family meals Archives | Cool Mom Picks

Should we be banning kids from restaurants? Spawned Episode 171

Just last week we read an article that said Japan Airlines would soon to be letting their customers know where children would be sitting on the plane. So what’s next? Kid sections in restaurants? With Kristen’s husband and Liz’s ex in the restaurant...

Amiyrah Martin on the most genius time-saving hacks for moms (They are SO good!)

by Cool Mom Staff | Podcast, Tips + Tricks

This week on Spawned, we’re joined by Amiyrah Martin of 4 Hats and Frugal. She’s one of our favorite writers and Instagrammers and while she’s known for her great tips on saving money, she happens to be pretty sharp with time-saving tips too....

Great tips from Siri Daly to make it more fun to feed your kids | Spawned 108

by Cool Mom Staff | Food + Recipes, Podcast

Feeding kids! We all love it so much! Hahahah. No. Well, maybe some of us do. But most of us — it’s just another one of those things we have to do as parents, and make the best of it. That’s why it was so fun to speak this week about that very thing,...

Have youth sports gotten out of control? | Spawned Episode 107

by Cool Mom Staff | Podcast

With 13-year olds getting recruited to play sports in college and a New Jersey lawmaker warning parents to not get physical at youth sports for fear of jail time, we had to tackle the topic of youth sports and whether they’ve gotten out of control. Not to...

Ayesha Curry designed your kids’ new favorite dishes to do great things for kids in need, too.

by Liz Gumbinner | Baby, Kids

I already thought Ayesha Curry was one cool mom. Now it’s doubly confirmed, since seeing the latest from the wonderful company she co-founded, Cheeky Kids. CMP is an rstyle affiliate. Starting this week at Target (online and in stores), you’ll find a...

30+ fantastic open-ended questions to ask your kids, so you don’t get a yes or no answer.

by Kate Etue | Thinking : Parent, Tips + Tricks

If you’re not getting much more than a “yeah,” “nope,” or “fine” when you ask about your kid’s day at school, it might be time for some new conversations starters. (Trust us, we’re right there with you.) So we set...

Kitchen lifesavers! 21 favorite easy holiday recipes made easier with kitchen shortcuts

by Stacie Billis | Food + Recipes

Those of you who are also fans of Cool Mom Eats (and hey, thank you!) know that I’m all about coming up with smart solutions to help busy parents with home cooked meals that still feed our families quickly and easily. Especially this time of year, when...

Beyond thank you and please: 7 manners all kids should learn for holiday entertaining (and that we’re not all teaching)

by Kate Etue | Tips + Tricks

Please and thank you — important stuff, right? I’ve always believe that courteous kids grow into nice adults and we all need more nice in the world these day. But that’s not where etiquette begins and ends. So with the holidays here, and lots of...

The world’s cutest tableware for kids: We have a contender!

by Christina Refford | Kitchen + Dining

When my kids first started eating solids, they often reminded me of wild baby animals — flinging food all over the place, trying to eat without using their hands, and getting all the gooiest stuff mashed into their hair. So I’m pretty impressed with...

The new Cocoon multi-stage high chair keeps up with your growing child.

by Christina Refford | Baby

I had three kids in four years and learned very quickly how fast kids outgrow their gear. That’s why I love companies like Oribel, smart engineers who are creating modern, multi-stage products that are meant to last throughout several developmental stages....

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.