Clever Parents just loves a good parentrepreneur story.

Last year, Clever Parents featured Monkey Toes and their adorable animal and insect themed footwear line by single mom of two, Jenny Chism. (See the review.)

When Oprah interviewed Tom Cruise in the now infamous Telluride visit, the first part of the program showed Oprah walking into his home, picking up a cute pair of mini-fashionista Suri’s ladybug mary janes and saying how adorable they are. As you can imagine, Monkey Toes jumped into the limelight and sales soared as people flocked to find Suri’s ladybug shoes on Oprah. Hooray for Jenny!

If you missed the show, you can see it tomorrow – December 12th (look here for local listings). Use code OSURI08 and receive $5 off your purchase. Happy shopping.

What do you look for in a kid’s backpack?

How often when you pick out a backpack (or lunch box) for your child do you both like the same one?

If you’re like most, you’re lucky to find some combination of function and style – either a style you like or one your child does – and that’s about it.

Then, adding insult to injury, the bag ends up getting dragged around, straps flailing, and by the time the holidays hit that ‘back-to-school’ backpack is ready to be replaced. Read the rest »

Imagine your child’s life being put at risk by something you bought to protect her. That’s exactly what happened to George DeCell.

Those outlet plugs you have all over your house in the name of child-proofing? Turns out they could do more harm than good.

After George removed an outlet plug in order to vacuum the house, his one year old daughter Sage reached onto the kitchen table and grabbed it. “When I turned around she was on the floor unable to breath,” says George who then saved his daughter’s life. “It
took less than a minute for this to happen.” Read the rest »

Like most parents, sisters Laura and Julie struggled to find a healthy balance between all of their commitments, family and ‘me’ time. Bogged down with the stress of too much to do and not enough time to do it, these two moms with six children between them sought out to simplify their lives.

From their fast-past lives, an idea was born to launch a company focused around products that make life easier for women. Product #1? The Azula, a stylish neoprene mat you place at the edge of the pool so that your bathing suit doesn’t snag when you sit poolside. Read the rest »

This week I’m bringing you three mom-inspired ways to feed your kids better and faster. Summer can be an especially trying time for parents. There is always a meal or snack to prepare. It doesn’t matter how newly remodeled your kitchen is, it’s no place to spend June through August.

We all know the Internet is packed full of more information than most people have time to wade through. That’s why I scoured the momosphere to find easy ways to feed your den. Mom entrepreneurs helping moms…I love it. Read the rest »

Now that summer is in full swing, taking baby outside brings on a new challenge: protecting him from the sun.

The clever folks at Secure2Me have a great solution that doesn’t involve applying lots of sunscreen. Read the rest »

Five years ago, two moms, Amy and Michelle, were chatting over dinner and laughing about balancing family, friends and work while keeping their sanity intact. Michelle’s designer diaper bag had milk stains all over it and receipts and diapers were falling out all over the restaurant floor.

Wanting something that looked good and matched her personality, Michelle had purchased the bag only weeks before when her attempts to find a stylish bag that also functioned well came to a halt. “I was not willing to give up my identity and style just because I had a baby,” says Michelle. Read the rest »