by Christina Refford | Kid Style
The nights have become downright frosty which means I’m scrambling to see if any of the kids’ pajamas from last winter still fit them; given that they seem to grow a foot a year, it’s likely that they’ll need new threads. Some of the nicest new...
by Christina Refford | Entertainment + Media
My kids don’t need another reason to zone out in front of the TV which is why the energetic new DVD from Dan Zanes, great god of the kids’ indie rock movement, is okay by me. Part live show, part music video The Fine Friends Are Here! practically demands...
by Christina Refford | Baby
If only lil’grams had existed back when my oldest was born, we would’ve been able to channel our new-parent enthusiasm in a far more stylish, manageable and less-annoying manner than the hundreds of photos we emailed, webcasts we scheduled, and blog we...
by Christina Refford | Entertainment + Media
It’s not easy to get into the mind of a kid — just watch me trying to pry “how was your day” from my eight-year-old—but LA singer-songwriter and father of four Peter Himmelman seems to have this knack on his new kids’ music CD, My...
by Christina Refford | Entertainment + Media
Any band that uses solar power to make their CD then encourages people to copy it for their friends makes me feel all warm and fuzzy before I’ve even heard a note. Thankfully, The Harmonica Pocket’s new kids’ music CD, Ladybug One, is filled with...
by Christina Refford | Books for Kids
CD audiobooks, or what I still call “books on tape,” are my secret weapon against boredom in the car. Our newest gem is Tell Me a Story 3: Women of Wonder which follows in the footsteps of its much loved predecessors, Tell Me a Story and Tell Me a Story 2:...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
Give us a few cold rainy days and my kids will be climbing the walls and snarling at all my attempts to cheer them up. So I’m stashing away the downloadable Monster Mania ebook from Make and Takes to help me out with a few easy craft ideas when crayons just...
by Christina Refford | Entertainment + Media
I remember when the bands coming out of Seattle’s indie music scene set the bar for what was cool, so it shouldn’t surprise me that the most rockin’ new kids’ band, The Not-Its!, call that region home. Their debut CD, We Are The Not-Its!, makes...
by Christina Refford | Entertainment + Media
My kids expected another silly cartoon as we settled in to watch Disneynature: EARTH on DVD, but their quiet focus told me that, even without talking zebras, the night’s selection had been a hit. We had skipped EARTH when it first appeared in the movie theaters...
by Christina Refford | Food + Recipes
When I first heard of the MojaMix Custom-Mixed Cereal, I thought you’d have to be a pretty picky eater to need that. And then I remembered that I custom-order three different kinds of coffee beans to hand mix at home for my perfect roast. Who am I to judge? In...