Birthdays :(

This month is birthday month for my family. Grandpa and Anneli's b-days are on August 20. Dad's is on August 28. Michelle's is on August 30. Steve's is on Sept. 6. And Sarah's is on Sept. 20. I'm missing ALL of them!

I love living in California, but I always feel sad during this time of the year. Yesterday I talked to Sar, and they were getting ready for Michelle's pizza party. Today, I talked to Shell, and she was talking about her b-day. Yesterday, I talked to Dad about his big 60. A few minutes ago, I looked at Mom's blog and saw all of the pics of Dad. And I'm going to miss Steve and Sar on their b-days, too.

As an adult, I am starting to understand what it must have been like for Dad to have missed our birthdays growing up. Of course, WE were sad when he couldn't be there--but now I understand how hard it must have been for him.

Okay, that was depressing. Maybe it's my pregnancy hormones.

Ju-Ju-Be Photo Shoot

My good friend Rachelle and her husband started a fabulous line of bags called Ju-Ju-Be. They've been in Nordstrom for years, but they really rose to baby bag fame when Britney Spears was spotted with one a few years ago.

Rachelle asked my friend Mandy, me, and the little girls to do a photo shoot for the Fall line. (She already used Maia in a previous photo shoot). Of course, I was stoked! Jenny, Lizzy, and Hailey look like they had fun, too! I was nervous to do the shoot with Mandy, because Mandy has a model's body. Luckily for me, they were mostly there to shoot bags! Ha!

Hope After Divorce

We recently published a book called Hope After Divorce. It is a collection of essays written by Christian women who have found hope through the Atonement of Christ. We published it because the other authors and I wished we had something like this when we were going through our divorces.

We never thought this would make money, but we wanted to do it because we thought it was an important book to write. A few days ago, I received the most wonderful email: "I read your book, Hope after Divorce. It is great. I cried and saw myself in so many of the stories. The one that hit home the most was Fairy Tales. I would advise anyone to read this book, for it is so inspiring. My book looks like one of my old school books with all the highlighting throughout it. Ha! But true! Thank you and all involved. I will be going back to it many times."

I am so grateful to this woman, because this comment alone made all of the work on the book worth it. I'm so happy that though these authors have all had such difficult experiences (one woman's husband left her to die in the middle of a 4-mile lake!), they have given so much of themselves and are now benefiting the lives of others.

Little Mermaid at the Tuacahn!

Jeff, Jake, Maia, Lizzy, Jenny, Hailey, and I have been staying in St. George for a couple of days. This is our first family trip--ever!--that we have taken by ourselves. We have taken lots of trips together, but we have always gone to see extended family or friends.

Tonight, we went to see The Little Mermaid at the Tuacahn amphitheater. It was a slam dunk! I liked the extra songs and changes in the play. But watch out for a little bit too much girl power at the end. In the play, Ariel kills Ursula with the trident, and King Triton says that Eric doesn't need his permission to marry his daughter. She can decide that for herself. Although I certainly appreciate feminism, whatever happened to good old-fashioned manly heroism? It tainted the play for me. But the kids didn't notice :)--they loved it!

New Video for a New Book!

We are releasing a book called Waffle Street on September 1. Here's the promotional video. What do you think? Would you read it? "Jimmy Jam" is the author of the book, and this is his story.

The Tooth Is Out!

He did it!

Jake is pulling out his tooth as we speak!

Jake is trying to pull out his tooth as we speak! Is it going to come out tonight? Grandpa Osmond lent him his pliers . . .

Baby number 6 on the way!

Jeff and I are so excited--baby number 6 is on the way! Jake wants a brother, and Maia, Lizzy, and Jenny want a sister. Jeff and I are just excited!