tweens + big kids

Whether we're camping, trying to catch fireflies, or just going out to the beach to watch the waves by moonlight, my kids like to have a little light nearby to keep an eye out for those things that go bump in the night. And while flashli…

When we go on long car rides, I like to pack a bag of activities of things that keep the kids occupied for as long as possible before they resort to the eventual "are we therrrrrre yet?" One of the things I always throw in is our set of …

As soon as my kids were old enough to hold a crayon, I started apologizing to the trees. Wow, they run through a ream of paper in no time at all with all their pictures, notes, and stories. And while I appreciate their creativity, I also…

If you've got a kid with a big love for gadgets, Star Wars, and having cooler things than other kids in the class, we think we've found the perfect thing. The R2-D2 watch is no mere digital wristwatch, it's got radio control powers too, …

I decided to buy an iPad 2 for my eight-year-old to use in our homeschooling lessons. That's right -- it's for educational purposes, kid. And no, Angry Birds Space does not count as a physics lesson. So I've spent the past few days scour…

My kids are now at the age where the questions are getting harder than simply, "what's that?" The fun part is that when they ask about evolution or the number of stars or the life cycle of a butterfly, we get to explore the answers toget…

Believe it or not, summer brain drain is a real phenomenon. Bill Nye the Science Guy even said so recently on Kids Place Live (yes, the de facto radio station on in my car) and he mentioned that math and science are the first subjects to…

If you're loading up on apps to keep the kids entertained on car trips and rainy days, we've got a fun new one that's actually not new at all. In fact, I think it's a few centuries old. Besides, how could I not try the game that's huge i…

File this one under "for the kid who has everything" -- unbelievably, outrageously, way super cool LED hula hoops. If it weren't for the splurgey price, I'd snatch up a few of these rechargeable LED hula hoops immediately. Should you nee…

Missing ear. Posthumously famous. Misunderstood misanthrope. Obviously I'm talking about Vincent van Gogh (and hopefully no one you actually know). If you want to bring the brilliant painter to life (you know, again) I've found a wonderf…

Recently a smart reader recommended the Unblock Me app when I was looking for something new to play around with, and boy was she right. What I didn't realize however is the educational value for kids. Unblock Me is a series of outrageous…

Back when kid-hop artist Secret Agent 23 Skidoo burst out on the scene with his debut Easy , Gotta Be Me was one of the standout songs for its kid-affirming lyrics and celebration of being different from the status quo. Flash forward a f…

As a huge Colorforms fan as a kid (really, who wasn't?) I squealed when I learned they had turned that clever little design and creativity toy into an iPad app. And what an app it is. The Colorforms Revolution App (wow, mighty big promis…

My kids are at the age now when piggy banks are more than big rattles and loose change is no longer a choking hazard. Money is starting to take on new meaning--like when my son recently asked for new Bey Blades and I said he could save u…

My girls are too young to remember the Girlhood Journeys series of historical fiction that was published years ago. But, given how much they've gobbled up the American Girl books, I knew this newly reissued series might be right up their…

Ah, remember the days when you could just look at your wrist to know what time it is, and not have to fish your phone out of some buried pocket in your handbag? If you're ready to re-embrace the wristwatch as fashion accessory-slash-conv…

My kids, like many, fall into the "Quasimodo trance" as I call it when they are alone with my iPad and play mindless games. They sit, hunched over and when asked a question, simply respond with grunts and indiscernible noises. Not so whe…

We couldn't get May the Fourth go by without a few of our very favorite recent Star Wars picks . ("May the Fourth be with you?" Get it?) After all, we have a whole entire category just for them, and even a Star Wars Pinterest Board , con…

A couple of weeks ago, I was invited on a trip of a lifetime: To travel to Alaska to see the Aurora Borealis with a research team from GoPro, a family-run business that's grown massively in just a few years. Before this trip, I wasn't to…

If you're stumped for a great, unique, LOL gift for that celeb-loving, social-media loving person in your life, we've found a gift that we can pretty much guarantee they don't already have: A black-and-white poster created from the words…

Even though I managed to pull a strong B+ in my college Art Appreciation class, my art history is a little rusty all these years later. And Van Gogh? Beyond the usual "ear incident" and the iconic sunflowers and starry night, my wealth o…

I'm a music lover. So it comes as no surprise that my kids dig their own crazy cool tunes. To be honest, I've shied away from kids' headphones because of real fears about child hearing loss. In fact, years of Walkman, Discman, iPod liste…

I'm definitely an old school gamer who spent way too many hours during college with my butt on a couch and my hand firmly grasped around a controller developing sore thumbs. I love how far video games have come since then, as demonstrate…

Though my kids generally loathe being dragged along from store to store when I have errands to run, there is one store I have no problem getting them into: The Apple Store. In fact, I usually have to drag them out when I'm ready to leave…