Do you like July 4th parties? I like July 4th parties. I mean, what's not to like? Sparklers, hot dogs, watermelon, friends -- and I don't have to wrap any gifts! If you're planning on hosting a shindig -- or just bringing something to a…
This is a new take on the old idea of positively rewarding your kids. It's 2017. It's a new type of merit badge.
Growing up as a fair-skinned, redheaded kid, I'm no stranger to the intricacies of SPF labels. Or sunburns. Like lots of us, I always believed that the higher the SPF, the better the sun protection I'd get, but that's not necessarily the…
Last week, my son and I visited the Innovator's Fair here in Philadelphia and discovered our newest board game obsession: Maze Racers . It combines creativity and building with mazes in a super fun way. Let's just say, we're all addicted…
Sure you can bring out the boring inner tubes at the pool this summer, but we say go big with one of the coolest pool floats around. Sure, some of these are a bit spendy, but these 10 inflatables offer fun and lazy lounging for the whole…
Pool accessories have come a long way since I was a kid. Back then, we made do with inner tubes and foam noodles, but now there's larger-than-life, lounge-able swans and rainbow unicorns . Not to mention huge floating hashtags. But my fa…
Summer comes in two settings: Hotter and Hottest. That's why we love these amazing summer water activities for the backyard that we found on some of our favorite sites around the web. I mean I know that for kids, a nice, cool pool is oft…
Warmer weather means moving the inside activities outside, which is an all-around good thing -- especially when it comes to those long summer day get-togethers. Parties are somehow just more fun when they're in the backyard (and we admit…
Summer break is here for my kids (yes, already!), which means I'm looking down the barrel of 13 long, lovely (and lively, knowing my crew) weeks at home. We have a lot of things we want to do -- go for hikes, do every single craft in Pro…
My family loves to play board games. I'm talking, big, involved, takes-three-hours-to-play board games. And what better time to play than when we're on summer vacation? But, it can be tricky to travel with big boxes full of a zillion pie…
...I’d much prefer that they are learning just as much (or more) from the reader as they do from the book.
My kids are officially on summer break (I know, already!) so we're hitting up the library ASAP to get started on our summer reading lists . My Kindergartner has made amazing strides this year with his reading, and these early reader book…
As much as we're looking forward to summer and all of the many kids' activities that come with it, we have to say that it's those long days of no activities that can be most stressful. That's why we made this list of awesome summer activ…
Every year, I take a look at the Environmental Working Group's report on the best safe sunscreens for kids and babies . This list measures popular brands against the EWG's standards, including everything from worrisome ingredients to fal…
Summer break will be here in just a minute, but there are some things you can start planning now to help make sure your kids don't hit the summer slide on their reading and math skills over the break. Research shows that most kids lose a…
With the weather getting warming and my kids spending the afternoons playing outside , we're starting to see a lot more bug bites on their tender, sensitive skin. Mean ones. The kind that turn bright red, itch like crazy, and keep them u…
One of the best ways our kids can learn empathy and celebrate diversity is to see the myriad of ways different people live their lives all around the world. Which is why I am loving the brand-new children's book, This Is How We Do It , b…
Summer camps have changed a lot since we were kids. No offense to good ol' Camp Starfire and the many, many lanyards we made there, but the options for our kids are wildly creative, expertly thought-out, and -- sometimes -- curiously spe…
If this gorgeous spring weather has you itching to get outside with your family, we've got the perfect excuse to head out to one of our national parks this weekend: it's free! This year, the National Park Service turns 100 years old, and…
You may be wondering just how to remove ticks from your kids, should the need arise. And we don't blame you one bit. With the warmer weather comes longer days spent outdoors and kids running barefoot in the yard. Also, increased warning …
We're not alarmists around here, but we admit, we've been researching safe tick repellents for our own kids. The data we're seeing on the booming tick population around the country this spring is a little disconcerting, and overall, Lyme…
This summer my family hit a new milestone on our bikes: my youngest learned to ride without training wheels, and my oldest is now big enough to be trusted to ride his bike a couple blocks to his friend's house on his own. (Although I sti…
Back in 2014, Kate spent some time with the original Taga Bike with some pretty stellar results, and I'm not the least bit surprised she fell for this cool family bike. It's brilliantly designed, can ferry up to two kids in the front com…
Leave it to my own cool mom to provide us with a most excellent Cool Grandmom Pick as we make the most of the final sweltering weeks of summer -- Frogglez Goggles . My kids refuse to go in the pool without goggles, and these are the firs…