by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
My nieces and nephews from Israel are on their way visit grandparents. My 2 year old son will probably not have a chance to visit but would like to send something to them while they are here. Any ideas for a gift to help entertain the 2 to 11 year-olds? Thanks...
by Delilah S. Dawson | Toys + Playthings
Almost every day, we drive by a castle. No, really– it’s in a field near our house, and the moat is a swimming pool, and the iron fence is guarded by concrete dwarves painted in garish colors. I can’t make stuff like that up.”Mommy, can we be...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
Maybe toddlers shouldn’t fish. I remember thinking this as I watched my 3-year-old niece clutch a big fishing pole while my husband tried to keep her from falling into the deep dark water or skewer him with the sharp fishing hook that was waving wildly in...
by Cool Mom Team | Toys + Playthings
If my kids are any indication, Stickermania may in fact be an actual medical condition. It strikes kids between 2 and 3, can last as long as a decade, and side effects may include weak and broken nails–your own–after scraping stickers off the living room...
by Cool Mom Team | Toys + Playthings
When I was pregnant with my first daughter, now six, rattles that were actually cute, functional, and not made completely of plastic were just starting to make it onto the scene. Well it seems that now cuteness and a bit of hilarity abounds at...
by Cool Mom Team | Toys + Playthings
Most of the online shopping I do at UK shops is of the window variety. As in, browsing only, do not pass go, do not add to my cart, do not pay international shipping. But sometimes I stumble on a sale so good, it makes it worth it to do more than drool. At the...
by Christina Refford | DIY, Toys + Playthings
I have no trouble getting my kids to go outside on a summer’s day, it’s getting them to stay outside when the siren song of kids’ cartoons and super-exciting video games beckon from the air-conditioned comfort of our home. That’s when I, the...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
Whether you stay up late enough for fireworks this year or you’re lying in bed in the dark, fingers crossed that the loud noise does not wake the baby (PLEASE GOD DO NOT WAKE THE BABY), all of us at Cool Mom Picks wish you a Happy Fourth. May the drinks be...
by Delilah S. Dawson | Toys + Playthings
I’ll be honest — as an art teacher, I was once opposed to rubber stamps. Then I realized that giving children some handy, thoughtfully designed building blocks for their two-dimensional world can be the perfect springboard into confidence and imagination....
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
Well, July is here. And if you are anything like me, you don’t even start looking for the beach toys until beach season is well underway, and the kids are sitting in their car seats, eager and ready to go. And that’s when you discover that you’ve...
by Cool Mom Team | Toys + Playthings
The night light is an essential component of the bedtime routine around my place, but no matter what method we employ, which lately has been our hallway light, it never seems to satisfy the kids’ need for light right next to them. That’s why I’m...
by Cool Mom Team | Toys + Playthings
We first fell in love with Green Toys way back in the day of the lead paint recalls (aw, remember those fun days?) and knew they were onto something fabulous. Well sure enough, their line has expanded beautifully since then and today they’re doing some super...
