old.sparkles

Congrats on the newborn

Details?

GreenMan72

Thanks . A little boy, well actually a big fella - weighed in at 4.4 kgs (commend my wife for doing so well). He feeds really well and has a good set of lungs.

Looks like a mini Churchill though, although most babies do somewhat .

I actually find walking him around the block (in pram of course) extremely relaxing and I actually get some thinking done...

old.sparkles

Wow - big boy

Congrats to you all - and happy birthday to the little (green) man

Bermudashorts

No I would not expect guests staying for a short period of time to chip in, they are guests and I would show hospitality. I would be surprised if my guests didn't buy something, for example some wine, but i wouldnt ask them to.

I would only start thinking of a kitty or something for extended guests, say over a month, having said that, I would avoid having guests for that long anyway.

paulry

Firstly, congrats on the arrival of your son, your lives will never be the same again

I'd say that chipping in is an individual thing and depends on your circumstances, your relationships with the visitors, and whether or not they wine, dine and live like kings and queens. Not everyone can afford to support others for extended periods while they holiday so maybe this is another check list item for the first-day pep talk. The pep talk could even be outlined in an email/letter/telephone call before the visitors arrive/when they say they are coming/when they first ask if they can stay with you. That way there will be no surprises. Most people will respect it.

Personalities - unfortunately, there's not much you can do about that but grin and bear it.

cresta57

Congratulations on your new arrival
We're happy to entertain & feed guests for a couple of weeks. Most have said they don't expect us to do so for free. It's down to common sense I guess. We do, as I said earlier, have a set of house rules. Necessary because we rely 100% on tank water and have a bio treatment plant for sewage disposal. Simple rules like: If you haven't eaten it first it doesn't go down the toilet.

pome bstrd

We do quite well i suppose ,, better than most .its more the moral question for me if they offer i tell them to put there money away.... but if theres not even an offer .... come on .....we would go shopping and i would say "is there anything in particular youd like?answer no. put tea on the table and noses were turned up! once the pantry and fridge and freezer were full , the day after they would buy there own pot noodle.life goes on . you cant spend every waking moment with visitors so one night we peel out to my mates place for a quiet one. we get back about 10 to be met with were starvin where have you been . they to were told help yourself???? or maybe its me

GreenMan72

Thanks for the responses . Often in these sort of grey situations, getting varied feedback helps me know more or less what is ballpark. Often I have found my gut feel a good indicator as well.

While we haven't had an offers for grocery $, stays are not normally more than around 10-12 days and we have been getting some help the last few days regarding household chores which, believe me, does help a lot in these early newborn days.

We have had both good guests and bad guests over the years. Top prize in the latter category included a Spanish couple staying years ago when we were in SW London. They complained about the English food, brought their own food with them, and were total wine snobs - my attempts at serving them white wine was met with total disgust and horror as it was not at the 'correct' temperature. They also expected to be ferried about constantly. Needless to say, no more Xmas cards were sent to them .

Generally speaking most of our guests (including some in laws) are good company.

Jacqui

My mum stayed for about 3 months, but that was divided between mine and my sister's place. I didn't ask for money for groceries, she's my mum after all, that would be mean. Other relatives and friends have stayed from a few days to a few weeks. I never ask for grocery money but most offer and get offended when I say no, because they actually feel awkward about taking advantage of my hospitality. I also use a fair bit of petrol running them around tourist attractions and doing the airport runs. The best compromise I've found is to instead ask them to pay for my entry tickets to tourist attractions and maybe treat me to lunch or dinner when we go out. That way no money actually changes hands, they feel happy because they've contributed in some way, and I'm relieved I don't have to pay to get into Perth Zoo for the tenth time!

Alfresco

Three weeks.