Very VERY Merry!!!

I feel like the luckiest girl on the planet, and I cannot even tell you how excited I have been to share this post with you! *squeal!!!*

You may not know that sewing is NOT listed among my talents...not even close. Truth be told, I cannot sew on a button, or darn a sock (what does that even mean?), which is pretty sad since I spend a lot of time drooling over tons of amazing sewing blogs- almost as much as I drool over photography blogs...almost.

Lucky for me, I have Sara. Sara is my extremely, amazingly, unbelievably talented friend who can work a sewing machine like nobody's business. Last Christmas when I was over at her house, I noticed that her family's Christmas stockings were basically the cutest things I had ever laid eyes on. It didn't surprise me one bit to learn that SHE had sewn them all. After much begging, pleading, bribing, whining, maybe even tears (just teasing!), she agreed to sew some for my family in exchange for a photoshoot. Um, yes. YES!

They COULD NOT be cuter!!! EVERY person who comes into our home comments on them. I have them hanging right by the door on our staircase (I was afraid to hang them from the fireplace for fear the kids would put their hands all over them or try to hang on them or something.) and not a person can walk by without commenting on them. They are A-MAZING! I am so excited to share pictures! All of our names are hand stitched on, and of course I am blurring out the kid's names so you will just have to imagine the utter cuteness. I love these so much and I am not kidding when I say I would have gladly paid $100 each for them. They are a precious heirloom for our family. Love, love, love!!!



Look at all the precious details! I love how the reindeer's tail hangs off the edge- and her bow and darling jingle bells around her neck.



Love the little 'snowflakes' and the way the scarf hangs off the edge. LOVE the buttons and you should see the material the snowman is made out of. SO darling!



Love this precious little gingerbread man and his cute candy cane hanging off the edge. I don't know why but he looks black in this picture- he is actually made of corduroy and is a beautiful gingerbread brown.



I HAD to choose the bird for myself, of course. I LOVE birds!! Santa Clause went to Mike. So darn cute.



Thank you for letting me gush and share. I am so in love with these stockings. I have threatened my kids so many times that if they even breathe on these puppies they will be in huuuuuuge trouble! ;) I am thinking about scotch gaurding them. Thoughts? Would that be a good idea or no?

Now Serving...Humble Pie.

Most of you know that I recently had a baby. A baby boy, to be exact. What you may not know, however, is how incredibly FREAKED OUT I was at the idea of having a boy.

You see, I am a 'girl' kind of mom. I love playing princesses and Barbie, Hannah Montana, nail polish, and all things glitter. I do not love frogs, snakes, getting peed on, Spiderman, Batman, or any man in a cape.

For the past few years I really felt it was my destiny to be a mommy to all girls. I fantasized about 'girl' trips in our future, spa vacations, mani/pedi's, and girl talk. LOTS of girl talk.

All that changed when the ultrasound tech told us we were having a boy. Both my husband and I began to cry...him from excitement, me from sheer and utter fear.

Being a mom of all girls, I didn't have a single boy item in the house. I tried multiple times to go out and shop for our new little man. I would wander through the boy aisles, vision sliding out of focus as I stared at all the blue. I would start migrating, hands empty, to the girl side of the store. Vision would slide back into focus and I would leave the store with my arms full of pink. I am embarrassed to admit that I bought ONE boy item in my last trimester of pregnancy. The rest of my boy items came from showers and hand me downs. I just COULD NOT get on the boy train, as hard as I tried.

Then I gave birth to my little boy.

My smooshy, delicious, sweet, cuddly, yummy, warm, snuggly little boy.

I am in love. I love everything about him. I love his smooshy lips, his little coos, his sweet smell, his precious, toothless smiles. I love the way he sighs and snuggles into my arms when he is done eating. I love seeing my girls pour every ounce of love they have over him. I love how they fuss over him and fight over who he is looking at. I love all the blue. The soft puppy and dinosaur onsies, the camouflage socks, the airplane sleepers. I love the blue patchwork bumper in his crib. I loooooooooooooooooooove kissing his smooshy little mouth!!!

I feel silly that I ever thought I would not be able to bond with my little man- how foolish was I? He has me wrapped around his marvelous little fingers. I am in trou-ble!!!!

Winner Winner!!!

Well, the time has come for me to announce the winner of the $20 gift code from CSN! So, using the random generator I got...

LUCKY number EIGHT!!! Congratulations, Anna! Please send me an email and I will send you the code. (You can find my email in my profile information.)

Thanks to everyone who participated!

If you would like to host your own giveaway, let me know. CSN is great to work with and looking for people to host giveaways for them.

A Give Away!!!

It's that time of year again...the holidays are upon us, and in our house: Christmas! Every.single.day from the backseat of the car I hear the countdown...14 days, 13 days, 12 days....a constant reminder that I am grossly under prepared for Christmas morning. What can I say? With a new baby, the holiday has definitely gotten away from me, and the closer it gets, the more anxiety I feel about braving the crowds at the mall.

Thank HEAVENS for online shopping!!!

So what about you? Are you prepared for the holiday, or, like me, do you still have about a million people left to shop for? Well, hopefully I can help you with that! CSN Stores has graciously offered my readers a chance to win a $20 gift code to their online stores! There are so many ways to spend it, CSN has a multitude of products: TV stands for flat screens, toys, strollers, kitchen appliances, rugs, home decor....the possibilities are endless!

So, how do you enter? All you have to do is visit the CSN site, look around at their awesome products, and then leave me a comment telling me how you would spend the $20. Easy peasy, people!

This contest will end at midnight on Thursday, December 16th, just enough time for you to pick up something for the holiday! At that time I will use random.org's generator to pick a winner. Good luck!

Oh, and if you are wondering what I would put the money towards...here you go!

Be Gone, Belly Fat.

*Family blog updated.
I recently ran across this blog: My Year Without Sugar and I thought to myself, This looks intriguing! Cutting out sugar is JUST what I need to get my fat, post-baby self back into shape. (working out is NOT happening right now since I am running on about 4 hours of sleep per night). After looking over her blog, however, I realized just how non realistic that is for me. This girl has WILLPOWER!
Anyway, I am still hoping to start shedding some pounds through diet alone, until I get enough sleep to be able to amp myself up to break out the Jillian (aka the devil) videos. However, all of my typical 'diet treats', like sugar free chocolate pudding, diet hot chocolate with hazelnut cream, low calorie chocolate muffins, all contain one common ingredient that is not conducive with breastfeeding....chocolate. So, I need ideas! Any non-chocolate awesome diet treats? Any tips would be extremely appreciated!!!
One more question. Be honest here. I want to know....who is going to watch Bachelor Brad? Tell me truthfully...because as much as I don't want to, I MIGHT have to just peak at that first episode...just to see. Just to see, people! Don't judge me!

