Outrageously fun swim goggles for kids: 7 styles for aspiring mermaids, mermen, and merpeople
One of my favorite things about taking my son to swim lessons is seeing all the fun swim googles for kids that have become so popular over the last few years. Eyelashes goggles! Rhinestone goggles! Shark's teeth goggles! Sequined goggles! Where were these when I was a...
“Acceptance is Protection”: Kate Brookes on parenting a trans kid, or any child on their own path. | Spawned 299
I could not be more thrilled to share this wonderful interview with award-winning TV reporter/producer/mom Kate Brookes, author of the upcoming Transister: Raising Twins in a Gender-Bending World. While our conversation is super helpful for parents looking for advice...
Game on! These 6 fun group board games are perfect for summer camp. Or just summer friends.
When I send care packages to my boys at summer camp, I generally include snacks and silly toys for them to goof around with. And in Liz's post packed with the best ideas for summer camp care packages, she talks a lot about sending fun board games the whole bunk can...
Getting your kids to practice their handwriting: 16 fun tips, tricks and ideas
Call us the handwriting brigade. Seriously. From day one, even with the advent of technology and the slow decline of handwriting instruction (let alone cursive, gah!) in schools, we've always made it our mission to encourage kids not to lose the art of handwriting....
7 tips for healthy co-parenting when you’re recently divorced or separated
Our team at Cool Mom Picks jokes that we have a lot of children among us, but the truth is, we have quite a few divorces and separations among us too. That means we've had a lot of experience trying to achieve healthy co-parenting, having navigated some admittedly...
Keeping kids healthy on social media with Dr. Devorah Heitner | Spawned Ep 298
With U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy introducing new social media guidelines for children in the past few weeks, social media and mental health is all any parent we know is talking about. Especially with summer here. So I immediately reached out to one of my...
Dr. Lisa Damour on the Emotional Life of Teenagers: Important insights and advice | Spawned Episode 297
It's always a pleasure to chat with Dr. Lisa Damour, New York Times best-selling author, podcast host and psychologist, about parenting teens. In this Spawned episode, we're talking specifically about the emotional lives of teenagers, based on her newest book of the...
8 ideas for homemade Father’s Day cards from the kids. Keep tissues nearby. | Father’s Day Gift Guide
Homemade Father's Day cards are so perfect, whether they're from kids old enough to manage their own craft supplies, or you know, "from the baby." In fact we all feel like a homemade card should be part of any Father's Day gift you're giving him, and we have found...
5 teacher thank-you note tips for a message to remember.
We've reached the end of the school year (hooray!), but before our kids run out of those school doors for summer, let's encourage them to write a short-but-sweet teacher thank you note. After all, a personal note from their students is the #1 pick from teachers who...
10 creative ways to give cash or a gift card for graduation, along with your congratulations.
We're already seeing a lot of searches on our site for ways to celebrate the graduates in our lives, whether that is by throwing a party with special, graduation-themed food, or by using one of the many newer graduation ideas that we still love from the spring of 2020...