Headspace and Star Wars team up to teach mindfulness to kids.

by Christina Refford | Educational Apps, Fitness + Health

It’s no secret that we are huge fans of Star Wars here at Cool Mom Tech, so when we heard that Headspace just launched new mindfulness and meditation content for kids 5-10 called Find Your Force with Star Wars, I rocketed over to watch the first of four videos...

Will Meta’s new parental controls keep teens safer on Instagram and Quest? We have thoughts.

by Christina Refford | Internet Safety, Games + Gaming, Social Media, Tips and Tricks

Recently, Meta announced it would be launching new parental safety controls for teens in the form of tools and resources for both the Instagram social media app and their Meta Quest VR gaming headsets. The goal is to help parents better manage what our teens are...

16 very cool Father’s Day tech gifts all under $100 | Father’s Day Gift Guide 2022

by Christina Refford | Father's Day Gifts

For our annual Father’s Day gift guide, we’ve found 16 of the coolest Father’s Day tech gifts under $100 (if we do say so ourselves) — several of them even under $50! Because June 19th is coming up fast. We always have a great time tracking...

What’s the best Fitbit for you? Here are some questions to help you figure it out.

by Christina Refford | Fitness + Health, Tips and Tricks

Lately, a lot of readers have been asking us to recommend the best Fitbit for their needs — for themselves as a form of self-care, for gifts for others (ahem Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are coming up), or just an upgrade to an older model they...

The best group video makers for birthdays, graduation, teacher appreciation and more.

by Christina Refford | Tips and Tricks, Best Apps, Father's Day Gifts, Mother's Day Gifts

After creating a group video for my teen’s birthday during the height of the pandemic, I realized how many other occasions it would be perfect for: end-of-year teacher appreciation gifts, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduation, special anniversaries...

If you walk, run, or cycle, these open ear headphones let you hear your music without tuning out the world.

by Christina Refford | Fitness + Health

I love listening to music, audiobooks or podcasts (like Spawned of course!) when I’m outside. But there are so many times it’s not really safe for us to completely tune out our surroundings, like when I’m running alone at 6 AM, or should I be pushing...

Recycle, donate, sell, return: What to do with your old tech gadgets.

by Christina Refford | Tips and Tricks

I’m excited to kick off the year by finding some easy, effective ways to recycle or donate those old tech gadgets that we all have lying around. Not just for you, but for me too! I know not to chuck my trusty old iPhone into the trash after upgrading to a newer...

Telemedicine gets even more accurate with the the TytoCare Medical Exam Kit. Whoa.

by Christina Refford | Fitness + Health

Even in pre-Covid days, I always hated sitting in a doctor’s waiting room just thinking about the “bonus” rotovirus we were probably contracting on top of the ear infection we were there to treat. That’s a big reason I am so excited about the...

Active Arcade is a fun free app that gets the whole family up off the couch.

by Christina Refford | Best Apps, Fitness + Health, Games + Gaming

Before the holidays kick into full gear, I recommend you download one super-fun, get-off-the-couch app that also happens to be 100% free: Active Arcade. It’s entirely designed to get you moving (and maybe burning off all that pie eating) while enjoying yourself...

10 of the best math apps for middle school that make learning fun.

by Christina Refford | Back to School Tech, Best Apps, Educational Apps

As a former homeschooling parent, I am a huge fan of math apps for middle school — and for tweens and teens whatever their grade level. I used to say that I was okay teaching math until around 3rd or 4th grade, and then I needed some help explaining certain...