Friday 09 May

Baby Zen Guarantees No More Screams...Er, Tears.

My babies aren't babies anymore, but that doesn't stop them from acting like babies on occasion. In particular, my son is prone to shrieking like a lamb at the slaughter if a single molecule of shampoo or conditioner hits his precious eyeballs while he's in the shower. ...

Friday 25 April

Hooded Animal Towels, and They Aren't Even Scary!

I decided early on in my parenting career to eschew hooded towels with larger-than-life animal heads on top, simply because all the ones I saw scared me. ...

Monday 14 April

So Maybe Sparkles Aren't The Best Ever Ingredient For Baby Lotions

It's difficult having to choose between Big Name Baby Products that are loaded with artificial ingredients and Natural Products that smell, uh, a little too natural if you catch my drift. ...

Monday 07 April

Bringing Bamboo to the Bath

Moms with an eye towards organics know that sustainable bamboo is popping up everywhere for babies these days from towels to tees and now, bath products. ...

Monday 31 March

Jubi: Holy Sheet

Try walking into your local big box store and asking for some solid colored crib sheets. The sales clerk will look at you like you just asked her for some nice razor blades wrapped in barbed wire for your baby to play with. ...

Saturday 29 March

Cozy Cuts, Now Coming To a Bathtub Near You

One of the happy places for NYC moms is the chain of Cozy's Cuts for Kids, the kind of salon that feels more Peewee's Playhouse than barber shop. ...

Sunday 16 March

You Can Be My Cowboy

When you speak, fair Cool Mom Picks readers, we listen. And so when you write to us and ask us ever so politely for more boy gear, we can't help but oblige. ...

Tuesday 19 February

A Remedy For That Not-So-Fresh Feeling

Once they're past that delicious newborn phase, kids (and their rooms) do not continue to smell like sunshine and rainbows. After a couple of serious playground sessions, my girls' rooms take on that not-so-subtle twinge of sweaty sneakers. ...

Wednesday 21 November

Better Living Through No Chemicals

After my daughter’s first bath irritated her skin from head to toe, I have been on the lookout for great baby bath products that are made from ingredients I feel I can trust. And pronounce. You know, more honey and oatmeal, less DMDM Hydantoin. ...

Thursday 01 November

Just Call Her Spike

You wouldn't know it to look at me, but this mellow mama's got a punk rock interior. Fortunately (I think) my older daughter's inherited a bit of my hidden dramatic side. So we had the best time recently playing with the Hair Putty from Love Me Baby Me. ...

Wednesday 17 October

Don't Drop The Soaptopia

When you're a parent, one of the first things to go, besides your figure, is personal grooming. It's hard enough to get a shower in at all some days, let alone one you can actually enjoy. ...

Tuesday 21 August

Free-Range Rubber Duck

If you've always liked the idea of rubber ducks for your kids but don't like the idea of more plastic crap in your bathtub, here's a solution. ...

Tuesday 14 August

Recommended by Doctor Mom. And Us.

When I met the delightful MD Moms behind the innovative MD Moms line of baby products, I instantly wanted to take them home with me so they could dispense calming pediatric advice even at wee hours of the morning. Okay, and free baby products too. ...

Friday 29 June

The Thymes They Are A-Changin'

I've been a fan of The Thymes line of bath and beauty products ever since the sigOth and I first spotted them in a great boutique on vacation years ago. He wanted the fig leaf-cassis candle, I wanted the lavender lotion. We compromised - by buying forty different things. ...

Tuesday 12 June

Fantastic Baby Oil and Dog Aphrodisiac

Ever since developing the bionic nose of pregnancy (you all know what I'm taking about, mamas) I can't settle for any bath or baby product that smells less than amazing. Fortunately, there are plenty of options no matter what your own supernose demands. ...

Friday 08 June

Caterpillars in the Shower

My daughter has been introduced to the scientific concept of metamorphosis by, of all things, an episode of The Wonder Pets. She now understands, in her 2 year-old way, that a caterpillar turns into a "buh-fwy." Also that butterflies sing and dance.
...

