Eating Pretty

Is it just us or is Thanksgiving coming WAY too early this year? Perhaps all the excitement of the last month or so made it go by so fast. The election was a little over a week ago, Halloween seems like it was yesterday and the weather has been too all over the map for us to settle into the season of giving thanks. Plus, there was that weird stint with the scary clowns. But let’s get in the spirit, shall we?

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Some of us will be thankful for the beautiful meal we can lay out in front of our families—and those families will be just as thankful for the meal that we’ve lovingly prepared for them all day. Others will be thankful for the ability to cater a holiday meal to satisfy a party of twelve, including the preferences of sweet potato casserole AND mashed potatoes with giblet gravy. Still others will greet all guests arriving for Friendsgiving and whisk away to the kitchen favorite pumpkin pies, bowls of salad and plates of balsamic-glazed Brussels sprouts. But whether your meal is a party of two or a potluck, your table should be both dressed up for the occasion and make guests feel at home.

Here are MDG’s favorite dinner table accessories. 

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Toy Room Story

The playroom—a place where imagined adventures are boundless and design possibilities are endless. This is a room that is stuffed to the brim with toys, books and games, with pillows, forts and bean bag chairs. You hear laughter, conversations with imaginary friends and, let’s be real, some fighting. Kids read their favorite books here, build castles out of blocks and play house with increasingly realistic baby dolls. They have their escape from the rest of the house, a place where there’s No Grown Ups Allowed.

We at MDG believe there is a handful of non-negotiable essentials for the perfect playroom. Thus, our checklist.

1)      A good table. The kiddies need room to color or spread out a puzzle. Some tables have adjustable legs depending on if it will seat a wee tot or a teen.

2)      Storage. All these tools for the imagination have to go somewhere.

3)      A hiding spot. A tent, a teepee or just plenty of blankets to make a fort of their own.

4)      Bright paint or kooky wallpaper. A color scheme you want to try but is maybe too wild for the rest of the house, or wallpaper with scenes from a favorite book.

5)      A comfy place to sit. Floor pillows or bean bags are the perfect place to spend a chilly afternoon with a new favorite book.

Contact Marlena here for help with a playroom in your own home.

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