More coolness from recent weeks…
Design Online: Making your home more like the one you imagine and less like the one it actually is
When it comes to interior design, let's just say that my spirit is willing but my flesh is weak. I admire fabulous design, but possess neither the knack nor the bottomless pocketbook to bring it to life without some serious help. If I were in LA, I could rely...
Mommy cards get smarter, even as mommies don’t
I used to be really good at remembering names and faces. A little stalkerish even. But then I had children and a good percentage of my brain cells expired from lack of sleep. Now I'm lucky if I remember my own name, let alone the names of those three...
New for Baby gets color happy
Last weekend I had to buy baby gifts for two kids who are now toddlers, because the pressure I put on myself to buy something so useful and practical and cool and life-changing is so great that I end up procrastinating. For more than a year.Too bad I didn't know about...
Jamie Lee Curtis’s children’s books give me another reason to be jealous of her
Like it's not cool enough that she's married to Christopher Guest and has started in A Fish Called Wanda, and exemplifies the phrase "hot mama"--now Jamie Lee Curtis has an entire children's book library to her name, and they're all terrific.(Okay, yes so I totally...
Paper Mobiles – Design Meets Function for one very happy baby
One of the great things about having a baby now as compared to even four years ago when I had my first is the ton of choices parents have as far as nursery decor. Take the mobile, which is no longer something you just buy in a themed set along with your bedding.I'm...
Ghost Clusters!
I'm happy to say that these adorable little Halloween goodies from New Hampshire's L.A. Burdick's Chocolate are definitely treats and not tricks. Each ghostly center is made up of the kind of gourmet hazelnut and dark chocolate ganache that makes my eyes roll back...
C’mon, cooler weather! Mama needs a new pair of children’s dresses.
When I lived in the frozen north, my favorite part of warmer weather was definitely the bright colors and flounces of my daughter's spring wardrobe. But that was before I discovered Kit + Lili and realized that all that vibrancy can be a winter staple too.These...
Utterly charming cards. Really.
While I'll happily spend hours browsing through all types of stationery, searching for just the right mix of simplicity and elegance, greeting cards almost always leave me cold. Blame it on years of searching for some idealistic notion of preprinted sentiments...
Shop Nest, improve women’s lives
If only there was a way to get fabulous clothing, accessories, and other merchandise while helping others in need. Oh, wait--there is.Shopping at Nest is truly the best of both worlds -- the money from your purchases of various artisan goodies are given out as...
Street smart
Diaper bags are getting less and less diaper bag-y by the minute, which is just the way we like 'em. The latest entrant into the Project Runway-ready bag category are the new Street Chic bags from longtime CMP fave, Boujie Baby.The two Basilia bags in faux croc or...
Design your own monster without the scary bill
At Cool Mom Picks we definitely love all these awesome companies springing up that allow kids to create their own stuffed animals, monsters, or mutant alien hybrid creatures. But if you're on a tight budget, you must head directly for CurlyQ Cuties.While they don't...
Forget the $2000 stroller. Register for homemade meals instead.
About three days after I gave birth to my daughter, my friend Lisa brought over some dinner. I can still remember the exact menu: Bulgarian Stuffed Peppers, salad and a loaf of crusty bread. In my post-birthing daze, it was the single best gift I received--those...
Flannel receiving blankets get a makeover
Once I discovered muslin swaddling blankets, my flannel ones all became changing pad liners. But as the cool weather approaches, there is something wonderfully comforting about wrapping your sweet baby in softness and warmth.With fall here (and a new baby too!), I'm...
Plein de Vie: The remedy for what ails you, and you, and you…
There is nothing quite like the feeling of having everything you need in your purse. Tissues? Check. Crayons? Check. Emergency first aid for all aiments both real and imagined? Check. That's why I am a huge fan of the Plein de Vie On-the-Go Remedy Stick. Made of all...
Now you’re cooking, kiddo
It doesn't seem fair that kids can now have a nicer pretend kitchen than my real one. Then again, mine does run on more than just imagination.Our friends at Natural Pod has just debuted two heirloom quality wooden play kitchens that they designed themselves, and they...
Besitos Designs: DIY multicutural kidswear
We're always looking out for multicultural dolls, toys and gifts for kids, but so many of them sort of run out of inspiration after the whole "let's do a multiculural doll, toy and gift" part. Besitos Designs, however nails it. The concept is the brainchild of...
Halloween bags: Black, orange, and now, green
If you're looking for something more eco than a plastic trick or treat bag this year, of course you could paint a pillow case like we like did in the good old days (my parents were green and didn't even know it!) or reuse a shopping bag you've already got on hand. But...
They’re shakin’ in Chicago, we’re dancing over here
Thaddeus Rex's latest CD, Shakin' in Chicago, is for parents and kids who have moved beyond sugar-sweet versions of You Are My Sunshine. (Read: all of us). T. Rex has a unique voice and rocks the acoustic guitar in a way that reminded me of the Violent Femmes, if the...
Who are we to say that 9 year-olds can’t vote?
Apparently the upcoming Presidential election is a hot topic at the local elementary school, so I've become a little more careful when spouting off, lest my words be repeated at recess: Well, MY mom says...Thank goodness Linda Ellerbee has stepped in to stop my...
Halloween hair clips that do all the talking, if not the candy collecting
I love Halloween, but prefer it when all the decor falls into to the realm of tasteful instead of "ohmigosh, did you see that crazy thing?" That's one reason I want Details soft felt Halloween hair clips at The Silly Wagon which are full of Halloween cheekiness but...
To the moon, little adventurers
It's really nice to see a different kind of illustrator lend her talents to childrens clothes--one that seems more suited to a Caldecott winning book than a local flea market with the table between the funnel cakes and the guy with the batteries in the Spanish...