Everyone knows the feeling of not wanting a trip or vacation to end. But sadly, your life at home will always be waiting for you to return and snap back into reality. However, this snap doesn’t have to be jarring. With the right preparation, you can return to a peaceful home that’s ready to ease you back into your daily life.

To help you see how this can be done, here are three ways you can welcome yourself back home after you’ve been traveling.

Keep Things Safe

There’s nothing worse than being on a trip and getting alerted that something’s happened at your home. Along with this, no one wants to come home after a great trip only to find that they’ve been the victim of theft or property damage.

To keep this from being the way you’re welcomed home, Brittany Robinson, a contributor to Roadtrippers.com, recommends that you secure your home well before you leave on your trip. This can be done by putting your lights on timers, locking all of your doors and windows, not posting about your trip on social media, or installing a security system to keep an eye on things while you’re gone. While some of these things might seem excessive to you, if you travel a lot or are worried about the safety of your neighborhood, it could be well worth it for you to take these additional safety measures.

Ask A Friend For Help

Aside from keeping any unwanted visitors outside of your home and away from your property, you may want to have a friend or family member pop in from time to time to keep things going smoothly for your return home.

According to HGTV, some of the tasks you can ask a friend or family member to take care of for you while you’re goin could include watering your plants, checking on your pets, bringing in your mail, flushing your toilets, and adjusting your thermostat. By having these things done regularly and in preparation for your return, you’ll ensure that everything is just how you want it once you get back.

Clean Everything Up

Before you leave home for your trip, one of the best things you can do for yourself when you return is to clean up your house. The last thing you’ll want to do after you travel home is have to clean up, so save yourself the trouble by taking care of this before you leave.

According to Taylor Martin, a contributor to CNET.com, you should do things like taking out the trash, cleaning out your kitchen and bathrooms, and replacing your sheets before you head out of town. By doing this, you’ll ensure that you don’t come home to any weird smells or messes as well as having a fresh bed to fall into at the end of the day.

If you want to come home to a welcoming house after a long trip, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you prepare your home for your future arrival.