More coolness from recent weeks…
The top 10 Cool Mom Picks posts of 2015: From kitchen shortcuts to cool gifts to parenting tips of all kinds.
We admittedly get a little nostalgic looking back through our entire calendar year worth of posts each December to see which ones most resonated with our readers. All we can say is, looking at the top ten posts of the year? You all have great taste! Now we do...
The coolest kids’ music of the year: Our 15 top albums | Editors’ Best of 2015
2015 was a very good year for kids' music, with new releases from favorites like They Might Be Giants and Recess Monkey, as well as new-to-us bands like The Bazillions and Jazzy Ash. And if you have kids, but no idea what I'm talking about, well, you're in for a...
Stress and Parenting: A Confession
Hi, I'm Kristen and I'm stressed out. Why is it hard to admit that? As if I'm somehow not as competent or together as I'm supposed to be, whatever that means. Yes, I'm a single mom with four kids and my own business, so you might say, well duh, but I think it's...
The 22 best kids’ toys of the year (and other playful gifts) : Editors’ Best of 2015
When you think back to the best toys of the year (and other playful gifts for kids) you probably think about tech, tablets, and things that require cords and batteries. And yet there's so much more, from wonderful board games, to handmade dolls, to decidedly unplugged...
The best children’s books of 2015 : Editors’ Best of 2015
What a treat it is to put together our list of the best children's books of 2015. Not that it's easy; we've collectively read hundreds of great kids' books this year -- from cute, sweet board books, to excellent picture books for early readers, to heart wrenching YA...
The coolest accessory brands and shops that we fell in love with this year: Editors’ Best of 2015
You might say we've got a little thing for accessories. And you might say that's a huge understatement. Which is why we have the best time all year poking around the internet, cruising the trade shows, and poking our heads into local jewelers, artists' studios and...
The coolest baby gifts and gear of the year: Editors’ Best of 2015
We're so excited to wrap up our year by featuring our very top picks in all sorts of categories, starting with our very favorite cool baby gifts and gears that were new or new to us in 2015. This is a tough category to be sure, so we went through our archives, talked...
Merry Christmas from Cool Mom Picks!
Here's hoping you get everything you hope for this Christmas, whether it's in a box under the tree, tucked into a stocking and hung from the mantle, or something that can't ever be gift-wrapped at all. Warm holiday wishes from everyone at Cool Mom Picks, Liz, Kristen,...
Dozens of last-minute gift ideas for Christmas, hold the $49 overnight shipping charges
Are you still looking for a few awesome last-minute gift ideas for Christmas? We know you're out there, and we're here to help. So if you're like us, and you're still finishing up your Christmas shopping, do not panic. Heck, do not panic if you're just getting...
Last-Minute holiday shipping deadlines: Because yep, we’re still shopping, too.
It's just four days until Christmas and even the procrastinators are sweating. Yes, we are talking about our ourselves. Since we don't think we are alone in the holiday hustle, we've been scouring the web to find out the shipping deadlines of some of our favorite...
16 of the prettiest modern 2016 planners, to help start the new year with a little positivity.
Is it really almost 2016? And time to look for a brand new 2016 planner? Whoa. Every year it's like the change in the calendar year blindsides us, as if it doesn't happen every single year at this time. When will we learn? This year if you're committed to getting more...
Sesame Street + Tattly = Best stocking stuffer ever. For the kids, too.
I have a longstanding love affair with Sesame Street, so you can imagine my excitement when I discovered that our friends at Tattly recently teamed up with the Sesame Workshop to create a Sesame Street character set of temporary tattoos. Yes, I understand that they're...
Fun holiday party ideas that we put to use at our our own Cool Mom Picks shindigs this season.
We had the best time over the past month, partnering with Amazon Free Time to throw a couple of fun press and blogger holiday cocktail parties in Philly and Atlanta. Our aim was to give parents a little more me time (Get it? Free Time for me time?) in...
The great Santa debate: The magic of childhood or the end of trust with your children as you know it?
Each year around this time, we sit back (sometimes with popcorn) and we watch the passions ignite and the tempers flare and the tears flow as parents, psychologists, and armchair experts of all kinds debate the merits of Santa. It's amazing how many strongly held...
DIY and printable gift card holder ideas: 10 absolutely lovely options that make that piece of plastic something special.
Though I spend an awful lot of time picking out the perfect gifts for the people on my Christmas list, there are many times when a gift card really is the perfect gift, which is why I've rounded up ten DIY gift card holder ideas to dress that little card-sized piece...
Sponsored Message: Flare Play gaming platform streams kid-friendly video games and educational content, right on your TV
This is a sponsored message from Flare Play Kids love video games, but understandably, parents can justify the gaming time better when kids are actually playing something educational. That's where Flare Play comes in to make everyone happy. This new gaming platform...
The Ultimate Star Wars Guide: Dozens of geeky gifts, party ideas, DIY projects, recipes, and random Force-inspired insanity.
Okay, so the world is obsessed with Star Wars right now in light of the premier of The Force Awakens. And hey, we count ourselves among you all. Now we can't exactly say we've covered Star Wars "since before it was cool" because 1.) no such thing and 2.) we were not...
Printables for teachers that make thoughtful last-minute cards or gifts.
As we parents start counting down the days to the December break, some of us are also realizing that whoa! It's time to figure out teacher gifts, stat. I still really love our post about the best teacher gift ideas according to actual teachers and if you haven't...
A great big list of 20 of the best free printable gift tags and gift wrap for the holidays
It's beginning to look like it's time to start wrapping the gifts, so we're coming to the rescue with 20 of the cutest, coolest, and most beautifully designed printable gift tags and gift wrap for the holidays, from all over the internet. This list should make it...
10 last-minute essentials to help you survive the Christmas holiday
As busy parent with Christmas right around the corner (ten days as of today, to be exact), I am thankful for places that make it easy to get all the last-minute stuff that I forgot to get but really, really need, in one handy place, like our sponsor CVS. Who you may...
More than 20 seriously cool snowflake patterns to make with your kids, or just to blow their minds.
Oh, bless you paper snowflakes! For all we need to make them are scissors, paper, and if you want to get fancy, some very cool snowflake patterns. It's the perfect holiday craft for those of you, like me, who are enthusiastic about doing crafts with the kids over the...