September!

I have slacked off from my blogging efforts.  I tell you...it has been a busy month.  Not just busy as in running from here to there, but emotionally exhausting with all the changes of having a kindergartener.  

Ian started kindergarten on August 20th!  They start them early out here in the corn fields.  He has since come to LOVE school.  He has such a passion for going every morning it's inspiring.  It was hardest on mommy.  I didn't want him to leave me, even though I knew it would be good for all of us and he was oh so ready.  

I was most nervous for him to take the bus.  I don't know why, but I felt a lack of control simply putting him on a bus and saying, "bye!  see ya later!"  But honestly, it's been so good for him.  He loves riding the bus.  It makes him feel independent and it's something only he gets to do.  So even though the bus stop is around the corner and down the street, the walks back and forth have been enjoyable, because I have a happy kid!  And Dalton loves going to the bus stop but also wants to go on the bus too!  

Now the first week was not easy on this mommy.  The first day after he got on the bus, Rich and I had walked him down to the bus stop.  As the bus pulled away, I burst into tears.  I think it was just a release of all these emotions of this day building up inside of me.  And finally, it happened and I missed him and I had to just let him go.  So Rich being the sweetheart that he is, looked at me and said, "do you want to follow the bus?"  Of course I did!  So we sat far enough back from the school, just to see that the bus had made it and that their were people out in the parking lot helping kids off the bus.  For some reason I thought he would be left out to dry.  But they did a great job with him.

Dalton also had a milestone in his preschool life.  He started last week!  He is attending the same preschool Ian went to last year.  He has his teachers and they seem to love Dalton.  Even though he is in constant motion.  Dalton does not ever sit still.  But they are extremely patient with him.  But I had warned them this was my concern with Dalton.  I wrote it all over his "Tell Us About Your Child" Forms:  What does your child enjoy doing: "running and moving"  What does your child dislike: "Sitting still and time-outs", List your child's interests: running, What do you want your child to learn this year: "sitting still and listening"  You get the picture.

The other cool thing about having Ian in kindergarten is that I do get some fun alone time with Dalton.  Although he gets bored without Ian and requires more attention I think it's been positive.  

 Rich and I had a lot of special time with Ian and now it's Dalton's turn.  We're all enjoying it.  

But I have to say I miss my baby moments with the boys.  They are so busy and strong-willed I don't get a lot of cuddle time anymore with them.  The Lord knows this and has provided me with time with my boys where I can see they still need their mommy's nurturing.  This morning Ian got in bed with us and I sat up and he just wanted me to hold him.  So I did.  He just melted into my arms and I rubbed his back and he just needed some time with his mommy.  It warmed my heart and help get me ready for my day.  There is definietly something to building your child's self-confidence when they know how much they are loved. 

So that is what we've been up to!  This week starts off our real routine now that Bible Study, MOPs and Soccer are all starting!  Not to mention my Scentsy stuff keeps me busy and I have an event this weekend.  So there is never a dull moment in these parts! 

The Odd Life of Ian and Dalton

So I'm finding that we are winding up summer around here.  I'm happy and sad.  I'm so excited for Ian and so sad that he's old enough to head to school.  We've also signed them up for soccer.  It's like my life has changed so drastically...school?  soccer?  When the heck am I going to just get to lay around and live the life of leisure? 

But it's for the best don't you think?

They are getting bored...

And starting to scare me a little with their form of summer fun. 

We got a new computer and all they want to do is sit in front of it and leave weird pictures of themselves on it for us to see. 

And as creative as they are...I guess all fun must end and learning must begin! 

So a week from tomorrow, I will put my 6 year old on a school bus and be brave and not cry until the bus pulls away.  And then we'll post pictures of my emotional break down.  Because goodness knows that will be more entertaining for most readers than a happy kindergartener leaving his family behind to head off into the world. 

And on that note!  Have a great week :-)

Ian's Lunch

Oy vey!  I am getting ready to send my newly turned 6 year old to kindergarten.  I am so not ready for this.  But I'm trying this week to get myself together.  He's excited and thankfully I don't have to worry about emotionally prepping him as much as myself.  My husband is working with me as well... ha ha!  He's trying to be supportive.  Tonight we go and meet his teacher. 

Honestly I'm dumbfounded by the amount of stuff I'm required to have to do to send him to a simple classroom.  Thankfully he is done being immunized and has registered.  But I am so confused on school supplies, does he need a new backpack or can he use the one from last year, will he be happy with his Darth Vader lunch box or does he need a new one and what is up with this school uniform policy?  Ugh.  I love it and hate it.  He can't wear anything he owns so he's going to be the lovely owner of several pairs of brown and blue pants and about 10 plain polo shirts.  :-) 

So I was going to sit down and make a list of everything I need to do before August 20th, his first day.  Which by the way...I hate that more and more school start in August.  AUGUST!  It's like they lost the last two weeks of summer.  Oh well.  Instead of a list and continuing to complaining  I decided to research ideas on brown bag lunch ideas.  I don't think I want him to buy lunch.  That seems ridiculous. 

