For the amount of time we all spend in our laundry room, you'd think that we would take a little more time keeping them organized, especially since the whole goal of the room is to help us get things clean. But, if you're like us, the la…
The stigma that still exists around periods and talking about the menstrual cycle is ridiculous -- but getting better. No judgment, by the way. It's ingrained in much of our culture not to talk about this stuff which (surprise!) makes it…
If you're planning a family trip to one of our amazing national parks this summer, I want to recommend that you schedule some time to let your kids take part in the National Parks Junior Ranger program. This is a wonderful educational pr…
For years, we've written about the joy and beauty and specialness of baby dolls as gifts for our kids , from newborns to toddlers, even our school-aged kids. A doll can be a cherished best friend, a bedtime comfort, a travel companion, a…
I am tired all the time. Like, I'm a parent. You are probably a parent. You get it. And yet, entertainment junkie that I am, I found myself staying up until midnight (or later!) catching up on every darn MA-rated show and movie each nigh…
I've tried many different allowance systems and allowance apps over the years with my four kids, but it wasn't until I tried this new approach at the beginning of 2019 that I was able to stick with something for longer than a month. If y…
As you may know, one of our top tips for affordable family travel , especially on an extended trip, is to rent an apartment or home instead of forking out big bucks for a hotel -- let alone renting two hotel rooms, if you've got a bigger…
I recently described my 10 tips for a Disney vacation with a special needs child , to help you ensure that the trip is as magical for all of you. But I wanted to give more details about the totally free Disability Access Service (DAS) ca…
Disney World is supposed to be the happiest place on earth, but as I was preparing for our family's recent trip, I admit I was dreading parts of it. It would be the first trip for our youngest daughter, who has cognitive special needs, a…
We all know that buying a prom dress can be an exhausting and expensive process, but after learning about these prom dress rental sites, I'm convinced it really doesn't have to be. These rental sites all let you browse online, select a d…
We talk so much about the need for STEM education. Kids need computer skills, engineering skills, science of all kinds. We mourn the disappearance of cursive from the curriculum. We discuss which books our kids should be reading, and whe…
Recently, we've seen more and more doctors recommending sleep logs and sleep journals for those of us who regularly wake during the night, or have trouble falling asleep in the first place. It makes sense. Especially for parents. One of …
Over the Thanksgiving break, we enjoyed a vacation in Paris with kids, and wow, I'm still thinking about our amazing time. I have to admit that I was worried taking my family of six to Europe for the first time, but thanks to lots of res…
If you're thinking about traveling to Iceland with kids like we did last summer, let me just say you're in for a special treat. Our trip in August 2018 was one of my all-time favorite family vacations. Whether you're currently planning a…
After reading Marie Kondo's The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up , I immediately started purging my closets and folding my clothes differently. I've also binged on her new Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo and am currently in t…
One New Year's resolution my family all agreed on was to read more books in 2019. (A resolution that seems to be going around amongst our staff!) So, in my favorite annual Cool Mom Picks post , I'm sharing all the best children's books o…
The December before my son was born, I wrote a long list of New Year's resolutions that included finishing my novel, getting my house organized, and learning Spanish in my free time Hilarious, right? Needless to say I don't habla español…
We know the holidays are full of photo opps, and lots of parents taking advantage of them. We also know that kids can be notoriously difficult to photograph, especially when there are presents and cookies to distract them from being thei…
We're scrambling to track down the last-minute holiday shipping deadlines too right now! After all, most of us busy parents are doing more and more of our shopping for the holidays online -- usually late at night, after the kids are in b…
The truth is, I've looked at a lot of lists of practical stocking stuffers around the web and... I never like them much. Because no, chocolate bars are not "practical" gifts, as much as I like getting them. And no, deodorant is not a coo…
This is a sponsored message on behalf of KnowYourOTCs.org With cold and flu season officially here, parents are doing their best to help their kids when they're not feeling well, which often means giving them over-the-counter (OTC) medic…
Now that our kids are older, it’s easy to look back and ask ourselves why we spent so much time thinking about things that didn’t really matter that much in the long run. Oh to have all of that time back! One thing we know parents spend …
We have preached for years about the #1 rule of online shopping -- always look for discount codes before you checkout -- but even we forget that it always means...well, always. In fact, there are plenty of sites that just don't spring to…
We are always on the lookout for the best teacher gift ideas every year, and it may in fact be one of the top gift questions we get from readers every year about this time. (Then again in May.) And hey, I get it; if there are any people …