Tips + Tricks Archives | Page 7 of 28

17 great high school graduation gift ideas that kids will actually want. Besides cash.

by Liz Gumbinner | Kids, Tech CMP-Style, Tips + Tricks

With high school graduation time here, I’ve been getting so many questions from friends about appropriate high school graduation gift ideas that kids will actually want. So I’ve been asking around, and the answer is most often, “cash.” Followed...

I turned off my binge shows (eek!) and tried going to bed earlier for one month. Here are 7 things that happened.

by Liz Gumbinner | Thinking : Parent, Tips + Tricks

I am tired all the time. Like, I’m a parent. You are probably a parent. You get it. And yet, entertainment junkie that I am, I found myself staying up until midnight (or later!) catching up on every darn MA-rated show and movie each night, after the kids were in...

Here’s the allowance system that has worked for my family.

by Kristen Chase | Tips + Tricks

I’ve tried many different allowance systems and allowance apps over the years with my four kids, but it wasn’t until I tried this new approach at the beginning of 2019 that I was able to stick with something for longer than a month. If you’re looking...

Social media, sexuality and school shootings: Tips for 10 hard talks every parent will have with their kids

by Kate Etue | Tips + Tricks

I’ve happily left the diapers-and-bottles behind, and I’ve entered the parenting stage that involves a lot more talking about the important issues in my kids’ lives — and in the world around them. As hard as it can be sometimes, and I’ve...

The 20 most affordable travel destinations for families right now. Pack your bags!

by Liz Gumbinner | Family Travel, Tips + Tricks

As you may know, one of our top tips for affordable family travel, especially on an extended trip, is to rent an apartment or home instead of forking out big bucks for a hotel — let alone renting two hotel rooms, if you’ve got a bigger family. Linda even...

How does Disney’s Disability Access Service card (DAS) work? This mom lays it out for you.

by Kate Etue | Family Travel, Tips + Tricks

I recently described my 10 tips for a Disney vacation with a special needs child, to help you ensure that the trip is as magical for all of you. But I wanted to give more details about the totally free Disability Access Service (DAS) card for those of you looking into...

10 super easy, totally free ways to help support your favorite independent publishers + keep that content free for you!

by Cool Mom Staff | Doing Good, Tips + Tricks

It’s hard out there for an independent publisher. But here we are, like we have been for the past 13 (whoa!) years, putting out out stories, offering tips, and uncovering cool finds that we really hope our readers enjoy — all while making sure it remains...

Comparing 4 prom dress rental sites to save you time, money, and dressing room meltdowns

by Caroline Siegrist | Fashion, Helpful Services, Tips + Tricks

We all know that buying a prom dress can be an exhausting and expensive process, but after learning about these prom dress rental sites, I’m convinced it really doesn’t have to be. These rental sites all let you browse online, select a dress to borrow for...

How to talk to your children about mass shootings, bombings, and other tragedies in the news: Helpful resources

by Liz Gumbinner | Doing Good, Thinking : Parent, Tips + Tricks

Another day, another mass shooting. And I’m not being flip. Today it’s the unfathomably awful Christchurch, New Zealand mosque shootings. In the recent past, it’s been Las Vegas, Orlando, Parkland, Sandy Hook, Nice, London, Boston,...

The one thing all kids should be learning in school that they’re not.

by Liz Gumbinner | Helpful Services, Tips + Tricks

We talk so much about the need for STEM education. Kids need computer skills, engineering skills, science of all kinds. We mourn the disappearance of cursive from the curriculum. We discuss which books our kids should be reading, and whether new math is genius —...

3 great printable sleep logs. Because we’ll try anything, you know?

by Kate Etue | Tips + Tricks

Recently, we’ve seen more and more doctors recommending sleep logs and sleep journals for those of us who regularly wake during the night, or have trouble falling asleep in the first place. It makes sense. Especially for parents. One of our problems, which KJ...

7 really smart decluttering habits to start now, so you don’t have to KonMari your house later

by Kate Etue | Storage + Organization, Tips + Tricks

After reading Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, I immediately started purging my closets and folding my clothes differently. I’ve also binged on her new Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo and am currently in the process of piling...

Hi! We’re Kristen + Liz!

Kristen Chase + Liz Gumbinner of Cool Mom Picks

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.