قبل الزيارة، رتبت السرير وحطيت المخدة فوقه.

Something like:

ʔabl iz-ziyāra, rattabet is-srīr w ḥaṭṭēt il-makhadde foʔo.

A few notes:

• قبل can sound like ʔabl or qabl, depending on the speaker and region.
• و is usually pronounced as a short w- attached to the next word.
• Casual Arabic writing usually does not show short vowels, so exact pronunciation can vary a bit.

Because the verbs already show the subject.

• رتبت = I arranged / I tidied
• حطيت = I put

In Arabic, you often do not need to say أنا unless you want emphasis or contrast.

So:

• رتبت السرير already means I made/tidied the bed
• أنا رتبت السرير would mean I made/tidied the bed with extra emphasis on I

They are in the past tense.

Here they describe completed actions:

• رتبت = I arranged / I tidied
• حطيت = I put

So the sentence is talking about something the speaker did before the visit.

Because حطّ / حطيت is the normal everyday colloquial verb in Levantine for to put.

• حطيت = everyday spoken Levantine
• وضعت = much more formal / MSA-style

A native speaker in conversation would usually say حطيت.

Yes. المخدة means the pillow, and it is a very common Levantine word.

A useful comparison:

• مخدة / مخدّة = common Levantine pillow
• وسادة = more formal / MSA word for pillow

So this sentence mixes a very natural spoken Levantine word with generally standard-looking spelling.

Literally, فوقه means above it or over it, but in everyday usage it very often means on it / on top of it, depending on context.

Here:

• فوقه = on top of it
• so حطيت المخدة فوقه = I put the pillow on top of it

In this sentence, the natural meaning is that the pillow was placed on the bed.

It refers to السرير (the bed).

So:

• فوق = above / on top of
• -ه = it (masculine singular)

Together:

• فوقه = on top of it

Since السرير is masculine, the pronoun is -ه.

Because السرير is a masculine noun.

In Arabic, attached pronouns must match the noun they refer to:

• masculine singular: -ه
• feminine singular: -ها

So:

• السرير → فوقه
• if it were الطاولة (the table, feminine) → فوقها

Because they are being treated as specific, identifiable things.

• الزيارة = the visit
• السرير = the bed
• المخدة = the pillow

This is very natural in Arabic. Even when English might sometimes be looser, Arabic often uses definiteness for things that are known from context, especially household items and known events.

That is because of sun letters.

In pronunciation:

• الزيارة is pronounced more like iz-ziyāra
• السرير is pronounced more like is-srīr

The l of الـ assimilates to the first consonant of the word when that consonant is a sun letter.

But in:

• المخدة

the m is a moon letter, so the l stays:

• il-makhadde

So the spelling stays the same, but pronunciation changes.

Yes, it is natural and understandable.

Literally, رتبت السرير is closer to:

• I arranged the bed
• I tidied the bed

But in context, it works very well for I made the bed.

Arabic and English do not always use the exact same everyday expression, so a slightly different literal wording can still be the normal way to say the idea.

It is very common and fully natural, but many Levantine speakers also use تخت.

So:

• سرير = standard and widely understood
• تخت = also very common in everyday Levantine

Both are useful to know. In a sentence like this, السرير sounds completely fine.

No. It can be followed by different kinds of expressions.

In this sentence:

• قبل الزيارة = before the visit

That is قبل + noun.

But in Levantine, if you want before followed by a full clause, you often use:

• قبل ما...

For example:

• قبل ما يجوا = before they come
• قبل ما رحت = before I went

So قبل الزيارة is just one very common pattern.

No. In this sentence, a male speaker and a female speaker would both say:

قبل الزيارة، رتبت السرير وحطيت المخدة فوقه.

That is because in the first person singular past, the verb form is the same for both men and women.