As I was reviewing ideas on brown bag lunch ideas, it must have slipped from my attention that children in schools were now being sent to school with options fit for a celebrity on a vegan raw diet.  My word.  Some of the things I found were ridiculous ideas for children.  If I sent my kid to school with a mozzarella, tomato and basil sandwich on Foccacia bread he might get beat up.  I'm not saying I want to give him PB&J everyday, but come on.  Some of these people who have written articles online must be living on the moon.  Because they are well ahead of my child's taste buds. 

And as much as I love the idea of soups packed up well in a thermos and giving it to be son I hate the idea of soup all over his "uniform" clothing.  I have seen him eat soup. 

So I was happy to have found a mom online who had some practical ideas that I could run with.  In the past I have always purchased conveniently packaged foods like applesauce cups, yogurts in the small packages etc.  But after reading this ladies ideas, I came up of a few of my own so I wanted to list all my fun ideas for Ian's lunch! 

Containers:
It's important in saving money since he'll be going everyday to have some containers to put some of the food in, instead of buying individual containers.  So I am planning on getting the "Take Along" brand by Rubbermaid, I think.  They twist on and off instead of snap which will hopefully avoid messes.  I'm also going to get some of the plastic sandwich boxes which will hopefully help keep sandwiches from smashing and can also be used for making your own lunchables! 

Main Courses:

1)  Sandwiches:  Obvious.  But I heard about these Sandwich Sealers and Decrusters.  At first I thought they sounded stupid since my kids eat the crust.  But they apparently keep the sandwich together better and neater.  And you can make your own PBJ Uncrustables which kids love. 

2)  Thermos Meals:  I probably won't do this right away until Ian gets bored.  But I like the idea of getting a Stainless Steel thermos that you can put Mac and Cheese in or other (non-liquid) leftovers.  Again, soup for my kids is a bad idea in public, but maybe your kid is different. 

3)  Lunchables.  I have bought them only on occasion when they were on sale.  My kids like them.  They don't beg for them.  But I like the idea of making up my own for Ian's lunch.  Take a plastic sandwich container and add your own cut up meat and cheese, put the crackers in a snack size bag to keep them from getting soggy and add a treat like a cookie or granola bar to really snaz it up.

Healthy Sides:

1) Applesauce Cups (make your own and save)
2) Yogurt Cups (ditto to the above)
3) Fruit Cups (you get the idea)
4) Dried Fruit Mix - Take Banana Chips, Raisins and Pretzels or Dried Cherries, Animal Crackers and Dried Mango...mix it up.  Use the snack size baggies for good portion control.
5) Carrots and Hummus or Dip of your choice

Yummy Snacky Sides:

1)  Jello or Pudding Cups (you can make these as well for a fraction of the cost of buying them) and you can make the sugar free version to make them better for your kids. 
2) Animal Crackers - mix up the plain with the chocolate and blow your kids mind at your creativity.
3) Goldfish - in case they miss preschool snacks. 
4) Homemade Goodies (mini muffins, mini cookies etc.) - Freeze them and put them in your kids lunch and they will have defrosted by lunch :-)  Use a snack size baggie for portion control.
5) Chips - I will probably not do chips, but if I do I would do the baked and I believe Pringles makes a good baked chip.
6) Rice Krispie Treats!  They are just good. 

Drinks

1) Juice Boxes - I avoid juice with the boys because it's not good for their teeth and it's just unnecessary calories for them.  But on occasion they have them and obviously they are really convenient when pressed for time.

2) Milk Boxes - I may look for a brand I like and price it.  But I may also just make my own.

3) Water - Probably the best alternative.  You can get those really cute little bottled waters at Aldi and get like 24 for the cost of one 6 pack of  juice boxes.


That's it.  Those are my ideas!  Counting down the days til school starts!!!  Not happily...but willingly :-)

Happy Birthday Ian!

Love and Loss: Our Third Baby

I wrote this months ago.  And I wasn't ever going to publish it.  But yesterday I was talking to our neighbor and she was telling me something about her daughter in law and well...this subject came up.  And it brought back some memories...not that I will ever forget this.  So here it is.  This is in a way a memorial for my third baby who would have been due in about a month...and hopefully maybe encourage someone out there who has walked through this. 

We found out at the beginning of the year that we were pregnant.  We were surprised and very happy.  It's hard after you find out you are expecting not to get excited and think about those ten little fingers and ten little toes.  And think about baby names and how you're going to reconfigure your home to accommodate a baby.  It's hard not to think about your little boys BOTH being big brothers.  You tell a few people but say, "it's still really early so don't say anything" but you secretly want to tell the world because you're so excited.

I went to see the doctor at 7 weeks.  It was on January 24th.  I was almost positive of my ovulation dates.  I also suspected something wasn't quite right.  I told the doctor that this pregnancy felt different.  I didn't have any morning sickness and I just didn't feel pregnant yet.  The doctor looked at me and said, "well, when most women say what you just said 9 times out of 10 there instincts are right."  So he proceeded to prepare me to do an ultrasound.  I sat there on the table alone waiting for the doctor to come in to do the ultrasound.  I kept telling myself it was all going to be okay.  I still felt my instincts were probably not accurate and I was overreacting.  I thought I would most likely see a little flicker of a baby on the screen and know that all was okay.

