Spawned Parenting Podcast: Latest Episodes
The latest from Spawned, our award-winning parenting podcast
Manicures are not self-care: Why moms need to recenter ourselves in our own lives | Spawned Ep 237
This week on Spawned, I loved chatting with Nina Restieri. entrepreneur and MomAgenda founder, and author of the new book Overcoming the Mom-Life Crisis: Ditch the Guilt, Put Yourself on the To-Do List, and Create A Life You Love. The book is filled with terrific,...
Taking the stress out of the college application process | Spawned Ep 237
It's kind of crazy to think we started this site writing about cool swaddles and baby carriers, and now we're thinking about...college applications. (Insert sobbing emoji x 100000.) And yes, it's stressful. So we turned to one of the most knowledgeable, supportive,...
Rene Syler on speaking up and speaking out about racism and racial injustice | Spawned Ep 236
No sooner did we all feel the relief of the George Floyd verdict last week, that even more Black Americans were needlessly shot and killed by police officers. It's upsetting, it's infuriating, it's terrifying. And we all need speak up and work toward the long overdue,...
More coolness from recent weeks…
Parenting teens: Expert answers to some of the toughest questions | Spawned Episode 243
When it comes to parenting teens, we've got lots of questions, which is why we were so thrilled to chat with Dr. Ken Ginsburg. Along with being a parent himself, Dr. Ginsburg has many years of experience from his work at the The Center for Parent and Teen...
10 fashionable beach totes we absolutely love this summer
Summer is officially here, and for those of you who are hoping to spend most of your time around the pool or at the beach...we've found some of the most fashionable beach totes to elevate your summer style. I know, you probably don't immediately think "pool bag" or...
Progressive 4th of July tees that you (and your kids) will love wearing long past Independence Day.
Let's talk progressive 4th of July tees. We feature cool flag tees and clothing of all kinds every summer, but each year, there are more and more of us looking to celebrate the best of what this country can be and should be. "Freedom for all" is not an ideal we're...
I switched to reusable bamboo paper towels to help alleviate my kids’ climate change anxiety. Here’s how it went
I committed to switching to reusable bamboo paper towels recently, in part at the urging of my teens. The realities of climate change — and the constant important conversations about it in the media — is a very real stressor for my kids. Especially since COVID, when...
7 terrific new YA books with LGBTQ+ main characters: They’re not just for Pride Month
Happy Pride! It's been such a joy finding so many terrific YA books with LGBTQ+ main characters for this post. I always turn to books when I am looking for resources to help more kids feel seen and understood -- and to help kids see and understand other kids who may...
11 of the best Prime Day 2021 Deals from brands we trust. No “ACKHYDRO” or “PROFORL7” or whatever.
Each year, we try to go through all the clutter and crap, and put together the best Amazon Prime Day deals for you. I mean, with all due respect to the "flash deals" on Amazon Prime Day that look like your Great Aunt Hilda just cleaned out her attic, This year, I'm...
Finally, a genius hybrid baby bottle: The benefits of glass with the convenience of plastic
The number of innovative baby products today that make us say, where was that when I had a baby?! seems to be growing by the second. And now there's a genius new baby bottle that answers every concern we had (and even wrote about here) when our kids were on bottles....
Elected leaders need to do more than just “recognize” Juneteenth. Tell them to act on these 5 issues.
Today marks the very first Juneteenth since the US Senate unanimously passed a resolution to make Juneteenth a national holiday this week and it was quickly signed into law by President Biden on Thursday. It's amazing! So many of us grew up never having heard of...
Parenting your kids towards their passions: A special Father’s Day episode with Christopher and Pepper Persley | Spawned Episode 242
We love seeing kids who are thriving and living their passions, which is exactly how we'd describe 10-year old Camilla "Pepper" Persley, a podcaster and journalist who specializes in professional sports (especially women's basketball). You might have seen her recent...
We tried the first LED string lights with mosquito repellent built right in. How did we live without these?
I'm all about outdoor entertaining in the summertime -- especially this year -- except the one thing that hasn't gone away are the mosquitos. Nothing kills a mood quite like your guests all slapping at themselves while trying to talk one another. So I had to run here...
We found a new bike for kids 5-12 that’s made to grow with them — in smarter and safer ways than just raising a seat
We've reached peak bike-riding season, but if you've been trying to buy a quality kids' bicycle, they aren't as easy to find in stock right now as you might thing. (Maybe because it's peak bike-riding season?) That's why a new line of bikes from leading bike...
Inspirational quote art for your home office which may be your forever office: 14 amazing quotes to encourage amazing women
She believed she could so she did. My very favorite inspirational quote. The first time I saw it, not long after I had graduated college, it was printed on a funky wooden brooch by an artist at a craft fair. I pinned it to a jacket, and wore it for ages. From then on,...
Step away from the Hydroflask! We found the best water bottles and they’re not $50 a pop either.
When my daughter needed a new water bottle for school two years ago -- or 20 years ago in pandemic time -- she had mentioned something about a Hydroflask. So I looked and...holy sticker shock. 50 bucks for a 32-oz bottle with a straw lid! I'm all for spending money on...
The coolest safe bike helmets for kids. As in, ones they’ll actually want to wear.
The best kids' bike helmet in the world won't do any good if your kid doesn't want to put it on, which is why yes, it matters if they think they have a "cool" bike helmet. We're here to help! I've spent hours searching the inventory from our favorite helmet brands (so...
The single most important thing your kids can do after they’ve been vaccinated from Covid-19
I can hardly express the relief and utter joy we've felt over the past few weeks, since my teens got their first Pfizer vaccines against Covid-19. The feelings increased substantially since their second shot -- knowing they can safely see friends, go to the movies,...
The power of influence in parenting, with Kelly Rippon | Spawned Episode 241
We read a fair amount of parenting books, and lately we've seen the idea of "influence" popping up when it comes to the role we play with our children. That's why we were so excited to welcome author Kelly Rippon as a guest on Spawned with Kristen and Liz this week....
The coolest pool floats, from yachts and butterflies, to rainbow clouds for two (for all that safe social un-distancing we’ll be doing!)
When I saw the FUNBOY pool floats my pool envy grew three sizes, because, a flamingo? Flaming lips? A rainbow unicorn? I need to have these in my life right now. And not just because they're freaking cool. They actually give back in an amazing way too. These fancy...
In the Heights movie is a celebration of love, dreams, community, family, and the melting pot that makes New York the greatest city in the world
Fair warning: This is not so much a review of the new In the Heights Movie, opening tonight, as it is a love letter. I am a movie person, as any longtime reader here knows. I'm also a Broadway person, a Lin Manuel person, and a proud native New Yorker. Put them all...
NYC is back and these baby gifts celebrate it.
A friend of mine recently asked for a good, affordable baby gift idea fo ra "very NYC couple." I often recommend the NYC ABC book that's featured in our list of the coolest birthday gifts for 2 year olds, and has appeared in our annual Best Baby Gift Guide, but now I...
A cool Father’s Day gift idea that celebrates the dad in your life, all year long.
We love the idea of gifts that keep on giving, long after the celebration is over, which is why we're so fond of photo gifts for Father's Day. Sure, it's not golf t-shirt or pair of cufflinks (no offense to either, of course), but we think there's something so special...
7 cool tie-dye pattern tutorials to help you DIY your own trendy tee
My 15-year-old son recently came home after a camp planning meeting with his friends and announced that they have decided to tie-dye their camp shirts this year. I kind of love this idea, so I wanted to look up some tie-dye pattern tutorials on You Tube to help them...