Lisa at Home Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 Is a guest registry a silly idea? It occurred to me this morning as we are preparing to receive a guest from Wales that we have had hosted several interesting guests this year. It seems like this is becoming the norm for us. Maybe a guest registry is in order? I think perhaps it would be nice to have each guest leave a signature or contact information or something, and the date of their stay. Would it be rude to ask a guest to sign such a thing? If this seems like an ok thing to do, I’ll be on the lookout today for a registry. Do you have one that you like, or a particular shop where they carry nice ones? Although, I’m not sure what I might be able find on such short notice, being in a rural area. Do you have a certain way that you present the registry? Maybe setting it up in the guest room would be nice, but I’ll likely be using more than one room, so that is something to consider . Also, I feel like maybe actually taking the time to read some books on entertaining or hospitality might be something I should actually take the time to do, since this is becoming more frequent. On one hand, I would like to make people as comfortable in our home as possible, on the other hand, I can see this line of thought getting out of control in my mind because the guests have been from so many different cultures that there may not be a way to make each person uniquely happy. What I don’t want to accomplish is creating a lot of stress and extra work for myself. Book recommendations? I would like to make the effort to go a bit further than warm and inviting which is not the issue, but since many of our guests are international ministries and travel a lot, and are not in our home based initially on a personal relationship, I think taking the time to create places of refuge are in order. So basically I would like to form a plan that I will work on bit by bit each time we have a new guest. Or something. My point is that I am here for suggestions to see how to best make international guests feel at home if this is different from making other guests feel at home. Thanks ~Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 We moved away from family and friends 12 years ago and started the book then. It is just a nicely bound journal book. WE just ask them to please sign it when they leave. I leave it in teh room with a pen. It is soo fun to go back and look at whose been here and what we did when they were here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StacyWithFourRugrats Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 but just had to find out where in Wales your guest is from? Hubby is from Wales and I would jump on a plane and move there if we could afford it. Beautiful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dayle in Guatemala Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 I think a guest book is cool! I would put it on a table next to their bed with a little note about how you would love to remember their visit and it would be appreciated if they could sign the book with a little note about their visit in it. Also, we put a little basket of local things next to their bed. We put juices, treats, beaded key chains, tipico notebook covers, etc. Nothing too expensive, but, something for them to have that is a little reminder of their trip and a taste of the culture of your area. It sounds like you have the gift of hospitality. What a blessing to those who will visit your home.:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 I think it is a lovely idea. I wish I'd started one when we moved to this house seven years ago. Not just the overnighters, but the dinner guests, party people, and others who've spent time under our roof. So, yes, I think a guest book is a delightful thing. What great memories it will soon hold! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa at Home Posted August 7, 2008 Author Share Posted August 7, 2008 We've met this gentleman on several occasions, but it was in a crowd of people and we've never gotten him all to himself before. I'm sure someone in our church knows, but not me. Gosh, if your dh is from Wales, I would love some menu suggestions!!!! This gentleman is 96 years old, and from speaking with his daughter it sounds as if he would appreciate some home cooked meals as opposed to the the restuarant meals of which he will have plenty of opportunities to be subjected, LOL! Fish, potatoes and omelettes and maybe a bit of salad are what his daughter suggested. But how to prepare them? Is there a way to do these things with a Welsh flare? Generally we don't eat any animal products, but I have easy access to some nice grass fed organic foods that I would eat if I ate those things. I have a lot of unusual foods in my kitchen that might just be too much for this fellow, so I would be delighted to puchase some things he might really enjoy. I so hope you can make some suggestions! We don't expect him until Saturday, by the way. Thanks! ~Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa at Home Posted August 7, 2008 Author Share Posted August 7, 2008 Not just the overnighters. We've had several international guests just for supper, and I would like to have those visits recorded as well. I think the kids will really appreciate this when they are grown, since they're always inviolved in the preparations and entertaining. As a matter of fact, I forsee an issue on who gets to inherit the book!:) ~Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StacyWithFourRugrats Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 I will ask hubby when he has a break at work. I do know that lamb is often served and eaten like Americans eat beef. Will let you know :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StacyWithFourRugrats Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 I asked hubby. He said basic, simple foods are best. Stews and soups. Unfortunately, not much in the way of salads and such. Basic / populars Italian meals maybe also. Curry is very popular in Britain, tho that may be more a younger generations preference. If you have a World Market around you, they will have some British items, including such staples as Veggiemite (ewwwwwwwwwwww, but that is just me). I would probably get some stuff for a simple lamb stew and/or soup to start with. I have yet to meet a Welshman that didn't like lamb stew. You then might be able to gauge what type of foods this particular welshman likes. Hope that helps a little! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in the Kootenays Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 I've never done it but think it would have been a great idea. We've lost so many names and addresses over the years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted August 7, 2008 Share Posted August 7, 2008 Lisa, we hope lots of international students in our home and I had a guest registry at one point. I don't know why I didn't keep up on it, but I do know they loved signing it! I don't know if there's a difference between 20 year old college students and, say, 96 year old gentlemen from Wales (lol), but that's been our experience anyway. I actually made ours in MS Word. I made a space for their photos. Oh! That's why I discontinued -- it felt more weird to ask them to pose for a photo, and then still get around to uploading it, printing it, cutting it out and putting it in the book too. I need to *simplify*. Go for it, and enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa at Home Posted August 7, 2008 Author Share Posted August 7, 2008 Penmaenmawr Gwynedd, N. Wales UK LL34 6BB And I have no idea how to pronounce it, LOL! The man who brings the grass fed meats to my farmers market has lamb. That had been what I was thinking of using. And I experimented with leeks today, which I found in several Welsh recipes. I ran off some soup/stew recipes this morning. What does one serve along side a soup or stew? Are the Welsh big tea drinkers? I have tons of herbal tea in the house, but my guess would be that he would prefer something else, but I wouldn't know what. The nearsest World Market to me is almost 2 hours away. I'm just not going to have time to get down there. Do you really think he might like Vegemite? A store that is a bit closer to me does have a British section, so if you made other suggestions, I might be able to look for them. Thanks so much, by the way. I feel encouraged that I'm not going to make a fool of myself for trying to make a lamb stew. :001_smile: ~Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted August 8, 2008 Share Posted August 8, 2008 If you have a World Market around you, they will have some British items, including such staples as Veggiemite (ewwwwwwwwwwww, but that is just me). Go for Marmite if possible - Veggiemite is similar, but Australian. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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