Tuesday 13 May

The Shower Invitation No One Can Ignore

Fact: Moms like cookies.

It is based on this statement of truth alone that I can highly endorse Sweet Talk Boutique, which turns yummy homebaked cookies into custom shower invitations. ...

Saturday 10 May

Cookies That Hold the Allergies, Not the Taste

Okay so phrases like high fiber, no refined sugar, no dairy or eggs aren't generally an indication that kids will be excited about the resulting snacks.

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Saturday 26 April

Queasy and Nauseous Never Tasted Quite So Good

I am fortunate to have made it through my first trimester fairly unscathed, with only a few "race to the toilet, hand over mouth" incidents. But if you're going to reach for a shaky tummy remedy about 24 times a day, forgo all the artificial sweeteners...
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Friday 04 April

The Glass Sipper

We're always looking out for safer, non-leaching plastic baby bottle alternatives, but I'm still a bit reluctant to make the leap to glass. ...

Tuesday 01 April

Boon is Putting the Self in Self-Feeding

I have one of those toddlers who insists on feeding himself with a spoon or fork. He also refuses to wear a bib. Put those two together and it's a brutal combination. ...

Friday 28 March

Who Stole The Cheese Factor From the Cookie Jar?

If you've got kids, you've got cookies. Unless you're one of those moms. Oh man, you're not one of those moms, right? Phew. ...

Sunday 23 March

Mama Needs a Snack

After spending much of each day feeding this hungry new baby of mine, sometimes I forget to feed myself. Yes, I know new mamas need to take care of themselves too, but there aren't many three-course meals to be prepared one-handed. ...

Friday 21 March

Cupcake Baking as Competitive Sport

As my daughter prepares for preschool in the fall, am just now learning that baked sale goods are not taken lightly there.
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Monday 17 March

Green: It Isn't Just for the Irish

With various reports re-emphasizing BPA leaching from plastic bottles, we're consistently tracking down safe alternatives that are still practical. Because let me be honest, there's no way I'm handing my toddler a glass bottle. ...

Wednesday 12 March

Chalk Talk

Chalk mats are always a good idea, and I really like the new ones from CMP fave Bella Tunno. ...

Sunday 02 March

Of Cupcakes, Lactose, and World Domination

I discovered a cupcake cookbook that produced the most delicious little cakes of goodness that were also safe for my girl. The cupcakes are moist, fluffy, indulgent. . . and vegan. ...

Friday 15 February

Livin' the Green

It's clear that everyone's going green this year. But some retailers seem to be jumping on a trend, while others actually seem to be living their values. In the latter category, the very impressive Zia & Tia. ...

Sunday 10 February

Cupcakes? Who Doesn't Like Cupcakes?

Every so often, I have occasion to visit friends with a couple of young kids of different ages, and I'm stumped about what little gift will appease them both. Then I stumbled upon the Kids Mini Cupcake Kit at Pink Olive Boutique. ...

Saturday 09 February

Your Right to Chews

The baby may be bor (and yes, he's wonderful, thank you!) but thanks to breastfeeding, I'm still taking care to reach for nutritious food. Well, most of the time anyway.
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Sunday 03 February

100 Billion Calories Never Tasted So Good

So if you asked me what I most certainly do not want (or need) for Valentine's Day, you know, other than a pair of red leather chaps, it would have to be a 14,000 calorie box of chocolates.
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Wednesday 30 January

Valentine's Chocolate Gets a Run for Its Money

Let's face it, the last thing I want to be doing February 14 is baking cookies. Especially now that we've discovered the adorable Sweet Lil' Gems Valentine cookies. ...

Friday 18 January

So Good That I Don't Mind Licking the Spoon Either

There have been times when I've finished feeding my son and without thinking, licked the spoon. Blech. But since being introduced to Jack's Harvest, I actually have to stop myself from eating more than just the remnants. ...

Saturday 15 December

A Little Separation Between Your Kid and the Dining Room Table is Never a Bad Thing

Just because my daughter can feed herself does not mean she actually gets all the food in her mouth. Hence our love affair with Bibbitybop's Placemats. ...

Friday 07 December

Pot Luck-y

The next time I show up at a friend's holiday gathering with a delightful pie procured from the fabulous local bakery, I will not do so with some ordinary disposable pie tin. ...

Friday 23 November

Evidently You Can Run as Fast as You Can and Catch the Gingerbread Man

Plenty of families have their own weird Christmas traditions. At my mom's house, it was to bake gingerbread men to hang on the Christmas ficus, then bite their ilmbs off while they dangled from the tree. ...

