5 Ways To Be Hospitable When You Have Kids

When we moved into our home two years ago, my husband and I both knew that hospitality would be important to us.  Our marriage mission statement includes a section on inviting people into our hearts and our homes and we’ve loved doing that through hosting our church small group, having lots of people over for meals, and even being Airbnb hosts for a year.

But now that we have a little one, this whole hospitality business is a lot more complicated.  Not only is our house a lot messier and full of colorful baby junk than it was before, constantly changing nap and bedtime schedules make planning specific times for meals or overnight guests especially challenging.

We are still learning what it looks like to have open, hospitable hearts and take care of the needs of our own family, but these are five little tricks I’ve discovered that make a big difference in keeping us accountable to our marriage mission statement and actually have people over for meals or to stay the night.

1) Use Decorative Bins To Store Random Baby Items

When it comes time to have people over, I am always amazed by how much baby stuff I find around our house.  Burp cloths, bibs, teethers, toys…where does all the junk come from? One of my favorite tricks to keep the house looking tidy is to have little decorative bins where I can quickly stash all the baby stuff when people come over without actually having to organize everything.  These decorative baskets on our newly updated Billy Bookshelves are my current favorite place to throw everything when people are coming over!

2) Prioritize Your Cleaning Tasks

I’m a big believer that in order to live life intentionally and joyfully, sometimes we need to learn to let go of the things that don’t matter.  For me, cleaning every inch of our home is one of them! I would never host if my house had to be spotless to do so.  Choose a few cleaning tasks that matter to you and try to get those done before your guests arrive.  For me, this usually involves wiping down our guest bathroom, wiping down the kitchen counters and doing a quick sweep/Swiffer of the kitchen floor if I have time, and maaaaaaybe a little dusting.  But if I don’t get to these things? That’s a-okay.  I just figure my guests will be encouraged to know they’re not the only one with a messy house!

3) Rock The Crockpot

All parents know that the hours between 4:00-7:00 PM are when children let out their whiny inner demons (or for a baby as little as my son, their fussier more clingy selves).  Cooking dinner during this time can be so tricky when you have a little one that doesn’t want to be put down! Since becoming a mom I’ve come to appreciate my crockpot so much more.  I can throw everything in during Caleb’s morning nap, prep everything for any easily assembled side dishes during the day, and by dinnertime all I have to do is scoop everything into bowls and I’m good to go! It takes so much stress out of having people over for dinner.

My crockpot sits in this little spot on the edge of our counter pretty frequently!

4) Embrace The White Noise Machine

When we’ve had people stay the night with us, I’m always nervous that my little man will wake them up in the middle of the night.  Jordan and I sleep with white noise in our room and it helps us to sleep so much more soundly (with the baby monitor still on, of course).  Having a white noise machine in our guest room makes us feel a little better if Caleb wakes up crying because we know our guests won’t hear a thing.  And on the opposite end, a white noise machine in my son’s rustic, neutral nursery makes sure he sleeps soundly even when the doorbell rings, the dog barks, and our laughter fills the house. Basically…order as many white noise machines as you can and place them in every room in the house! 😉

We stick a white noise machine on this changing table turned on full blast and our little guy sleeps like a champ!

5) Prep For Your Mornings Ahead Of Time With Dixie® To Go Cups

As much as I’d love to enjoy a nice cup of coffee with my houseguests in the morning, nursing and caring for a hungry, sleepy baby means I can’t always be there when they wake up.  I always prep a coffee and breakfast station the night before so that no matter when my guests wake up, there is food and coffee available.  In addition to some granola bars, cereal and milk, and a pot of hot coffee, I always leave Dixie® To Go cups.  These were my go-to when we were Airbnb hosts for a year because they let our guests enjoy a cup of hot coffee even if they were running out the door in the morning for an outing or travel day!

These cups are great because they have a leak-resistant lid that stops spill-prone people like me from staining everything in sight.  They also have an insulated layer that helps keep your coffee warm while you’re on the go.  And parents, can we all agree that lukewarm coffee, the staple of the exhausted parent running after kids, is just not as good as deliciously hot, kid-free coffee?

Lastly and maybe most importantly, these cups require NO cleanup.  My guests can easily toss them once they’re finished with their coffee and I don’t have to wash anything.  When I take them on the go with me, I love that I can just toss them when I’m done instead of trying to hold a baby on my hip, my diaper bag on my shoulder, and a coffee mug in the other hand.  Basically, these Dixie® To Go cups help me to crush it as a mama, a hostess, and a woman on the go.  Does it get much better than that?

It might not look the same as before we had a baby, but we still love opening up our home to the people in our lives.  The title word of my blog, sobremesa, is the Spanish word for the sweet, sacred time spent around the table after a meal is done, and I will do whatever it takes to make sure we still have that time as our home gets fuller and crazier.

If you’re a parent, what are some of your tips for hosting without going crazy? 

I was selected for this paid opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.