The 3 best digital planners for parents, according to parents with very strong opinions about planners!
I'm always on a quest for the best digital planner for the school year, because I have developed a very bad habit: Every year I get tempted by the beautiful, fun, old-fashioned paper planners I discover on Etsy or in our local stationery stores. They're just brimming...
What does Indigenous mean? This video is the perfect explainer for kids.
On Indigenous People's Day, a lot of kids may be asking us to explain what Indigenous means. It's not the kind of word that's in a lot of kids' day-to-day vocabularies -- or at least not yet. And parents may have trouble explaining what it means, how it's different...
Nintendo Switch! Get it?
If you've got a geeky gamer to shop for, allow me to share these Nintendo Switch switch plates that I just stumbled on. Because frankly, I know I need to laugh more these days and this is doing it for me. Made by a popular 3-D printer on Etsy based out of Oregon, it's...
Is the Skylight calendar worth the splurge for big, busy families? We tried it.
I'm mom to a busy family of six, so when I saw the Skylight Calendar in my Instagram feed my first thought was, "This could change my life." Here's the thing: I have a job. I homeschool my kids and teach class at a co-op. My oldest two kids have jobs. The oldest three...
5 fun YouTube Kids Halloween video playlists and channels to get your kids in the spirit!
Here are some fun Halloween-themed playlists that your kids may enjoy on YouTube. Yes, YouTube. Now that YouTube Kids has upped their parental controls game, I've been feeling more comfortable with them using the app, and hey, sometimes it's nice to just let them...
Is the new iOS 15 Focus Mode feature helpful for parents? I tried it to find out.
Lately I've heard some mixed opinions about the Focus feature on the latest iOS 15. If you haven't updated your iPhone yet, Focus mode is similar to the Sleep mode introduced with iOS 14 with even more detail and more ways to customize your notifications from apps,...
44 cool things you can do with the Amazon Echo: From productive time-savers to just plain fun.
There are so many things you can do with an Amazon Echo, something I quickly learned after getting an Amazon Echo Dot for Christmas a few years ago .(It's no Echo Studio, but still...) I admit I was a little skeptical at first. What's all the buzz about anyway and...
7 elegant cord management solutions to help tame tangles and tidy your workspace
Taming cords is one of my own top tech challenges, even as tech becomes increasingly cordless. So I'm always on the lookout for new ways to get my home office desk more organized and keep tangles at bay. Despite what design magazines tend to portray in their perfect...
Alexa, surround me in the glory of Billie Eilish
If you've ever said, "Alexa, play When the Party's Over" then you'll be thrilled that Amazon has just announced the launch of the Billie Eilish special edition Amazon Echo Studio and it's pretty darn cool if you're a super-fan. Remember back in the dark ages, when we...
There’s an official Among Us costume out for Halloween. Sus! Sus!
When your teen takes the time to text you the news about InnerSloth's official Among Us costume for Halloween this year, you know that the party game that got millions of kids through the worst of the pandemic last year is only growing in power. Kind of like a player...
What my teen daughter had to say about THAT article about Instagram and body image
We're all talking about "that" Wall Street Journal article about Instagram: Facebook Knows It's Toxic for Teen Girls. You're probably talking about it. Or your kids are. I know it's all we've been seeing in our social feeds this week around here, and easily 15 people...
I’m getting better sleep thanks to this app. Which you may not even think of as a sleep app.
It's been a while since we shared our favorite apps to help you get better sleep. So long, that our last post about favorite sleep apps seems to include apps all recently acquired by mattress companies. Hm. I did recently write about my favorite iOS tip for helping me...
Tips & Tricks to Make Life (Way!) Easier
How to back up your computer data: 3 steps to make sure those photos, files and documents are safe!
I've been hearing more and more people asking how to back up computer data, as they express concerns about cyberattacks lately. Which has reminded me to make sure that my own data is properly backed up too. Even if cyberattack fears are unwarranted (oof, let's hope...
