that Trent would fall so head-over-heels in love with Valdez.  We've even checked out houses for sale - all four of them.  :-)  But that's not what I wanted to post about.

It was so nice, after our trip up, to be able to crash at the welcoming home of a very sweet lady.  She opened her home to us, strangers, and took such good care of us.  It got me thinking of how I'd like to hostess people in my home.  My thoughts, in no particular order:

- Comfortable bed.  Not just the old one that we haven't thrown out yet.  And nice, sweet-smelling sheets.  And plenty of blankets and pillows.
- Alarm clock.  And perhaps a small pitcher of water to drink on the nightstand, a lamp, notepad and pen, and a garbage can.
- Toiletries.  Fluffy towels, shampoo, conditioner, razor, soap, lotion, hair dryer, hair spray, nail clippers and all the things you can't take on the plane anymore.
- Local events.  Brochures and ideas of things to see and do in the area.  I'd like to be better about taking my guests out to entertain them than just expect them to fit into my schedule.
- Pretty room.  Bed nicely made, room decorated well.  I want them to feel loved and pampered, not like they are in the way.
- Quiet.  Sometimes we all need a little bit of downtime or privacy, especially when travelling.
- Good food.  Yummy and heartwarming as well as tummy-filling - served with a smile and cheerful company.
- Think ahead.  I'd rather be over-prepared than leave my guests shivering with a thin "let me know if you need anything."

We just figured out how many thousands of dollars it will take to take the whole family back to visit Valdez.  Aack!  I think we'll just have to roll out the welcome mat and hope some of those good people will come to our place.  I'll go fluff the towels and try out a new breakfast casserole.