Whenever I post snaps near my coffee table on Instagram I get asked questions about how we keep the girls from breaking things on it, how we style it with kids running around, and if we’re happy having a rectangular table (corners!) with little running around, etc. Very good questions so I thought I’d tackle those today!
I’ve also been asked about why we even have a coffee table because surely it would be easier not to have one at all? While I totally get the concern and do think some families are better off without one in the baby/toddler years, we love ours and it’s not going anywhere. We’re lucky enough to have a big playroom so our living room doesn’t have to house toys. Our home surely won’t be featured in a parenting magazine, but we’ve found a happy balance between “kid-friendly” and “adults live here”. We want our babies to feel safe and free to roam around their home, but we also want to enjoy our space!
I keep the “things” on my coffee table to a minimum these days but do still try to make it pretty! But you best believe when the girls are older we’ll be covering every square inch of this table because I do adore a full coffee table look!
What’s on our coffee table:
- SOMETHING FOR THEM – Right now that’s board books. In the fall I fill a bowl with little pumpkins, nothing breakable usually made of foam. A cute way to decorate that gives them something to do with their little hands. And somewhere to direct them if they want to touch or play. You could even fill a similar basket with wooden blocks or another neutral toy! They know that’s theirs to play with.
- FAMILY PHOTOS – Right now I have a wedding photo album on display. It’s fun to look through with them to tell our story. We put out an artifact uprising book I made, not a professional photo album! Keep those far away from baby hands! 😉
- A LARGE TRAY – Helps to corral all of the tiny things like remote controls and coasters. This is also a fun way to add texture without taking up to much space!
- THINGS TO BE GENTLE WITH – There are a couple of things on our coffee table that the girls are learning to “be gentle” with. You do you but I think it’s a good way to teach them to care for nice things. There’s nothing too fragile or precious on the table that we’d be heartbroken to lose and the girls are getting really good at enjoying them without breaking them. Definitely not perfect but we’re learning!
This coffee table is wonderful because it also serves as a jungle gym (see bars underneath) and is pretty indestructible! I’ve definitely bumped my legs on the corners more than the girls have but if you’re worried about corners, opt for a round table or an ottoman with a tray you could easily move!
Oh, and it’s HUGE which is nice because I can leave lots of open space on the ends for playing legos, etc and keep everything else in the center. We have two toy baskets downstairs in a cabinet that I rotate with small toys to help entertain the girls if I need to tackle something downstairs. Other than that, all toys are upstairs in the playroom which is usually a hot mess!
In true McKenzie fashion, most of the things on our table are no longer linkable or they’re antiques, but here are some faves in the kid-friendly(ish) coffee table department:
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”4683823″]
