It's a Nice Day for Some Black Bedding
So you had to take out your belly ring, and your maternity pants cover up your lower back tattoo. But just because you've sacrificed a little of your own rock n' roll style for motherhood doesn't mean you have to give up entirely.
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Argh, Scurvy Baby!
There's something about a tiny little piece of jewelry with my daughter's name on it that calls to me. The problem is, I'm just not one for the pink beaded numbers with the teddy bear charms.
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Let Your Proud Mama Out
Do you know how hard it is not to wave pictures of my daughter at every passerby? I vowed never to be sucked into the wallet-photo flasher club, however on some occassions, I just can't help myself.
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Pump Up The Volume
Sometimes you want music for your children that teaches essential pre-school concepts like counting or sharing. But then there are times you and your kids just want to rock. And that's when you need a copy of the brand new CD from Brooklyn-based Audra Rox: I Can Do It By Myself!
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Only One Sheep Required
As an avid musician, children's toys and music boxes have all but killed my love for music--it's nearly impossible to find a nice nursery music maker that isn't bright yellow and blue and doesn't play a weird choppy version of Fur Elise. (You know, that awful Beethoven piece that you never want to hear ever again).
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Beyond Cheerios and American Cheese
I'm a huge fan of ethnic foods, however any attempts to get my 2-year-old to try curry or sushi has failed miserably. Well, I may just have found a solution that requires neither cooking, nor the hurling of unusual foods in the nice, quiet restaurant.
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Picking the Bucket
I'm always looking out for interesting gift sets for new babies, and there are certainly plenty to choose from. But once in a while I find one with a nice extra touch, and that's the one I just have to get. In this case, it's the gift buckets from Confetti Kidz.
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Show 'Em The Battleship, Emma
They're the latest and greatest non-edible treat for kids: Temporary tattoos. Way cooler than character-themed bandages covering non-existent boo-boos, and with better results than freehand Sharpie drawings, temporary tattoos let kids decorate themselves (instead of the walls--key!) without consequence.
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Family Tree
For some reason, finding a photo ornament to hang on the tree is like looking for a recipe for no-calorie cheesecake--it's out there, but you're not gonna like it.
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A Pregnancy Book That Won't Cause Night Sweats
The combination of hormones and excitement forced me to buy umpteen pregnancy books that caused me anxiety for most of my pregnancy. Other than the few times I referenced them for help with weird uterus pangs and a description of "the mucus plug," the stack of them were better as a nursing stool than source of comfort.
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Mod Farm
Cool Mom Picks is constantly on the lookout for truly fantastic kids' room art, and it's not easy. Just google "nursery art" sometime, and behold the frightening array of garish watercolor farm animals in straw hats. The prints look more like something from one of those Starving Artist stadium shows than something you'd be proud to display over a crib.
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From Field to Fingers
Let's face it, some parents aren't gourmet chefs, let alone halfway decent cooks, so when it comes time for solid foods, many of us (and yes I'm raising my hand, here) struggle with the guilt that comes with feeding the kid pears out of a jar.
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The Other Hendrix
I love to find moms making great kids' music. And I love it even more when those moms turn out to be smart, funny, and cool – the kind of mom I would want to hang out with at the park or at soccer, if only she would have me.
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Heart-Felt Art
I've always believed there's something special about a child's name. While my daughter's name is not "a family name" but rather just one we both agreed on (which was a feat in and of itself), it still feels as if it were meant for her, both in its sound, meaning, and intent.
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Dressing the Bambino
I have a thing for kids clothes that just look like...well, kids clothes, as opposed to mini versions of what parents are wearing. Don't even get me started on blazers for infants and belly-baring toddler tees.
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Let's Give Them Something to Talk About
Living away from friends and family has its good and bad points. Sure, you don't have to deal with unannounced visits from the in-laws, but you do have to cope with the millions of questions pertaining to your child. Is she talking? What is she saying? Why don't you put her on the phone...?
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Dollhouse Meets 2006
I know my daughter would love a dollhouse, however, I just can't give in to buying a huge pink plastic house with frilly shutters and a white picket fence. Just thinking about it gives me a weird sugar high. Plus, I'd love my next child (perhaps a son?) to be able to enjoy playing with a cool house without having to endure all the oozing girliness.
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Keep it Simple, Silly
With all the paintings, knick-knacks, and brightly colored toys in my daughter's room, it's a wonder she can actually sleep. Combine that with the busy crib bedding patterns that most stores sell, and it's overstimulation central in there.
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Thinking Pink, Much To My Daughter's Delight
I find myself spending way too much time trying to break up the monotony of pink clothes in my two-year old's wardrobe. But I've finally found a reason to make an exception.
