Chef and mother Melia Marden has the kind of gentle demeanor that makes you feel instantly calm in her presence. On the day of our shoot, Melia, who is the executive chef of The Smile, was 9 months pregnant with her second baby (daughter Daphne Zenith arrived in September), while gracefully chasing after her adorable, energetic toddler son, Alfred Kodak. The colorful home she’s created with her husband, DJ and artist Frank Sisti Jr., feels equal parts cool adult oasis and kid heaven. The inviting space is filled with found treasures, art, and antiques which give the newly remodeled townhouse a playful feel. The heart of the home, not surprisingly, is the light-filled kitchen complete with checkered floors and pink marble. Despite their busy schedules, the couple has made alone-time together a major priority by sharing home-cooked meals almost every evening. When Melia first welcomed her baby boy into the world two years ago, she explained to us that the experience of transforming from an individual into a mother turned her life upside down, and she “retreated into the world of just Frankie, Alfred, and me for a while and felt like I was the only person in the world who had ever had a baby before.” On the eve of adding a new member to the family, and with two plus years of mothering under her belt, she describes her current life as a mother in the most beautiful, honest terms: “The best part about being a mom is experiencing everything as new again through my son. Mundane day-to-day moments with Alfred can make me so unreasonably happy.”