Through most of elementary school, my mother dressed me in dresses. When I complained that I couldn't hang upside down on the playground for fear of showing my underwear, she was unsympathetic. That was before Francie Pants , of course. …
Maybe my children have exceptionally pointy knees (entirely possible), but I'm forever pulling holey jeans out of the laundry and setting them aside for mending. But then I remember that 1) I have no time, 2) I don't sew. Oops. Thank goo…
My preschooler is currently on a dress kick and I cannot tell you how many times I have to argue with her about wearing dresses to the playground. It's not that she can't move around in a skirted bottom, but since she tends to be a littl…
It is nearly impossible these days to grab a simple ice cream cone that doesn't contain a whole lab's worth of multi-syllabic ingredients. So when I got wind of Haagen-Dazs five , just in time for the beginning of Ice Cream Season '09, I…
I may be done having babies, but that doesn't mean I am done coveting the cool gear the new ones get, like the Micralite Toro Stroller . As the name implies, this fairly new little technological marvel is super-light, weighing in at just…
Every kid needs a Nicholas in his life. That is, the endearing French storybook by René Gosciny (of Asterix and Obelix fame) with charming illustrations by the beloved New Yorker cartoonist Jean-Jacques Sempé. The series was an instant h…
It may be a while before the babies I know can slurp down a triple scoop, but that wouldn't stop me from parading them around town in this adorable Ice Cream Cheerleading Stunt onesie. Designed by Ava-Marie Guerrero and available at the …
Cool Mom Picks internet crush (we would totally braid each other's hair at summer camp) Indie Fixx has done it again with indie coolness for the masses; this time, founder Jen Wallace has set her sights on affordable art for all. In fact…
My love affair with Rick started when I was just young girl and I heard Jessie's Girl come blasting on the radio. Twenty something years later, it's still my favorite song of all time. (And there is a video of me singing it at a karaoke …
It's tough finding organic play clothes with a bit of a modern twist. But the folks at Frenchy Baby Organics do just that with their ridiculously cute 100% organic children's basics. While the website could use a little work, in person t…
The name is something of a misnomer, because everything at designer Susan Fisher's utility:home is a bright, shiny reminder that even the ordinary can look extraordinary. Their greeting cards are fabulous, of course -- the patterns pop, …
I don't watch a heck of a lot of kid TV, but I've been making an exception for the new DVD release of We Got the Bee which features a bunch of episodes from Nickelodeon's series, The Mighty B! Haven't seen it yet? Let's just say the hero…
Kids love dinosaurs and are fascinated with the idea of monstrous animals that roamed the earth and ate each other for breakfast. It's only natural that they start asking more questions than sometimes we know how to answer-- how the dino…
Even with the adjustable waistband pants, my skinny-minnie still needs some help to prevent the little plumber's bottom, and Holly Stewart of Jane Edward makes belts that do just that. I admit that the sight of rick rack reminds me of th…
After many weeks in the making, we're so excited to launch the Cool Mom Picks Ultimate Baby Shower Gift Guide ! You'll find a full 100 of our editors' favorite baby gifts to give in 2009, from the cutest organic onesies to affordable per…
With my mother-in-law the faithful member of her local Irish Club who makes Irish Potatoes from scratch every year, you can bet we're pretty big on the Saint Patrick's Day celebration. But while I might slug the green beer and and chow d…
Pirates may be lawless, mean and smelly, but I'm having a blast listening to the buccaneering rock of Portland, Oregon's Captain Bogg & Salty on their new CD , Emphatical Piratical . And fortunately, instead of telling my kids to rob and…
When I was pregnant, I was always amazed about how little I felt like myself. Yes, having babies is a beautiful, glorious thing, but darn if I didn't feel like a beached whale stuffed in some boring tenty t-shirt. Oh how I longed to feel…
What do I see when I look at this cloud? I see a floor free from clutter. The metal Cloud Shelf is the perfect place to stash toys, books and even my son's prized Spongebob baseball hat. It's deep enough to actually put stuff on at 6 inc…
Since falling in love with muslin swaddling blankets, I've donated most of my daughter's other blankets to my kids' play bin. So when Jessica Burros of the shop Bambino Land told me she was designing muslin wash cloths , I scrambled to g…
If ever there were a sign that organics had bypassed the crunchy crowd and hit the mainstream, it's the label Sarah Waldo Organics . The sweet, girlie spring line from Providence designer Sarah Waldo are as lovely as anything in any high…
St Patrick's day treats don't exactly inspire me the way say, Halloween or Valentine's Day treats do. And frankly, some of them just plain freak me out. (I'm looking at you, Shamrock Shake.) So leave it to our friends at The Nibble to po…
If I were the tooth fairy, I would not be all fair and diplomatic with my reward system. No ma'am. I would give the most money to the toothless child who lured me in with the cutest tooth fairy pillow and made the biggest production out …
It's hard to resist a designer whose bio proclaims that she draws inspiration from "the intersection between geeks and guitars." Hey - that's us, too! Except for the designer part. So yeah, we fell instantly in love with San Francisco ar…