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The Bibless Bib
We've highlighted many a bib here at Cool Mom Picks and I am firm believer that bibs are a necessity through toddlerdom.Which is not to say that I ever remember to actually bring them anywhere.
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Ta-Ta For Now
Who does not like a healthy set of ta-tas? No, one that's who. Which is exactly the premise behind Save the Tatas, Julia Fikse's humorous tee-shirt company dedicated to promoting breast cancer research through humor.
The One Purple Dinosaur Allowed in My Home
My 2-year-old daughter thinks that everything must follow a specific theme and lately, it's dinosaurs. Pink or purple, only. However, have you tried finding pink or purple dinosaur anything these days--that's not the bloated guy in the suit?
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Girlie Art
While we tend to gravitate towards monsters and robots more than princesses and ballerinas in our household, there's something entirely capitvating about the little girl art of Colorado artist and mom Carla Sonheim.
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Sometimes You Just...Click
When it comes to making new mom friends, I have excellent intentions but admittedly, terrible follow-through. Sometimes life just gets in the way of picking up the phone and making plans.
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Maximum DenCity
Show me a woman who can resist one of those Cosmo-style "what type are you?" quizzes, and I'll show you a man in drag. Which means women are going to love the jewelry from independent San Francisco jewelry designer Kim Shephard at her online boutique, Urban Dencity.
Designer Shirts...by My Two-Year Old
If you're like me, your little artist's masterpieces have taken over your walls and your refrigerator. And maybe you took our advice this past summer and made cool stationery out of their best artwork, sending the rest off to the grandparents for "safe keeping."
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The Girlfriend's Guide to "Get That Out Of Your Mouth"
I'm not a big fan of the "D" word, but when I do need to watch what I eat, I find that misery loves company. Or to put it in a more positive light, I like to have a friend to diet along with me so we can scream YEAH! together when the scale moves in the right direction.
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Life is Good in the Sack
As I prepare for the arrival of #2, the memories of newborn-dom are sneaking back up on me. I distinctly remember bumbling around in the wee hours of the morning trying to change a diaper and resnap the dreaded baby onesie as quickly as possible so not to lose any extra minutes of precious sleep.
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Just Watch Out for Stage Diving
So you've traded in your black motorcycle jacket for a fleece pullover. And your you-know-what-kicking boots have now taken the shape of comfy black clogs. But who says your kiddo can't still rock the house?
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Attention Holiday Shoppers...
Wouldn't you love this to be the year that you actually get your shopping done before the night before Christmas or Hannukah? 5 PM? As the shopkeepers are pushing you out the door and telling you, "come earlier next year?"
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Hold the Peanuts, Keep the Sugar
When I was a child, everyone ate peanut butter sandwiches and drank milk - no questions asked, no concerns voiced. Fast-forward twenty-five years, and I'm overwhelmed by the number of children with food allergies, especially life-threatening ones. It took the perspective of becoming a parent myself for me to grasp this new reality, and now I routinely ask parents before playdates: "Does your child have any food allergies?"
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Flash Me
Although I love form and fashion, I'm a sucker for function as well. In fact I nearly cried tears of joy when shopping for baby stuff and discovered a combination baby swing/high chair combo. That's why the flash card and mobile combination from Wee Gallery makes me happy as a clam.
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Premium Pow-Wow
The Christmas of my childhood generally consisted of a full stocking and one big gift, which we certainly preferred to the alternative of fourteen crappy plastic toys and a few itchy grandma sweaters. It was way cooler to get something like a ballet barre, a rocking horse, or a teepee.
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Crazy Legs McGee
While I'm not wholeheartedly welcoming back 80s trends like leggings and cinched belts over long sweaters (Earth to fashion designers, come in...) I am delighted about leg warmers. You heard me, leg warmers. But only because I'm not the one expected to wear them.
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Chocolate: It Does a Boobie Good.
With so many important causes that speak to me, I find it hard to keep track of them all. And while I do attempt to donate time or money to at least one charity a month, I'm fairly certain that I can singlehandedly fund breast cancer research with this one.
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One-Stop Rocking
Wouldn't it be amazing if there was one site that sold all the cool music that CMP recommends? And wouldn't it be even more amazing if you didn't have to dig through a bunch of other music--the kind we don't recommend--on that site to find the good stuff that has been carefully tucked away?
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Moses Should Have Been So Lucky
With child #1, I was obsessed with that baby mega-store's registry list. And while I got all the practical items that I may or may not have needed, this time I'm hoping for a few splurges that I've been coveting. Take for example the extraordinary moses baskets from Baby Starlet.