Monday 19 November

The Ultimate Bottle: According to the Company, and According to Me

Confession: I used to think nipple confusion was a myth invented by lactivists to keep kids on the boob. And then my second girl came along and, holy sleepless night, Batman, she would not take a bottle, no way no how. ...

Tuesday 13 November

Bamboo For Babies

While we're busy paring down the plastic in our kids' toyboxes these days--whoops--totally forgot about the plastic in the kitchen drawers. ...

Saturday 10 November

Delicious, Not Deceptive

There's been quite a bit of buzz among parents lately about whether hiding healthy foods in other foods is the right thing to do. For those who prefer to keep nutrients in plain view of the family, I've found a great resource in the Smart Foods Healthy Kids web site. ...

Sunday 04 November

Picky Eaters? It's Natural.

That stage between baby food and fully independent dining (you know, with utensils and napkins and food that's actually ingested) can be pretty awkward as I've now learned twice. Not only are toddlers not yet adept at transporting the food from plate to mouth, they tend to be annoyingly picky. ...

Friday 02 November

Sugar Skulls to Go With That Sugar Cereal

Happy Dia de los Muertos! Or, as I think of it, single coolest holiday not yet imported to America. ...

Sunday 28 October

A New Take On the Old Lunch Bag

Ever since we started poking around the web for alternatives to paper lunch bags for our back to school shopping guide, we can't stop ourselves! There are so many great options to help us reduce that carbon footprint you keep hearing so much about. ...

Saturday 13 October

Baby Food That's Yummy Enough for Mummy Too

Now that my son is a full-fledged food eater, I'm on the prowl for something other than that jarred food that I swear all tastes exactly the same -- gross. And while I know many savvy mamas out there choose to whip up their own meals, that's not one of my skills. ...

Saturday 06 October

You'll Eat It And You'll Like It

If I told you a celebrity's wife had yet another cookbook out, you'd roll your eyes, right? I admit I did when I heard that Jessica Seinfeld had just published Deceptively Delicious. ...

Monday 01 October

Born With an Eco-Friendly, Naturally Harvested Spoon In His Mouth

Okay, so we like our funky, toddler-proof melamine dishes as much as the next parent. But with all the heated controversy about plastics these days, we're slowly inching towards the whittle your own dishes out of wood camp. ...

Saturday 22 September

PB & J, Hold the PVC

I'm fickle when it comes to selecting a lunch box for my kids -- just ask my husband how many I've bought, used for a week or so, and abandoned. ...

Friday 24 August

You Know You've Made It When Your Picture's On a Lunch Box

So here's a trick: Put a photo of yourself on your child's lunchbox before sending her off to school. She'll be more likely to eat those carrot sticks you packed instead of trying to trade them for Ho-Hos, what with you standing over her like that.
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Friday 17 August

Pregnant Women Say: Move Over, Saltines.

Yes, I do plan to eat that. And that. And THAT. I'm pregnant and hungry, and I'm also grumpy enough to sit on you if you get between me and my food. Only problem is, I can't always figure out beforehand what foods are going to taste good--and are good for me and that hungry baby in my tummy. ...

Sunday 29 July

Watch it Both Wiggle and Inflate Your Child's Ego

I'm convinced kids will put pretty much anything in their mouths that's personalized just for them. Of course I've only tried it with pancakes, and birthday cake - not like those need much help going down. ...

Saturday 21 July

Sucking It

Straws just make everything taste better. You could probably blend up a shake for your kids, the ingredients of which are straight out of an episode of Fear Factor, and they'd drink it if it had a straw in it. ...

Tuesday 03 July

Cooking with the Bambinos

I'm not a cooking enthusiastic, but I do want to encourage my daughter to learn life skills. In other words, I hope she can expand her food prep repertoire beyond instant mac-and-cheese before she heads off to college. Unlike, ahem, her mother. ...

Saturday 16 June

Get Packing

An expectant mother walks into a baby superstore...No, it's not the beginning of a joke. Just the beginning of an overwhelming experience, especially when you hit the gear aisle. Which gadgets can you live without? Most of them.

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Sunday 10 June

The End of Cooties As We Know It

As anyone who's ever thrown a party knows, you need about six times as many cups as guests. Mainly because half of them get wasted when the guests get...well, wasted...and forget which half-full cup was theirs after they put it down. Or worse, instead of leaving it altogether, they unknowingly drink from someone else's cup. Yuck. ...

Sunday 20 May

Eating Groovy

Who says that kids have to eat off of plates with ducks or chickens or other barnyard animals on them? Besides if you ask me, there's got to be some sort of bad karma when it comes to feeding a kid a burger on a plate featuring a cute cartoon cow. ...

