With the holidays on the horizon, you may be entertaining overnight guests. That means that you need to prepare your guest room. Here are my hints about steps you can take to make your guests more comfortable:

• If possible, spend at least one night sleeping in your guest room. It's amazing what you'll notice about the room when you actually use it the way guests do.
• Make sure that there is a lamp that can be turned on and off from the bed. Your guests may want to read before they fall asleep.
• Make sure an alarm clock is available. Many people use their cell phones as alarms, but a clock is a nice touch, especially if it has an illuminated dial.
• Have an easily accessible outlet for recharging cell phones and other electronic devices. It might be best to have a power strip available so that many things can be recharged at the same time.
• Write your wifi code on a  card and leave it in the room.
• If there is a tv in your guest room, leave a channel listing beside the remote.
• If guests are staying for more than a night or if they will need to dress up, it would be kind to offer them some drawer space and some hangers.
• Before guests arrive, put some glasses and a carafe or bottles of water in your guest room. If someone is thirsty during the night, they won't need to wake the house to get a drink.
• You don't have to offer a pillow menu like some hotels, but it's nice to offer an extra pillow or two and an extra blanket.
• Take a look at the bathroom your guests will be losing. Make sure it is stocked with plenty of towels. It's a kindness to keep the following in the medicine cabinet: adhesive bandages, pain reliever, antacid, a spare toothbrush, and some toothpaste. If you have sample size toiletries. you can put those in the medicine cabinet as well.
• For extra credit, leave some info on local attractions, some recent magazines, info on public transport, maps, etc. You can even leave mints on the pillows.

The key to preparing your guest room is to remember the Golden Rule: treat your guests the way you want to be treated. Focus on their comfort and convenience and you can't go wrong.