Life As I Know It.

So, before I begin, let me just comment about protecting your images. A long while back, I wrote a blog post about disabling the right click function on your blog so people can't steal your images. Well, it turns out that there are ways around it...like enlarging the image and then right clicking on it. Personally, I host my image through Flickr and mark it to private so people can't click on it and bring it into a new browser window and save it. However, I have been told that some people have had success dragging my images onto their desktop. So, I am sorry I don't have the answer to that. I have had a lot of follow up comments on that post, and I am sorry I haven't responded earlier.

Once you read through the rest of my post, this will become more and more clear...the only way to protect your images is to not put them on the internet at all...and if you must, do it in a private forum.

So. Here we go.

Seven weeks ago, I had a baby. My third baby, actually, and amidst the absolute and complete lack of sleep and the crazy hormonal imbalanced anxiety, I had a couple of real eye opening experiences. Allow me to share.

First, I have to preface this by saying I. am. paranoid...and not only am I paranoid in general, but when it comes to my children, I am pretty much a basketcase. So, moving on....I often have photographers that I have never met 'friend' me on Facebook. This is not unusual for me, and we typically have lots of other photographer 'friends' in common, so I will usually add these requests and stick them in a Limited Profile category. Easy Peasy. Well, the day before I was going into the hospital to have my baby, a photographer I had never met- but had tons of photographer friends in common with- requested me as a friend. I added her but then realized that since I was on my itouch that I couldn't access the Limited Profile function. No bother, I figured I would do it later. However, seeing as how I had my pending labor on my mind, I totally forgot about it.

Fast forward to a week later. This photographer 'friend' has commented on my wall a few times...commented on pictures I posted of my precious new baby, and sent me a private message. The message said:

"Hi Joy, congratulations for new baby!! Your blog is blocked, me too have blog (I'm new in blog)and I wish I could enjoy your blog if there is no problem."

What the broken english? I was so confused and checked out her page, which seemed completely normal. TONS of posts, written in proper grammar, with no signs of shadiness. So, I figured her account had been hacked. Since I hadn't met her, I decided to write on her wall, "Hey, did you just send me a message?" to which she promptly responded, "Yes, Joy."

But something felt off. I decided to go to her business page (which was not listed on her facebook page, which I found odd) and found her business email. I sent her a quick message just verifying that she had messaged me. She hadn't. I told her that her page was probably hacked and that someone was spamming her friends, because they had responded to me on her wall. Her next response confused me even more, "No, I don't have anything from you on my wall....this is bizarre, please send me more information." I took a screen shot of her wall (I told you I am paranoid!) and sent it to her, and her next response was, "OMG, that is me, but that is SO NOT ME!!"

Someone was impersonating her. After much digging we found out that this someone was not only impersonating her, but also her husband, and her sister. And it had been going on for months. This person had created fake pages for all of them, and posting every day as if they were them. Stealing their profile pictures and any unprotected photo albums they had, and posting them as if they were theirs. They even stalked her photography blog and reposted things on the facebook wall that she would blog. This person knew INTIMATE details about this girl and her family, things they had found on her family blog. It was the yuckiest, creepiest, sickest feeling uncovering all of this. I just wanted to jump through the computer and give this girl a big, huge, hug. The imposter had tons of 'friends' who were all under the assumption that this was the real girl, and guess what? As a result, that imposter had access to all of those friends information...pictures....posts....who knows how many people they could impersonate with all that information?

What creeped me out even further was the fact that not only had the faker asked me for an invite to my blog, but had also tried to 'friend' my husband. I strongly feel that we would have been next on the impersonation list. I don't understand what someone would have to gain by doing that, but I do know this:

That is not normal. It is weird, and especially weird that someone in a foreign country would want to do it, which makes me feel that they must have SOMETHING to gain by doing it.

I feel absolutely HORRIBLE that this wierdo had access to all the images I posted of my children, not to mention I was already feeling very mother-hen about my brand new baby. It sickened me that this person had been commenting on my pictures of him, our name choice for him...everything. Seriously disgusting. Again, I can't even let my mind wander to a place that wonders what a wierdo would do with his images. *shudder*

The fact is...any of my 'friends' could be hacked, and lately a lot have (you can tell because they spam your wall), and while that hacker is in their account, they can see everything about my account. Personal information, and (the clincher for me) pictures of my kids. Which is why I have removed them from Facebook. It is JUST NOT WORTH IT to me to not have control over those images.

By the way, this story made the news in Utah. http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=12933972

Okay, so let me interject some personal feelings here. As I said, this happened the week I gave birth, so not only was I totally freaked out, but I was also sleep deprived, weepy, hormonal, and a bit nuts. I felt like it was totally unfair that this had to happen during a time when I was feeling so emotional, I was especially resentful that this person had been able to see all my children, know their names, etc. I felt totally violated, and pretty much felt like in the arena of internet safety, I was completely freaked out. I wanted to delete everything, all my blogs, facebook, just quit the internet all together.

A few months have passed now, and I have calmed down a little, but I still feel like I was taught an important message: If you want something to remain private, don't put it on the internet. I took an internet safety class a few years ago, and the person teaching the class made a very good point. Would you walk up to a strange man on the street and introduce him to all your children? Would you go into a bar or a strip club and walk up to the creepers there and tell them your children's birth dates, where they go to school, where they take dance class, etc? Of course not! For some reason, everyone feels so 'safe' putting all that information on their public blogs, facebook pages, etc.

The fact is, you have no idea who actually has access to the information you put on the internet. Even when you think you are protected, you have no idea if you really are. If someone's facebook account gets hacked...if their email gets hacked...you no longer have control of that information.

Anyway, I hope this strikes a little bit of awareness for some when it comes to internet safety.

