family activities Archives

3 new books for kids about climate change that inform, uplift, and help us move forward

by Caroline Siegrist | Books for Kids, Doing Good

I know I’m not the only parent struggling with how to talk with their kids about climate change. So I was thrilled to discover these hopeful kids’ books about climate change, each of which educates without inducing panic or despair. A tall order if you ask...

10 ways to make the most out of the last weekend of summer, most of them free

by Cool Mom Staff | Living

With the final unofficial days of summer so close (wah!), we’ve got one more long weekend to milk the most out of the late sunsets with the family. So we’re bringing back this post from a few years back, when our editor Liz offered up 10 wonderful little...

10 of our most popular summer articles to help get you through the season

by Liz Gumbinner | Kids, Living

This week we’re doing something I don’t think our team has done in 15+ years — we are taking a full staff summer break. (Whoo!) Some of us are traveling, some of us are hanging with the kids, some of us are counting the seconds to Ted Lasso season...

50 screen-free activities for kids to do over summer break, indoors and out

by Kate Etue | DIY, Kids

So many parents are looking for fresh ideas for screen-free activities for kids now that we finally turned a corner. I know I’m not the only parent with kids whose screen time increased significantly over the quarantine. It was their primary way to connect with...

The coolest safe bike helmets for kids. As in, ones they’ll actually want to wear.

by Kate Etue | Toys + Playthings

The best kids’ bike helmet in the world won’t do any good if your kid doesn’t want to put it on, which is why yes, it matters if they think they have a “cool” bike helmet. We’re here to help! I’ve spent hours searching the...

12 meaningful and creative adoption anniversary ideas shared by adoptive parents

by Kate Etue | Tips + Tricks

My family recently celebrated the fourth anniversary of our daughter’s adoption. It’s always a special day for us, in which we try to honor her heritage; we pull out photo albums, eat at a Korean restaurant, and send updates to her adoption workers. But...

5 free online courses that look fun to take with your mom for Mother’s Day

by Liz Gumbinner | Entertainment + Media, Mother's Day Gifts

So far, we’ve loved what’s happening with The We Time Project that we introduced last month: In order to help you connect more with far away friends and family around shared experiences, we’ve been offering our readers 30 days worth of unlimited...

What Do You Meme? Custom Cards make family game night waaaaay more personal (and hilarious)

by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings

Here’s what I suggest for the weekend: Entice your teens out from their bedrooms for a hilarious family game night using your set of What Do You Meme? game cards. Only surprise them when they open the box, to find that you’ve booby trapped the deck with...

A free lesson plan about Amanda Gorman’s inauguration poem will make for some great dinner table conversation tonight.

by Kate Etue | Thinking : Parent

My kids and I were glued to the TV last Wednesday, watching history take place on Inauguration Day. We were sobered by the national guard presence, excited about the achievements of our new VP Kamala Harris, and just so totally and completely relieved to see President...

2021 inauguration activities and events for kids and families: Lots of ways to watch, learn, and celebrate with your kids

by Liz Gumbinner | Kids

As we move on from the worst president of all time, some wonderful organizations are coming together to help us collectively process, plan, and heal. You can find the full schedule of official Biden-Harris inaugural events here, but there’s more inaugural...

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.