An app that makes living in NYC even cooler, if that’s possible

by Betsy | Cool Tech

Ironically, in a city that seems to have more of everything, any NYC parent or visiting tourist will tell your horror stories of being unable to find a changing table or a way to get from the uptown subway platform to the crosstown one without dragging a sleeping...

Write appointments inside the lines, and then color outside of them

by Betsy | Living

Like a field covered in a fresh blanket of snow or the top of a just-opened jar of peanut butter, there is something so exciting to me about having a fresh beginning. So I am giddy every January when I get to crack out a new calendar, all unmarked and clean, just...

I love my calendar girls

by Cool Mom Team | Art + Decor

I’m having the best time looking at all the beautiful new 2010 calendars that are out on Etsy. Earlier this week it was the Sure as Blue calendars  and today it’s the imaginative one from artist Stephanie Fizer. Her Kokeshi Darling 2010 calendar...

Mominatrix’s Guide to Sex gives new meaning to excellent bedside reading

by Cool Mom Team | Books for Adults

Most of you don’t know, but my partner at Cool Mom Picks, Kristen Chase (a.k.a. the hardest working mom in blogdom), has all sorts of alter egos. When she’s not finding fabulosity for you here, wrangling three kids, and writing articles all over the place,...

Starting the new year off with a little desk beautification

by Cool Mom Team | Art + Decor

Ooh, what a nifty little 2010 desk calendar we found on sale from the Sure As Blue Etsy shop. Each beautifully designed little page is actually a postcard that sits on an open jewel case.  Or if you’ve got a bulletin board or magnetic board above your desk,...

Never too little to say thank you

by Cool Mom Team | Cards + Stationery

Santa got some help at our house this year thanks to a bunch of super generous friends and family. So after my kids enjoy a few days in a toy-filled trance, they’ll be responsible for sending out thank-you cards. With the awesome color yourself holiday thank you...

iPlay’n Learn – They should’ve named it iDistract’n Calm

by Mir | Cool Tech

A few weeks ago I had some friends over to the house, and one of them brought her three-year-old, who immediately commenced leaping around on the furniture like a chimp on crack. Given that my children are past that phase (or can be reigned in with a simple, Knock it...

X is for that cool coffee table in your playroom

by Cool Mom Team | Art + Decor

Oh how I love the new Xylophone Music Table from the quirky, nostalgia-tastic furniture makers at Jellio. This 40-inch long coffee table inspired by that ubiquitous toy xylophone of my misspent youth would look so fantastic in a colorful kid’s playroom, or even...

Getting a head start on organization

by Kristen Chase | Cards + Stationery

This is the first of Cool Mom Picks’ four-part series on organization, sponsored by the most delightful momAgenda, makers of smart products like the the myAgenda Desktop planner, which happens to be perfect for busy people–not just moms!We’re finally...

Trusting your teen? There’s an app for that!

by Mir | Cool Tech

It seems impossible to me that I’ll one day have a teen or two whom I’ll allow to roam the world somewhat freely, but the truth is that teenagerhood will be entering my house very, very soon. Hold me.Vanessa Van Petten has been helping parents communicate...

The perfect little gift for the tween who has everything. (And don’t they all?)

by Stephanie Slate | Cool Tech

Got a tween girl on your list this year? I don’t, I confess. But if I did, I totally know what I’d get her. (See, isn’t that always the way? Now if only I could trade this great tween gift idea with someone who knows the perfect thing for a...

Kirtsy Takes a Bow – and it’s well, well earned.

by Liz Gumbinner | Baby, Books for Adults

I can’t stop reading Kirtsy Takes a Bow: A Celebration of Women’s Online Favorites. And rereading it. And going back to make sure there’s nothing I missed. The thing is, it’s not just me. An art director friend shirked work for an hour to...