4 down.....

I would just like to begin by letting you know that I am having horrible internet issues, so I am unable to give this post the proper attention I normally give my Bachelorette gossip posts. I was EXTREMELY lucky for Mike's laptop to pick up a weak signal, so I am typing as fast as my little fingers will let me. Sooo excuse the unorganized, quick post.

First let me just say that Wes HAS to go. Soon. In the previews it seems like she does eventually come to her senses about him and starts questioning his reasons for being on the show in the first place...so hopefully it does end up that he leaves. I think we may have to endure him for a few more episodes, though.

Next, I was LOVING Micheal and Tanner in the car, their enthusiasm seriously had me rolling on the floor, and I came to love Michael a little more from that experience. I was so happy that Jillian heard them cheering on the phone because I think that made her like them both more. I do have to say I was laughing at Tanner calling Juan feminine. Um, pot calling kettle black in a MAJOR way! But I am glad that he and Michael are still around because I enjoy them both.

Jake, Oh my. He is darling, right? There was quite a bit of cheesiness in the air on their fabulous date, but I have to admit I think he is genuine and could be a good match for her. A really good match!

I was happy to see that there is a good attraction between her and my man, Kiptyn, although he didn't get much face time on this episode.

Dave needs to lay off his steroids or something, I could not believe how worked up he was over Juan. Seriously, buddy, get a life. He could focus all that energy on Jillian and take it all, probably, but instead he is caught up in obsessing over Juan not taking the shot. Whatever.

Speaking of Juan, he drives me nuts. But apparently not as nuts as he makes Dave. Sheesh.

I felt really sorry for Brad when she chose Wes over him. And what was up with everyone watching their alone time? That was just mean.

Apparently ripping off your clothes and jumping into water worked well for Mike but was a complete flop for poor Brian. Brian really did NOT seem like her type, though, so I am fine with it. In fact, I was happy to see Julien go, too.

MOURNING over the fact that she let Mathue go, although I do think that there are other guys better suited for her, AKA Kiptyn, Sasha, Jake....LOVE them all.

So there's my quick recap, hopefully my internet is fixed soon!!!

Maybe She Just Doesn't Like Awesome Guys

That line (thank you Spencer, it was the only thing you were good for on your short stint on the show) had Mike and I cracking up for the rest of the night. But I can't waste time focusing on the men who got sent packing (Bilbro-could spend a lifetime blogging about him), since there are SO many who stayed!

Where to begin....well, we can start with our picks. Let me just say that picking a favorite was VERY difficult for me this time around, because there are a couple guys I adore. But in life you have to stand for something, and I stand for....Kiptyn.

Yes, it was tough for me to overcome my love for Jake and choose Kiptyn, but after watching he and Jillian interact together, I really felt their connection. Plus, he is DARLING, right??

Of course there has to be a black horse, and since Jake (who I think is adorable) is too much in the running, he doesn't really qualify as a dark horse. So, I am going to choose....Sasha.

He was pretty soft spoken but is SO cute, right? He seems like a sweet guy.

Onto Mike's picks, for his main pick he chose...Jake (sigh.) He is seriously a doll.

Mike's dark horse: Ed. He really seems like an awesome guy, and they did seem to have a good connection. He did get quite a bit of face time, which makes him almost not eligible for a dark horse, but I guess I will let Mike have him. ;)

Other noteworthy guys:

Dave aka 'The Rock' (I think he looks like Dwayne Johnson, alright? I am entitled to my opinion.) got the first impression rose. I did think it was kind of crazy that he choked up when he first met her, but all in all he seems like an okay guy.

Mathue: Um, he is dar-ling! Maybe it's his Southern boy charm that is sweeping me off my feet, but I think he is so cute.

Wes: Under normal circumstances, I think serenading her on his guitar would have been INCREDIBLY cheesy, except for the fact that he rocked it. His song was beautiful! I am nervous that he is only there for publicity, though. He needs a beatdown if that is true. Mike: Not only does he have an awesome name (insert corny noise here) I thought that his pick up line (You ARE a good catch) was pretty brilliant, seeing as how he is a BASEBALL CAMP INSTRUCTOR. The other guys were insanely jealous of him and his pick up line, which is why they were so mean to him. Jealousy does strange things to people.

