Christina Refford, Author at Cool Mom Tech

An easy new photo book service for those of us who just want something fast and beautiful

by Christina Refford | Mother's Day Gifts, Photo Gifts

Now that so many of us have a zillion photos stored on our laptops or phones, I love creating any gift that takes the best of those photos and puts them onto something we can hold onto So, for some of my favorite people, I’ve turned recently to Snapbox to make...

KAMI paper-folding puzzle game: Our cool free app of the week

by Christina Refford | Fun Apps

With all the time I spend outside of the house waiting for my kids to finish a class or practice, I’m always trying to find something new to do on my phone. You know, other than continually refreshing my Facebook feed or checking to see if any new kitties have...

$Jump Numbers math app for kids: Our cool free app of the week$

Jump Numbers math app for kids: Our cool free app of the week

by Christina Refford | Educational Apps For Kids

With the school year ending soon, I know that my kids aren’t going to stand for games or apps that feel too much like a school lesson. Nor do I want them to spend their summer days doing nothing but memorizing math facts. But after playing with the skip-counting...

Red Stamp app lets you send awesome last-minute Mother’s Day cards: Our cool free app of the week

by Christina Refford | Photo Apps

We’ve been talking about the easy-to-use, tasteful, and free Red Stamp app for a few years, though today it’s worth a reminder, so that you can be sure to send your mom, grandma, or favorite mom-like person a beautiful and heartfelt message for...

ChatterPix Kids: Our cool free app of the week

by Christina Refford | Fun Apps for Kids

I sometimes think I have the sense of humor of a ten-year-old, which comes in handy since I do have a tweenage son who thinks things like talking cupcakes and singing basketballs are pretty hilarious. What’s even more hilarious is when we can record our own...

Yummly Recipes: Our cool free app of the week

by Christina Refford | Lifestyle Apps

I have fallen into a dinner rut, relying on a few tried-and-true recipes that I can whip up before the kids get too peckish at the end of a busy day. But now that I’ve download the free and gorgeously designed Yummly app, which is available free for iOS,...

$King of Math Junior for kids: Our cool free app of the week$

King of Math Junior for kids: Our cool free app of the week

by Christina Refford | Educational Apps For Kids

If you’re hoping to get your future mathlete ready for preschool in the fall, or just want to find a new ways to help practice counting, adding, and subtracting with your first grader, download the free version of King of Math Junior. This smart and fun game for...

Yuggler for parents: Our cool free app of the week

by Christina Refford | Lifestyle Apps

It’s Sunday morning and your kids’ friends just had to cancel their afternoon playdate. Or, you are on vacation with your toddler, and rain has just ruined your plans to visit that cool new park you read about online. What to do? Well, nowadays, there are...

Can you teach coding to preschoolers? Here are three toys that will try

by Christina Refford | Tech Toys and Random Fun

Coding is certainly one of the new buzzwords in education, along with STEM, STEAM, and now, believe it or not, STREAM. And while a lot of learn-to-code apps toys, and games, like Robot School, Dash Robot, and Code Master, are targeted primarily to grade-school kids,...

A new go-kart for kids you control with your phone. Whoa!

by Christina Refford | Tech Toys and Random Fun

If your kids have a need for speed, and you have a need for keeping them safe, you have check out Actev Motors’ new Arrow Smart-Kart, one of the coolest ride-on toys I had the joy of seeing at NYC’s Toy Fair earlier this year. This high-end electric...

NEW: The podcast that helps you be a savvier digital parent in under 15 minutes a week

Hi! We’re Kristen + Liz

Kristen Chase + Liz Gumbinner of Cool Mom Picks

We started Cool Mom Tech in 2010 to help make our increasingly digital lives easier, more organized, more meaningful, and more fun, however old your kids may be.

We love that it's grown to become the go-to source for millions of parents who want commonsense info about tech delivered with a smile.

We even have the privilege of sharing our tips + tricks with The TODAY Show, CNN, HLN, GMA, Nightline, newspapers and magazines around the country, and our favorite -- regular parents who stop us at PTA meetings and ask us how old kids need to be to get a smartphone, and whether they really need to panic about Snapchat.

(Answer: It's complicated.)

We're so glad you're here! And we hope we can help you too.