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One of the favorite pages in “The Mommy Shorts Guide to Average Parenting” is the copyright page. It’s not the best looking page (it includes a ridiculously long list of photo credits that were really hard to fit on one page) and it wasn’t any fun to organize (keeping track of releases, names and page numbers is my nightmare), but it’s the page where all my friends, family members, co-workers, and of course, readers are acknowledged for their contributions to my book.

Mommy Shorts has always been an interactive blog (you’ve learned from me, I’ve learned more from you) and it means a ton to me that some of my fans and followers have their names published alongside mine. There are also a few sections of the book that include quotes from readers and hope a few people were pleasantly surprised to see their stories or comments recounted in print. I also love that people are posting pictures of their kids opened to the page in the book where they appear.

It started with the Bloomin’ Onion on Page 50, pictured below:

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Which inspired me to ask other contributors to take similar pics. Let me introduce to a few of the pages of my book…

The girl who took a dip in house paint featured on Page 141:

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The boy who got mugged on Christmas on Page 61:

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The boy whose mom forgot to alert the tooth fairy on Page 163:

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The girl who stole her mom’s phone and filled it with selfies on Page 180:

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The boy who will only eat food when his dad pretends it’s alive and screaming for help on Page 79:

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The boy who loves waking up at 4am on Page 35:

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The boy who has both a good and evil side on Page 202:

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The baby found #babymugging on Page 61:

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The boy crying over floppy rabbit ears on Page 199:

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The husband who took so many selfies on delivery day, that the camera battery ran out by the time the baby arrived on Page 29:

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The boy who called the cops just for fun on Page 223:

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The girl who hogged the bed on Page 89:

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The boy who could play both Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde on Page 203:

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The boy who face palmed two years in a row after his new baby sibling arrived on Page 157:

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The kids who were less than thrilled to go back to school on Page 223:

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The guy who took the photo on Page 6:

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The boy who turned the coffee table into a parking lot on Page 136:

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The girl who loves requesting smoothies but doesn’t drink them on Page 79:

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The woman who designed Harlow’s “three” dress on Page 71:

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The couch that got turned into a fort on Page 137:

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The girl who thinks avocados are the enemy on Page 78:

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The girl who did not want to become a big sister on Page 157:

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The girl who waited until they were far away from home to have a diaper blowout on Page 40:

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The girl who needed changing table restraints on Page 121:

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The kids who emptied the pantry on Page 140:

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The girl who perfected her evil glare on Page 202:

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The kids whose Grandpa was left sitting on the stove on Page 165:

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The baby whose hair looked like the Sydney Opera House on Page 50:

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The girl who hid under a lampshade during a game of hide and seek on Page 98:

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The kid who turned his kitchen into a jungle gym on Page 106:

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The boy who applied a yogurt face mask on Page 74:

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The girl who showed emotional range Page 203:

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The girl whose hair resembles scribbling on Page 50:

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The boy who doesn’t like tomatoes in his tomato sauce on Page 79:

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The sisters who counted their pictures to make sure they were evenly represented:

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Thank you to everyone who contributed to “The Mommy Shorts Guide to Remarkably Average Parenting.” Without your photos and permission, my book never would have happened. For those of you who have not yet purchased my book, please know that in addition to these photo heavy pages, there is lots to read too! 

If you’ve got a photo of your kid or a quote in the book, take a picture and hashtag it #mommyshortsbook on Instagram. Not only will it make me happy (looking through that hashtag is my new favorite past time), it enters you to win this month’s swag bag! Which among other things, includes the Mommy Shorts denim and yellow tote you keep seeing me carry around. See all the swag bag items here.

Of course, you can post pictures if your kids aren’t in the book too.

Looking forward to seeing some of you in Alpharetta, Georgia and Raleigh, North Carolina next week! See all my book tour dates here.