I am climbing off of my soapbox now. ;)

Thank you

*Family Blog Updated

So I am amazed anyone checks my blog anymore, I have been soooo neglectful. I over committed myself this year when it came to fall photoshoots. I cannot believe I am 9 months pregnant and still shooting, but I am. Really, I love my sessions, each and every one, it's just that coupled with being a mom of 2 and preparing for our baby boy who will be here any minute...I should have thought that through a little more. Anyway- we are excited that the wait is almost over and I can't wait to just sit back and enjoy the snuggles and newborn sweetness for the next few months. I have NO sessions after this weekend so I can enjoy bonding time with our new little guy.

What I won't be enjoying???? BACHELOR BRAD. I am still seething over that announcement. So you weren't ready to find love last time? Too bad, Brad! You had your chance. Is ABC really that desperate for Bachelor candidates? I think I really might skip this one. You know what I am loving, though, is the new series 'The Whole Truth' and I am starting to get sucked into 'The Event'. Those shows, coupled with my favorites from last season (Vampire Diaries, Modern Family, Project Runway, Grey's, etc) are keeping me warm while I edit at night. So give those two new ones a try, they are pretty great!

Halloween???

Quick question for anyone who may still be out there reading my blog (by the way, I appreciate the comments from my last post, thank you!!!).....

I know that Halloween is still a month away, but with this new little bundle coming in October, I want to be fully prepared for my favorite holiday.

I LOVE handmaking my Halloween costumes, but last year I gave in to a few costumes that were in previous Gymboree collections...a bee and a ladybug. Coordinating. Glittery. Adorable.

This year, I snagged the darling peacock costume for my 4 year old, and I would LOVE an idea of what my 3 year old could wear to coordinate with it. Any thoughts???

Thanks. :)

How is it?

I am coming up on 9 months pregnant here and I have to admit that this pregnancy has been a real eye opener for me. It seems like every 'typical' pregnancy symptom out there has decided to befriend me this time around. I am not here to complain, I have too many friends who would like to be pregnant but are not. I realize I am lucky to be pregnant at all, and I should count my blessings...but I DO have to wonder.....

How is it possible to be on my third pregnancy but to have it be sooooooo new and different? How did I manage to make it through those crazy nine months TWICE and not ever have to deal with the craziness of:

Placenta Previa

Gestational Diabetes (quite possibly the worst thing ever)

Horrendous Stretch Marks (never got a single one before- am now covered in them)

Linea Nigra (um, ew.)

Nosebleeds (every single day.)

Heartburn

Extreme Fatigue

Nesting (not necessarily bad!)

Nausea- Okay this one was with all three so it's nothing new.

I find it so intruiging that I am experiencing most of these things for the first time, and I wonder if it's because I am having a boy this time around? The first 20 weeks felt exactly the same as with the girls, and them WHAM. Craziness ensued. I think my least favorite thing is the Gestational Diabetes. If anyone out there has Diabetes, I am SO sorry. Seriously, my condolences. There are some days where I would literally kill for a cupcake. I have CRIED over the fact that I want a baked treat soooooo bad. The only thing holding me together is the knowledge that in 6 weeks or less, I will be able to put on a few pounds purely made of sugar.

If you are at RISK for diabetes, take care of yourself! It is not fun! I have to prick myself 4 times a day, fast 2 hours between meals, and deprive myself of anything tasty. I will definitely be making sure that I try to avoid 'real life' diabetes as long as possible. (With a mom who is a diabetic, it's basically inevitable.)

Anyway. Thanks for letting me ponder and yes, possibly complain just a tad. Wish me luck that these next few weeks will fly by!

Snot Bubbles.

I know I am horribly MIA lately, but I have refrained from posting simply because all I want to do is complain. A lot. But that is for another time. Right now I have to share what I FINALLY watched, and yes, I know I am behind the times because this was all over facebook a month ago...but I just could not bring myself to watch it.

Seriously? I had to pause it a few times so I could put my face in my hands and bawl. The little girl who is sitting on Santa's lap? Nearly killed me. The little blue-shirt boy in preschool? Seriously. Dying. All the little ones really got to me since those are my kid's ages.

Anyway, if you haven't seen it yet, watch it. It will make you bawl- in a good way.

Hmmmm......

Okay, so a few things. First, many people have commented on all the chinese comments I get, and honestly I have NO CLUE why or how to deal with it...I have the 'word verification' turned on...so what the heck????

Second, I have been watching the Bachelor Pad with no time to blog about it, but still loving it. I caught up tonight on last night's episode....um, DRUNK MUCH, Gia?? Goodness. It's good that she left, because the love of her life was almost overthrown by an idiot who can't even come up with an original song for this season's serenades.

Third, my sister in law sent me this link, um, REALLY???? http://themormonbachelorette.blogspot.com/

Yes, this is for real.

That's all from me, I have been a bad blogger, even more horrible on my family blog. Maybe once I catch up editing all my sessions I did this summer....plus the ones I have coming up....eep!!!

I Admit It.

Okay, so I watched the Bachelor Pad. I admit it....I LOVED it. I had no idea that so much drama could occur in one episode alone. If you didn't watch it, hop on abc.com or hulu and give it a chance. It was SO worth the watch.

So, I didn't realize that a lot of the people had prior relationships to coming on the show...Nicky and Juan....Elizabeth and Jesse...and that made for even better drama.

For those of you who DID watch, could Elizabeth have been ANY MORE CRAZY???? I mean, blackmailing someone into telling you that they love you....really, Elizabeth? REALLY? My mouth was on the floor.

And Michelle....precious Michelle. She is seriously just a nutbag and a half. Yowza.

I won't ruin it for you since I know a lot of people didn't watch, but again...give it a try. So worth it.

Roberto!

And so it ends with Roberto being the last man standing. I will make this brief since I am at the beach (yay!) and delirious from being in the sun all day- but I had to comment about Allie letting Chris go before the rose ceremony. I am glad that she let him go and didn't make him go through all the excitement of picking out the ring and all that just to get his heart smashed. However, I thought it was so bizarre how spastic she was when she was telling him that she was letting him go. She was talking like a valley girl on speed, "Um, like, you know, this week has been, like, SO hard and there are, like, two guys left and it is ca-raaaaaazy!" I was so confused at first, why she was acting so nuts. Then she tells him she is letting him go and I finally realized what was happening. I felt SO bad for him but the rainbow thing was super cool and he seemed really good on the Final Rose. But HELLO, who is the next Bachelor? I wonder if they are not hyping up the next season because of the Bachelor Pad. I wish they would have said it was him, though. I want him to have a happy ending SO bad.

