More coolness from recent weeks…
Swaddling blankets for the swaddling impaired
It used to drive me crazy when my son was a newborn that I couldn't learn how to swaddle properly with a swaddling blanket. My husband could. In fact, everybody else could. Why wasn't this genius product around then? I could have looked like a swaddling superstar!...
SLAPlets are bringing back slap bracelets. Say that ten times fast.
I sent my daughter to kindergarten with the new version of the slap bracelet that's out, and she was instantly the most popular girl in class. Which means absolutely nothing has changed in 25 years. Yep, slap bracelets are back. This time it's called the SLAPlet , and...
Gorgeous bookends to hold up those 16 copies of Goodnight Moon
On a trip to LA last week, I stumbled into the most adorable little Los Feliz children's boutique called La La Ling. It was one of those shops where you don't know what to buy first; even my colleagues without children were scanning their brains for friends' kids in...
A button-down shirt for boys who are growing up
My baby boy is now six, hates to be called "baby boy" and is growing like a weed, as evidenced by his way-too-small spring shirts I unearthed from the back of his closet. Let me count the ways I love Kate Emerson Designs' Boys Snap Shirt for my own little man for...
Green gets foxy
Green is everywhere this week, from the buds on the trees to St. Patty's Day decorations to the long-awaited green milk served at my table. I'm kind of already regretting that one.But here's a super sweet and foxy way to bring green into a nursery or kid's room, minus...
Fancy Finnish foot prints
I'm a sucker for designer collaborations, so when I heard Converse was partnering with Finnish design house Marimekko for the Converse Hearts Marimekko limited edition collection, I kicked off my All-Stars and ran to the computer to check out the offerings. I've...
Living la vida cumpleaños with Ricky Martin and more
Anyone who's been following the amazing efforts from our sponsor, American Cancer Society's More Birthdays campaign, knows that there's a pretty impressive roster of celebs and otherwise cool people getting in on the do-gooding and sharing their artistic...
A new website offers designer handbags at bargain prices (just ignore the name)
Some women are shoe shoe addicts. Not me. My vice is bags. I've got a closet full of hobos, totes, clutches and now diaper bags. Storage space is tight these days, so I've had to limit myself to just browsing designer handbags on the web. But a new site is really,...
Cupcake o’clock is my favorite time ever
What time is it when the little hand is pointing to the chocolate cupcake and the big hand is pointing to the cherry-topped vanilla?Who cares? It's a cupcake clock that you (or your kids) can color with crayons! In a world dominated by singing, dancing, holographic...
A Swedish sale on kids clothes as good as their meatballs
Man those Swedes are stellar when it comes to bringing beautiful design to the masses. We've long been fans of Vyssan Lull, an online purveyor of gorgeous, cheerful and eco-friendly kid's clothing with style to spare. And even more so, now that they're on crazy...
Food Pickle – answer your cooking questions faster than you can burn those cupcakes
I'm one of those passionately clueless cooks who often doesn't know what she's doing until she's elbow-deep in a soup gone wrong. It would be so great to have savvy cooking support close at hand, to help me figure out how to fix my overly salty soup, or to...
A chore chart for kids that gets five stars, a smiley face, and a “well done!”
We've long extolled the benefits of a chore chart for kids. It's remarkable the things you can get a preschooler to do in exchange for a little star sticker. (Free child labor!) Now I've found a new chore chart that not only keeps the kids motivated, it looks...
A little less KINDness. Actually a good thing.
I am tired of grabbing a quick, on-the-go "power" bar for my kids (and for me), only to find yet again that we're just eating a glorified candy bar. When I choose to put candy in my kids' lunch, I want it to be mindfully (yay! candy!), and when I reach for a healthy...
Who’s holding your diapers?
I am addicted to cool organizing products. That's not to say that I'm the most organized person out there--that would be my sister-in-law and she is a goddess. (But not the Charlie Sheen kind. Ew.) I just like fun boxes and containers which really do help wrangle the...
A ride on toy that the non-riders can love too.
I've found the degree to which children love ride-on toys seems to be in inverse proportion to how ugly they look in your living room. Cute sleek and modern? Eh. Big, shiny and plastic? Home run! But now there's one that my kids will love just as much as I'd love...
The new super cool Disney celebrity ads – Princesses, queens, and octopi, O my
Mirror, mirror, on the wall: What does the Evil Queen look like after all?For the third time, Disney has commissioned photographer Annie Leibovitz to turn beloved animated characters into spectacular dreamscape images for their ad campaign. While we don't tend to...
Design your own handbag without all that cutting and sewing business
Attention all you picky handbag ladies, daughters of picky handbag ladies, sisters or nieces of picky handbag ladies. --yeah you. You know who you are. Behold the brilliance of the design-your-own handbag line from boston Etsy seller Eclu. If you're already starting...
Hair color from a box that’s not scary or confusing
I'll be honest, I haven't used hair color out of a box since high school, which I like to refer to as my Kelly Bundy years. But I'm seriously considering now for the first time, having discovered a new line of luxury DIY hair color. Colorist Kelly Van Gogh is the mind...
Get ready to head-bop at this year’s Kindiefest
Last year, I attended Kindiefest, the coolest kids-and-family music conference and band showcase, and have been excitedly waiting for details about Kindiefest '11 ever since the calendar turned over to a new year. My daughter who came with me? Yeah,...
Do a jig over these green not-just-for St. Patrick’s Day clothes
Without fail, March 17th arrives and I start digging through my kids' dressers in the search for something, anything, green. I usually end up with one child wearing last year's soccer tee and one poor soul in a shirt that requires me telling them, If you squint,...
Gourmet organic meals for the teething set
Finding a meal that satisfies all members of my families is a mission impossible these days. Add a baby just starting solids into the mix and that spells H-E-A-D-A-C-H-E. But there's a new line of organic baby foods that just might do the trick. Sprout Organic Baby...