gifts for kids

When I heard that View-Master had updated and gone full Virtual Reality, I was intrigued. Had the toy I'd grown up peering through to see tiny photos of animals in the wild really gone high-tech? All for under $30 -- or even under $25 on…

As we approach the final week of Christmas shopping, I plan spend a few minutes to make sure that I'm buying toys and games that will feed my kids' brains as much as their need for play. And while "math toys" has never appeared on any of…

H i Cool Mom Picks, I'm looking to purchase the best kids' tablet for a 3-year-old, and maybe one for an 8-year-old. What do you suggest? - Reader, via Facebook. Oh, to be a kid on Christmas morning opening up a brand new tablet to play …

Honestly, haven't we all rocked out to an air guitar at some point in our lives? (Or maybe this morning in the shower -- ahem .) Pretending to be Lenny Kravitz or Joan Jett shredding the axe and professing our love for rock 'n' roll out …

This is a sponsored message from Amazon With tech at the top of so many kids' holiday wish lists this year and so many gadgets on the market, it can be hard for parents to navigate through all the options. This year, Amazon is offering t…

We love toys for kids that are educational too, which is why we're so happy to share of these some favorite cool STEM toys and gifts for kids as the next installment in our 2015 Holiday Tech Gift Guide series. And we’re extra happy to sh…

This is a sponsored message from Wonder Workshop With so many parents looking for STEM toys for their kids this holiday, it's worth checking out Wonder Workshop, makers of the awesome Dot and Dash robots that teach kids some fantastic sk…

We're seeing drones at the top of a lot of tween and teen holiday wish lists this year. And really, we're not surprised. It's pretty amazing what you can do with these super cool gadgets. Let's just say these are not the remote control p…

If there's one thing that's in my never enough category, it's sleep (okay, and Bradley Cooper), and I'm guessing that's the case for most parents. Well, the sleep part; not the Bradley part. But a new device on Indiegogo called REMI may …

We're unapologetically heavy on the Star Wars around here these days ( birthday parties ! halloween costumes ! shower heads !) because well, between Halloween and the Force Awakens movie countdown, we just can't help ourselves. And so, w…

While things we find on Kickstarter aren't usually available in the immediate future, if you've already got holiday shopping on the brain (eek!) it's worth taking a look at Cannybots , a Kickstarter campaign for a very cool new tech toy …

We have always been big proponents of the idea that all toys are for all kids, sharing finds like dolls made for boys and tech toys that appeal to all kids, which is something our own kids have naturally shown us through their play. And …

It's hard to believe this was my first ever year attending the Maker Faire in NYC, but yep. It's true. And now consider me an annual attendee. Thanks to our sponsor Sprout by HP who hooked me up with tickets (thank you thank you thank yo…

Last year we fell in love with the Anki Drive app-controlled racers, calling it one of our top tech toys of 2014 . Earlier this year at Toy Fair, we got a look (and a very fun if brief test drive) of the brand new Anki OVERDRIVE and as o…

We're as geeked out about Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens as anyone else, but let's all step back for a minute and take a moment of reflection for today's #ForceFriday national day that's really a giant unboxing and marketing event desi…

We have officially entered the "please turn that music off" stage of parenting. Yay. (Sarcasm.) We have been lucky to try various kids' headphones over the years, and I've compared some of the top affordable headphones for kids. They're …

Unless you are a parent who just doesn't use a cell phone yourself -- which, huh? -- we guarantee your kids will be begging pretty much by the time they get to kindergarten, and see one classmate who already has one. We don't entirely th…

We're big fans of dedicated kids' tablets around here. We even have a list of our favorite tablets for kids , for those parents who aren't quite ready to hand over a $500 iPad to a preschooler. Even if it is a hand-me-down. And this is w…

Recently, I wrote about how totally in love I am with the Dot and Dash Robots from Wonder Workshop . So it makes me extra happy that they have joined us as as our newest Cool Mom Tech sponsor because, well, we all adore them! (Also, so d…

With a bunch of Minecraft fans in my house, and a couple of them with gadgets of their own, I'm pretty sure these new Minecraft cases from Think Geek would be a huge hit. You won't find these Minecraft cases anywhere other than Think Gee…

Should I be embarrassed that I, a 30-something mother of four, saw this Fujifilm Instax Mini Hello Kitty camera and let out a tween-level squeal? Possibly. But heck, who cares? This is freaking awesome. I've had a long standing luv-affai…

At first glance, the gorgeous handmade Avakai dolls look like heirloom dolls my kids would love to play with all on their own But hidden inside these matryoshka-inspired Waldorf dolls is some very cool tech that will spark creative play …

If you're always looking for the newest, coolest toys for your kids, we think you're going to want to know about the introduction of the wildly cool Disney Playmation this fall, because mamas? This could be a category changer. If it does…

This a sponsored message on behalf of Gameband + Minecraft If you've been waiting to get your hands on the uber popular Gameband + Minecraft for a Minecraft lover in your life, now's the time. Because when you purchase it at Target, you'…