Michael: Breakdancer extraordinaire. I really disliked him at first when they were showing him at home, but he was seriously cracking me up!! When Bilbro (shudder) challenged him to the dance-off, that was just classic. More importantly, I think he was cracking Jillian up, too.

Another noteworthy person: Tanner. Ummmmmmmmm, okay. Correct me if I am wrong, but didn't Tanner seem like the type that maybe got confused during tryouts? Like, you are going to be a contestant on the BachelorETTE, buddy. And his feet fetish? Soooooooo weird. and creepy.

The rest of the guys didn't get much face time, or else didn't make much of an impression on me, so I will be brief.

Tanner F: Seems like an Ok guy.

Simon: Cute accent, but I don't see a connection with them at this point.

Robby: Also seems like a good guy. Reid: Latecomer, seems alright.

Mark: Seems pretty cute, love that he is a pizza shop owner.

Julien: BUGS. He seems like a jerk and a half. Jessie- Mike can't stand this guy. He doesn't bother me that bad, though.

Juan: Also bugs. I can't remember if Mike likes him or not but I was hoping she would cut him.

Brian: I barely remember this guy, but I think he was alright.

Brad: A little surprised she kept this guy, but whatever. Seems nice.

Okay, that's my recap. Sorry for the lame ending but I was overwhelmed with the amount of guys that were there. They could have weeded out some of the lame-o's (like Spencer and Bilbro) initially and just had a good solid 25, but whatever. I am looking forward to seeing what the future holds for Jillian!!

Channeling your Inner Joy

Well, it might be time for you to either bookmark or blackball my blog for the next few months...because The BACHELORETTE starts TOMORROW!!! Go Jillian, go. Do not dissapoint us like evil Jason did.

Moving on. As per request (Candra and Adrienne) here is the info on the hair and blouse. My hair was easy, I just teased it up after I had curled it, then I kind of brushed it to the side. Then, started from the other side, I twisted it like a sideways french twist, sticking bobby pins in as I went. Once it was all on the side, I put a ponytail holder in and then proceded to twist pieces into a little side 'do, securing it with bobby pins. Easy, easy. :)


The top is from Charlotte Russe. http://www.charlotterusse.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3548797

I have to admit I was super nervous about what Mike would say when I wore it. I envisioned clown comments of some sort, but he was actually very kind about it. What a good guy. I put a short cardigan over it, also from Charlotte Russe, but I can't find it online.

Thanks for the nice comments! :D

Channeling my inner Kelly...

Have I ever mentioned that I love Kelly Ripa? Yeah, I do. So, last week I was watching Regis and Kelly, and I about died when I saw how darling her hair was! She had it in a side updo twist, and I really wanted to recreate it. Check out this link and click on the 3rd one down, Tour Guide Kelly:
http://bventertainment.go.com/tv/buenavista/regisandkelly/special/webexclusives/index.html

DARLING, right? Well, unfortunately I only have about 1/3 of the thickness of her hair, but I was determined to recreate it anyway. Disclaimer: Not only is it super uncomfortable to take picture of myself, it is also incredibly difficult!

What do you think?





I think I should have left more hair out in some cute curls by my cheek, like she has it, but I need another head of hair to accomplish what she does. ;)

My friend Nancy blogged about taking pictures of the back of your hair, and how it would become addictive. I have to say that my arms were aching so bad by the time I finally got a decent shot of it...it is much harder than it looks! (Plus my camera weighs a million pounds!)

I Really Wish I Liked...

This post is about thing I SINCERELY wish I liked. It isn't about things I don't like. It is about things I don't like but I wish I did.

Panera. I cannot tell you how much I miss my precious Paradise Bakery. For me, Panera does not even hold a candle. And yet, we keep going back. *Hoping* that perhaps their food has gone from average to delicious overnight. Boo.

Running. Why, why, why can't I like to run? I know if I ran that the pounds would start melting off, but as soon as I break into a jog, I am already ready to quit. I really, really don't like it. At all.

