Welcome back to Good Gossip - the only celebrity and local gossip you can enjoy guilt-free because it’s all “good.” You’re welcome to submit a few tidbits of your own, too. Know somebody who just had a baby? A friend promoted at work? A sister who works her tail off for local charities? Send us an e-mail and we’ll spread the good word. Now… on to the gossip:

Celebrity Dish

Singer Jewel and her long-time boyfriend and rodeo star Ty Murray eloped on a secluded beach in the Bahamas. She was barefoot, and he was in cowboy boots. The resort surprised the couple with their own fireworks display over the water. It was a tiny wedding, with only two friends standing by – one of which officiated the ceremony. Their wedding cake was topped with a figurine of a cowboy and his bride (similar to the one pictured here), which Jewel found online. Ty said they eloped because “That’s what marriage is, just me and her.” Jewel said they’re ready to start a family. (Source: People Magazine, August 25, 2008 edition)

Dr. Phil and wife Robin said the rumors about their marriage being on the rocks are “absolutely, unequivocally, blatantly false.” The couple celebrated their 32nd wedding anniversary on August 14th. The false rumors began when a tabloid reporter shot a picture of a moving truck outside their home. Robin says the truck was there to put furniture in storage while their home was being renovated. (Source: People Magazine, Sept. 1, 2008 edition)

Clay Aiken of American Idol fame is the proud dad of son Parker Foster Aiken, who was born August 8th in North Carolina. Aiken said “The little man is healthy, happy and as loud as his daddy.” He was conceived via in vitro fertilization. (Source: People Magazine, August 25, 2008 edition)

In other American Idol baby news, Season 4 runner-up Bo Bice, 32, and his wife Caroline Fisher welcomed their second son, Caleb on August 5th in Nashville. (Source: People Magazine, August 25, 2008 edition)

And speaking of baby news, when asked about saving his son Levi’s placenta to plant in the ground, Matthew McConaughey said: “It’s going to be in the orchards and it’s going to bear some wonderful fruit.” (Source: US Weekly, Sept. 1, 2008 issue)

Maintaining her sense of humor as she approaches breast reconstruction over the next eight months, Christina Applegate recently joked “I’m going to have cute boobs ‘til I’m 90.” Having already been through two lumpectomies, the star decided to undergo a double mastectomy recently after learning she had the breast cancer gene. Her mother, Nancy Priddy, 67, has also battled breast cancer and a recurrence. Christina began having mammograms at age 30 but credits her early diagnosis with a doctor-ordered MRI. She is now cancer-free. (Source: People Magazine, Sept. 1, 2008 edition)

Around 7:15 p.m. on August 16th, Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi walked into a candlelit den in their home where the two were joined in marriage, surrounded by 19 of their closest friends and family. (Portia wore a wedding gown; Ellen wore white pants and a gauzy white shirt.) After California’s Supreme Court ruled a previous ban on gay marriage to be unconstitutional last May, DeGeneres proposed with a Neil Lane marquis-cut diamond while the two animal lovers were tending some goldfish that de Rossi had rescued earlier in the day. Ellen said of the union “I think the most beautiful thing about this relationship is that she makes me better.” Asked what they’d like to be doing on their 25th anniversary, the couple said they’d be on a farm, taking care of every kind of animal that needs taking care of. (Source: People Magazine, Sept. 1, 2008 edition)

Brad Pitt has teamed with Kiehl’s to create an Aloe Vera Body Cleanser, with all net profits going to JPF Eco Systems, a charity that supports global environmental intiaitives. Pitt created a handwritten note that will be featured on the label. Cost: $16.50 available online on August 29th. (Source: People Magazine, Sept. 1, 2008 edition)

Prince William and his 6-year girlfriend Kate Middleton watched the sunset on the private island of Mustique recently. The prince was on break from the Navy and will start Special Forces training this fall. The couple enjoyed intertubing and wakeboarding during their third trip to the island. (Source: People Magazine, August 25, 2008 edition)

Model Rachel Hunter, 38, is engaged to ice hockey player Jarret Stoll, 26. Rachel has two teenagers with ex Rod Stewart. (Source: US Magazine, Sept. 1, 2008 edition)

On Sept. 1, 27-year-old Natalie Portman will make her directorial debut at the Venice International Film Festival in Italy with her short, Eve. (Source: US Magazine, Sept. 1, 2008 edition)

Local Dish

Two Northwest Arkansas women have started a new baby equipment rental business called Baby Smart Travel. Glenda Miner and Judy Palmer dreamed up the idea after being frustrated that they couldn’t rent baby gear for their grandchildren (they have five between them!) when the little ones came to visit. Glenda says Baby Smart is ideal for people who are, like her, grandparents with visiting grandchildren; corporate folks in the midst of relocation; and couples who have friends with children flying in who don’t want to pay additional fees associated with checking extra baggage (or in this case, car seats and strollers) at the airport. It’s also great for people vacationing in the area. Baby Smart delivers and sets up the gear at your destination and then comes back to pick it up. They make sure the equipment meets JPMA standards, is sanitized and is rigorously safety tested.

Glenda and Judy have been friends for over 36 years and both graduated from John Brown University. Glenda has a teaching degree and Judy graduated with a degree in organizational management. The Baby Smart website is now up and running, so check it out by clicking here. Great idea, ladies!

Laura Kellams of Fayetteville has left the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette after 11 years to take a new post as Northwest Arkansas director of Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, a non-profit, non-partisan child advocacy organization. The organization has been active in Little Rock for 30 years but this is the first NWA office. “There has been a core group of Northwest Arkansas people who have been helping the organization, but they have long wanted a staff member here,” Laura said. She said Arkansas Advocates doesn’t provide direct services to people, but instead develops and advocates for policies that help families. One of her long-term projects will be working with the Arkansas Finish Line Coalition. The Coalition’s goal is to make sure every child in Arkansas has health insurance. Congrats on the new job, Laura.

Northwest Arkansas author Padma Viswanathan, whose first novel, The Toss of A Lemon, is being distributed to bookstores next week, will be reading excerpts from her book at a reception at Ozark Mountain Smokehouse (note the change in location) on Dickson St. on Wednesday, Sept. 10, at 7 p.m. She’ll soon embark on a 10-city book tour, including Fayetteville. Nightbird Books in Fayetteville already has the book, but it will be widely available in early September.