Virgie Tovar talks about body positivity and self love, and why it’s so important right now | Spawned Ep 199
If you’re like us, then you’ve probably seen a whole lot of weight-related pandemic memes and posts on social media. Whether it’s the kind of worn out “Gaining the COVID-19” joke to talking about “letting ourselves go,” ours...
Humor, struggles, and clown sex with Tova Leigh | Spawned Ep 198
Tova Leigh is the exact person we needed to talk to this week. At least if these days, your dream social life would include time with a few friends for some real talk, real laughs, some needed venting, and a random reference to clown sex. No wonder this episode was...
Finding small joys in crazy times: How we’re making memories with our kids | Spawned Ep 197
Real parenting talk: Emotions are up and down in the age of Covid, times are stressful — in fact we both just got the “school is cancelled for the whole year” notices. Sigh. We definitely are not trying to “win” quarantine with 800...
Feeding your kids during a quarantine with author and food editor, Stacie Billis | Spawned Ep 196
You’ve braved the grocery store or you’ve had your groceries delivered. Your kids are home 24-7. And you’ve got to feed them. So, why is it so hard? Well, it doesn’t have to be difficult, in fact, feeding your kids during a quarantine (and...
Bingewatch Nation! Why you should give yourself permission, and what to watch these days. And nights. | Spawned 195
We are safe-distance podcasting today! We have wine! And we are punchy! With all the time we have (no, we don’t entirely have a lot of time) we are watching ALL THE SERIES and laughing through this conversation today about our binge watching recos — what...
Helping teens who are struggling with social distancing, isolation and loss | Spawned Episode 194
We know that the shelter-in-place orders and social distancing due to the Coronavirus pandemic has been difficult for all of us in one way or another, teens, in particular, are taking an extremely hard hit. We’re seeing with our own teens, and we’ve been...
The most reassuring, helpful, and detailed expert tips for talking to kids about Coronavirus and managing their concerns | Spawned Special Episode 193
As the COVID-19/Coronavirus outbreak has increased, and life as we know it seems to be changing by the second beyond our control, parents are really struggling. A lot. I knew right away we needed to have a conversation with Dr. Ken Ginsburg, pediatrician and...
How to talk so your dogs will listen, and other awesome pet tips from Victoria Schade | Spawned Ep 192
After five years of doing our Spawned Parenting podcast, we figured it was about time to do an episode about pets, and who better than my friend, Victoria Schade, who happens to be a sought-after dog trainer and author. She imparts her infinite wisdom about our furry...
Joy Cho on encouraging creativity in kids, even if you’re not creative yourself. | Spawned 191
I have wanted to talk to Joy Cho, the founder and creative director of Oh Joy! for oh…about forever. When I think of creativity, style, and design, she’s one of the people who pops into mind first — and with a half-million Instagram followers and 13...
Relationships, romance, and a little hope for the whole world, with Robert Wilder | Spawned Episode 190
Even though Valentine’s Day is over, we can all use a little more romance, relationship advice, and hope, don’t you agree? That’s why we think you’ll enjoy our almost completely live (yes live!) Spawned Parenting podcast episode we recorded on...
How do you know when it’s time to move? And how do you make it easier when you’re ready? | Spawned 189
We never thought that a book about moving would be so enjoyable. Just thought thought of moving gives lots of us cold sweats! And yet, Ali Wenzke, who’s been called the Marie Kondo of Moving has authored the extremely helpful, calming, and yes, enjoyable book,...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).
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All New!
Doing Good: Get To Know…
Covid Support + Quarantine Help for Families
* Our complete Covid-19 and quarantine archives
* Expert tips for talking to your kids. Very reassuring!
* Helping teens who are struggling
* Quarantine birthday party ideas in the age of social distancing
* Board games to play over Zoom or Facetime
* Meal planning tips during quarantine to stretch your budget and your time
* The best ways to clean and disinfect your phones and gadgets. Keep doing it!
* 10 books to help our kids + teens cope with anxiety
* Safety tips for ordering take-out and delivery
* Simple ways to connect with our own moms and grandmas when we're apart
“Who else is giving up on screen time limits right now?”
“What are you all doing with rhubarb right now?”
Work with us!