Gladiator Sandals. Um, I have really tried to like these but they are absolutely NOT growing on me. I went shoe shopping last night and these were wallpapering the stores, so obviously everyone likes them. But me.

I mean....seriously?

Housecleaning. I love a clean house but I have a very hard time loving cleaning up after 4 people. Sigh........

Anyway, I wish somehow things would change overnight and I would like these things. I have my doubts about Panera or the sandals, but maybe over time I could learn to love running and cleaning, what do you think????

Confusion.

Tonight we had a strange experience. We were on our way to go out to dinner when we came to a hault on a very busy street because of a woman in the road. She was quite old, bent over almost in half, and shuffling across the street at a VERY slow pace. Oh, and did I mention she was literally in the middle of traffic? Not at a crosswalk and most definitely not watching for cars. Both sides of traffic were (thankfully) stopped to let her through.

We were pretty concerned, so I hopped out of the car (hey, traffic was stopped anyway, right?) and helped her up to the sidewalk. She was walking towards the mall (completely bent in half, so she was staring at the ground.) but when I asked her if she was going to the mall, she kept saying no. Then she would point towards the mall and say, I am going to that building right there. And then she broke into a few, "Holy spirit of light, be my guide..." rants, and I knew that this woman was pretty confused.

I motioned to Mike to call the police. If you know me, that is pretty much my answer for anything unusual: call 911. So, as Mike called, I walked her over to the TGI Friday's and sat her on a bench. A waitress brought out some water for the woman, and I continued to probe her for information about herself as we waited for the police to arrive.

I asked her who she was. Vivianna.
I asked her if she had children. Jennifer, Jay, and Jonathan.
I asked her what her husband's name was. Larry.
Where is Larry? In the building.
You mean the mall? No. That building right there. (Motions towards the mall.)
Then she broke out into a LONG string of religious jargon. I felt so bad for this woman, so confused, sitting on a bench with a total stranger, drinking whatever this stranger gave her, having NO clue where she was.

The police arrived and they knew her. Apparently she must wander a lot. They immediately asked her where Larry was, and at that moment, as if it were magic, Larry appeared. He was yelling at her for not staying in the car when he was in getting their 'Wendys sandwiches!!!'
The Wendys was across the street from the mall (the busy street she had crossed.) She must have thought she was crossing the parking lot to go to the Wendys. After a moment it became clear that Larry is pretty confused himself.

It was so sad seeing this unfold in front of me. It makes me ill to think that someday I might be as confused as Vivianna. Or worse, that one of my parents will. I know that my grandpa took care of his very confused wife for a long time, and I can't imagine how hard that must have been! I feel so sorry for these people and especially their caretakers. How frustrating it must be to not be able to communicate with someone who was once a completely capable person. UGHHHHHHHH.

Okay, sorry for the downer post but I had to unload this. It was such a wierd, unexpected experience.

A Loss of Innocence.

Tonight I had a little sadness in my heart at bedtime while we were all gathered together on the bed, both girls jumping all over as Mike and I were trying to relax. The girls were pretending to feed us dinner, and Rachel proudly served up some 'pas-ghetti'. Mike informed her that what she was actually giving him was 'spaghetti', to which she very slowly said, "Noooo Dad.... PA-sghetti." He again told her that it is pronounced 'spaghetti.' I was bemused until she turned to me with a somewhat pained expression and asked, "Mom? It's pasghetti, right?" Her sweet innocent concern over the fact that she was SO sure that it was, indeed, pasghetti really broke my heart. It was like revealing the secrets of the tooth fairy or something. She took it pretty well, though. Bless that child.

So, on the topic of innocence, I have been feeling lately like I need to privatize my blog again. I really hated having a private blog, because it was so inconvenient for people to check, especially family members who seemed to have trouble logging onto it. But, I have so much concern over the safety of my children....I don't know that it's right for me to plaster their pictures and stories where any freak in the world could see them.

I have thought of starting another blog, more about me, not really talking about my kids, you know, for bachelor season and such. :) But then I am worried I would feel pressure to be witty or something, and I don't want that.

Thoughts?