Help with having people over

[Oligodoodle]

We relocated during lockdown and are slowly getting to know people. I’d love to invite some over, but I am not used to having people round and find the thought stressful.
It would be parents and their kids for a daytime or early eve gathering.
Any tips for a novice?

how well do you know the people you are thinking of inviting? If you are generally not used to entertaining, could you "practise" first on relatives so if you get flustered it won't matter?
What exactly is it you are worried about? conversation flow? food? activites for the kids? In general, as a first go, maybe suggest mid afternoon and just put out cookies, cake, veg sticks and dips. Get some nice tonics or interesting soft drinks for the adults, or syrups to make coffee more interesting and get some cheap craft activity boxes for the kids (I'm assuming they are young?) like a paint a plaster model set each or something like that. If you have a garden and its decent weather, get some garden toys or a sand / water table they can play with. If you invite them for 3pm, they'll stay til about 5 /6 max cos it will be time to do dinner / bed etc for the little ones so that's a manageable time.

Why do you want to invite people over rather than...play date at a park? Play date at a play centre? Meal out? Coffee out?