What Does it Mean to Be American? This picture book says it better than any TV pundit or long-winded article.
Kids are smart. And observant. Even our littlest children know that right now, there’s a lot of talk about what it means to be American, who’s a “real” American, and what kinds of values America stand for. And it’s complicated, but that...
7 new must-read Black History Month book releases for kids and teens. Because Black history is American history.
Whether we’re taking the time to celebrate our own heritage or exploring those different cultures and backgrounds of our friends and neighbors that help make America what it is, books are always a favorite way for me to learn with my kids. And as Black History...
The Bell Rang: An important children’s book about the realities of Black slavery and family separation.
Children’s books that deal with slavery and other dark aspects of America’s history often wrap stories up neatly, with messages of hope and freedom and and liberty and justice for all. But of course, that’s not the way things often go. And in Coretta...
All the best children’s books of 2018 from all the best best-of 2018 lists. Perfect place to kickstart your 2019 reading list
One New Year’s resolution my family all agreed on was to read more books in 2019.(A resolution that seems to be going around amongst our staff!) So, in my favorite annual Cool Mom Picks post, I’m sharing all the best children’s books on 2018 lists...
The Best Children’s Biographies About Incredible Women…Written by Women | Editors Top 10 of the Year
Welcome to our annual editors top 10 of the year! Through the rest of the year, we’ll be sharing 10 of our favorite things (no offense, Oprah) of this past year and we hope you love them too. Of course we love everything we’ve shared, but these things are...
History nerd alert: Famous Family Trees is the book your kids will disappear into
We’ve shared a lot of books lately that are really resonating with our history-geek kids. Books like Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls, Little Guides to Great Lives, and HERstory, each tell the stories of important figures, past and present, in a compelling way...
3 terrific books for children who celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah
We’ve covered so many holiday books for kids over the years, and one thing we’ve realizes is missing: a good selection of books for children who celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah. While my teens may be jealous of friends who celebrate both of the big...
The People Shall Continue: a conversation-starting epic history of Native people for kids
Each year during November, which is National Native American Heritage Month by the way, we like to take a look at some of the great resources for our kids about the Native experience. Especially as we approach Thanksgiving. Because without the Wampanoag people, there...
How buying one of our favorite kids’ toys on Veteran’s Day will support deployed military families in a great way.
Each year on Veteran’s Day, we love finding new organizations that support the families of military service men and women. And wow, I am so thrilled to learn about United Through Reading and their 40 Million Stories campaign. This non-profit gives the more than...
This hip, indie kids’ magazine subscription is a fabulous gift for curious tweens
You may have heard of Aquila children’s magazine, the cool indie kids publication from the UK, because they’ve been around for 25 years. And they’ve announced they’re going to open their subscriptions up to the USA too, and I’m so...
Keep calm and carry on with these 7 excellent children’s books about mindfulness
My four kids range from toddler to teenager, and I find that no matter their stage in life I am always looking for ways to help them increase their mindfulness. Whether they’re processing complicated, difficult emotions in their early teen years, or just...Hi! We’re Kristen + Liz!
We started Cool Mom Picks in 2006 to help make life cooler, more meaningful, and more fun for parents of all kinds.
Trivia: It was called Cool Mom Sh*t for the first two days. (Yeah, we rethought that.)
We had no idea our site would grow to become a major lifestyle network, that we'd end up sharing our finds with the TODAY Show and Martha Stewart, that we'd be able to make a real difference for so many small businesses and women-run companies, or that we'd end up with an incredible community of the coolest readers on the planet. (If we do say so ourselves).
We still love what we do every single day. And we're so glad you're here.
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