The latest from Spawned: Our award-winning parenting podcast
The latest from Spawned, our award-winning parenting podcast
Why our teens are so darn tired, with author Lisa L. Lewis | Spawned Episode 286
Just when I thought I was pretty aware of what I needed to know about teens and sleep, I got my hands on Lisa L. Lewis's book The Sleep-Deprived Teen: Why Our Teenagers Are So Tired, And How Parents And Schools Can Help Them Thrive and I realized there was so much I...
The impact of Covid on kids: Anya Kamenetz on what we know and what we don’t yet | Spawned Ep 285
This week on Spawned, I have the honor of welcoming back the wonderful Anya Kamenetz, NPR Education reporter and author, to talk about her new book, The Stolen Year: How Covid Changed Kids' Lives...and Where We Go Now. I will tell you this: From the title alone, this...
What you need to know about perimenopause, with Dr. Makeba Williams | Spawned Episode 284
If you're like me, you got to your mid-40s and suddenly started to get weird period symptoms and sort-of hot flashes and night sweats and asked yourself, "Wait, is this perimenopause?" Well, we're not the only ones. Even though perimenopause happens to all of us women...
More coolness from recent weeks…
What is Labor Day? This book (and its read-aloud video) is a perfect way to explain.
I'm not sure how many kids have ever really asked what is Labor Day? It's become synonymous with the unofficial end of summer, a three-day weekend, barbecues, and yeah, mattress sales. So much so, we kind of blow past it without the tributes and memorializing we tend...
Free printables for kindergarten: Sight word help, 12 ways | Back to School Guide
Finding all of these free sight word printables for kindergarten instantly brings me back to those sweet early days of school, sniff. I have teens now, but I remember how scary it could be to send your kid off to kindergarten, hoping that their reading and writing...
Here are the organizations fighting against unnecessary gun violence. Don’t lose hope.
While this is not a political site per se, we have never shied away from sharing the causes, concerns and values that are dear to us as parents and as humans. And so I would be remiss if I didn't write about unnecessary gun violence and what we can do about it. In...
The coolest lunch box accessories, water bottles, and other goodies to make school lunch more fun | Back to School Shopping Guide
Each year, in our annual back to school shopping guide, we always love tracking down those cool lunch box accessories, water bottles, bentos, and other fun goodies that help make opening that same old lunch box every day a little more special. Some of of these lunch...
Setting up a study space at home: Tips to make it one your kid will actually use
So many parents have learned over the past few years that setting up a study space at home is more important than ever. Maybe you homeschool, maybe your kids just need a dedicated space for homework, or maybe they've got virtual tutoring or other extracurricular...
The Maui wildfires and how to help: A list of trusted organizations (Updated)
It's been devastating watching the fires in Maui this week, and I've been looking for some ways to help. Their hospitals are overwhelmed, historic sites have been burnt to the ground, thousands have been evacuated, families are searching for missing loved ones, and...
10 important things all kids should know before leaving home and going to college. Sniffle.
With my oldest heading off to college this fall, I've been thinking about all the things kids should know before leaving home. And it's a lot. In fact I've found myself in a sort of panic mode wondering whether she knows some basics to help her navigate life. As...
7 creative time-saving hacks to save your back-to-school routine. | Back to School Guide
When we think back to school season, we're also thinking about those time-saving hacks we dust off to ease out of the summer groove and ready for our September (or August!) routines. While our Annual Back to School Guide mostly features the coolest new backpacks,...
15 of the coolest backpacks for preschool and kindergarten | Back to School Shopping Guide
When we put together our picks for the coolest backpacks for preschool and kindergarten each year, we think about how exciting it is for little ones to pick what may likely be their very first school gear ever. They seriously geek out over all their school...
Lunch bags and totes for teens who have outgrown lunch boxes | Back to School Shopping
As our kids have gotten older, we know they prefer lunch bags to lunch boxes because it's so much easier to shove into a backpack--especially when they may or may not have a locker. And of course, it doesn't look so "little kid" The key is finding a lunch bag for...
20 cool backpacks for teens this year | Back to School Guide
When we look for cool backpacks for teens, it's not enough for them to just be, you know, cool. As kids head to middle school or high school— especially after a whole year at home more or less (sigh) — they need bigger, sturdier backpacks, better shoulder straps, and...
Sale alert: Liz’s favorite puffy, textured, and braided sandals right now. This trend’s not going anywhere!
Last year, a colleague with an "in" in the designer shoe world tipped me off that puffy textured sandals, woven textures and braided straps were going to be hot for spring/summer. I blink and whoa -- sure enough, they've been flooding the "new arrivals" category in my...
7 smart tips for staying in a hotel with toddlers. (Real tips, not those ridiculous TikTok hacks)
It was time for us to bring back some solid tips for staying in a hotel with toddlers, babies or even older kids. Because this week, we all started seeing this "TikTok hotel hacks" article going around and sheesh! It seems the article was made more for paranoid single...
The 3 things I will always always buy at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale: Great deals!
While I'd love to buy a ton of things at the Nordstrom Anniversary sale, I try to be smart about it. That means besides one or two things I've had my eye on, I stick with items that I already love and need refreshing. Especially when they're the kinds of things I...
10 of the coolest backyard water toys to help beat the heat at home (including, yes, a Barbie Movie kiddie pool.)
This is a terrific time to find some cool backyard water toys for the kids, because they're all on sale, and let's be honest, we're all feeling the heat this summer. Back in 2020 we first shared our favorite backyard water toys when we were all stuck at home dealing...
13 dorm room essentials you might not have considered | Back to School Guide 2023
I've become a bit of a pro at picking out dorm room essentials, which means separating the must-haves from the nice-to-haves from the not-going-to-haves. Especially iff I'm paying for it. Having sent all of my three kids away to college, it's become clear how much I...
Outrageously fun swim goggles for kids: 7 styles for aspiring mermaids, mermen, and merpeople
One of my favorite things about taking my son to swim lessons is seeing all the fun swim googles for kids that have become so popular over the last few years. Eyelashes goggles! Rhinestone goggles! Shark's teeth goggles! Sequined goggles! Where were these when I was a...
“Acceptance is Protection”: Kate Brookes on parenting a trans kid, or any child on their own path. | Spawned 299
I could not be more thrilled to share this wonderful interview with award-winning TV reporter/producer/mom Kate Brookes, author of the upcoming Transister: Raising Twins in a Gender-Bending World. While our conversation is super helpful for parents looking for advice...
Game on! These 6 fun group board games are perfect for summer camp. Or just summer friends.
When I send care packages to my boys at summer camp, I generally include snacks and silly toys for them to goof around with. And in Liz's post packed with the best ideas for summer camp care packages, she talks a lot about sending fun board games the whole bunk can...
Getting your kids to practice their handwriting: 16 fun tips, tricks and ideas
Call us the handwriting brigade. Seriously. From day one, even with the advent of technology and the slow decline of handwriting instruction (let alone cursive, gah!) in schools, we've always made it our mission to encourage kids not to lose the art of handwriting....
7 tips for healthy co-parenting when you’re recently divorced or separated
Our team at Cool Mom Picks jokes that we have a lot of children among us, but the truth is, we have quite a few divorces and separations among us too. That means we've had a lot of experience trying to achieve healthy co-parenting, having navigated some admittedly...