I love to walk into a shop and see their display tables all loaded down with decorations and place settings and tall centerpieces, there’s something about the layered look of abundance that is so appealing, especially in the cold winter months.  And then, without fail, my thoughts lead to “yeah, but in real life none of us can have that look sitting around if we ever need to actually use said table”.   And then I mourn the loss of my non existent layered, over the top pre-set table.

We have one main eating surface in this house and it’s in the breakfast room.  If we used the front room as a dining room, I could get away with setting a stunning drool worthy table and I assure you, I would totally be all over that.  But, instead our dining room is actually a sitting room with a sofa so our one eating table is right there in the breakfast area.  So here in this house full of motley boys with projects and hunger pangs every 90 minutes I’ve learned that the secret to my sanity is clear surfaces.

What’s a fully decorated Christmas table loving girl like me to do?

I mean, I’ve already bragged about my secondary table.  It’s a mere 10 feet away from our main table and it’s where the homework and legos land.  That doesn’t solve my desire for a table that screams “Hey you, it’s Christmastime!”.

So here’s my other secret: I have a tertiary table.  Yep.  I just said tertiary.  You know like Primary {my big table}, Secondary {the homework table} and now, thirdly, Tertiary–my library table tucked in there behind the Primary table.

He’s a very hard worker because he holds all the pretty table decorations when we need to clear off the table and use it for something.

The green plant is low enough to stay on the table all the time, but if we are all sitting down to eat I’ll move the bust and anything else in my way to the tertiary table.  Sometimes we move the poinsettias {or whatever it is that is there because I move things around the house so often} sometimes we just scoot them in front of the empty 6th chair since there’s only 5 in our family.  Sometimes the bust just stays over on the extra table but if I’m feeling like I want a bunch of stuff to festivate, festify, festivize the table I’ll pack it in.  And let’s face it, it never looks the same two days in a row.

My tertiary table has been a great assistant during every season helping hold extra serving dishes, lots of candles, and plants but, it’s especially helpful during the winter months.

What about you, do you have a Christmas decorating sanity keeping secret?  Don’t forget to link up your holiday table today with Layla at The Lettered Cottage…..and…..

**Oh Holy Night Sign Giveaway**

 Did you enter to win your own Oh Holy Night sign {or your choice of Christmas sign} from Red Letter Words?

I’m offering two more ways to win

1.Like the Nesting Place facebook page and then go back to the GIVEAWAY post and leave an extra comment letting me know we are fb buds.

2. Tweet on twitter, I’ll give you a phrase and a shortened link if you are tired of thinking already::

Oh Holy Night Art giveaway from @redletterart & @thenester https://bit.ly/siWHcv  you know you want one.

Once you tweet come back and leave a comment on the giveaway post NOT this post

DO NOT LEAVE A COMMENT ON THIS POST TO WIN THE PRINT:: TO ENTER CLICK HERE, YIPPIE!