When the late-afternoon crankies hit all three of my kids, my quick-thinking remedy has always been to put on some fun, danceable music to give us just enough of a mood boost to make it to dinnertime. And with a new kid-friendly disco CD…
We're wishing the happiest of Mother's Days to all the cool moms out there, the cool grandmas, stepmoms, mother-in-laws and just-like-moms. May your day be filled with lots of love, bear hugs, crayon-scribbled cards, and maybe some reall…
If you notice your beloved sneaking out of the house to run an "errand" today, or if you are still fretting over a gift for a special mama in your life, avoid a trip to the crowded card store or florist and check out two sweet prints tha…
With Teacher Appreciation Week, it's time to celebrate some of our favorite people in the world. Even this homeschooling mama has loads of teachers, coaches and instructors in my kids' lives, making this a week I care a lot about too. An…
Though they slept through most of the Royal Wedding live coverage, my girls were riveted by the images they watched in the many recaps. And while I was also transfixed by the royal pageantry of it all, I also was quick to talk about some…
Do you have any advice for Mother's Day gifts for divorced mothers? My partner has two young children with his ex-wife. . .and this is their first Mother's Day being really split up. She's a wonderful woman and a wonderful mother. But, s…
I am hoping you can help me with my latest shopping challenge - my 11 year old daughter! She is graduating from 5th grade and needs a dress. She hates pink, ruffles, and anything "too girly" AND shopping for an 11 year old girl is awful!…
My son will pretty much live with a baseball cap attached to his head for the next few sunny months, since getting sunscreen applied to his mane of light-blonde hair is a messy disaster. But, there are many times when his sports-logo'd b…
Sometime after the thrill of the Easter egg hunt, but before dinner is ready for the table, my kids hit a sort of jittery, must-do-something phase. This is when I had best have a few tricks up my sleeve before they decide to see how far …
My kids love Easter, but the hours leading up to festivities can get a little hairy with me trying to get ready for the holiday and them trying to "help". There just isn't enough of me to keep three kids happily occupied while I make sur…
If you've been reading Cool Mom Picks for a while, you know that we are always looking for sustainably-made, eco-friendly products from conscientious companies, big and small. So for this Friday's Earth Day , instead of giving you more g…
My son, like so many kids, has a thing for robots, but the first few realistic robot toys he received were greeted with suspicion and trepidation: Why are those eyes blinking? and--- ack!---will it talk at night when I'm in bed?!? So, bo…
M y daughter is turning three soon, and I want to put together a dress up box for her. Any ideas for a great Etsy costume shop? She wants an astronaut costume but I need it to be something she can get on and off herself. Any other ideas?…
This is National Volunteer Week , a time to think about all those ways you can use your spare time to help others through good deeds and hard work--unless you are like me, and that first sentence makes you spit out apologies about not ha…
If you could see the ground-in crayon and magic marker stains all over the back seats of our minivan, you'd understand why I'm so fond of a cool portable drawing tablet that uses nothing more than water, and generates no mess at all. As …
Ever since my daughter declared Easter was her favorite holiday, I've paid a little extra attention to the gifts I put in her Easter basket . After all, I'm sure the Easter Bunny thinks she's pretty great. While Easter is still a few wee…
It's a given in most of my kids' story books: Other than the demise of a wicked witch or two, the main characters are going to live until the end of the story. But, I just discovered a timeless, beautiful tale about life--and, yes, its e…
I am used to seeing my kids pushing buttons, laughing delightedly as they zoom around another wii game, or play with their father's tablet. But, let me tell you, I wasn't prepared to see them having the same reaction to a simple three-co…
Now I don't have to wonder what I'm using to turn my eggs all shades of the rainbow, thanks to a super-easy-to-use natural Easter egg dying kit whose ingredients are just as natural as the eggs. For years, I have dyed my Easter eggs in w…
Ahhh, the Happy Meal. Regardless of whether or not you ever step foot in a McDonald's, you probably know exactly what you might find if you open up that brightly colored container: A little hamburger or set of nuggets, pouch of fries--an…
I, along with probably many of you, had never heard of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, though it it is the number one genetic killer of children--1 in 40 people unknowingly carry the SMA gene. When I read more about SMA1, the most severe form o…
I consider myself fairly tuned in to my kids' emotional health but I must confess, I don't really know what to say to an angry six-year-old in the heat of the moment other than Stop hitting that ! Which is why I'm glad some other moms ha…
If you know a child on the autistic spectrum, you know how special they are and maybe even some of their personal day-to-day struggles. It seems fitting that on World Autism Awareness Day , I let you know of this soon-to-be-released CD f…
I rarely buy clothes for my oldest daughter online because she is so very picky about what she lets touch her skin. Tight cuffs, buttons, care labels, embroidered designs, zippers...the list on "no's" goes on and on and on. But last year…