One Size Fits Bump
At 6 months pregnant, I'm already wearing a size large in most of my shirts. Okay, all of them. And even then, I'm still pulling down my not-so-flattering shirt to cover the band that barely keeps my pants up.
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C is for Cure
My mother-in-law successfully beat breast cancer several years ago, and while she doesn't talk about it much, we all know it's a cause she adamantly supports. We do our best to buy breast cancer stamps and wear any pink ribbon paraphernalia she sends us, but I'm always on the look out for something extraordinary that expresses our support for her courageous battle.
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I'll Pass on the Plastic Flavored Juice
It's one thing when you sniff your kid's clean plastic juice cup and it smells like a menagerie of the last few days of delightful drinks. Ick. But it's a whole other issue when you read about the leakage of chemicals from the plastic into your kid's digestive systems. That's just plain bad news.
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Return to (Stylish) Sender
After addressing way too many of my two-year-old's birthday invites, I realized the only return address labels I had were the free ones from charities that remind you you still need to send them a little something-something in return. These labels aren't so bad on a credit card bill, but perhaps not the greatest choice for my fancy photo cards and personal letters.
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What They Don't Tell You In Lamaze Class
Topping my list of things they really should teach you in your birthing class but don't (and it's a long list, believe me) is the variety of afflictions affecting your nether regions, post-baby. Who knew it would be like giving birth all over again!
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Luka-ing Good
I know it's only October, but those gift-giving holidays are just around the corner. And while we know your spouse or sigOth is probably a savvy gift giver, it can't hurt to gently nudge him in a particular direction.
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The Princess Who Rocks
Not being a big fan of today's little girl "princess culture", I was skeptical about a new kids' album by a group called Princess Katie and Racer Steve. But Songs for the Coolest Kids turned out to be an exciting new find for me.
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Adopting Style
I just received an email from a friend who's recently returned from Kyrgyzstan with his beautiful new adopted daughter. Another friend is currently in China on a similar mission, and then CMP received an email from the author of a popular adoption blog--all of which made us realize that the adoptive parents market is underserved when it comes to cool gear.
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Keeping the Baby Dry. Outside the Diaper at Least.
Despite my reaction to the contrary at my baby shower, I soon realized that one can never have too many blankets.. Some are lightweight, some are warm, some work for swaddling, some are so ugly, they're just the thing to toss in the car trunk for emergencies. The one kind of blanket I could have used but didn't get - something waterproof.
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Keeping a High Profile
I'm always thrilled to bits to get personal, handwritten notes. But I can't help but snicker when I get a thank you note supposedly written in first-person by a newborn. Are the new parents already outsourcing their chores to these (clearly gifted) children? Call me a skeptic, but I'm pretty sure I can recognize adult handwriting.
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Monogramming for the Non-Yacht Owning Set
I've always had this weird aversion to monogrammed items, as if they should only be owned by people named Winston or Finston or anyone the third.
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Why Just Drive the Dumptruck When You Can Own the Company?
When you ask a kid what he wants to be when he grows up, you usually get those great juxtapositions: a gymnast and a veterinarian. A firefighter and a circus clown. The way I see it, as long as I don't hear ballerina and metal groupie, my daughter can dream away.
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Works Like a Diaper Bag, Feels Like a Purse
I admit that at first, I fell victim to the ugly pricy diaper bag. Then I transitioned to the large purse, which has worked well for me since my daughter reached toddlerdom. However, with #2 arriving in a few months and the threat of leaky bottles looming, it's time to go back to the world of bags made to handle spills and messes.
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Cop A Feel, Save A Life
Today marks the beginning of breast cancer awareness month. While seeking out some cool but under-the-radar organizations affiliated with the cause, one of the first we fell in love with is Feel Your Boobies. And that was just on the name alone.
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Win It!
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Ask Cool Mom Picks
I have been searching for a photo album or scrapbook that is NOT in the classic style you see everywhere that's either pink and fluffy or traditional leather. Any ideas? -Sarah
Googling "photo albums" can definitely lead to very bad things. We always find cool stuff at Zanisa and we like the Molly West books at Chittypulga.
But lately we really dig the handmade wooden albums from Tree by Kerri Lee [pictured] with metal hinges and the funky wooden ring and strap. And the prices are terrific.
Got a gift dilemma? A shopping conundrum? Write to CMP at info@coolmompicks.com.
CMP Flickr Group
CMP reader Sarah's daughter Alli looks cozy and snug in her Baby Bisou Carrier.
Have a picture of your little one (or yourself) in a Cool Mom Picks find or prize you've won? Join our Flickr group so we can show off your good taste to the world.
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