A parents guide to Apple’s affordable new iPhone SE 2022: Why it could be perfect for kids
We've officially hit the point of full Apple product saturation in our household -- and as so many parents in our Out Tech Your Kids community tell us, they have too. So what do you do when you're all basically on Apple devices, your kid needs a new phone, and you...
The best portable car jump starter battery kit for road trip safety: We found one under $100!
My parents were in the market for a portable car jump starter, (also known as a portable car battery charger), because as city folk, they keep an older model car in the city but don't drive it much. That means they need to have some kind of reliable car jump starter...
The Dinner Party is an outstanding resource if you’re dealing with loss and grief
This week, a wonderfully human, poignant video from husband-wife team Mandy Patinkin and Kathryn Grody went viral. Perhaps you've seen it? They used the platform to respond to a Princess Bride fan named Amanda Webb (@Alaska_Webb), a young woman who had recently lost...
10 of the best math apps for middle school that make learning fun.
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 topics to...
5 ergonomic laptop accessories you should consider for your work and study set-ups
As someone who now regularly attends physical therapy, let me be the first to advise you about the importance of ergonomic laptop accessories: So important! Given how much time we all spend on our computers these days, it really pays in the long-term to have a...
Claim your cord with these brilliant personalized cord tags
The upside of my family existing in the Apple device ecosystem together is that we can all share cords and cables. The downside? We can all share cords and cables. So I was thrilled to come across these personalized cord tags from Delightful Luna on Etsy. They let you...
10 of the best summer tech posts on Cool Mom Tech right now
As we mentioned on Cool Mom Picks, our team is off on a little break this week. Don't we all need one these days? (The answer is yes. Yes we do.) But hey, before we took off, we wanted to put together some of our very favorite summer tech posts -- which also happen to...
We finally found the very best waterproof iPad case for parents and kids
I've been on a search for the best waterproof iPad case, and after a long hunt I've found it! Or at least I hopeI have. So, of course, I had to share it here. Most parents want protective, waterproof iPad cases to protect against spills or accidents at home or to give...
This app actually scans your kids’ LEGOs, then lets them know what they can build with them. Whoa.
My son is all about LEGO these days, which is why I was intrigued when I heard about Brikit, a new iPhone app that takes stock of the LEGOs you have and makes suggestions -- complete with instructions -- on what to build. Turns out, it's a gamechanger! I love this app...
5 home-office gadgets that take your workspace to the next level. (Some, literally.)
I've been a work-from-home mom long before the pandemic was a thing, but it usually translated to "work from cafe" or "work from library" mom. But, I have to say, I'm kind of happy that this past year has created the new habit of actually working from my home and I'm...
6 of my favorite TikTok parenting experts. Yes, TikTok. It’s not just choreographed dances.
Like a lot of elder millennials, I resisted TikTok for a while. After all, why would I want to watch videos of toddlers spilling drinks when I can just look across my kitchen table? Sorry, Yeet Baby. But the more I delved into it, the more I realized TikTok is...
How to stream the 2020 Tokyo Olympics if you’ve cut the cable cord. (Psst: it’s easy, and cheap.)
This year, we want to stream the 2020 Tokyo Olympics but of course, we happened to have cut our cable cord years ago. Instead, we rely on several streaming services — mainly Netflix, the free HBOMax subscription that came with our phone plan, and our beloved Apple...
Can you identify all 22 of the new Olympic-ready Apple Watch bands?
Just in time for this summer's long-awaited 2020 Tokyo Olympics -- yes, they're still calling it that -- leave it to Apple to create the accessory to match. They're out today with 22 new, limited-edition International Sport Loop Collection watch bands, each one...
4 clever tech solutions that turn handwriting into digital text
We recently had a mom reach out on our Out Tech Your Kids group on Facebook, asking for the best tech to help turn handwriting into text. Like so many kids today, her daughter is using her finger to write on a school issued iPad, and the messy handwriting is causing...