How do you keep the kitchen table from getting cluttered and a drop all place?

Any suggestions to help reduce the clutter on the kitchen table so it is clear to eat at and look nice too?How do you keep the kitchen table from getting cluttered and a drop all place?
GOOD GOD.....YOU HAVE SEEN MY TABLE !!!!!!!

I don't have an answer for you,as I have the same problem too.Pluse I built a kitchen Island and it's a catch all too. I keep telling my wife that I'm takeing the table and the island out to my shop where it can be kept clear of junk. Good luck and I'm watching for answers too.How do you keep the kitchen table from getting cluttered and a drop all place?
Make a list of the sorts of things that wind up there, such as mail, keys, toys, etc. Categorize these things, and then find a fixed, sensible spot for those things to be sorted and kept. A little cubby for unopened mail, another for bills to be paid, a little basket for keys -- you get the idea.
My wife...(I call her miss Stacky), she is the queen of putting things on the table, but then complains about a cluttered house. She will have 2-3 piles of stuff and thinks that this is acceptable. We have key hooks just inside the door, a closet for bags, purses, coats, and a desk for mail and such. Nothing like sitting down to eat only to have to move everything and then clean what was already clean. good luck.
You need to take a look at what is getting dropped there. Is it junk mail, kids school papers, bills? I keep my mail in my hand when I walk in the door and head straight for the trash. I open everything there. Junk gets tossed and I toss the envelopes and inserts that are in with the bills. Then I take the bills and put them in the basket on my desk. I also have another basket for things that need filed. I have my daughter give me her school papers on fridays and we go through them by the trash too. I have a 3 ring binder on my fridge with 5 page protectors (held with 2 strong magnetic clips that hold it flush and open). I keep takeout menus, school calendar/lunch menu, and good school papers in there. I have hooks right inside the door for keys. You really have to train yourself to put the stuff away right away. Usually it takes about 28 days for a person to develop a new habit. Try leaving post it notes for yourseld (and the rest of the family) to put stuff away and not on the table.
keep it set for dinner with a center piece, folded linen napkins, the works. Then whoever clutters it up, gets to clean up after dinner and set the table the next day
Send the wife back to Taiwan? I've ben threatening for 25 years now. I think you actually have to send her back!