14 magnificent children’s and YA books for Hispanic Heritage Month
September means new backpacks and football kickoff and pumpkin spice latte month (*insert eyeroll), but mid-month, September is also became Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 – October 15). So we put together some of our very favorite children’s and YA...
Tips, tricks and recipes to help you host the coolest, gooiest, best slime party.
Who else has a kid who’s dying to have a slime party? Hey, we get it! Our own kids’ obsession with slime seems to be here to stay. Forever. And surely we’re not the only ones with tubs of various types of goo piled high on our countertops. We figure,...
3 clever new puzzle and activity books for kids, to keep hands busy and minds sharp
For some kids, picking up a book is pure torture in the summer. For others, well..it’s not totally out of the question, provided it’s a puzzle or activity book. So if you’re looking for some new screen-free, paperback fun for the kids, here are a few...
7 great new family board games that take 30 minutes or less to play
Raise your hand if you’ve ever “accidentally” bumped your kid’s Candyland piece toward the finish to speed up the game? Hey, I get it. I often like (or need) family board games that are fast to play, too. And it doesn’t change as your...
Why we need libraries: Twitter claps back against a truly stupid op-ed
It was only a week or so ago that I was reading Carolines article about 20 free summer activities for kids, and thinking how wonderful that there were so many mentions of various events at local libraries. And then this morning, I laughed as I stumbled upon a a poorly...
Angela Santomero’s tips for raising smart, inspired, and engaged kids in a screen-filled world | Spawned ep 116
Whatever age your kids may be, we know that managing screen time and finding the benefits (and boundaries) is a huge issue with parents. Like, a non-stop concern. So we’re thrilled to chat with Angela Santomero, the successful creator of educational programs...
50 screen-free activities for kids to do over summer break, indoors and out
So many parents are looking for fresh ideas for screen-free activities for kids, particularly now that it’s summer. And I get it! I mean, it’s not even the end of June, and I’ve heard it 100 times already: Can I play screens for a little while? As...
6 children’s books to read during Asian and Pacific Island heritage month. Beyond Moana.
Did you know May is Asian and Pacific Island Heritage Month? Honestly, I didn’t either until this week. And even though we don’t hear much about it in our news feeds — or maybe, because we don’t hear much about it — I thought it would be...
4 very cool first-words books for toddlers that are anything but basic
My tweens (gah!) grew up reading Richard Scarry’s Best Word Book Ever, and I have to admit — it’s hard to argue with that title. It’s a classic! But a some new and very cool first-words books have caught my eye recently, and I just have to...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).
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