I am happy for Allie and Roberto, they seem so excited and so in love, I hope it lasts! AND Roberto was my pick! Yeah! Even though I hated seeing Chris get hurt, I still think Roberto is a good guy. Bravo, Allie.

Anticipation...

So the 'Men Tell All' is kind of an anticlimatic episode, especially when the most dramatic characters (Justin/Rated R, Frank) don't show up. It was enjoyable to see the outtakes from the season, let a few of the guys weigh in and say their peace, but really....not much happens. Except for when they show the final two guys, and I start having huge butterflies and wonder how I will ever be able to wait another week for the final episode! I am DYING to know who she chooses! I was listening really carefully to how she worded things, and I am leaning towards Roberto being the one she chooses, but maybe that is just me guarding and protecting my heart since I want her to choose Chris L SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO bad. He is SO darling. Roberto is hot, don't get me wrong, and really he is a good guy. But I am rooting for Chris L. What a sweety. Do you think that ABC would ask Roberto to be the next Bachelor if she chooses Chris? I think they would. However, I am not sure if they would ask Chris L. What do you think? I tell you what, if they choose Kirk I will barf. I am not a Kirk fan. Still. Please, ABC. Don't do it.

Okay, so what is up with Frank being on the Final Rose? Why was he not there tonight with all the other guys? I had this crazy moment of panic that there will be a Molly/Jason moment and Frank will try to get Allie back. Probably not, but fun to imagine. Seriously, though, why does he deserve to be on that episode? It doesn't make any sense to me.

What did you make of the Bachelor Pad previews? Hmmmmm.....Elizabeth does not make a good blond...Tina Fabulous is a bit loose with her lips, don't ya think? Tenley seems much racier than she did with Jake! Probably trying to live down the fact that Jake basically called her bad in bed. Ouch.

Okay, so what do you think? Chris? Roberto? Who will be the next Bachelor?

Chris...Roberto....CHRIS....ROBERTO....

Alright, so I just finished the final seconds of this week's episode of the Bachelorette. I endured text after text tonight while I was shooting a family session at the Library, taunting me about how I was missing all the drama as it happened. (totally worth it, SUCH a fun session!) Anyway, when I got back to my car I already had 10 texts about it including, "Roberto is P.I.M.P", "wowza", and "I want to jump through the TV and marry Roberto." So, naturally I geared up to jump on the Roberto bandwagon and fall in love with him.

He did not disappoint. Seriously, could he be any more darling? And could she be anymore ALLLLLLLL over him? You can tell that she has some serious chemistry with the guy, and honestly, I can totally see why. He is definitely one. hot. boy. Their date was so romantic, LOVED how they were on their own little private heart-shaped island, (did you catch that it was heart-shaped? 'cause I am not sure if they mentioned that enough times...) and you could just SEE the chemistry steaming through the dewy air of Tahiti. It was HOT. He confessed he was falling in love with her....they entered the fantasy suite...SOLD. I was SOOOOOOOOLD.

Enter Chris. "Poor, sweet Chris," I was thinking to myself. I mean, there was no chance he could ever top the hot, romantic Roberto's date, right? WRONG. I am seriously, seriously, SERIOUSLY loving Chris!! No, they did not make out in the water the whole time they were on camera (although they did plenty of kissing!) They laughed. Joked. Had fun together. Talked. Really connected. She made the genius comment about how that's how she wanted her relationship to be like with her partner- romantic but fun. And you know what? She is totally right. Because you can only make out for so long, and then you have to come up for air/reality and see what is REALLY there. She and Chris have an actual friendship on top of the romance. Anyone who has been married more than 2 seconds knows that the romance does fade into the background a bit when real life settles in. It is still there, just not at the forefront at all times. So what she has with Chris makes me literally yell at the TV, telling her she is an idiot if she doesn't choose him.

I guess I should mention the 'drama' (not so dramatic when you hear about it weeks in advance) of Frank leaving her for the love-of-his-life-who's-name-I-have-already-forgotten. I am glad he felt awful when he told her and she bawled her eyes out. I would love to know if he is even with this chick anymore, or if he has already moved on and moved to China to pursue some lifetime goal he has for the moment. I really have to wonder if the fear of the seriousness of the situation with Ally is what really triggered his 'reconnection' with the other girl. It's like he can't get too pinned down or he freaks out. Whatever. Chris and Roberto are SOOOOOOOOOO much more awesome than him, I can't believe she even shed a tear. Not my cup of tea at all...

Concensus: I love Chris and I love Roberto. I love Chris more, but I still love Roberto. Roberto is hot, and Chris is darling.

I wish we could skip the Men Tell All and go straight to the finale. I just want to KNOW. Is Chris going to get his heart shattered? Is Roberto the next Bachelor? What will happen!!!???

PS I realized last week that I will be at the beach for the finale! I am frantically trying to figure out a way that I will be able to watch it without my kids crawling all over me. I don't know if I will have a computer, either. EEK!

Good News for the Big Girls.

*family blog updated.

You all know my angst when it comes to buying maternity clothing. Well, I just got some great news and thought I would pass it along...Forever 21 now offers MATERNITY clothing!!! There's not a ton of variety, but still...exciting! Click HERE for the link!

edit: I also got this GREAT LINK from my friend Candra...I thought these were really cute, too!

Speaking of maternity, the fabulous Brooke Ashley Photography took some maternity pictures of me and I am so pleased with them! Here are some of my favorites, check out her site to see the rest!

Til Monday!!!

Popsicles and Other Frozen Treats....

Alrighty, so first off....remember that gorgeous couple I was photographing last week? Well they have officially tied the knot and their images are up on my photography blog.

Secondly: I am back in Utah and actually remembered to turn the tv on early and catch all of this week's episode! I LOVED the comments from last week, I was nodding in agreement to all of them. Love reading what you think.

Okay...first: her hometown date with Roberto. LOVED him in his baseball uniform, um, yeah. If I were Ali I would have given him the rose right then and there....sigh. So cute! His family was nice, too. It's interesting to me, though, that Ali is almost insecure with the fact that SHE would be good enough for him...other than being really good looking...what is it she is seeing? I think he is a good guy, don't get me wrong, but I don't see why she is so in awe with the fact that he would even like her. It perplexes me.