Friday 18 May

Build Me a Martini?

We've officially hit the temperatures in my neck o' the woods where icy cold liquid refreshments are starting to be top of mind. And just in time, we've turned up this totally clever and very official LEGO ice cube tray. ...

Saturday 05 May

Sticky Fingers

When we receive an inquiry at CMP declaring, "no mom can live without it!" We can't help but look more closely. After all, we'd hate to think of countless mothers needlessly passing due to the lack of a particular product. ...

Friday 04 May

Eat Your Heart Out, Betty Crocker

I try to be a homemaker, really I do. If only because I don't want my son to grow up thinking cooking merely involves pushing the buttons--currently my main culinary skill.
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Sunday 29 April

Lick My Manolo

Mother's Day is the perfect opportunity for me to troll for two of my favorite indulgences - accessories, and chocolate. Although I admit I wasn't expecting to encounter both rolled into one. ...

Sunday 22 April

Little Green Thumbs

There's no better way to honor Earth Day than to grow something. Anything. That is, something besides mold on the expired sour cream in the back of the fridge. Or is that just me? ...

Tuesday 17 April

Jonesin' for Some Soda

While I'm a fairly noncompetitive person, and I'm not so much about the one-upping around the birthday party circuit, I have to ooh and ahh over what has got to be the coolest party favor ever for my daughter's next bash. ...

Thursday 12 April

Whatcha Got Cooking?

It's no secret that cooking doesn't usually inspire warm and fuzzy feelings in me. I'm especially hesitant to try new recipes - after all that effort, will it turn out well? Or will it end up dumped into a napkin when I turn my back and shoved into the nearest receptacle or willing household pet? ...

Thursday 29 March

When You Think of My Family, Think of Booze

We have seen any number of ways to incorporate your kids' photo into gifts - mugs, keychains, jewelry, purses. I think we've unearthed something that tops them all: Alcohol. ...

Sunday 25 March

Hide (The Veggies) and Go Seek

Despite continued reassurance that we only serve delicious meals at our house, my older daughter stubbornly resists trying new foods. The tears, tantrums and intense negotiation are exhausting. For once, I'd like to sit down to a meal without ever uttering the words "...or you can go straight to bed." ...

Monday 19 March

I Don't Have a Drinking Problem

Just this week I was browsing the juice box aisle for my toddler, thinking how convenient it would be to be able to stash one of those in the diaper bag and forgo the sippy cup. And then I remembered that  the last time we tried juice boxes it entailed a change of clothes. For both of us. ...

Friday 16 February

Hey, Joe

Have I mentioned that my kitchen and its various electrical appliances intimidate me? That sometimes even the the relatively benign coffee pot has turned on me in my hour of need? One morning not long ago, it tried to brew up something completely undrinkable, thereby ruining my entire day. Lack of decent coffee has that effect on me.

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Friday 09 February

Cooking When Cooking's the Last Thing You Want to Do

Let's get one thing straight right away: I don't cook. I avoid it whenever possible. I'm not good at it, I don't enjoy it, and I'm damn lucky that my husband is happy to take over in this department. When I'm on duty, it's Frosted Mini Wheats all around! ...

Saturday 20 January

Dinner for One, Hold the Microbes

Whoever invented the Tiny Diner Portable Placemat has definitely walked a mile in my shoes. Whenever we go out to eat, I have no choice but to put pieces of food right on the table because my year-old son is known to send his plates sailing without so much as a head's up, suckas! ...

Saturday 13 January

Go Ahead and Get Fresh

I considered making my own baby food for a total of five minutes. I had a challenging infant and I desperately cut down on chores; however as a conscientious (albeit tired) new mom, I didn't want to give up on good, nutritious food either. ...

Thursday 11 January

Food is For Playing, Right?

I am convinced that the only way to get kids to stop throwing their forks and spoons on the floor isn't to improve the food, but to improve the forks and spoons. ...

Wednesday 06 December

What Good is Having Kids If They Can't Do The Cooking?

I love celebrity chefs, but recently I discovered (the hard way) that some of the bold-faced Food Network names out there write books which are more self-promotional vehicles than useful kitchen resources. ...

Monday 04 December

Almost Too Beautiful to Eat. (I Said Almost.)

I am burdened with quite a few "people who have everything" on my holiday list each year. Fortunately, as I discovered a few years ago, no one can have enough Richart chocolate. ...

