Let's be honest, we've all shoved some primary colored plastics under our couch before guests come over. And if you haven’t ever secretly wished you clean out all the toys from your kids room, you’re a genuine ANGEL.

Not sure about you, but here’s a snapshot of our living room situations right now: that beautiful mid-century modern couch that’s been saved up for/drooled over is currently doubling as a display shelf for an odd assortment of silicone Disney characters all crammed into a bright yellow school bus and an unsavory shape-sorter with three-day-old Goldfish all smushed up inside (on a side note: there’s always that one shape that never seems to fit anywhere, AMMIRIGHT?). All while an eerie stuffed animal stares you down from the black abyss underneath the couch (we’re looking at you, Tickle Me Elmo).

So what do we do right before guest come? We frantically stash all of our kids’ — how do we say — ~*not exactly instagram-worthy*~ toys into their bedroom, along with any other concealable pocket we find along the way. Then send up a quick prayer that no one will accidentally stumble into their room while looking for the bathroom. 

To this, we say NOPE. We love our kids, but since when does loving them mean sacrificing the one place in this world that is truly ours — our home?

So we’re asking more of the things we choose to bring into our homes. We want each piece to be meaningful and thoughtfully integrated, able to flow from one room to the next. A shared space, where our kids feel free to be themselves and where we actually want them to — because, let’s face it, our llama pillow pairs pretty nicely with your practically-an-heirloom-at-this-point mid-century modern couch.  

So, here’s to sliding into parenthood untainted by the “this is why we can’t have nice things” saga. To your kids having toys they love to play with, and you love to look at. And to never again stepping on the point-y edge of a plastic orange triangle in the middle of the night. 🙌