The doctor and nurse came in to do the ultrasound.  He couldn't find anything at first.  Then he saw the sac.  Now I never know what the heck they are looking at on the screen, but I did see the sac and I breathed a sigh of relief when they found the sac.  But the doctor said he didn't see anything in it.  At 7 weeks they should see something.  So he thought maybe my dates were off.  I knew they weren't off.  But I didn't know what else to do.  He didn't want to say there was no baby, but he didn't want to prolong anything for too long.  So we scheduled another ultrasound in a week to recheck everything.  But I knew.  I knew there was no baby growing in the sac.  And a week later when I went in to be rechecked...the sac was smaller.  There would not be a baby.

Basically what we found out had happened was that the embryo implanted but the baby did not develop.  By the time I went back for the second ultrasound I was beginning the process of the miscarriage.  I want to say that it was all okay, it didn't bother me.  But that was not the case.  After the first ultrasound, I called Rich who was with the boys and I told him.  He was out with the boys and I told him to take his time.  I went home from my appointment.  As I drove home tears were flowing.  I told myself how much I hated myself.  How I couldn't even produce a healthy baby.  I have no idea where that all came from, I think I was just mad and started to blame myself.  I walked in the door to an empty house and I went to my bedroom, shut the door and crawled under a blanket.  I wept.

After the second ultrasound, which confirmed that indeed I was in the middle of a miscarriage I decided I had to just be strong and get through it.  After all, we were leaving on vacation in a week and I didn't know how I was going to do a miscarriage and go on vacation.  But I would.  As I went to the desk to checkout  after the second ultrasound the receptionist, who is a very sweet lady, handed me the appointment information form to sign.  I never really read those things, but for some reason I glanced at it.  And I saw the diagnosis given to be submitted to my insurance company.  It said, "Spontaneous Abortion."  Maybe my face dropped, maybe she saw pain in my eyes, but the receptionist noticed me looking at the form and said softly, "I can take that if you don't want to take it with you."  I smiled as strong as I could and said, "yeah, I don't need to keep that."

I knew I had to get through going through this miscarriage and I didn't even know how it was all going to happen and how bad it would be.  I didn't want to have a DNC, I wanted it to be natural.  I felt especially after reading the words, "spontaneous abortion" that yes, let's let this be "spontaneous."  If the Lord is going to give me a child and then take the child I do not want to interfere with His will and I don't want a doctor going in and trying to remove it.  I don't know why I felt that way, but I just did.

I managed to get through a 3 week miscarriage.  It was not pretty at times.  I was in no real pain physically, it was just kind of a nuisance and I was very exhausted through the entire process.

About 2 or 3 weeks after the miscarriage was over, I allowed myself to grieve.  I think it took that long because I had to compartmentalize the physical aspect of the miscarriage and the emotional part.  I questioned so many things about the pregnancy.  Was I ever really pregnant?  Was there a real soul in me or was it just an "embryo" that didn't have life in it.  I know many people have differing opinions on it.  I didn't know what to think.  I wanted so badly to believe it was a real life.  Because I was feeling real grief.  I missed the baby.  I truly missed the life that was in me.  No matter what I chose to believe, all that really mattered was that God knew.  He knew all.  And through my grief, He brought me into this place of peace and clarity.

My healing came from accepting that the embryo that did not grow, WAS a soul that was taken to heaven.  I wrote a letter to my baby.  My 3rd child that went straight to live with Jesus.  Maybe I was being over-dramatic.  I didn't want to be overly emotional over the whole thing, after all, it's not like I saw the baby.  It's not like I ever held the baby.  I didn't even have a name for the baby or know if it was a boy or a girl.  But I had loved this baby for a few weeks and I just felt empty.  In the letter I made sure that my baby knew that my sadness over losing him or her was not because I just wanted another baby...but my grief was because I wanted him or her so much...not just another baby.  I wanted to know that baby.  And it made me sad that I wouldn't have that chance on earth.  And understanding and realizing that fact in my heart, gave me peace and clarity to move on.

Rich and I talked about having a baby after the miscarriage.  We talked about trying again for another baby.  And every time I turned around, I heard someone else was pregnant.  Seriously, more people were expecting babies about the time I was planning on announcing our pregnancy.  And I kept seeing and hearing about babies being born from friends of mine. But as Rich and I talked,  it did not seem right for our family to add a 3rd baby, just because we had miscarried this one.  We knew the stressors we felt when finding out we were expecting a 3rd baby.  We knew that health wise for me it may not be the best thing, even though I would have happily walked through it.  We knew the financial stress. But making that decision not to "try" again was hard for me, but I knew it was the right decision.  And God has given me a lot of peace from the decision but at times I still wrestle with it.

There is a bigger picture to all of this. I don't believe we walk through anything in life without reason.  I may not know the reason I even had a glimpse of having a 3rd baby, and not have it come to fruitition.  I don't know why the obvious choice of just trying again for another baby, didn't set well with Rich or I.  I may never have all the answers.  But I do know that God's plans are greater than my own.  And being a mom has always felt to me to be the ultimate...but...but...the ultimate in MY plans.  There are other plans out there for me.  And of course I am a mom.  I have two gorgeous boys, who in all reality are both walking miracles given my medical history.   And my two boys keep me on my toes.

