While I will always have a soft spot in my heart for those high-contrast, abstract-shaped, infant mobiles, admittedly they don't age well as your child gets older. The folks at CMP favorite Petit Collage have the perfect solution for tha…
It happens again and again: one dress-up lap around the living room and the creepy faux-metallic paint on your daughter's "jewelry" is already flaking off and the molded plastic clasp has begun to warp. It's not always easy to find dress…
There's something that seems to be universally fascinating to kiddos, generation after generation, about playing doctor - and by that, I mean the kind with stethoscopes and tongue depressors and a plethora of toilet paper "bandages." My …
Summer means more fresh produce, more smoothies, more road trips, and more buying and eating on-the-go. It's the perfect time to stop by a road stand or a Farmer's Market, but then there's the whole "Who touched this apple last?" thing. …
I'm not the best gardener -- my entire vegetable haul, from June to September probably equals little more than one large salad -- but gardening really is good for the soul. And, there are always gardening chores that even the smallest ki…
I'd prefer one dozen versions of the " where do babies come from " talk with my kids before I'd sign up for even one "and this is how money works" discussions. I can cheerfully rattle off twenty-seven slang terms for body parts, but ask …
Two important things for new mamas to know: not everything useful has to look utilitarian, and there will be many, many uses for burp cloths. I can justify buying gorgeous ones--despite their intended use--considering how much time they'…
How much allowance is too much? When can kids start playing video games? Will it kill them to eat dessert first? All important parenting questions, but the first few months (and really, for the first few years) you won't care about much …
Both of my kids were huge dinosaur fans from the moment they discovered the magic of the enormous T. Rex at the Museum of Science in Boston. One look at those glinty eyes and tiny hands, and they were hooked. And while I was able to find…
I remember the early baby days, when finding the time to see a big release movie like Hunger Games was even less likely than or showering regularly. Just getting out of the house seemed so exotic, and often too daunting. I wish we had th…
I always need another reason to eat cupcakes (well, I don't need a reason) and now I have one. All I need is a baby shower invitation and I'm all set. The edible icing cupcake topper folks at Ticings.com (a big fave around here) have col…
Our household has yet to meet our summer's quota of ice cream consumption (hint: it's a lot) . Happily, eCreamery, makers of that awesome custom ice cream we love, is supporting our earnest attempt to wear out our home ice cream maker th…
Bright and cheerful doesn't have to mean garish, and when it's British-based Lulabird it's even downright stylish. One of our favorite modern, hip nursery designer clockmakers are back (we're pretty much in love with their quirky owl, to…
It's awesome that so many people are eating in a more mindful fashion, making organic and sustainable choices as they are able, but that's also made food a lot more complicated -- and limiting. Allergies and dye-avoidance issues mean giv…
I've never been a big fan of personalized books. Books on their own can be so magical - why would I need my child worked into the plot somehow? There are a few personalized books for kids that we've reviewed that do the job beautifully, …
I am an earnest, but distracted gardener. I have a garden box in my yard, one withholding lemon tree, and an egg carton (maybe) sprouting herbs on my windowsill. I've also grown a fungus or two, but it's always been accidental and I neve…
If you have yet to visit, there's a deliciously gorgeous, high-end new site for the foodies mamas among us: Gilt Taste. It's like everything that's great about Gilt plus everything that was great about Gourmet . Gilt Taste in fact is hel…
It's not often you feel you really get to help nurture the seed of an idea as it develops into an independent business. We've mentioned how much we love Kickstarter as the place to help fund creative projects, and now there's a new one t…
I say we all need more poetry in our lives, but poetry so often seems to be one of those tricky things, like an exotic fruit. You enjoy it when you come across it, but it's not part of your regular consumption, especially when you are a …
Spring allergies are a) here, and b) not just a human misery. If you have pets, you probably know what I mean when I say I am really, really tired of falling asleep to the arrhythmic snorfling noises of my dog scratching and biting furio…
Sprucing up for spring usually doesn't include my kitchen utensil container, but I have long been a convert of silicone spatulas. And these swirly, pretty, funky spatulas are exactly what my kitchen needs right now. Silicone spatulas are…
Just in time for Earth Day on April 22, a new book weaves together all the intricate threads --biology, climate, culture, economics, evolution, food, history, and politic -- that combined, makes up the rich tapestry of our world. And it …
I'm one of those passionately clueless cooks who often doesn't know what she's doing until she's elbow-deep in a soup gone wrong. It would be so great to have savvy cooking support close at hand, to help me figure out how to fix my overl…
I am tired of grabbing a quick, on-the-go "power" bar for my kids (and for me), only to find yet again that we're just eating a glorified candy bar. When I choose to put candy in my kids' lunch, I want it to be mindfully (yay! candy!), a…