There's no shortage of cool lunch containers, bento boxes , water bottles and other fun accessories to help make your kid's lunch a little more appealing than our own brown-bag days of yore. Here, we've pared them down to a few of the ve…
At some point this school year--sooner than you think--both you and your child will grow weary of the humble school lunch sandwich. It's a known quantity, which is comforting some days, but not every day, right? So here are 9 easy school…
Finding the best new lunchboxes and lunch bags for kids is one of our favorite back to school rituals. It's even more fun that we get to pick more than one, since we're shopping for you all! This year for our back to school shopping guid…
Many of my Cool Mom Picks comrades swear they prefer backpack shopping to planning school lunches, but I admit it: I enjoy the challenge of getting creative with packed lunches. Sure, I get in a rut sometimes, but a pantry full of go-to …
So here's a chore I haven't been missing this summer: packing endless school lunches . Argh! Trying to come up with variety and good nutrition for my kids drives me nuts. I'm already looking for new ideas for the coming school year, and …
I admit it, I'm a bit of a loudmouth about the benefits of skipping juice for kids. Most options are packed with sugar--like 20 grams per single-serving box, nearly the same amount of sugar in a full-sized Hershey's bar. Whoa! I know, I …
My kids have loved Milkdot lunch bags since we first found them. And Milkdot's brand new styles give us one more reason. Or, three. Milkdot insulated lunch totes are the right size to shove in multiple bentos and a small water bottle or …
As I start to take inventory of our end-of-school-year bento boxes and food storage options, I ask myself, where did all the freaking lids go? Then I quit complaining and start looking for replacements. {Don't miss a great limited time o…
My kids, as with all kids, are obsessed with gummies. But I find that fruit chews give them the same satisfaction with a little less guilt. On my part. Hooray for a new brand that avoids the guilt entirely, and just in time for me to see…
Want to get in on the superfood fun, but have no clue what to do with a bag of chia seeds? (Other than turn them into a grassy novelty pet?) I've got five delicious ways to enjoy these wonder seeds, which were once the go-to survival foo…
We here at Cool Mom Picks have been fans of Chobani Champions, the brand's line of Greek yogurts made especially for kids, since day one, when they launched with four tasty flavors packed in perfectly kid-sized cups. Thanks to their new …
I'm kind of floored to admit that the new Active Top Smart Drinking System from SIGG absolutely refused to leak no matter how much I abused it. This new line of bottles for adults and kids has a liner that's eco-friendly, BPA-free and ph…
This year, a lot of parents are resolving to buy healthier lunchbox snacks that are kid and cool mom approved. Seem like a tall order? Not with these five healthy snacks. I know that healthy snacks can be hard. So many taste, well, healt…
With back to school in full swing, I'm mulling over lunch box ideas to keep things fresh for the next ten months. (Ten!) I recently posted 13 healthier versions of kids' favorite lunchbox snacks and this week I'm sticking with snacks; sp…
I've always liked BuiltNY's lunch totes, so much so that I own a few of them myself. I can assure you they've all stood the test of time. And the test of peanut butter. Now they're offering new kid's lunchboxes and brand new reusable san…
Healthy lunchbox snacks seem to be one of the frequent requests from our readers. I'm generally a from-scratch girl, but life--and lunch packing --with two little ones can get hectic. Despite my dedication to all foods homemade, I rely o…
The back-to-school fun has begun: cue the sandwich making! I'm the queen of packing school lunches , but even I rely on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. My kids love them, they are quick, and an easy way to pack a protein punch. But, …
The summer is almost officially over and that means one thing: The launch of our sixth annual Back to School Shopping Guide , featuring close to 150 goodies that will help make your little and big kids' school year the coolest one yet. Y…
Between summer camp and school, tossing an ice pack in with a sandwich, apple and yogurt is pretty much a no-brainer at this point. But when you consider that not all lunch boxes and ice packs are made for each other, there are plenty of…
My kids and I are suckers for cool lunch boxes and bento boxes. We are constantly stealing each others--they take my "sophisticated" boxes and sometimes I borrow Hello Kitty. And now here's another amazing bento box that anyone of any ag…
As the old saying goes: Once you go Bento you never go back. Okay, that's not it at all. But it's exactly how I feel every morning that I pack my kids' lunches. After discovering the perfect reusable, food-safe containers , those plastic…
For those of you with kids (like my son) who would rather eat just a little bit of everything instead of a big Dagwood sandwich, CMP favorite LunchBots is going to make your day. (If not your kids' lunch.) The brand new LunchBots Quad is…
I've been using the 3greenmoms LunchSkins eco-friendly sandwich bags ever since we featured them here awhile back, so how exciting to hear that they're launching a brand new line for Target. Hooray! Their new LunchSkins2 sets are availab…
Ready for some Valentine's Day sweet talk? You can pack a festive Valentine's Day lunch that'll make kiddo swoon without even relying on those candy conversation hearts. That means you get to keep lunchtime fun and healthy while saving t…