After this decision of not "trying" to have a baby after the miscarriage I kept on having nagging feelings of discontentment.  And they were not from God.  I was (and still am at times) tested by what I know to be true and what outside influences put in my mind.  I think about the Duggars and their 19 Kids and how they just have trusted the Lord to give them as many children as he choses.  And aas much as I respect the Duggars and love their show and admire their beliefs.  I think that the kind of birth control system they have is not in the Lord's plan for everyone.  Let's face it...God can use a mommy of 19 children but he also can use a mommy of two children.  And the logistics of using a mommy of two children is a lot less complicated.  Not that anything is too difficult for God.  But when I thought about how God was going to use my life...it all seemed clear to me that he could use me a lot better, if I ended the chapter in my life of birthing babies.   We still would consider adoption.  But the Lord needs to open more doors for that.

In closing on this post, I am so grateful that I had a glimpse of having a third child.  And I pray that someday when I get to heaven, I may have the delight to embrace that child of mine that the Lord chose to take from us here on earth.  But I am grateful.  So very grateful to the Lord for bringing me through the whole ordeal with a much sunnier outlook on heaven and life beyond the world we live in.

"He gives and takes away, he gives and takes away, but my heart will choose to say, 

Lord Blessed Be Your Name."

August...oh no.

I haven't been blogging much as I have had a busy last few weeks.  Summer seems like it's come and gone and I just have odd feelings over summer.  It's been boring the weeks the kids and I have been home, yet I hate to see summer go so fast.  We have a kindergartener in our midst and he starts August 20th!   I am not ready to let go of my oldest Stinker Pinker.  I kind of want him to stay with me, yet I know I need to let him go.  He was just a baby like yesterday.  Even though I know the years of raising him to get to this point have seemed long at times.  I am super happy he's only starting kindergarten and not college! 

I was kind of moping around today.  We just got back home Monday, from being gone for a week.  We dropped the boys off at my parents and Rich and I flew out to Las Vegas to the Scentsy convention.  It was an amazing four days.  Loved every minute.  Missed the kids.  So we were happy to see them on Saturday. 

At the convention my head was spinning with all the new announcements and additions Scentsy is making to their product lines and new brands.  I was suppose to feel energized after attending convention but I felt myself today feeling overwhelmed. 

It hit me tonight after chatting with Rich, that I am sad.  Sad over kindergarten, Ian turning 6 and having to enroll him in soccer.  I should be so excited about all these new things for him.  He is excited!  But for me I'm just trying to process how this sweet little baby boy is turning into such a young man almost.  Yes he's still a boy.  But his heart and spirit are developing at such a mature level.  Even though his actions and mannerisms are age appropriate, he has thoughts and visions that to me are very much beyond his 6 years.  His relationship with God is so sweet.  He knows Jesus and he is such a little preacher at times.  Trying to hone this "gift" for lack of a better word, so he continues to be sensitive to differences among people is something I have been working on with him.  But I'm so proud of who he has become. 

But back to my sadness.  I guess it's really not sad that I have to let him go because he's ready.  It's probably me being selfish.  I don't like to share my Ian.  But I'm super proud of him and can't wait for him to learn and grow.  We didn't start him in kindergarten last Fall because the cut off date was August 1st and he is an August 8th birthday.  We decided he was on the brink and to give him another year.  We are happy we did. 

My ability as a mom to raise him and continue to be there for him will hopefully reflect positively on who he grows in to become.  And so far, I like what I see.  And we will all make it past this hurdle we are facing this month.  

The Bacheloerette: Overnight but not really Dates!

So I have been not blogging about the Bachelorette for a few reasons.  But I will give you my take on things as where we have them now.  Tonight was her overnight dates with her final three, Sean, Jef and Arie.  They are on the beautiful island of Curacao.  My problem right now is that I love all three guys are Emily at this point.  Even Jef.  Jef has surprised me over the last few weeks.  He is sweet and intelligent and oddly getting more attractive to me. 

1st date with Sean.  Sean and Emily go to a private island and Emily is concerned Sean hasn't really said his true feelings.  Sean wants to tell her he loves her but he knows it's hard to tell a girl that.  Which is concerning to Emily.  And on the beach Sean didn't give Emily a lot of indication if he is in love with her.  But they did go snorkeling.   Can Sean though really be in love this soon?  It could take a long time for some guys. 

So at dinner Emily asks him again.  And he doesn't want her to have any fears.  So Sean wrote Ricki a letter and read it to Emily.  It was weird because they aren't married or engaged.  But Sean professes his dedication to them in the letter.  It was sweet I guess. 

FINALLY after Emily looked at him longingly all day, Sean tells her he can't stop thinking about her and that he has fallen in love with her.  But I felt like he as really nervous and strange tonight.  But they went to the Fantasy suite and hot tubbed it.  But she ended up not spending the night with him, because she wanted to set an example for her daughter.  But that was okay with Sean...he's going to marry her. 

2nd date with Jef.  They went on a boat.  Jef is 100% he wants to be with Emily, but he knows there are two other guys.  He is the only guy saying "if."  Jef is pretty much the only intelligent guy here.  I mean he is above average intelligent.  He is thinking through the whole situation with Ricki and feels very balanced with her.  I like the way their relationship has developed.  My only fear for Jef is that Emily's aspirations for being a celebrity and money could ruin it.  But let's not get ahead of ourselves. 

Emily appears her age with Jef.  She deserves that in a way, she always looks so old and stuffy...but with Jef she tries to be younger or at least act like a 26 year old. 

