tips and tricks Archives | Cool Mom Picks

100+ easy Halloween costume ideas for kids and parents. Because it’s all last-minute these days!

It’s not too late to pull together an easy last-minute Halloween costume idea that helps make Halloween awesome.Even if you’re doing everything last-minute lately. It’s not just about the costumes, by the way; Liz recently shared some incredible...

How to grow your grey hair out, without pulling it all out in the process.

by Kristen Chase | Beauty + Cosmetics, Style + Beauty

A couple of years ago, at the ripe young age of 43, I decided to grow out my grey hair. I got tired of the every few week hair coloring bill, and figured I could save the money and the chemicals and just own it. I’m not saying it was an easy decision. Thanks to...

The best new parent advice from 9 of the smartest, most insightful parent bloggers we know

by Cool Mom Staff | Baby, Kids, Tips + Tricks

In addition to the hilarious bad parenting advice we once received, and the advice we wish we knew when our kids were babies, we’re so grateful to be able to share some of the best advice from some of the most wonderful, caring, helpful parents we know. You...

9 things we wish we knew when our kids were babies. Oh, do we ever.

by Cool Mom Staff | Baby, Kids, Tips + Tricks

There’s so much we wish we had known when our kids were babies, and we were stressed, anxious, or just entirely clueless. All normal feelings when you’re juggling a new baby or toddler! But hey, maybe we can help you out a little here. So in addition to...

The one trick to make sure your child’s face mask fits properly, to comply with the brand new CDC recommendations.

by Liz Gumbinner | Health, Fitness + Wellbeing, Kids, Tips + Tricks

After 18 months (sigh) it’s now clear that we’re past the point of “any mask is better than nothing” for preventing Covid spread, especially with the Delta variant here. In fact, just this weekend, the CDC issued new, specific recommendation...

The worst parenting advice we got: 10 tips you definitely want to ignore as a new parent

by Cool Mom Staff | Baby, Kids, Tips + Tricks

Raise your hand if you’ve ever gotten terrible parenting advice! Wait, all of you who have kids? Ha, yes. Of course all of us have. It’s like a rite of passage for new parents. But the good thing is, with some perspective and guidance (thanks to BTDT...

A very clever back to school gift for young women and menstruators

by Kristen Chase | School Gear

My daughter came home this morning with a sweet little gift from her friend’s mom: an adorable locker kit full of essentials for young women and menstruators. So brilliant, right? I had actually thought about putting together a little bin with some snacks,...

Parents are broken. Here are 5 things a therapist says we can do right now to manage our stress.

by Kristen Chase | Tips + Tricks

Over the last 24 hours, this pandemic has caught up to me. I’d been doing pretty well, navigating cyber school with my kids last year along with work adjustments and managing my mental health through it all. But this back to school season has officially taken...

Where to find at-home rapid Covid tests, kid-sized KN95s, and other essentials you may need before fall

by Caroline Siegrist | Health, Fitness + Wellbeing, Tips + Tricks

At-home rapid Covid tests isn’t the only thing we’ve been on the hunt for lately. With cold and flu and yes, yet another Covid-19 season upon us, I’ve been making a list of a few essentials so that my family isn’t scrambling if we do come down...

Here’s the one brilliant tip that got my reluctant teen reading more. And, the books that helped.

by Kate Etue | Books for Kids, Tips + Tricks

My kids devoured books when they were little. Now that they’re teens, the stars of YouTube and Discord seem to be a bigger draw than the classic characters of literature I wish they would spend their time with. (Of course, calling them “classic characters...

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.