More coolness from recent weeks…
Talking parenting with Katie Couric
Yesterday, Cool Mom Picks editor-in-chief and publisher Liz Gumbinner joined NurtureShock co-author Ashley Merryman to talk with Katie Couric about some of today's hot parenting topics on Katie's excellent CBS News webshow, @katiecouric. If you haven't had a chance to...
Peeled organic fruit snacks – Paradise found.
"Snack" is no longer a bad word in my house. Once upon a time in my mind, one box of baked veggie sticks used to cause a downward spiral straight to childhood obesity and school drop-outs. Welcome to my neurotic brain.Of course my rational brain knows that healthy...
Hollywood Renaissance, emphasis on the naissance
We drop the word "cute" a lot, mainly because it's so versatile. Teeny tiny onesies? Cute. Gorgeous handmade jewelry? Cute. Sweet stationary? Cute. The guy who washed my hair this morning at the salon? Cute.But it's also refreshing when we find objets de baby that...
Let’s just pretend spring is here, shall we?
I have one word for this time of year and it's not nice. Stores are featuring spring clothes and outdoor toys, but outside my front door there are still the last vestiges of frozen snow, and I'm sure it's not the last of it for the season.So, for now, I'm going to do...
Wrap your gift in artwork.
These days, I'm lucky if I remember to get gifts in time at all these days, let alone have the wrapping paper on hand to wrap them up. But with an unbelievable number of birthday parties and special events crammed in my calendar, I'm determined to be prepared. And...
Celebrity style loot bags, without the celebrity-only prices
I love throwing birthday parties for my kids. Love it. But I'm a bit of an over-achiever when it comes to loot bags, generally insisting that there should be something handmade -or at least really, really cool- inside. And that means I spend precious hours (that I...
Flowery, beautiful, non-hurty hair accessories
Lately, my daughter is looking pretty sheepdoggy -- how is it that bangs grow five times as fast on an almost-4-year-old? -- and, occasionally, she will concede to wearing a hairband or ponytail so that she can actually see things before she, you know... trips over...
A parenting book you might be surprised to love
My dad died when I was 22 -- long before I met my husband, or had my son -- and my mom is very much alive. So you wouldn't necessarily think that the book Parentless Parents, by my friend Allison Gilbert, would resonate with someone like me. And yet it is one of the...
A crocheted gift set for those who can’t really crochet
Of the many talents I wished I possessed, crocheting is at the top of the list, right along with singing in key and being able to sketch something other than stick figures. Since I don't expect to inherit any of those talents any time soon, I look to outside sources...
Have a heart on Valentine’s Day
We were first introduced to the Children's Heart Foundation when we donated the proceeds from last year's color-your-own Valentine's Day card contest to their worthy efforts. So this year, we figured it was timely to remember their fantastic cause on a day that is all...
Hunter rain boots that stand out from the crowd
When the weather in New York City involves any sort of precipitation, it's hard to open an umbrella without hitting a pair of Hunter boots on the sidewalks, my own chocolate brown pair included. In fact the waterproof wellies are so ubiquitous in my neighborhood, I...
Go ask Alice
For all the eye-goggling special effects and "3D everything" in kids' movies nowadays, the 60-year-old Alice in Wonderland will still leave your kids' mouths agape as it still does mine, no funny glasses needed.If you want to take your kids down the rabbit hole, now...
Warning: Reading this book during pregnancy will make you pee yourself. Even more.
We have eagerly been awaiting the Let's Panic About Babies book every since we first became pregnant with our own babies. And that's saying something. Because back then, we didn't even know anything about authors Alice Bradley and Eden M. Kennedy, how funny they are,...
Lovely printables for Valentine’s Day
If you're a mom, you could pretty much rename Valentine's Day, Lots and Lots of Random Paper That My Kids Won't Let Me Recycle Day. Wouldn't it be great if you could start with a PDF and just print the paper you actually wanted? And wouldn't it be even greater if that...
Lift a leaf and learn about a tree
I have a soft spot for good quality wooden toys. I like them so much I find myself decorating my daughter's room with them, and these handmade, wood puzzles from Just Hatched are no exception. They're much too pretty to keep in a drawer with a variety of lovely colors...
SAVE ELMO!
Here's the bad news: In the next few days, Congress will vote on a bill that could completely eliminate all federal funding for public broadcasting. That's not an exaggeration.Here's the good news: There's still time to save Elmo.The government spends only $1.35 per...
A kids’ party that gives books back. (Plus: cookies!)
Despite light-up toys, dolls that talk, and, um, iPads, at the end of the day, nothing holds a candle -- or backlit touchpad screen -- to a good kids' book. It's a lesson my 3.5 year-old daughter has already learned, and I'm sure your kids are totally on board with...
The ugliest chocolates you’ll ever love
I have Joe Cocker in my head right now. He's singing You Are So Beautiful to Me, and I'm getting all choked up when his voice cracks at that one point at the end. He also happens to be singing the song to the unbelievably amazing treats from Ugly Truffles (at least in...
Threadless and Baggu are a tote bag perfect match
Does this rainbow umbrella design look familiar? It probably does--it's just one of the designs you'll find over at Threadless, which recently teamed up with Cool Mom Picks favorite Baggu to produce a whole series of recycled cotton canvas totes (Baggu's "duck bag")...
Consider It Done. No, really.
On any given day, I might have to drop off a neighbor's kid at his piano teacher's house although he doesn't know her last name or the name of the street on which she lives, clip a finch's toenails, and negotiate with an international credit agency for an...
Bah lovebug.
Let's face it, at some point in time, everybody ends up staring at the last flower petal, thinking, He loves me not? FINE. I've been there. In fact, I spent an entire Valentine's Day in college wearing all black as my anti-Valentine statement after a harsh break-up....