Cool Mom Picks - the coolest gifts and gear for parents

Saturday 07 November

Shoes for big kids? Reader Q&A

I am a mama of three little ones, my oldest is five and we are running into a dilemma. There seems to be a lack of cute shoes after size 12. Please would you help? You guys always have the best recommendations! -Gabrielle

I've actually got the opposite problem over at my house, Gabrielle, with my teeny-footed kiddos. But luckily, a few of our favorite shoe purveyors offer great picks up through size 12.

Find More: Ask Cool Mom Picks, Kids Shoes

Saturday 07 November

This is one turkey I'd pardon

As a long-standing semi-vegetarian, I have a soft spot in my heart for the hapless turkey at this time of the year. So no one will be surprised if one of my kids shows up to Thanksgiving dinner wearing this absolutely adorable Gobble Gobble Turkey shirt for kids from Bright. This collaboration between CMP's own Carrie Damen (hi Carrie! Surprise!) and Sara Williams is the complete antithesis to all those hideous holiday sweaters that start popping up this time of year.

Printed on either a slate or chocolate brown American Apparel cotton tee, their little gobbler may not be as smart as the shirt looks -- he actually seems like he'd hop right off the shirt and sit in your lap while you eat your Thanksgiving dinner. Do not let him eat the scraps, 'kay? -Christina

Find the Thanksgiving Turkey shirt at the Bright Etsy shop. If you do not see your size listed (of if they happen to sell out), just convo the designers, and they'll see if they have it.

Find More: Holiday Picks, Kids Clothing

Pixorial - Ushering back the return of the Betamax

Some of my favorite memories: Seeing Paris when I was 8. My senior year dance performance. Bungee jumping off a crane over the Hudson River. And they're all saved on video tape. As in, not DVDs. And since we've ditched the VCR, there's not much chance to relive the memories or torture my friends with them when they visit.

Pixorial is the kind of service you need if you've got an old skool media library - they'll convert your VCR tapes to DVD, and casettes, and film too, then store it for you on their servers. It's a smart way to preserve those memories (casette tape doesn't last forever you know) but even better, you can then upload it back to your computer so you can edit your own movies to share it with the world.

How much would grandma love a long, tear-inducing video compilation of all your old home movies this holiday?

The basic membership is free and so are uploads up to 10GB if you just want to use the editing software, or send one of the free holiday ecards with your video imbedded. But I say upgrade to the $24.95 membership for unlimited storage. The stuff they convert for you is extra, but not bad at all - $14.99 for a VHS tape. Or a Betamax.

You know who you are, you Betamax people. -Liz

Convert your VCR tapes and old media to DVD and edit, save or share them in free ecards with Pixorial

Find More: Free or close to it, Helpful Services, Media, Tech, CMP-Style

Save the monkeys - eat more cookies

I kinda love everything about Late July organic snacks. I love that they're organic and free of HFCS and all that other garbage. I love that they're charitably-minded. I love that the company is run by a mom who even sneaks pictures of her kids into all the labels. So not surprisingly, I love their new Mini Sandwich Cookies too.

Yes, of course they're delicious. I mean hello, Oreo-style white chocolate and milk chocolate cookies? What's not to like? But on top of it, each cookie is stamped with one of seven endangered animals, and 10% of the profits go to the Jane Goodall Institute which really walks the walk about protecting animals around the world. Because these cookies are organic they're pricey, but at least you can feel like you're getting more for your money than just calories.

It's also good to know that the cookies are teeny. Like, really teeny. So I can give my kid three whole cookies and she thinks I'm the greatest mom in the world. -Liz

Find Late July organic cookies in bulk at their online shop, coming soon to our affiliate amazon, or in stores all over the country.

Find More: Causes and General Do-Gooding, Food and Drink, Organics

Friday 06 November

Trying Funny Stuff makes me want my kids music with extra Jimmies

I don't want my kids to grow up listening to lame, easy-listening music which is why The Jimmies' fun-rock songs have been on heavy rotation since we got Make Your Own Someday, their first CD, a couple of years ago. And now with their jam-packed DVD/CD combo, Trying Funny Stuff, complete with music videos, a laugh-out-loud "making of" documentary and live-concert footage, we are even more happily covered in Jimmies.

Trying Funny Stuff kicks off with six music videos of some of our favorite songs, like the rocking Cool to be Uncool and the sweetly nostalgic Taddy. The videos are so well done, they'd be MTV-worthy if MTV played kids' music and, well, still showed music videos.

(In fact, don't miss CMP editor Liz's daughter making a brief red-mohawked cameo as a toddler punk rocker in the catchy Bedhead.)