Monday 27 November

Your Kids' Guaranteed Favorite Gift This Year

While it's not indicated on our calendars, every parent knows that candy season starts just before Halloween, progresses through chocolate turkeys on Thanksgiving, peaks gloriously on Christmas day, and then trickles to a close with nervous dental visits in early January. 
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Monday 20 November

Sushi For the Jonesing Preggo

Recently, after confessing an irrepressible pregnancy craving for very forbidden spicy tuna rolls, I found out that I was far from alone. But only one thing was more comforting: A sushi recommendation that gets thumbs-up from even the most cautious OBs. Perhaps because it's not actually made from raw fish. ...

Wednesday 25 October

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. ...

Thursday 12 October

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?" ...

Tuesday 10 October

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. ...

Saturday 07 October

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. ...

Friday 29 September

PB & Everything

I distinctly remember when Peanut Butter & Co opened its doors in New York's Greenwich Village several years ago. The whole city was abuzz - what could someone possibly do with peanut butter that would be worth a wait down the block? ...

Saturday 23 September

The Toaster with the Most-er

I'd love to be one of those moms who makes cool Jello jigglers and star shaped sandwiches. But alas, my sole attempt at creating a Mickey Mouse pancake for my daughter ended up looking more like someone had just spilled... ...

Friday 22 September

Feeding Your Brain

With all the scary stuff in the news about lead in lunchboxes, I'm leaning towards the old reliable brown bags when my daughter hits "bring your lunch" age. But little did I know, today's lunch bags can be just as good for your kids as the food you put inside it. Cheetos not withstanding. ...

Sunday 17 September

When the Bottle and Boob are Distant Memories

There's something so sweetly simple about an infant, especially when it comes to the feeding. But then, after the rice cereal and stage one foods are no longer sufficient, the panic sets in. (Admit it - just a little.) ...

Tuesday 05 September

Super Dishes!

When I was a kid, our chores included washing our own dishes after dinner. Entirely coincidentally, my brother managed to break his plate en route from table to sink at least once a week. Imagine that. ...

Sunday 30 July

Be the Envy of The Entire Gym

I try to lay low during my infrequent workouts. No fancy footwear or coordinating clothes to bring any attention to myself or my built-by-Krispy Kreme hips. But with one of these Euro-chic aluminum SIGG water bottles at Reusable Bags, I'm bound to up my gym status without even joining the marathon club.

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Sunday 23 July

Who You Callin' Cupcake?

Cupcakes are one of the easiest treats to make, which is why they're a mainstay at school bake sales. "But how can I make my cupcakes stand out from the bunch?" you ask, like the good 1950s housewife that you truly want to be.

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Saturday 22 July

A Recipe for the Perfect Gift

I love that my crafty friends are willing to share their cute knit bootie pattern with me, however the illegible scribble on a piece of notebook paper just doesn't do their creations justice. ...

Sunday 16 July

We Don't Need No Stinkin' Fork

Maybe you're a champ with the chopsticks now, but do you remember how hard it was to get the hang of it? I bet you stabbed your Moo Shu Pork at least once (or worse) before the nice server made you a set of tong-sticks so you could eat more than three bites an hour. ...

Thursday 01 June

Summer Essentials for the Dad in Your Life

Since summer has quickly reared its hot and humid head here in the Northeast, I thought I’d start preparing for the season. Like most men, this entails digging out those flip flops from storage, loading up on some steaks, firing up the BBQ grill and enjoying some cool alcoholic beverages with friends. ...

Friday 05 May

Everything I Needed to Know About Parenthood I Learned from a Cocktail Napkin

Margarita_1In honor of today's Cinquo de Mayo festivities, we scoured the web for a pop culture pinata or a designer sombrero. Just some little knick-knack or doodad, that we might pay homage to one of the most underrated holidays outside your local Chili's. ...

Tuesday 18 April

As if Charlize Weren't Enough, Now South Africa Gives Us This

If you think Chai is still all the rage, then wake up and smell 2006--Rooibos is what savvy tea drinkers are turning to these days for comfort in a cup. A red tea from South Africa, Rooibos has many... ...

Thursday 06 April

Cooshie, Cooshie, Cool

CooshieseatRestaurant booster seats? Hate 'em. They're always covered with the slimy remnants of another toddler's meal -- or we hope that sticky mess is from leftover food and not something worse.

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Monday 27 March

Let Them Eat Cupcakes.

Cupacake A Cup-a-Cake container is one of those items that on first glance makes you say, "huh?" On second glance you think, "pretty smart," and on third glance you're like, "I need forty-two of them, NOW NOW NOW!"

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Tuesday 21 March

Make mine a bologna on white, hold the lead.

Lunch_applesop_lb Now that the Center for Environmental Health is suing makers of vinyl lunch boxes for harmful levels of lead (yikes!) it’s time to invest in a new carrying case for the pb&j.

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