The Ultimate 2023 Kids' Gift Guide: Our favorites for kids from 1-18

We’ve carefully curated the best gifts of the year for kids by age. Even those picky teens.

The latest from Spawned: Our award-winning parenting podcast

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More coolness from recent weeks…

M is for Mandelbrot Fractal Set

M is for Mandelbrot Fractal Set

There is no law that says that A has to be for Apple and B has to be for Banana. Especially if you’re one of those edumacated households with perhaps a mathematician or a chemical engineer at the dinner table.

Seeing Read

Seeing Read

When a recent trip left me pondering The Complete Works of Shakespeare versus How to Fix The Kitchen Sink as potential beach reads, I realized I had a problem. The shelves in my home library are overflowing with nonfiction and kids’ books, but the fictional reading selections are positively uninspiring.

Juno What’s On The TV?

Juno What’s On The TV?

After my secondweekend-long absence from the girl, I came home to find her speaking several new words. She can now say helicopter, big candy, and, inexplicably to me at first, juno baby.

All Creatures Great On Wall

All Creatures Great On Wall

I have a confession: I’m a complete and total insect-loving mama. I was raised to appreciate the little buggers with wall-to-wall ant farms in my childhood bedroom and fish tanks full of snails in the backyard.

Buh-Bye, Burns

Buh-Bye, Burns

I was a fair-skinned child who grew up at a time when the sun was worshipped, not respected. Think baby oil and reflectors. Yikes. I had more than my share of heinous sunburns, and now that I know better, I’m doing my best to spare my children that pain–or worse

Lettering in Toddler Fashion

Lettering in Toddler Fashion

Fall is in the air and I can almost smell the school lunches. Okay, so my toddler isn’t going to high school anytime soon, but that doesn’t mean I can’t dress her like alittle varsity superstar.

Only a Baby’s Butt is Softer

Only a Baby’s Butt is Softer

You’vebeen there before: You get the baby shower invite, peruse the registry, and try to figure out what you can buy that will actually be of use. And let’s be honest, a "keepsake blanket" is probably not at the top of your list. Isn’t that just a polite way of saying "blanket that goes in the cedar chest covered with moth balls?"

Like a Monkey on Your Back

Like a Monkey on Your Back

My back hurts. New moms know what I’m talking about–it’s all that lugging around baby blankets and baggies full of Cheerios and water bottles and diapers. And in my case, multiple hats. Always multiple hats.

Nice Package

Nice Package

I’m a sucker for great wrapping. Yep, I’m the one at gift exchanges who instead of shaking the box and examining its size and shape picks a present solely on the pretty paper — even as I end up the proud owner of a new electronic nose hair trimmer.

I’m Pining for Some Wood

I’m Pining for Some Wood

With an anti-sleep toddler, I barely have time to get a shower, let alone match jewelry to an outfit. But that doesn’t mean I’m willing to sacrifice my stylish tendencies. Itjust means that I need pieces that can multi-itask as competently as I try to.

When You’re Too Sleep-Deprived to Cut Through the BS

When You’re Too Sleep-Deprived to Cut Through the BS

As a new mom, it’s hard to know where to turn for good advice. There are several websites offering free newsletters, which at their best clutter up your in-box unopened. At their worst, they make you feel like if you don’t buy a particular developmental toy from their online store right now now NOW, your child will grow up to rob banks and torture small animals.

Let’s Hear it For Less Laundry!

Let’s Hear it For Less Laundry!

We all know that any eating, drooling, or art-making extravaganza on the part of your toddler is never pretty. But while you may successfully protect your child’s cute top with a smock, the pants are never so lucky.

Out of Africa

Out of Africa

One of the greatest gifts my daughter received for her recent birthday was a pair of hand-batiked t-shirts–especially once I discovered the story behind the label. My ever socially-conscious (and gift giver extraordinaire) best friend tracked them down through Global Mamas, a non-profit helping small women-led businesses in Africa.

Where the Real Stars Hang

Where the Real Stars Hang

If you’re a frequent reader of Cool Mom Picks, then you know we believe that being a cool mom transcends what kind of diaper bag you carry. For the past three years I’ve balanced my love of stuff with my work for the Starlight Starbright Foundation, a non-profit organization for seriously ill children and their families.

Nursing, the Rock ‘n Roll Way

Nursing, the Rock ‘n Roll Way

The nursing pillow: The number one item on every baby registry. The nursing pillow: The number one ugliest textile in my home. Finally, FINALLY someone has come up with a solution.