Next she was off to Chris L's hometown, where I emptied an entire box of kleenexes just watching their family interact, talk about love, talk about his deceased mom, etc. I was literally bawling my eyes out. It seemed like her connection with Chris deepened so much. Let me interject here and just point out that the word 'connection' is way overused on this show, in my opinion...but seriously, it seemed like there was a real connection between then. I feel like he has a real grasp on what is important, he would really treat her well, and take good care of her. Their kiss seemed WAY better this week, too. However, his family isn't super sarcastic or dry, not the kind of humor that Frank's family used, which she seemed to like. Although she did laugh a lot with Chris's family, I wonder if their tender love for eachother would be too much for her? Too heavy?

Next she went to Kirk's house. Where to even begin? His dad seemed creepalicious at first but I really think it was his way of teasing her in a way...trying to unnerve her. I literally choked on my drink when she said, "Kirk's dad likes to keep dead animals in the freezer along with snacks, popsicles, and other frozen treats." Genius. His families actually ended up seeming really nice, but obviously it is a moot point now that she booted him off. (HUGE relief to me since I was worried for my precious Chris L's safety this week!)

Lastly came Frank's family. Let me be honest with you and say that I fast forwarded through most of their 'alone time' on the boat. Okay, now that I know he is going to ditch her next week, I really just don't care to listen to him whine about not being sure of her feelings. I did watch most of his family, and they seem really darling. His dad was funny, I liked them, I liked their humor. But again, moot point???

Okay, so my DVR cut off the scenes from next week, which made me so sad. What happened? I am SO glad that Chris L and Roberto are going to Tahiti with her...and seeing as how Frank is ditching, that would make them the bottom 2, no? That makes me really happy. Let me be honest and say that even though Roberto was my pick, I am rooting for Chris. I can only imagine his poor, tender, broken heart if she lets him go. It makes me tear up just thinking about it...sniff.

Til next week!

Whaaaaa????

Okay, short post this week because I am in Arizona photographing the most BEAUUUUUTIFUL couple's wedding (can't wait to share!) but I just had to hop on and comment on tonight's Bachelorette. I LOVE watching with other people, tonight's episode was so fun to sit and analyze with a room full of fellow enthusiasts. Anyway, the fact that she cut Ty....totally threw me for a loop. We immediately went back to last week's episode, where they showed the previews from the upcoming season...and Ty is there. A lot. I swear he is in Tahiti. Is he coming back? What is going on? Chris L is completely missing from the Tahiti shots, and Kirk makes a millisecond cameo that could have been from anywhere. ABC definitely has me fooled. I have STILL managed to keep in the dark about the outcome of this season, but the suspense is killing me!!! I can't wait to see who she cuts on the hometown date (although I fear it's Chris, I am crossing my fingers it's Kirk) and who actually ends up in Tahiti.

Oh, and of course I have to comment on Jake and Vienna's national cat fight. Holy moly! I think Jake definitely came off looking like a HUGE jerk. As much as I couldn't stand Vienna before, she had some great points....and all Jake had was a horrible, superior attitude. I won't say Vienna probably didn't manipulate the situation to her advantage, but when he yelled at her...she had me totally on her side. What a d bag!!!

Did you see the preview for the Bachelor Pad? Money involved? I am wondering how they win...must look into it...

Until next time!!!

Rated RRRRRRRRRRR

Oh my drama! I cannot believe I had to wait an extra day to find out exactly what happened. Apparently the Bachelorette starts way earlier in Utah than in does in Indiana. When I settled down to watch it last night...it was ending! But I found out at that point that Justin had been sent home for the girlfriend drama, so I could not wait to watch it online today.

Okay, so Justin...what a coward! I was kinda surprised that he just walked out like that at first. He was in full flee mode...he was scaling buildings and small children to escape Ali's wrath. It was like he was afraid of her, seriously, what did he think she was going to do to him? Anyway, somehow he found the strength to sit down and feed her some lies for a few minutes, then bailed again. Ali was so quick on her feet and so powerful in what she said to him, I was so proud of her! I was DYING, like jaw on the floor gaping, when they played the messages. What a JERK. Seriously. ABC needs to start listening in on all phone calls from the guys and weed these d bags out. Sheesh.

Okay, so moving on. Ty and Frank got the one on on dates this week. I can't say that I am super excited about either one of them, still. I was disappointed that Frank got the other one on on date, why didn't she choose Craig? That seemed kinda unfair...and rude? Maybe she had made up her mind even before Frank's date that she was sending Craig home? I wonder....Anyway, again, kinda blah about Ty for some reason. I don't have much against him except for the fact that I am loving Roberto and Chris. I don't want to watch her kiss TY. PS, Ty, Button your shirt! Frank's date, well, it looks like everything was moving around smoothly....but according to the previews, aka MAJOR spoilers at the end of the show, Frank is going to leave. Why did they show us that? I seriously have maintained full outer darkness when it comes to spoilers this season...Somehow I have managed not to read or hear anything about how things are going to end. I DO NOT know who wins. So why did they go and show so much???

Group date...have I ever told you that I love Roberto and Chris L? I think, according to the spoiler preview, that at least Roberto will be sticking around for awhile. Well, him and Ty. Deducing from the spoiler, it seems like Kirk goes next, then she cuts someone on the home dates...Chris L? (nooooooooo!!!!) maybe vice versa.. and then Frank, Roberto, and Ty go to Tahiti, where Frank leaves....so that would leave Ty and Roberto? I don't know for sure, but I that's what I am assuming from the preview. I really, really don't want to see Chris L go, though!! However, maybe he could be the next Bachelor! I would LOVE to watch that!!! Anyway, the group date was hilarious. Loved watching th guys wrestle. Nothing wrong with an oiled up Roberto, hehe. Seriously, though, that part was cracking me up. Way to go, Craig, for beating Roberto! I am glad he got some alone time with her, especially since he didn't ever get the date. Too bad he went home anyway.

Okay, so...thoughts?

All By Myself.....

Hello!! I am late posting again, so sorry about that, but I am excited to dish about this week's episode. So good!

Okay, so I am really happy with her decisions this week. I think she was right on sending Kasey and Chris N. home. Finally we heard Chris N. speak....and it wasn't so pretty. Good move, Ali.

So, they arrived in Iceland and had a poem-showdown for the one on one date. I was DYING for Chris N as he recited his incredibly odd poem to her. He looked so terrified up there. Poor guy! Frank thought he had it in the bag, but Kirk came in and stole the show with his Rootbeer Eyes line. I wish it would have been Roberto or Chris L, but I am wondering if they even had a chance since they had already been on one on ones with her? Oh well.

