On having a 9/11 birthday
I still meet expectant moms from time to time who share, with trepidation, that their due date is somewhere around today and they’d prefer any other delivery date at all. So I tell them I understand. I tell them it’s my birthday. And then I tell them what my dad said...
In defense of class moms: Would it be so hard to, you know, just say thanks once in awhile?
We are always so grateful to those class moms (and dads, of course — let’s get more of you!) who volunteer their valuable free time to do what’s often a thankless job. So with school in full swing for most of us, or just getting ready to kick off...
4 times (so far) journalists have been the lifesaving heroes of the Hurricane Harvey flooding.
When tragedy strikes, we always try to follow Mr. Roger’s timeless advice to look for the helpers. And as Hurricane Harvey continues to batter Houston, we’ve all been so moved by the efforts of the National Guard, volunteers, emergency services crews, and...
6 times celebrity moms clapped back at mommy shamers, and we all said hell yeah! | Thinking: Parent
I’ve only been a mom for five months, but it’s long enough to know that mommy shaming is a very real thing. Whether it’s the sidelong stare from a stranger while you breastfeed in public or the loaded question, Oh, your baby doesn’t eat 1000%...
The best and worst states to have a baby in 2017 | Thinking: Parent
With a lot of concern around changing health care policy, tax increases impacting the middle class, benefit cuts to struggling families, and the fact that Americans already pay the highest birthing costs in the world, I was intrigued to check out WalletHub’s...
We can’t believe the reason a kids’ softball umpire asked a deaf 10-year-old player to remove her hearing devices.
Parents of kids with special needs are used to having to fight for their kids’ rights. It’s part of the parenting territory. But when my friend told me what happened to her deaf child at her softball tournament this week, I was shocked. (Please note an...
In memory of the 11 year old who died at summer camp from meningitis this week
“Were your kids vaccinated for meningitis?” my father asked as I picked up the phone tonight. He’s always asking me questions like this after seeing something or other in the news or on Facebook. He’s a good Grandpa that way....
What does being American mean to you? We love these artists’ answers.
In honor of the Fourth of July (happy 241, America!) I’m grateful to our friends at Tattly Tattoos who put together this lovely photographic series, in which they asked all different makers, creators, and entrepreneurs to describe what it means to them to be...
Bandages to heal kids’ emotional boo-boos: Helicopter-y or helpful? | Thinking: Parent
This post is written by guest contributor Anna Caudill, Executive Director of PALS (Post Adoptive Learning Services) and adoptive mom of two. Recently, Dutch bandage company Hanasplast created a limited time box of Hearts bandages designed to “heal emotional...
Think you’re ready to become a theater parent? Ask yourself these 11 questions first.
This post is written in partnership with Warner Bros. Pictures When our partner, THE HOUSE (Will Ferrell! Amy Poehler! Can you wait until June 30?) asked me if I had any stories to share about the lengths we parents sometimes go to help support our kids dreams, just...
Speaking up is hard to do: The N-word, the culture of complicity, and why we have to say, that’s not okay.
This weekend, Senator Ben Sasse issued a response to address the (rightful) outrage around his Friday night appearance with Bill Maher. He stated that he should have spoken up when Maher unacceptably used the N-word. He tweeted that “just cringing last night...Hi! We’re Kristen + Liz!
We started Cool Mom Picks in 2006 to help make life cooler, easier, more organized, 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).
But we did.
And we still love what we do every single day.
We're so glad you're here.
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