Christina Refford

Elf on the Shelf does nothing for my kids at all, but top the little fellow with this free printable Minecraft head , and now we're talking. I assume that a Minecraft Santa Elf on the Shelf would monitor their screentime and would make s…

If you've heard Run Run Rudolph one too many times already this season, let me introduce you to one sweetly sophisticated tune that has become a new holiday favorite for me. A duet by Walter Martin and Kat Edmonson, I Walk So Slow Under …

Not every toy we buy our kids has to have some sort of "educational component" to it, though I love when I find a great toy that so brilliantly combines play with learning. Such is the case with Tiggly whose Tiggly Shapes was a favorite …

Holiday music has been playing in my home for the past two weeks. and if I was ever worried that the magic of Christmas would fade as my kids got older, turns out my three tweens are even more excited about the holidays now than when the…

I am always amazed by some of the creative holiday photo cards that come my way in the mail each year. I have some creative friends and family, I guess! I love them all of course, but there are always a few shots that take my breath away…

It can be hard to remember how wonderful the holidays are when our "to do" list is a mile long with food to make, gifts to buy, homes to decorate, and--oh yeah--kids to raise. That's one reason I adore this new song by Lori Henriques whi…

Though reading to the kids has always been one of my favorite things to do, it’s not always possible for those of us who travel for work, have a newborn, or just get too busy to drop everything to read a book for the fourth time in an ho…

Though I'm sure my kids' teachers, coaches, and other VIP's appreciate the effort that goes into collecting money for a group gift at the holidays, I just dread being the poor person in charge of that thankless job. Bugging people for mo…

With all the adults around them pondering such things as " greens beans or brussel sprouts " or " what type of stuffing ", it must seem to kids at this time of the year that we've all lost our minds as we ponder what to serve for Thanksg…

Though my kids love to explore the woods behind our house, with the weather turning frosty their time spent outdoors will be shortened considerably. So for those days when Mother Nature is less than hospitable, I'm thrilled to find the T…

Happy Birthday to Sesame Street which is turning 45 this week! And while our kids have grown up with this iconic show just like we did, they may not have heard the original cast recordings of some of our favorite songs. Sesame Street 1, …

With that extra hour of sleep for Daylight Saving Time, you may find you need one more story to get the kids settled in tonight, so our kids' music download this week tells the story of one brave little armadillo named Armando. Performed…

One of the scariest things I may see this Halloween is my 13-year-old disappearing down the street with her big group of friends to go on her first trick-or-treating trek without me. And while it's hard to believe the years of us trick-o…

With all the things that can go bump in the night, I just hope none of them run into one of my kids while they are out trick-or-treating in the dark streets of our neighborhood. So, along with this easy DIY Pumpkin light necklace tutoria…

They might not agree on their favorite candy or even who has the best costume, but my kids would be in total agreement with Mista Cookie Jar that Halloween Every Night might be the best idea ever. With a spooky-cool surf guitar setting t…

If Halloween's scary side has your kids jumping at every bump in the night, you'll want to check out Toca Boo, a brand-new app for iOS by Cool Mom Tech favorite Toca Boca that lets your child be the scary one---and not just when they mis…

We are all about the pumpkin right now, from cool pumpkin decorating ideas to yummy pumpkin-spice treats, so it's only natural that the kids' music song we're singing along to this week is pumpkin-flavored as well. And this one comes fro…

As the kids gear up for Halloween, we have a spooky new tune from Cool Mom Picks favorites The Hipwaders that's perfect Halloween music for kids--and their parents--because may convince them to think twice before they eat all their candy…

If your kids are old enough to toddle, chances are they have opinions about their upcoming Halloween costume and may be considering one of the all-time classics: The robot. If that's the case, or if you'd like to steer them in this direc…

Not even the biggest die-hard Minecraft fans can live on screen time alone, so when it's time for them to step away from their favorite game, you could try some of our screen-free Minecraft games , or offer up one of the cool little Mine…

We are celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with a bright tune by one of our favorite bilingual groups, Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band . (And if you don't know them yet well...they won the 2014 Grammy. So get on it!) De Colores is a w…

For everyone eyeing the skies right now and hoping for a good old fashioned rainstorm to soak everything and give us puddles to jump in, Caspar Babypants has a light new song that your kids can sing to usher in the rainclouds. Rain Rain …

Better start practicing your most hearty " Arrrrrrrr!," because Friday is Talk Like a Pirate Day . And while you're perusing all the pirate booty we've rounded up on Cool Mom Picks , download this most-excellent shanty from Boston-based …

If you like great kids' music as much as we do, then you should be sure to follow our friends Stefan Shepherd via his website Zooglobble , and Bill Childs through his hugely popular weekly radio show, Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child . No…