Got a tween girl on your list this year? I don't, I confess. But if I did, I totally know what I'd get her. (See, isn't that always the way? Now if only I could trade this great tween gift idea with someone who knows the perfect thing fo…
When the makers of the popular Wave skateboard asked me to send their much buzzed-about new Whiplash Scooter for a test drive, I was like uh...not on your life. But I have a 12 year-old nephew named Brodie who I knew could give me the sc…
Tween girls are often the hardest to shop for at the holidays - everything they covet seems to be a fortune (iPod Touch, I'm talking to you) and most of the inexpensive gifts are hopelessly disposable. But I think I just found a home run…
I still remember being about seven and getting my first set of "serious colored pencils" from my mom. I recall the pride of knowing I'd outgrown the kid stuff, and that I had been deemed worthy enough to own art supplies that came in a f…
If you're looking to knock off a half-dozen of teacher gifts or cousin gifts or classmate gifts in one fell swoop, I love the idea of the holiday ornament kit from CMP fave, Thomas Claire . This wonderful mom-run company will hook you up…
Steer clear of the fruitcake and stinky pine candles, mamas! If it's cool holiday gifts you're looking for, then we've got you covered with our brand spankin' new 2009 Holiday Gift Guide . We've scoured the web to help you solve every ho…
This year we're teaching the kids more about the joy of giving , so I wanted them to think of something they could make for their (mostly girl) cousins. Then along came the jewelry making kits from Bijoux in a Box and bam, problem solved…
Is there anything better than random acts of kindness? Well, maybe intentional acts of kindness. And if anyone is going to start a worldwide kindness revolution, my money is on the women behind Boom Boom! Cards . Essentially each of the …
Right in time for Halloween, I stumbled upon this most adorable skull and crossbones scarf at Admiral Road, made out of the same soft, cozy fleece as their personalized fleece blankets. I can imagine that even the most difficult, scarf-e…
When I went on the hunt for new toddler bedding for my daughter recently, I was amazed at some of the adorable options out there these days. One that really caught my eye is the Paper Dolls duvet set from Dwell Home Furnishings. The bedd…
What's cooler than a pair of Chuck Taylor Converse high tops? How about a pair of canvas Chucks that your kid gets to customize from the outer pattern down to the color of the shoelaces? I know! I am swooning! The Converse website is rea…
I always thought that LEGOs were cute for making walls and towers, maybe the occasional weird angular horses or something. I honestly had no idea that now you could make, oh, say...the Guggenheim Museum . Right in time for the NY landmar…
Personally I believe that Seth Rogan is the Woody Allen of our generation. So when he sported this Superjew Tee in the movie Funny People my immediate thought was Love it! Not, Hm, why don't they make those for kids? But, sometimes Holly…
With my daughter starting kindergarten, I've been thinking a lot about kids thinking lately. And more specifically: how to make thinking cool to my kid. Part of the problem? Pop culture surrounds kids with celebrations of the body, not t…
I used to love the show Happy Days--remember Arnold's and all the sports pennants hanging all over the walls? (You do remember Happy Days, right? I can't be that old.) I guess that's why I loved these personalized felt pennants from Kris…
I just do not have that kind of creativity it would entail to look at a traditional sock monkey and think, Hmm, I bet I could improve on that. But that's what CMP fave Clarity Miller did when she turned one into a Socktopus . It's virtua…
From hour-long swim lessons to screaming leaps over our backyard sprinkler, my daughters will spend much of the summer in their bathing suits. That's why we're turning to the swimwear from Girls4Sport which boasts a line of swimsuits mad…
Last spring, I recommended my family's two favorite children's scooters , the Mini Micro Kickboard and the Skoooch, based on extensive testing by three scooter-fanatic kids. During this past year, these children continued to grow as they…
If you need another reason to be happy it's spring, just check out Eleven's new Spring line of kids' shoes. A sort of "big sister/big brother" to our fave See Kai Run , Eleven offers children's shoes in bigger-kid sizes 9 to 3. I've gush…
I fondly remember those goofy frustration pencils with the googly-eyed gnomes at the top, and how you'd spin them between your palms to make the neon hair get all crazy. You know, to unload all the frustration we had pent up in fourth gr…