So they have dinner.  And let's be honest, watching Sean at dinner was like watching a deer in headlights...Jef had questions and was intelligent and thoughtful.  It's nice to see.  Loved Jef's question about "you're hot and amazing, why has it not worked out with anyone???"  Basically they talked about how perfect the other person is.  But then Jef asked the sweetest question, "am I a good fit for Ricki?"  I thought that was a good and genuine question. 

Then there was the fantasy suite card.  Jef didn't want to disrespect Emily and put her in a bad situation as she is a mom.  They decided to go and spend some time together but not spend the night.  Emily was funny, that Jef turned him down because she was going to say the same thing.  So they "bridaled their passions."  Sounds like something my friend MacBeth would have said. 

3rd Date with Arie.  Arie is super nuts for Emily.  And I have loved Arie from the beginning.  But they seriously make out way too much.  He is super intense.  On their date they were on a catamaran and swam with dolphins.  Emily admits all they do is kiss.  But since I know what it's like to be in a relationship when all you do is kiss and not stop long enough to actually learn their name...totally kidding!  I think the problem with Arie and Emily is that they don't really know each other. 

So at dinner, Emily asks him "I don't know what you do on like a Tuesday morning."  It was interesting watching them learn about each other and talking while they aren't making out.  Arie doesn't ask a lot about Ricki.   But he finally asks some questions and shares his ideas on warming up to Ricki and being a father figure.  So it was a good thing. 

So the fantasy suite card is there but not.  She decides not to give him the card...because she doesn't trust herself.  Good decision.  Arie is a make out king...but he appears to be good at it.  Whoa.  He is hot. 

THE DECISION

Emily is struggling because she had three perfect dates.  I agree.  She made some good decisions on her final three.  Emily gets to see three videos from the guys to remind her how hot Sean and Arie are and how intelligent Jef is.   Ultimately, she struggles with it, but let's Sean go. 

Here is how her thought process went (in my mind):  If I get ride of Jef, I'll look stupid and if I get rid of Arie I will miss kissing him.  But if I get rid of Sean...well...he took the longest to tell me he loved me.  So....I guess Sean has to go.

Goodness.  I would hate to be in her shoes.  She seriously had some good looking guys.  But none of them compare to my husband so I guess I end up the lucky one tonight. 


NEXT WEEK : MEN TELL ALL!  WOO-HOO!

My New Facebook Theory

I have a theory.  Beware.  I hate facebook with a passion sometimes.  It makes people just feel bad about themselves.  One of my friends wrote a blog article that was sooooo good, about how as a new mom Facebook has been a great thing and a terrible thing all at once.  On the one hand she feels connected to the outside world when she's home all day...but on the other hand she sees all her friends "checking in" when they are out with each other.  And this leads to the "why wasn't I invited?"  She got so many comments on this post with people feeling the same way! 

I am sure that everyone feels this way at some point.  Well...almost everyone.  Here's my theory.  I believe I can tell what type of person someone is by the number of friends they have on Facebook.  My husband does not agree with my theory.  He is wrong.  He doesn't agree because he doesn't like where HE falls on my theory. 

I obviously can't post this post on Facebook as I may get people mad at me.  Not that I care.  I could afford to lose a few friends on there.  ha ha ha!  That really made me laugh.  (deviously) 

So here is how people rank:

1-45 Friends:  You are not really on Facebook that much.  You probably got interested in it but have a life and decided it's not really worth your time. 

46-110 Friends:  You have been racking your brain trying to figure out why people are not friending you.  You are finding yourself desperately out of place by the lack of attention your posts get.  You may be getting paranoid about Facebook and soon be giving it up. 

111-280 Friends:  You are a good solid friend on Facebook.  You have a good combo of work friends, family, childhood friends and a few aquintances you let pass through the system.  You find you can manage your friends nicely and even figure out when someone unfriends you and post about it to make yourself feel better.  Overall you are a very liked person and have a good balance between facebook and real life. 

281-499 Friends:  You are desperate.  You have added everyone you've thought of.  You post lots and sometimes count the number of friends who leave you birthday greetings and compare it to the number of friends you have.  You notice when your friend number drops and can't figure out who deleted you.  You start re-reading your posts and wonder why no one likes them.  You have also probably posted over 800 photos on facebook.  Your whole life revolves about your facebook time and when to download things to Facebook.  You are trying to meet more people to up your friend count. 

500+ Friends:  You are a Facebook Slut. You let anyone and everyone on your Facebook page and don't really ever check in to Facebook, you just add people.  When you do post your "fans" think you are amazing.  You don't even know half of your friends.  You are probably a very popular person, but beware of the "friending" issue you have.  You may need to talk with a real life friend to help you figure out how the heck you got to the point that you now "know" 500+ friends.   If all 500 of your friends have an average of 200 friends and you don't have your security settings right your personal information and photos of your beach vacay in your bathing suit may have just gone out to 100,000 people!  The problem with these types of people is the fact that 100,000 people just saw them in a swim suit will probably make them very happy because they like to be liked and seen.  So my message to the 500+ people...figure out what a real friend is and stop the "friending" around!

There I said my peace. 

Neglect of a Blog

If my blog were my child I would have been turned into CPS by now.  I have been so very neglectful.  Lots of reasons...none you will care about.  But tonight for some reason it feels good to sit and blog for a few minutes. 

