More coolness from recent weeks…
How to travel with kids when you’ve outgrown a hotel room
Though three kids doesn't seem like such a big family anymore, whenever we travel I'm reminded that our party of five was never meant to be the norm for hotel rooms. We've had to squish cots into a standard room, spring for two adjoining rooms, or even go-for-broke...
It’s time to raise the curtain…
Last month, cool-tee-site Threadless held a Muppet design contest to jump on the excitement many of us feel about the new Muppets movie coming out this fall. (New Muppets! Whee!) Threadless invited anyone to submit a Muppets tee-shirt design and promised to make the...
The Breast Milk Baby Doll – Because not all babies take bottles
You may have already gotten wind of the world's first Breast Milk Baby Doll, now available in the US. And of course, it's stirring up all sorts of controversy.As hard as my husband and I tried, we could only get my older three breastfed kids take a bottle a handful of...
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Costa Rica’s Peninsula Papagayo – Undiscovered paradise for families
The idea of a family beach vacation usually conjures up images of crowded beaches, a muddy ocean, and food I will wish I hadn't eaten. Doesn't really sound like a vacation to me. So when Four Seasons Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo invited Cool Mom Picks to check out...
Tattly tattoos give you hipster cred without the needles
There are still a few things about me that give me a teeny bit of remaining indie cred (I've visited the Etsy offices! I own the first They Might Be Giants album on cassette!) but tattoos are definitely not one of them. I know, I know--they've considered kicking me...
We’ll miss you Nico and Zoe and Oliebollen!
We're always sad to see shops close, particularly when it's two of our all time faves like Oliebollen and Nico and Zoe, but there is one small bright side, that is if you'd like to score huge discounts on their gorgeous inventory. [Don't miss the amazing discounts...
Adorable wall decals that don’t hurt your walls, your kids, or the world
I'd always kind of held the opinion that if I'd seen one wall decal, I'd seen them all. That is, until Pop & Lolli wall decals came my way. And then I pretty much decided that I didn't need to see any others. Ever again. These gorgeous (and cute and funny and...
Stickers for boys. Or girls. Cool how that works.
Imagine a knight in his breeches. It's up to you to put the correct clothing and armor on him. Without the proper threads, he's absolutely lost. What's a lad to do? We've seen paper dolls before, which almost always cater to girls and often involve ballerinas,...
Your favorite silly old Pooh bear is now a soft, organic Pooh bear
The Winnie the Pooh movie hitting theaters today promises to be a sweet mix of old and new, combining classic Pooh animation with a few new voices-- like Craig Ferguson as Owl. The overall idea is to charm Pooh fans of all ages with a timeless (and mercifully...
The new giggleDeals flash sale site–like we needed another excuse to shop there
Okay, okay, we know you don't really need to hear about another flash sale site in this day of a hundred and one "great deal" emails coming into your inbox each morning. But how about one more? One perfectly-suited-to-cool-moms-with-cool-kids site? giggleDEALS went...
Bubble Bum: The portable booster seat that may be my favorite new thing ever
I'm heading out on our first European family vacation this summer (I know!) and, mom that I am, was already stressing out about the car seat situation. Just in time, I discovered the portable car booster seat Bubble Bum and have been doing the happy dance ever since....
Sponsored Post: The Family Vacation Reel 2.0
This message is brought to you by Visa The family vacation is a rite of passage, whether it's that first big trip to your child's dream amusement park, a weekend camping trip, or a European tour. If you're the one walking around with camcorder in one hand, camera...
Planning the perfect Harry Potter Party
When my newly minted 7-year old daughter asked me to throw her a Harry Potter birthday party with only two weeks to plan, I said "absolutely!" And then ran straight to my computer to try to figure out how the heck to pull this off for about eight little girls ranging...
Modern tea towels that make me want to take up dishwashing
I have a thing for tea towels, but most of the ones I see fall squarely into the Country Living school of design. What, cityfolk don't dry their dishes too? So I was happy to be introduced to San Francisco studio Studiopatro, which makes lovely linens in more...
Kitchen tools for your little sous chef
My kids are more than eager to help in the kitchen, but there's only so much they can do with a big dull butter knife and a spoon as long as their arm. Fortunately, since discovering these cool kid-size kitchen utensils, our nightly dinner service has gotten much more...
The cow says moo. That you know of.
Recently, my daughter asked why a friend's two year-old brother couldn't "act like a cow" without saying moo. I explained that animal sounds are the first way that children start to understand how to define animals. And that's why every baby's first library isn't...
A keepsake baby blanket you’ll actually use
I love the idea of buying a keepsake blanket for a baby, but in my experience, they're usually more beautiful than they are useful. However that's not the case when it comes to these mom-designed blankets that are as gorgeous as they are functional. The Spunge Design...
Angry Birds are back. Only this time, in person.
When my kids first discovered Angry Birds, I admit that it didn't take me long to join the legions of lovers. There is something about the smug little faces and the clueless looking swine that gets me every time. But there is this little problem called "too much...
Cool Mom Picks wishes you a Happy Birthday. Yes, you.
Considering my oldest daughter just turned seven (7!) last week, I've spent the better half of the last few days singing Happy Birthday. So it seemed only fitting that I'd have barely any voice left when I filmed myself doing the same for you, on behalf of our sponsor...
EWG and Cool Mom Picks agree: These 3 sunscreens rock
Does anyone else feel like buying sunscreen takes a PhD and two hours internet research? I do. And then I'm too tired to swim. That's why we're happy to share some family-tested sunscreens that we've thoroughly tested-- and we checked the EWG Skin Deep list, too,...