My youngest house guest plays dress up Diva with a wig.

Angela Verges | Contributor

My nieces were coming for an overnight visit. The request was simple: “Can we spent the night with our cousins?”

It isn’t often that the girls stay overnight, but when they do it is sure to be an adventure. The girls are 6 and 12 years old and find a visit to our home entertaining. I haven’t decided yet if that is a good thing.

Not long after their mom (my BFF and sister-in-law) left, my boys took out the Nerf guns and handed one to each of the girls. Our living room became a battlefield. Styrofoam darts littered the floor, sofa and table.

Finally at 11:30 p.m., I fell into bed, deviating from my routine of early to bed, early to rise. The girls came into my darkened bedroom and asked, “Can we take our shower now?” My face contorted and my arm hung over the bed as I thought, do they really need a shower? I told them where the towels were, and the shower was a success without my help.

Early Saturday morning, I tiptoed through my house so I wouldn’t disturb the sleeping guests. I made it though the entire house and back to my bedroom. A few moments later, I heard a knock at my door. It was my 6- year-old niece, and it was also only 7:30 a.m.

I was awake, but it was my alone time. I invited her into the room as I worked out to an exercise video. I wasn’t ready for the game of 20 questions that we were going to play. “Why are you drinking that pop? My dad drinks water when he exercises. Why are the other kids still sleep?” Hhhhhmmmm. So much for quiet time.

Homework time.

Angela Verges | Contributor

I remembered that my niece had homework to complete. I ran for the bag containing the picture books and worksheets. That kept her busy a short time while I did something else. However, it wasn’t long until she said she was hungry. This experience reminded me of the books "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie" and "If You Give A Pig A Pancake." No matter want you give them, they want something else.

I found an article online that listed 10 ways to handle houseguests. A few of the tips are listed below:
• Don’t worry about sticking to a routine - be flexible enough to go with the flow.
• Expect less/expect interrupted sleep - the kids may all have new sleeping arrangements, sleeping in sleeping bags, on air mattresses or somewhere other than their own bedroom.
• Don’t stress about the condition of the house - you don’t have to call in the crew from Extreme Home Makeover. Do a little basic cleaning, and don’t worry about scuff marks on the walls or that touch up painting that you didn’t have a chance to do.

My house guests were only with me over night, so it was fun, and they didn’t have a chance to wear out their welcome. If you plan to have guests for a longer period of time, you may want to view the full article for additional tips (www.uptake.com/blog/family_vacations/ten-ways-to-handle-houseguests_4879.html).

Angela Verges is a writer and mother of two, sometimes four if you count the occasional house guests. She can be reached at awritersdream41@yahoo.com.