If you are actually still reading this...do you ever sit and just take in a moment you are having.  Right now I am having a simple and very fulfilling moment.  It is 12:57am.  It was so hot all day that now as I sit and type and have a fan blowing on me and I look around a dark room I see something that makes me so happy.  I am visiting my parents right now and I am sleeping across from my boys who are in bunk beds.  It's such a perfect summer moment right now, the sound of the fan and the cool breeze after a hot day...and my boys.  Ahhhh...my sweet boys lying peacefully in bed after a fun-filled day.  Tonight when it got dark they went out to do Sparklers with their cousin and my mom gave them each a glow necklace.  They brought them to bed tonight and I can see two little glow necklaces in the dark right now.  It makes me happy. 

Summer is not my favorite season, yet it brings back so many memories for me.  Especially being at my parents.  I spent summers at my grandparents farm out here.  Even the smell in the air and the taste of the water reminds me of their farm.  Love my summer memories and I'm so happy I'm able to make so many with the boys.  I love being outside with them and watching them swim and play and go on tractor rides with grandpa.

We had a lovely 4th of July.  I didn't think Rich was going to come because he had to work all week except the 4th, but at the last minute he decided to come see us today.  It's a long drive to make but we were all happy to have him here with us.  And as I lay in bed right now, he's the only thing missing from my perfect summer night.  Even though he would most likely be lying next to me playing some sort of game on his phone :-)  I take what I can get of him. 

Are you wondering about my Bachelorette posts?  Are you?  Well if you are tell me and I may do a belated post on them.  I have had so much going on I decided the last few weeks to veg out and watch them without the commentary. 

Anyone else following along the crazy divorce proceeding of Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise?  Yikes!  It kind of makes me so nervous for HER.  I think Tom Cruise is a hot mess.  He is sooooo good looking.  But my personal opinion is that he is a fruit-loop and I'm so happy that she is trying to get out of it.  But that little girl.  Sigh.  I don't think she should be kept out of her dad's life.  But I think a stable home is most important with a primary parent. It's going to be interesting to see what happens.  Makes me super grateful for my husband.  Our goal was to stay married past Brittney Spears and Kevin Federline as they got married one month before Rich and I did.  Well it's safe to say we accomplished our goal!  Wasn't even that much of a challenge! 

Well the clock now read 1:08am.  Must close this post and drift off to a lovely summertime sleep. 

The Bachelorette in Croatia

Croatia!  A Different World according to Emily.  Um yep.  She is a deep chick.  Ricki is not with her right now, she went home with her babysitter.  Probably for the best, huh? 

Croatia is really cool.  I enjoyed the scenery...

Emily arrived to welcome the guys at their hotel.  And she expressed her excitement about being in a "different world" with the guys... and then dropped off the date first date card.

One on One with Travis:  Formerly Known as the Egg Man

I like Travis.  He is fun and sweet and kind of a cutie.  They walked about the streets, got ice cream.  I don't know if I trust a person who gets pistachio ice cream though...which is what Emily ordered.  They did a little street dancing.   Travis is a fun dude.  Travis thinks this date is a 10 on a scale of 8.  huh?  Emily is having a lot of fun.  Which is supposedly very important to her.  Travis really is her ideal man according to how crazy and fun she is.  But...Emily wants romance.  So at dinner in what only can be described as some sort of a cave, they talked about his former engagement.  Travis was very honest and open, and oh my...melt my heart sweet.    And Travis tells Emily he dates girls like her to a tee.  hmmm....  So the rose was up for grabs and Emily felt they had a great friendship foundation, but not the romance.  And well...if you can't develop the romance in a 4-5 hour date...well it's just not going to work.  Ugh!  Emily...you loser!  Travis, call me!  sorry Rich  He was someone to have kept around a bit longer to actually get to know. 




Group Date:  John aka Wolf, Doug, Sean, Jef, Chris, and Arie

So the guys meet her in town.   And she tells them she just wants to go see a movie.  So they go to see the movie Brave.  I would like to see that...but those dudes?  Well they hung in there with it and well they haven't seen TV in weeks so it was probably delightful.   After the movie they got to compete at the Highland Games and kilts.  It was fun how ABC let us watch them get dressed...if only for a minute. 

So they go and do their games.  Archery was interesting.  Poor Chris.  The only one who missed the target.  But he got up and went first at throwing the huge logs up in the air, so good for him.  But he got disqualified in that...so sad.  Arie on the other hand...um...he did good.  Jef...got knocked out.  Sean broke the log, which impressed Emily and she found him very hot.   Then they had to compete at pulling a stick.  Poor Chris sucked at that too.  But he kept going.  And Emily recognized it and gave him the ultimate reward for the Bravest, because he kept such a good attitude.  That was sweet of her.  It wasn't a total pity reward was it?  He got to go spend time with her and make out a little.  

Next up was hang out time and drinking.  Emily's one on one time with Sean, she confirmed with him where he stood and assured him he was "safe" without saying that.  Arie and Emily had a nice chat.  He apologized for London and what happened with Kalon and she admitted to holding him to a higher standard and then they made out on the street.  Arie is good too, no worries.  Jef and Emily have some time and reconfirm their relationship, but she asked him what took him so long to kiss her.  Jef said he was scared of her.  I think they are scared of each other.  Jef tells her, "I'm freakin' crazy about you."  I turned to Rich and said, "why don't you ever say that to me?"  Rich said, "It's implied."  We're so romantic.  Chris told Emily he was in this forever.  And I believe him.  He is real and sweet and genuine.  And Emily recognizes this.  He's also boring as all get out, but Emily doesn't care and she gave him the rose on the date. 

