As much as I love loving, sweet, from-the-heart holiday greetings, there are those family members of mine I can always count on to send the funniest Christmas cards. Here, 15 cards that made me laugh out loud. No guarantees we have the s…
Modern city gal though I think myself, I have a total weakness for traditional Christmas cookie swaps. There's something so cool about seeing the Christmas cookies from around the world that come from sometimes generations-old recipes fr…
One of the little things I do over the holidays is swap out the grapefruit dish soap or lavender hand pump for something a little more festive. It's a simple way to make everything feel more holiday-ish the second we walk in the door. It…
I've always said that one of my favorite categories in our Holiday Gift Guide are gifts that give back. We managed to pare it down to 14 this year, but honestly we could have gone on forever. And while you have probably heard of some of …
I have never been a huge biscotti fan. It's often dry, a bit devoid of flavor, and to be honest, tastes stale to me. And then I found biscotti from Bella's Home-Baked Goods and behold, for the Italian dessert angels did shine upon us all…
It's no fun being that kid with food allergies who gets a chocolate Santa in your stocking, only to find your mom taking it away because there are no ingredients written on the foil. But it's probably worse being that mom. So we're happy…
As an avowed musical geek, I'm so thrilled about tonight's daring production of the The Sound of Music Live on NBC. Yes, live. I've got the inner track and the word is that Carrie Underwood is simply brilliant as Maria, if you can forgiv…
After the total madness of Black Friday , Small Business Saturday , and Cyber Monday (phew) one of the things we love best is #GivingTuesda y. The point being that after taking advantage of so many great shopping deals for yourself and y…
A coloring book can make a fantastic holiday gift for kids : It doesn't require batteries, it's portable for the trip home, and you can start using it right away. Now here's a new one that's fantastic for another reason besides the fact …
There's something about Thanksgiving that brings out the sentimental side of our ordinarily feisty family . In part it's the memory of family who's no longer with us, in part it's seeing the next generation start to fill their seats--if …
I know I'm not the only parent who wonders how do you explain Thanksgiving to kids, beyond, "well, we eat turkey and stuffing and Uncle Fred always drinks too much of his special juice." (That's hyperbolic by the way; I don't have an Unc…
The Of a Kind website is fast becoming one of my go-to sites for finding great indie design. And as a Brooklyn mama myself, I always save a special little corner of my heart for other Brooklyn artisans. Even if this one comes by way of W…
I am a real, live, blooming flower kind of girl. I don't mind the short-lived nature of them, just to have something fragrant and alive around the house if only temporarily. But when the weather gets cold and the imported tulips in our l…
Don't miss a big discount and a special offer just for our readers We're always sad when one of our favorite indie shops close, but it's nice to wish the owners well as they are off on other pursuits. It's also nice when we get to pass o…
I had a friend who always said "it's not a dinner party unless there are leftovers" and Thanksgiving is probably the most perfect example of this. So I think this is the most genius idea to get your leftovers home. Unless you want six po…
Don't miss an exclusive discount for our readers ! I once feebly resisted my children's love for tutus, until I realized that they could be way more than the beginnings of a fairy princess outfit. Tutus are now on trend as outerwear, as …
Looking around Etsy for more cool Hanukkah gifts , I was so happy to discover an Etsy shop doing the most beautiful work with embroidery hoop art . (And you know how we like the embroidery hoop art.) Whatever you celebrate, there's proba…
This year, zomg THANKSGIVUKKAH. I can't believe I have to get ready for Thanksgiving and Hanukkah all at once, and I'm sure I'm not alone. So we're kicking off the season with our mini guide of some of the best Hanukkah gifts for kids . …
One of the great questions, since the first Harry Potter book (or at least the launch of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando ), is how to make Butterbeer. And now we have the Butterbeer recipe. The Starbucks Secret M…
Hostess gift season is upon us big time, and this has always been one of my favorite kinds of gifts to track down. Just look at our Hostess Gifts Pinterest board which is already filling up with fun new ideas ; something about making sur…
As you might already know, we're huge Etsy fans around here. Huge! So how thrilling to be invited as one of their new Etsy Page tastemakers along with some of our very own favorite design and lifestyle bloggers. Click over to the Cool Mo…
I have been in love with the indie artist-designed Tattly tattoos since we first featured them two years ago. There's hardly a Cool Mom Picks writer who isn't. And while they add so many fun designs so frequently (there's a unicorn now!)…
My obsession with indie designer bag and accessory label Hayden-Harnett is getting--well, a little obsessive. And these new clutches are an amazing gift for the stylish women on your list, especially at a sale price this week only. Throu…
This year, we're going to have quite a few kids at the Thanksgiving table and so my oldest daughter came up with what I think is a great idea: A Thanksgiving holiday cookie contest. 1. Get Cookie Cuttters My daughter and her sister were …