So...her one on one with Kirk. I don't know why this guy bugs me. Okay, so their date was not awful, he seemed more genuine and his story of near death did soften me a bit. But I am still not team Kirk by any means. I think this guy is too close to the brink of overly-cheesy for my taste. Oh, and it drives me nuts how he is constantly manhandling her face when they kiss. It's a bit over the top for me. Whatever.

Group date: Well, Ty was definitely in his element, but as far as he and Ali go, I am not seeing the chemistry. I guess she felt it enough to give him the rose, but I am not feeling it. I like him enough, just not for her. I am still loving Roberto and Chris L. A lot! I think Roberto is cuter but I like Chris L's personality more.

Two on One: I guess Ali is a glutton for punishment because it took another totally awkward date with Kasey for her to finally send him packing. Her reaction to his tattoo was classic. Her eyes looked like they would pop out of her head. SERIOUSLY Kasey, now you have that hideous mark for the rest of your life! A great daily reminder of how you got dumped. So, they left him on the glacier. All alone. "Allll by mysellllllllllllf....."

The only thing I would have changed about this 2 on 1 date is I think she should have sent Justin home, too. I don't think he is right for her, and he annoys me more and more each week. Although then she would have had an extra rose to hand out, so I guess that would have kept Chris N. here. Whatever. Hopefully Justin leaves next week.....

Which brings me to 'the mystery guy who has a girlfriend'. Who do you think it is? We are starting to think it's Justin. At first I didn't think so because he had crutches and the guy who leaves doesn't....but now he's in the boot so it could totally be him. DON'T spoil it for me if you know (I have remained spoiler free thus far!) but if you are up for pure speculation, tell me what you think!!

So the award for 'guy who surprised me the most in a good way' goes to Craig. He really is funny! I liked his poem and I was laughing out loud when he drew the tattoo on his arm. Very witty, Craig! I wish he was a bit cuter, though. He seems like he could get lost in the friend zone. I am thinking if a guy hasn't kissed her yet (um, Justin and Craig, I think?) he is probably not going to get over the friend hurdle. Just my opinion, though.

Okay, so I am looking forward to next week! I will be in Utah and hopefully be watching with my sister/s. I am so excited to have a group to dish with, pause and analyze with, and bask in all the drama with. YEAH!

After the Storm....Unicorn Love.

Okay, so major delay in my Bachelorette blog post this week. I have a good excuse...I was caught in a HORRENDOUS storm last night, and all of our local channels were having emergency weather broadcasts....so I missed half of the Bachelorette! Don't worry, I caught up online today, so we are all good.

First, though, can I just tell you how spastic I was last night? Tornadoes are pretty much my worst nightmare. When we first moved to Indiana, I was constantly keeping an ear to the ground listening for the sirens. (Remember THIS?) Well, last night we were out having ice cream as a family. We were happily eating our ice cream looking over a beautiful sky, when the sirens started going off. We immediately stood up and looked around, and behind us the sky was BLACK. I practically dislocated my 2 year old's arm as we threw the kids in the car, and as soon as we started driving the wind and rain started- and it was CRAZY! We had the radio on and the Emergency Broadcast System was saying, "Seek cover, a tornado has touched down in Spencer (a surrounding town)" and it was heading towards us. Um....I cannot believe I did not wet my pants. We were driving SO fast to get home- it kinda puts pressure on you when the EBS is telling you to seek cover and get into an interior room....and you are in your car in the middle of a field! Talk about pressure! Needless to say, we made it home safely and huddled in the basement watching the weather report. The storm was RIGHT over our house. Oh, and the tornado? I don't think it actually touched down. At least, after we got home I think there were just funnel clouds everywhere, but no touchdowns. I think. I choose to believe that.
So, I ran outside right as the storm was ending and grabbed this picture, check out the color!



CRAZY right?????

Okay, onto my Bachelorette post. Let's start with what is freshest in my mind:

Precious Kasey. Ohhhhhhh my goodness. This guy takes my awkwardness discomfort level to a WHOLE new level. I wanted to die, die, die when he was singing to her...and that was the FIRST time!!! The second time around, seriously. PLEASE make it stop!!! She looked like she would give anything for him to stop. As Chris L (my darling) said, She doesn't want that cheesy Unicorn Love. She wants someone REAL!!! When she dropped her head down after his second song outburst, I just wanted to hug her and remove her from the situation. I don't blame her for not giving him the rose right away. I was cracking up at the rose ceremony when she said, "He didn't do anything too over the top..." Oh Ali, little do you know! I can't wait to see her reaction when he shows her the tattoo. Kasey, NOT a good choice!!! Gag. Oh, and she sent JESSE home over this guy??? double gag.

Group Date: Okay, I do love Chris L, but Roberto is still absolutely DARLING in my eyes. I am glad he got that wrapped up, loving, hanging from the air moment with her. Sucky to be the other guys having to sit around all day and watch, though. Were you dying during their rehearsal (with all the guys?) SO funny! I was loving watching them all try to shake it.
Okay, another huge GAG when Kirk walked her up to her room. Seriously, this guy bothers me for some reason. He seems soooooo, um, insincere? I don't know, something is off about this guy. At least, that's my opinion. I felt bad for the Weatherman, when he interrupted someone else's time (I think Frank's?) and she told him to hang on....then she went up to the room with Kirk. SHOT DOWN, Weatherman! I am glad she sent him home. I loved Frank's line: "I want what you have!" when he kissed her. That was classic. Love it.

Chris L: Is he perfection or what? I love this guy. I love their date. He is darling, darling, DARLING!!!! I would be SO super happy if he is the last guy standing (I would be happy if it was Roberto, too!) because he really deserves this kind of happiness. He is a sweetheart! I was glad she kissed him, even though she had the plague. Are all these guys going to have the illness of death next week? Happy Birthday Chris, you get a week of the plague of doom! Seriously though. Love him.

Justin/Wrestler/Rated R: No dates for him this week but HELLO, vengeful much? He took such pleasure in calling out Kasey on his burn/tattoo. Okay, so he had a valid point, but I hated his pleasure in throwing him under the bus. Don't you remember how bad it hurt when they did it to you, Rated R? I guess he was eager to get out of the hate spotlight.