Kimberly's Take On Emily:  
Not going to lie.  These guys are all good sports.  Even Ryan.  Because let's face it.  Emily is sweet.  But even if you don't know anything about the behind the scenes stuff...Emily is high maintenance!  These guys are not going to just be pleasing her romantically they are going to have to put up with her high standards of living.  She is NOT going to be happy with living in a trailer, not that this is an issue with these guys...but in life when you choose someone you don't do it based on wallet size.  What if he loses his job...can Emily handle that.  Not sure what she is looking for but I think she sees $$$ in her eyes. 


Ryan's One on One Date

Let's keep in mind, Ryan has had a 1:1 date before...when John "Wolf" has never had one.  Kind of crazy. 

Ryan was not surprised by getting this date.  He feels like he's an easy choice for her.  He's good looking and the bad boy she needs.  Ryan is convinced that Emily likes that bad boy type.  And let's admit that all girls do to a certain extent...but not for a future...especially when you have a daughter. 

So Ryan and Emily go on a road trip.   Ryan is full of it with the cheesy lines.  She likes that he's playful though.  And they went oyster "hunting" and ate some raw on a boat.  It was gross.  They wandered the streets talked to old screaming Croatian men.  Ryan is bizarre.  He is so smooth and then he is so dumb.  He called her a trophy wife, AGAIN. 

At dinner, he tried to fix things.  He gave her a list of everything he was looking for and it pretty much didn't set well with her.  Basically it was because on his list there was no mention of a family on his list and because she changed hourly about how she felt about him.  So she decided not to give him the rose.  He pleaded a bit but not pleasantly.  Ryan sat and kind of told her he was perfect for her, he was shocked in her not giving him a chance, that they have the same goals...but it was all very fatal attraction creepy like.  Emily said she wasn't sure it was the best decision.  She said she may be making a mistake.  He even sat and starred at her and asked what the tears were for.  IT WAS SOOOOOO CREEPY!   She finally said, "I don't know if I'd be the one to make you happy."  Even stating "maybe it's my insecurity"...but she stood firm that she couldn't give him the rose. 

I think Emily really believed that.  Ryan came across very perfect and I could see him intimidating even someone as beautiful and perfect as Emily.  Ryan is not a good dude.   He needs to be taken down.   This won't stop him though.  Remember, he wants to The Bachelor...so to be continued.  Because his final words were, "be sure your guys do a good job cutting this up and don't portray me as something I'm not, like an arrogant a**." 

Best line of the night:  Arie:  "If Ryan is the Next Bachelor then that next bachelorette needs to be a mirror." 

Arie snuck out and found Emily (probably with the help of several producers) after her date with Ryan.  She was happy to see him and they hung out in her bed and she was in her gold evening gown and they talked.  Arie wanted to be sure he supported her and told her that she had a good judge of character in sending Ryan home.  It was sweet. 

***I got very sidetracked during this part because I kept getting emails about a Scentsy event I'm helping to coordinate this weekend...so I had Rich help me catch up and well...that was painful***

Cocktail Party:

Going into this Wolfman John and Doug are on the fence in Emily's mind.    Wolf goes first and pulls out his grandparents funeral cards that he carries around he got emotional over his grandparents love and then they made out.  He opened up with her and Emily liked that.

Doug then who has yet to make a move on Emily gets some time with Emily.  Doug is known as Humble Doug.  Doug has no confidence and he was sweaty.   Emily tried with him.  And he made no move.  He's a good looking guy but he's kind of annoying.

Rose Ceremony:  Chris already has a rose....Roses go to Sean, Arie, Jef...and....  Emily decides she needs to take a break and walks out...she goes to find Chris Harrison and basically makes it seem like she is not giving out the final rose...but then gives out TWO roses and no eliminations.   FINALLY...the Bachelor fooled me!!!  Good surprise ABC...good surprise. 

Because honestly that group of guys without Ryan are really funny!

Next Week Prague!  
And finally it will come up that one of the producers dated Arie!  And Emily isn't happy.  Now I heard about this awhile back and apparently he dated her back in 2003.  So he was in his early 20s...who cares.  I don't think it effects any outcomes but we'll see! 

The Bachelorette: Emily's Revenge

 

Welcome to London! 

                                       

Emily takes Ricki around London.  In boots that were well…shaggy baby.  Emily kept saying, “London is so old…so much history. “  Yes Emily. 

I would love to visit London.  It looks really cool.  But I would just want to sit and listen to people talk and go back to my hotel and practice my British accent. 

Let’s get to the dates…and get the first one over quickly since it was boring and we all want to read about the Group Date Incident of 2012.  Oh and I want to say that Emily is sick on most of the dates almost losing her entire voice.

