Odds or Ends

1. I tell guests who've been here before, "The first time you're a guest — the second time, you're family." That means make yourself at home, but clean up after yourself when you're finished. Then I make sure to show them where everything is: plates, glasses, snacks, towels.

2. Put them to work! At my house, guests know they'll be called upon to do stuff like set the table or cut up veggies.

3. Plan out breakfasts, lunches and dinners in advance, and post the plan on the fridge. That way anyone can look at it and see what is going to be eaten when. They won't eat everything, and someone else can help you prep the food.

4.Leave Clorox wipes in the bathroom. Someone is bound to notice misses and spills and wipe up for you.

5. I pile all my unused sample bottles into a lovely basket, put it on the guest bath vanity with a sign that says, "Help yourself," and let them enjoy the free bonus lipstick that was not my color, or the little shampoo bottles I've never used.

6. Have at least one room that is a travel free zone. The living room perhaps. You can tell everyone to put their things in bedrooms. That way you have at least one room that doesn't look like craziness.

7. Every night, have the coffee for the next morning in the pot ready to go, so if a guest wakes up before you do, he can just push the button.

8. Be sure to ask guests what their itinerary is for visiting others, when they'll be around, etc. Hosting is easier if you know when you'll have some downtime to rest or catch up on laundry.


Most of all enjoy your family and friends because life is too short.

Authorities have re-arrested three men in connection with the disappearance of an Alabama teenager in Aruba in 2005, based on new evidence in the case, prosecutors announced Wednesday.Brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe were arrested in Aruba at the same time authorities in the Netherlands picked up Joran Van der Sloot at the request of the Aruban government, the statement said. Van der Sloot is attending school in Holland.

The three had previously been arrested in 2005, Aruban prosecutors noted in a statement, but a court released them, citing insufficient evidence.

They are now charged with "involvement in the voluntary manslaughter of Natalee Holloway or causing serious bodily harm to Natalee Holloway, resulting in her death," the statement said

When does a teenager's use of computers and the internet stop being fun, and start being cause for concern?

It's a good idea to check out what he is doing, so ask him. It's just possible that it is something highly educational!...

Unfortunately, there is a lot of unsuitable material on the Internet. If you don't want your teen learning how to make a bomb or viewing pornography, do not allow totally unsupervised access to the Internet. Buy software to screen offensive material and make sure he understands basic rules for chat rooms.

With teenagers, it's often a case of taking advantage of the occasions when you are all together. Between school and peer group, there is often little room left for the family. Make room; try to make sure that you eat together as a family. Don't let him rush his food in silence; encourage him to chat.

With teenagers, it's often a case of taking advantage of the occasions when you are all together. Between school and peer group, there is often little room left for the family. Make room; try to make sure that you eat together as a family. Don't let him rush his food in silence; encourage him to chat.