by Christina Refford | School Gear
Between summer camp and school, tossing an ice pack in with a sandwich, apple and yogurt is pretty much a no-brainer at this point. But when you consider that not all lunch boxes and ice packs are made for each other, there are plenty of times when I hesitate to pack...
by Stephanie Mayers | Toys + Playthings
Puzzles are the new family time favorite of our preschooler who is outgrowing her wooden pegged farm animals for more complex designs. I am happy to indulge her, but I refuse to throw down any more money on unimaginative cartoon character puzzles. I think puzzles can...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
Once kids are past the age of banging on an overturned pot and wooden spoon,they can now move onto something more melodious than a simple percussion instrument. And while their fingers may not yet be big enough to tickle the ivories, they can make some beautiful music...
by Cool Mom Team | Father's Day Gifts
Gourmet gifts make great Father’s Day gifts for any dad, at least in our families. It’s hard not to be thrilled by a little something sweet (or salty or sour or beer-y) to go with that sentimental card. Here, a few tasty Father’s Day picks for the...
by Cool Mom Team | Doing Good
This post is sponsored by Chase — a strong supporter of the 100,000 Jobs Mission, a program that helps find jobs for veterans of the US armed forces. Learn more here: As if I needed yet another reason to love technology, it’s worked wonders in opening up...
by Christina Refford | Toys + Playthings
I’ve seen enough tangram activities in my kids’ math books to know that they are supposed to be great at fostering an early understanding of geometry, spatial reasoning, and design. But eh, my kids just think they are fun and make neat pictures. So when we...
by Kristen Chase | Storage + Organization
On most days, I don’t even know why I bother folding and putting the kids’ clothes away because the drawers just end up in complete shambles. Forget even trying to maintain any level of organization within a drawer, I’m lucky if the underwear...
by Eva Glettner | Books for Adults
Trish Herr takes homeschooling to an entirely new level. Instead of white boards, we are talking white peaks. Her children carry backpacks with more than just pens and pencils–think emergency supplies, whistles, and trail mix. In this very unique memoir,...
by Christina Refford | Family Travel
Spring is in the air (hooray!) which means summer can’t be all that far behind. And while the word “summer camp” still fills my head with images of gimp and campfires, your kids’ options now go way beyond the camps of my youth, with specialty...
by Cool Mom Team | Doing Good
It’s crushing to have to write that cancer affects all of us in some way these days. That includes the parenting blog community, who recently lost Susan Niebur recently, an amazing scientist, mother, and friend to everyone at Cool Mom Picks. We were constantly...
