How to be a Good Host and Guest this Holiday Season with Wente (and a Linkup)

About a month ago I hosted a birthday dinner for my fiancé and
my birthdays.  We have birthdays within
12 days of each other so I thought it would be fun to do a joint birthday with
our families together.  We did this last
year, and decided to do it again.  This
year did not go as smoothly as last year did. 
So for today’s post I wanted to give a few pointers on how to be a good
host and how to be a good guest.  I think
in order for any dinner party to be fun, it’s a two way street.  Since the holidays are here I teamed up with Wente Vineyards to talk about ways to be a good host and a good guest so that everyone can have a relaxing holiday season.  Too often people get high anxiety over the holiday season and they end up hating it and dreading it every year.  The holiday season is supposed to be fun and filled with great memories.  So, let’s talk about a few ways that everyone can enjoy their time!  Before I get into the below make sure to read all the way to the end because there’s a great coupon code for the wine pictured above!

Prepare ahead of time. 


If you’re making something that will take some time, make it ahead of time and freeze it so that you aren’t rushing the day of.  I made something that I’ve made before but I rushed it and it didn’t come out!  Such a bummer!

Organize yourself.


Make sure to organize the way you’re cooking.  Make sure that you are using every single second to your advantage. 

Don’t make something you’ve never made that’s difficult.

I made a new dish and I thought it would be easy and perfect.  Well, it ended up not coming out right because it didn’t cook all the way through!  I was super bummed, but what can you do?

If you need help ask for it.

I have this really bad habit of not asking for help or when someone does ask me if I need help I say no because I want to be able to do it all.  Well, I should start asking for help more often.  I don’t mean have your guests doing all the work for you, I mean, if you need help bringing food to the table, just ask.

Make sure to enjoy your time with your guests.

This is why you invited them over to begin with right?

If making food is too stressful, order food or get it
catered.

I think for the next dinner, I might actually buy prepared food.  This last party was too much for me, and since I’m not a good cook to begin with, it was very difficult for me to keep it all together.  Plus, I highly doubt anyone would’ve objected to eating Italian or even pizza!

Make sure you have alcohol (preferably wine) for anyone 21+.

If your crowd is 21+ make sure you have alcohol.  Unless of course you make it BYOB, but usually having wine and maybe a few other types of alcohol and juices/sodas.  If you’re bringing wine, make sure to bring Wente Vineyards Wine.  The red that I bought for this post was really good and I actually did use it for a dinner party I had on Saturday night. 

Say Thank you.

Always, always, always, thank your guests for coming.  This makes them feel welcome in your home and it ends the night perfectly.  

Ask to bring something.

The host might say that they don’t want you to bring anything and even though they invited you, it’s always nice to ask.

If the host says no to bringing something, bring a bottle of wine.

Always bring wine because no one can ever have enough wine.  Even if they don’t open it for dinner, they will greatly appreciate it.

Ask if the host needs any help. 

They might respond with no, but at least it is nice of you as a guest to ask to help the host know that you are there if they need you.  As a host I usually tell people I’m ok, but it’s always nice for people to ask.

If you’re going to drink don’t get sloppy and always drink
responsibly.

I honestly don’t mind if you get sloppy at a huge get together where it’s almost like a flashback to a frat party.  However, if you’re having a sit down dinner it’s not a good idea to get sloppy. 

Help with cleanup, or at least offer.

There’s usually a lot to clean up and even though a lot of times when people ask me if they can help I say no, it’s always nice of the guest to offer.  When I have my parents and the fiance’s parents over, the mom’s usually just help with cleanup without even asking me.  Last year we had an assembly line going in the kitchen haha!

Say Thank you.

Just like being a good host, being a good guest means saying Thank you for having us/me.  It’s just common courtesy.