So, Jesse and Jonathan were sent packing. I think she could have easily gotten rid of either of the Craigs (seriously, WHO is Craig N???) before she got rid of Jesse. Oh well. I am a little surprised because I kind of thought that Jesse would be the one to end up with a secret girlfriend at home...so now I am changing to Kirk. There is something wierd about that guy.

Okay, so there it is! Hope you all had happy watching! Remember to Guard and Protect your hearts this week.

So Right....SO Wrong!

Okay, today's post is going to be a bit short because my sister is here visiting (yahoo!) and I am eating up my time I have with her. We watched Ali together last night along with my friend 'J' and I think it took us almost 3 hours to get through because we kept pausing and making comments! SO fun! It was so wonderful having other friends there to revel in the drama with me. So, off the top of my head, here are my thoughts:

First, Kirk, EEEEEEEEEEEEEW!!! Creepy McCreep! His line, "When we were making out...it felt so right!" Just got under my skin and made me shiver with disgust. Speaking of shivering...."I am in the hottub and you are making me shiver!" UGHHHHH! I don't know why, but this guy makes me gag.

Roberto- Loved their date. I think he is so darling! I am glad he's still in the running. DID NOT like how he was bullying the wrestler. I wish that he would have confronted Justin in private when she mentioned that he had walked to her house. Instead he chose to tell everyone else and be party to them all calling him out. It made me disappointed. You don't need to be a part of that, Roberto!

Justin- What is it about this guy that everyone hates? I feel like it's Vienna all over again, where they all hate him but we (the viewer) have no idea why? Now, I do think it was LAME that he kind of commented a lot about walking up to Ali's house....like, "I would walk up to her house to show her how I feel!" after he had already done it. Like he was rubbing their noses in it without them actually knowing it. But seriously, what has he done that they hate him so much! No one has any love for this guy at all.

Chris L- Continues to be a favorite. He is just SO darling. I love that he has his mom's signature as a tatoo. I cannot wait for him to have a one on one with Alli! I want to see some sparks!!

Frank- WOW, we really saw his 'off' side this week! He is either UP or he is doooooooown. Poor guy finally realized that he is not the only one in the running.

Jonathan aka Weatherman- Are. You. Kidding. Me. Why did she give him a rose? Maybe it was a pity rose. But really, she eliminated such cute guys to keep this guy around, which is really too bad. He seriously CRIED during the filming? What?? And his kisses sucked. AND he whispered that he wanted to sneak off and have a real kiss, which should have totally weirded her out! WHY?????

Craig N. and Craig R.- Not really sure why these guys are still in the running, either. Especially Craig R, he seems like SUCH a jerk. And everytime we caught a glimpse of Craig N, we were like, Wait, who was that??? He is lurking in the background, who is he??

Hunter- I understand why she sent him home, they really had no chemistry. I liked him, but I could see that it was totally lacking. Not the type of sparks she has with Roberto! (wink!)

Jesse and Kasey didn't get much face time (aside from when they were bullying Justin) Jesse's Rose Ceremony denim outfit was super awesome, right? I mean....come on. What was that!?

I felt bad that Steve got sent packing after he made that cute picnic for her (especially when she kept Craig and Jonathan.), and sad for John C. that he didn't get much of a chance.

Okay, I would love to hear your thoughts!

A Win for the Little Guy...

Before I post about the Bachelorette, I just wanted to mention that we are having a little guy of our own!

We found out this week that I am having a boy, and while I am nervous (we currently have all girls), I am also very excited, and grateful to have a healthy baby. Very grateful.

Okay, moving on. :)

Juicy, juicy, juicy.

I don't know about you, but I was hiding under my pillow for about half the episode tonight, mostly during the confrontational moments between Craig/jerk and Jonathan/wierdo. I really don't like either of them, but I will admit that I cannot stand a bully, and therefore, I was definitely hoping for a win for Jonathan. Just to show Craig that no matter how tough you think you are by picking on people in the house....you will not come out on top!!! I was DYING during Craig's one-on-one time with Ali before the rose ceremony. He couldn't even form a proper sentence! "um, well, I mean..." He couldn't answer any of her questions, just stammered the entire time. I am glad she saw through him. So glad. Of course he immediately comes in and starts making fun of Jonathan for talking too much. Um, insecure much? Makes sense now that he would pick on someone who easily makes conversation when he obviously can't make it for himself. Oh, and WHERE was Ali when he called Jonathan out in front of everyone? I was dying for her to walk in and see that catastrophe! Then she could have known for sure what a jerk Craig was.

PHEW!! So. Glad to be done with Craig....not glad that Jonathan stayed over DARLING Chris H.

He was so cute in the first episode, and was basically non-existent tonight. That was disappointing for us. You failed us, Chris H!!! So many random people stayed over you!

Okay, so WHAT the Frank???

Talk about swooping in unexpectedly! I did NOT see that coming. In fact, I may still be in shock. He is definitely not the person I would have paired her with. He still may not be the person I see her with. Maybe it's because I would not be attracted to him myself? She seems to like his motto of jumping from one thing to another if you aren't totally happy. Now, this is not a bad thing, especially in his phase of life....but at what point do you commit to something and not run at the first sign of unhappiness? That is what concerns me. How long before he is 'over' Ali and running off to something or someone else? Am I way off the mark here? Have I let the women of The View sway me? (Yes, they discussed this very thing last week and I sat there nodding like an idiot at my tv.) Seriously, by my own observations, it seems to me like he has this short lived enthusiasm for things. He throws himself 100% (very VERY enthusiastically!) into whatever he is passionate about at the moment, and then moves on at the drop of a hat. That would be a red flag to me. I am not Ali, though. Oh, and PS Frank, Ali is NOT your girlfriend, so please quit saying that.

Okay, moving on. to. Jesse.

Oh my cuteness! Why didn't I recognize his potential last week? He is pretty darling. I can see what she likes in him. I don't see huge sparks between them yet, but I hope something more blossoms here. I really enjoyed watching their date, and he seems like a really nice guy.

Ty.

Ty is sweet. He has a southern boy charm that I do like a lot. Ali's facial expression when he informed her of his divorced was concerning to me, but she seemed to appreciate his honesty since he got the rose on the group date. I haven't seen a ton of chemistry with them, either, but I am interested in seeing where things go with them.

Craig R.

Can I just say...this guy totally bothers me. Again, Ali, this guy over Chris H? Really???? He seems like such a whiner!!! Get over the fact that you don't like Justin. Seriously. Move on. Unlike the Craig/Jonathan situation, Justin is NOT doing anything to you. So let it go!

