12 year olds can be arrested for trick-or-treating and WHAT IS GOING ON | Spawned 129
So uh, yeah. Turns out that some American towns are now banning 12-year-old kids from trick-or-treating, under penalty of arrest. We think it’s nuts, of course, so we had to talk about it this week on Spawned.There are even a lot of expert reasons that...
How one mom’s viral #himtoo post led to the #metoo ending no one expected
We all talk a lot about “oversharenting,” or what to post about our kids on social media, how much info is too much, and whether we might be embarrassing them…one day. Well it turns out these questions apply well beyond potty training photos, as...
Amazing op-eds and articles from women to help us process our feelings about women’s trauma, Dr. Blasey Ford, and the Kavanaugh hearings.
What a week. That’s all you have to say right now to nearly any woman in your life, and she will know exactly what you’re talking about. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s credible, difficult testimony in the Kavanaugh hearing (i.e. not a trial) this past...
Halloween costumes are glorifying sexual predators, and it’s disgusting.
Oh hey! In today’s New Thing To Be Rightfully Outraged Over we’re going to go with Halloween costumes that glorify sexual assault. Yeah, you read that right. Thanks to Mark Graham on Twitter, I was alerted to a GYN costume — which is cool. We love...
Jonathan Van Ness wants you to Own it, Gorg. Words to live by!
As devoted Queer Eye fans — and that includes Kristen and my kids, too — we might have squealed, just a little, when we found this super limited edition Jonathan Van Ness Own It, Gorg t-shirt from Represent Clothing. Doesn’t it say everything we want...
Our new hero: The police officer who breastfed a starving baby herself
I know I’m making the understatement of the year when I say that there’s been a lot of difficult news lately. Which is maybe why this viral photo of on-duty police officer Celeste Ayala breastfeeding a starving child at a hospital had me weeping into the...
NBC’s Making It contestant Robert Mahar reveals one brilliant thing parents should do to bring out creativity in their kids
Imagine how thrilled we were to learn that our old friend and popular cool mom pick Robert Mahar was a contestant on the popular new NBC DIY craft show Making It. Yes, there might have been squealing involved. We’ve known him since we started our site 12 years...
Thanks, Mr. Rogers: A brilliant parenting trick I learned from “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”
Last weekend, my husband and I enjoyed a respite from the heat at our local movie theater and took a little trip down memory lane with Won’t You Be My Neighbor? This wonderful film highlighting the work and legacy of Fred Rogers is a must-see, whether you grew...
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...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.
Valentine’s Day Ideas
Work with us!
OUT TECH YOUR KIDS: Join our new private Facebook community
RECIPE RESCUE: The best crowdsourced cooking + food advice for parents
Doing Good