Monday 04 June

The End of Shrieking Wet Baby Syndrome

There's nothing like seeing your happy, warm, water baby turn into a screaming cold monster when you attempt to extract her ever so quickly from the bathtub. Even the most highly skilled supermom does not have the power to wrap that baby up quickly enough to avoid those awful yelps. ...

Tuesday 03 April

Brush With Greatness

Oh, the poor, lowly, neglected baby brush. As essential as this item is to the nursery--or at least to ours, with our messy-haired daughter--the options are limited to the free crappy one that comes along with some baby bath essential gift set, or an absurdly expensive sterling one that needs more polishing and attention than the baby herself. Where are all the cool brushes? ...

Monday 12 February

Another Good Reason to Bathe Daily

More and more, I am asked by friends to point them towards something reeeeeally special for their cousin's/sister's/husband's supervisor's wife's baby shower. Not just the same old special that I recommended to someone else, but reeeeeeeally special. I'm pleased to say I now have a new option to add to the list. ...

Monday 29 January

Shouldn't the Baby Smell Better After the Bath?

I have learned over the past 18 months that fancy packaging is no indication of a great baby lotion. I started with the highest-end, la-di-da, imported line of products, only to find they reeked like a perfume counter saleswoman exploded all over the nursery. Now I'm doubly skeptical of anything until I try it myself. ...

Friday 19 January

Not Everything In The Bath Has To Be a Duck

I have a definite nostalgic side to me. Don't even get me into a conversation about 80s music or 70s Saturday morning TV unless you've got a few hours to kill. So when I perused the hip mom-run e-boutique Baby Oh My and found these groovy non-slip tiles by Funmade Bath Art, I suddenly knew exactly what the future held in store for the floor of my tub. ...

Wednesday 29 November

Kids In the Hood

I just came to the realization that the hooded towels I own cover only about half of my 2-year-old daughter's body. No wonder she's always shivering after bathtime. ...

Friday 03 November

Skin So Soft

When I first had my baby, I spared no expense at procuring the fanciest, most expensive, la-di-da baby lotions and creams from Europe. And then, I promptly gave them away. The smell! Oh my goodness, the smell--so sweet, I felt my insulin levels soar as soon as the cap came off.
...

Saturday 30 September

Rub a Dub Dub, No Toys in My Tub

There's nothing like anticipating that glorious, uninterrupted, naptime shower only to have to spend an extra ten minutes emptying out all the darn bath toys that are scattered around the bottom of the tub. And the net thing? Please. That holds one rubber duck and my scrub brush, if that. ...

Friday 29 September

Handwashing Fun (You Heard Me)

With all the lovely fall and winter illnesses headed our way, plus the whole potty training thing looming, I figure it's time to get the hand washing thing down. Except in my daughter's mind, you'd think that "washing up" was another expression for "getting a shot." ...

Wednesday 19 July

Take Me To Your Bathroom Sink

I've met kids who will eat raw oysters and kids who clear their plates without being told. But I have yet to meet a kid who likes to wash his hands. Maybe if the bathroom were a more child-friendly place, the odds would tilt in the favor of personal hygiene? ...

Friday 14 July

Babies + Chemicals: Not The Best Combo

It seems that along with my bright wit and sparkling personality, my daughter has inherited my sensitive skin. And while I have found a few products that suffice, sufficing isn't good enough when it comes to my girl.That's why I'm... ...

Saturday 24 June

Orca Comes to Your Tub

There is no such thing in my household as too many bath toys. In fact sometimes I need to make sure I've left room for the actual baby in the bathtub. ...

Tuesday 23 May

The Only Thing Missing is the Baby Nurse

While I was more than tickled to get the oodles of "welcome-baby" gifts, I have to say that I wouldn't have minded a little something for myself. Sure, a medal of honor would have been nice, but I would have taken one of You're Such a Baby's New Mom Kits in a heartbeat. ...

Monday 08 May

Nothing Comes Between Me and My VedaBABY

Cool Mom Picks has yet to determine our version of five stars or two thumbs up but whatever it is, VedaBABY has earned it in spades. ...