the first time we hosted, the chaos...

hosted our first couple at ours in wellington back in march and lord the prep was a disaster. i changed the sheets THREE times because i kept finding cat hair, hubby spilled the wine on the rug 20 mins before they arrived, i forgot to put the diffuser on and the whole house smelled like the curry we'd had the night before... by the time they rang the bell i was sweating through my dress and ready to cry. they were lovely, the night was great, but i hadnt enjoyed any of the lead up. how did your first host night go and what would you tell newbies about prep...