Justin.

Um, talk about a trooper! I would have been super put out if I had been him, one legged jumping through the sand, up and down stairs, and from the looks of next week, alllllll the way up the hill to Ali's house. He never whines or complains about it and I like that. He may not be my favorite guy for her, but you've got to respect this guy's attitude! So interested to see what brings him to tears next week....

Kasey/aka mini-Jake

This guy already drives me nuts, and that was before I was reminded that he is about to turn into a crazy stalker in the episodes to come. His voice grates on me, and really...just curious as to what she sees in him.

I was really thrilled with the way that both Roberto and Chris L. handled the fact that they did not get any dates this week.

Roberto just seems...genuine. Yes, I realize that word is completely overused in the world of the Bachelor, but seriously. He does. He seems comfortable and confident in himself, and Ali obviously loves him. I am super excited to see them interact on a date. Hopefully next week....

Same with Chris L, he just seems like an awesome guy. I REALLY like this guy, and I am also looking forward to him getting some time with Ali. Hopefully alone. PLEASE keep this guy around, Ali!!!

Okay, so let me know your thoughts! Not a ton of comments last week (which is completely fine), so don't be shy in letting me know what you thought of tonight's episode.

And Away We GO!!!!

EDIT: BIG oops on my part last night! That's what you get for blogging drowsy. ;) I was up all night with a puking child the night before and had to force myself to stay awake to blog. Anyhow, for my 2nd pick I SAID Phil, I meant Chris L., The one who's mom had passed away. I am sure my explanation of Phil made no sense, haha. Anyhow, I have changed it. :) Sorry!

I am so excited to finally be blogging about this! I love that I have a fun way to share all the drama with fellow Bachelorette lovers....LOVE IT!!!

Quickly...I wish that Ali would give more of a sincere reaction to the guys. Even if it is just in the confessionals. The only one we really saw her break out of her norm for was 'Shooter', but the rest seemed to get her generic, "I love it! You don't even know!" reaction. I would have liked to know more of what she was truly thinking of the guys, you know? I also hated how tense she was, she really does outwardly show her stress. Her shoulders were so scrunched up at the rose ceremony, I thought they would pop off!!!

Okay, so my take on the night, and most importantly, the men! I was actually very pleasantly surprised by the men that she had to choose from. Definitely some stood out more than others, but overall I think that ABC did a pretty good job choosing some cool guys. Now, you know that I LOOOOOOOOOOVE making 'picks' in the beginning, and this year is no different. I knew my guys the minute I laid eyes on them....so, here we go!

Roberto:

Okay, I know what you are thinking: OBVIOUS choice, Joy. I know, I know. Seriously, though, I had him pegged from the moment he came out of the Limo. I think he is darling! Mike wanted to fight me for this pick, and he wanted to change the rules of our picking and make it into some kind of a draft, because he wanted to steal Roberto from me. Sooooooo, I decided to share, because I couldn't back down, even for my dark horse (who I also love!!!). So Roberto is both Mike and my pick. However, in the previews it seems like he is the one she is obviously attracted to, which usually means she ends up not picking him. So boo to that.

My 'dark horse':

Chris L.

Okay, so this guy falls into my dark horse category because he is a nice guy...and we all know that the nice guy never wins. I am hoping this guy proves me wrong because he is an absolute sweetheart! Seriously, his hometown interview had me falling for him very, very quickly. I think he made a wierd choice when he told her his parents were still together....but whatever. Still love him.

Mike's dark horse:

Chris H.

I agree, this guy is a great dark horse. Really cute but not a lot of face time. We didn't see him much in the 'upcoming previews', though (which we watch after we make our picks), so who knows if he will be around much longer. I hope so because he seems really cute.

So, moving on to the rest of the guys!!!

Justin: Definitely a 'must mention'. Okay, so it's obvious now from the previews that someone leaves early. Obviously that person isn't limping away as they leave...so either Justin heals quickly OR he doesn't end up leaving after all. HOWEVER, I did hear that someone leaves who is trying to 'promote themselves.' That seems to fit the bill here. I personally don't think that what he has done so far has seemed like 'self promotion' more than any of the other guys have put themselves out there to make themselves stand out. I am curious to see how this works out for him! One thing Justin has against him....pretty sure he can't hang in a hot tub with that cast!

Frank: This guy caught our eye when we were surfing through the pictures before the show. He looks a bit...enthusiastic....which definitely showed up in person! He is the type who wears his heart on his sleeve...who keeps nothing inside....I am interested to see how things pan out for him. I don't really see him with Ali- what do you think?

Hunter: I liked his song. It was clever, which you know I love. I am glad he showed this side of himself and glad she kept him around. She claims to love to laugh, and this guy seems witty.

Kirk: I was laughing about his trip to the scrapbook store and making his keepsake book with his gluestick. I wasn't sure how it would go over with Ali, but she seemed to like it. Looks like he scored with that one!

Jonathan: At first I liked him...then slowly but surely I started liking him less and less. Sure, he has a lot of personality, but I think his favorite thing to talk about is himself. And, did you notice at times when the camera would pan over to him, he seemed to be lurking, almost sulking, in the corners? It kinda weirded me out. I hope this guy can prove me wrong, but for now he is not my fav.

Kasey: First can I point out that he looks like he could be Jake's brother? Okay, with that out of the way, let's just skip to the 'coming up this season' talk. Um, Whhhhaaaat????!!! Seriously this guy is going to give me nightmares! There always has to be one person who has already built their life with the bachelor/bachelorette and believes it as truth and cries whenever they so much as dare glance at another contestant. Looks like this is our guy.

Craig M: Okay, WHY did she keep this guy??? Was it his charm? His wit? His amazing good looks? His amazing attitude? HUGE eyeroll. I am really surprised Ali wasted a rose on this guy. Blah.

Craig R: This guy gets an honorable mention just because I am weird and I like to point things like this out. Does he remind you of Toby from The Office? His mannerisms and the way he speaks completely remind me of him! Do you agree?

Alrighty, I uploaded pictures of all the other remaining men....but then found I didn't have much to say- positive or negative about them. So far, not much is standing out. No one had an awesome story like 'Shooter' Derrick. Bless his heart. I am excited to watch this all unfold! Oh, and I really hope to avoid the spoilers this time. Let's cross our fingers that the winner isn't blown too early!!