It's impossible to not love lead singer Ashley Albert throughout the DVD: She's like your funniest girlfriend wrapped up in your kids' favorite aunt, and then sprinkled with just enough 7-year-old to make booger gags acceptable. In fact, the whole band is so adorably fun, I expect to find a handwritten note on my kids' pillows telling me that they've run away to be the band's roadies. I hope they send me concert tickets -Christina

Trying Funny Stuff DVD/CD combo from The Jimmies is available exclusively at Barnes & Noble.

EXTRA COOL: WIN IT! We have a copy of The Jimmies' new Trying Funny Stuff for one reader. Just send an email to contests@coolmompicks.com by midnight PT with JIMMIES in the subject line and include the following: Name two of the music videos you can preview on The Jimmies' website.

Find More: Media, Tunes

Modern Hanukkah menorahs? Thanks, Jonathan Adler

Modern Hanukkah Menorah by Jonathan Adler

Jewish kids know all about the Hanukkah miracle but what they don't know is how hard it can be to celebrate it in cool, modern style. Well I have to tell you, when I saw Jonathan Adler's collection of modern menorahs and Hanukkah gifts I proclaimed that a huge miracle as well.

The Relief Hanukkah Menorah is simple, sculptural, and not quite cheap at $98, but not a huge investment either. I also love the Jonathan Adler dreidel

porcelain Mod Dot dreidel and Enamel dreidel which make for great hostess gifts if you've got Hanukkah party invitations starting to trickle in. So yay, Jonathan, for making Hanukkah accessories that I'd be happy to display around the house the other 357 days a year. -Betsy

Find this modern Hanukkah Menorah, cool dreidels and more at Jonathan Adler

Find More: Around the House, Holiday Picks

Adventures in Babysitting - now free from Care.com

When it comes to finding childcare, I'm one of the lucky ones with built-in babysitters (as in, my parents) living a few blocks away. There's a downside or two to having my parents around the corner, trust me, but when it comes to finding someone to watch my kids I've got it pretty good.

But what if my parents are traveling (as they've had the nerve to do a lot lately)? Or busy? Or just not in the mood to hang out with their grandchildren the moment I want them to?

That's when I'd be turning to a service like Care.com, which just so happens to be opening up their entire site for a free weekend of access from November 6-8 all in honor of National Family Caregivers Month. We're talking the full benefits of a premium membership starting today. This awesome (and actually kind of fun) website willhook a mama up with profiles of local babysitters, nannies, tutors and more, including references and contact information.

So I'm going to try on my highest heels and shortest dress. Because I think I'm going out this weekend. Without feeling like I owe anything to my mother. -Stephanie

Visit Care.com this weekend and take advantage of the free database of caregivers and babysitters. Also, enter the Care Hero contest on Facebook and win your amazing caregiver a $500 night on the town sans kids.

Find More: Free or close to it, Helpful Services, Websites

Thursday 05 November

The anti-cameo cameo necklace

I was just poking around Etsy (I do that a lot) and I came across a link to the KnitKnit shop from Brooklyn artist Nguyen Le. And there I spotted this incredible cameo necklace and just fell in love. Or rather, it looks like a cameo, but it's actually all needle felted by hand. Except for the chain part, of course, which is brass. How great is that!

So great that I ran right over here to share it with you. Although if I admit it, I was reluctant. Because it's the kind of thing I'd want to get and then make sure no one else had one ever.

So okay, I shared. What can I say, I'm a sharer. But don't make me tell you about the blue cameo necklace, okay? -Liz

Find the cameo necklace and more at KnitKnit

Find More: Baubles & Bags

Small space baby gifts? Reader Q&A

My sister lives in Brooklyn and had a baby girl in June. I know that her living space is very limited and I am having trouble finding cool gifts to give to the baby. I was wondering if I could get suggestions on things that would be cool as well as functional in their limited space. -Melissa

Knowing how it can be challenging to manage baby stuff in a tight space, it's nice that you've got that on your mind when buying a gift, Melissa. I asked our Editor-in-Chief Liz, our resident Brooklyn-ite and expert on small living spaces and she came up with some great ideas:

Find More: Art+Decor (Sounds Fancy), Ask Cool Mom Picks, Baby Clothes

Bowling night

Ever since we got a Nintendo Wii, my kids have been hooked on bowling. Okay, try completely obsessed. But I figured instead of having them beg to play the virtual version every day, they could do the real thing right at home with the retro pin bowling set from Little Sapling Toys.

Forget those plastic bowling toys that get beaten up after a few swift tosses - this set of ten pins and two balls is hand carved from maple and finished with local beeswax and jojoba oil, ensuring that splinters cannot be used as an excuse for gutter balls.

We love that for each toy purchased from Little Sapling Toys, they'll plant a tree, and really, there's just something about the real crash of wooden pins and the fighting over who has to set them up again that you just don't get from a video game. -Kristen

Find amazing handmade wooden toys at Little Sapling Toys.

Find More: Toys and Other Playthings