1:1 Date with Sean:  Love Takes No Prisoners

They explore London, Sean makes a speech in the middle of a park about Love,  Emily twirls her hair while they have dinner,  Emily gives Sean a history lesson on King Henry the 8^th, Sean is marriage material (yes he is) and he gets the rose.  And the London Bridges were falling down as they made out in front of it.    Sean it hot.  But I will say I see Sean with a more crunchy type of girl. Do you agree?

Back at the Hotel:

All the guys who didn’t get 1:1 dates are frustrated.  Jef especially.  He is the “king of group dates.”  But according to Kalon everyday with Emily will be a group date because of Ricki.  Okay…I admit…when he said that it made me laugh.  First off, yes he is a dork and a complete loser…but it’s also funny that Kalon seriously is staying around if he really feels that way.

Group Date:  Ryan, Arie, Wolf, Ryan, Chris, Doug, Alejandro, Travis, Kalon  ---  “A Rose by any other name smells just as sweet…”

The guys had no idea what that meant…then little Alejandro the Mushroom Farmer says, “I think it’s Shakespeare…”  hmmm….Alejandro, you are kind of a sexy little treat. 

Kalon is NOT happy about being on another group date. 

The guys meet Emily at an outdoor park to act out scenes by Romeo and Juliet.  It was actually very cute.  These guys were hilarious.  Kalon took it a little too seriously.  He reminded me of the dude from Dead Poets Society that committed suicide because his dad wouldn’t let him be in the play.  Kalon actually shooed Emily away from his rehearsal.  He is not fun and Emily thinks he is way to serious.  Ryan was excited because he got to kiss Emily in his scene.  Arie and Doug were the nurses which was so funny.  All in all I enjoyed watching the Shakespeare. 

Then it was Miller Time!  (sorry old 80s reference) they go to a Pub to drink and chill. 

Emily is still ridiculously into Arie and rightly so…they are purrrfect for each other.  She needs him. He just suits her very well. 

Ryan is still into himself…but he wanted to give her a surprise and gave her a necklace.  He was a little more sweet with her on this date. And she seems to be more smitten with him.

Then it was time to turn up the heat. Not in a romantic way...in a hot seat, pants on fire, West Virginia-style verbal lashing!

Kalon, was not happy on the date.  He said he was waiting for  “an exhausted sick mother who has a child waiting on her. “ The guys then start talking about what Kalon has been saying about Emily and her having a daughter.  Saying that basically Ricki is “baggage.”  So the guys confront him.  Kalon admits to saying it and won’t recall it because he says it was not suppose to be a negative thing, it’s a huge responsibility taking on a child.  So Doug was really upset and decided he needed to talk to Emily about it.  So he tells Emily everything.  She talked it through with Doug.  Emily was super upset but decided she needed to go talk to everyone.   Doug mediated the confrontation.  Kalon defended what he said and said he was not meaning it as a negative connotation.  Emily said to Kalon, “I love to hear you talk but not until I’m done.”  Ohhhh…snap.  Flashback.  She told Kalon that not seeing her daughter as a blessing,  “makes me sad for you. “  Especially since Kalon himself was raised by a single mom.  She felt talking to him was inappropriate and insulting.  She tells him to get out.  And he does.  Emily ends it by saying, “Kalon is a terrible human being. “  I think we all agree.  Emily was bummed out that no one came to tell her about it sooner.  And ultimately upset that no one stood up for her when she was yelling at Kalon.  So there was no rose tonight.   Emily admits her dream guy would fight for her and her daughter.  She was disappointed in all the guys. 

Reflections by Kimberly: 

I admit I was a little confused by Emily.  I know she was hurt by Kalon and rightly so.  But I am not sure why she suddenly became upset with all the guys about not standing up for her.  Did she want them to yell at Kalon when she was?  Did she want them to yell at him when they first heard him say inappropriate things?  Did she want them to tell her ASAP?  I think it was all of the above...because she was so hurt and felt so sorry for herself and her daughter in the moment.  But in the guy’s defense (NOT Kalon’s because he’s a loser):   Emily was mad no one was going to tell her about Kalon and felt betrayed.  Let’s review season after season of Bachelors and Bachelorettes.  The “rules” on this show are, if you go to the “Star” and tell them, “so and so is different behind your back than to your face” ... in the past "those men and women" who step out and tell on the others have been told they need to “tread lightly, “  “ don’t go there, “  “focus on our relationship not the other person.”  So the guys were probably very concerned about where they would stand if they become the person to alert her to issues with the other guys.  Happens every season.   Goodness, remember Courtney?  Remember like 10 different women warning Ben?  Sometimes it doesn't matter if you warn someone. 

1:1 Date with Jef:  We'll just call this Date: The One Where whoever got this date is gonna get a rose because you're not Kalon and were not on the infamous Group Date where no one stood up for Emily!

Let's face it.  Jef would have to royally no London pun intended screw up not to get a rose on this date.  

Jef walked up to Emily and looked like he was right out of a Oxford University.  Looked like a school boy.  They went to have tea with an Etiquette Teacher. So Jef was not happy to have a 2:1 with Emily and Jean the teacher.   I liked Jef more because I agreed that was one annoying tea date.  Thankfully, they were both annoyed with it and left.  

Jef wanted Emily to know that he was the one who sat their when Kalon said all the stuff about the baggage.  He went on and one about what was said.  Jef wanted Emily to know that he had her back.  Surprisingly she bought it.   Emily admits she is into Jef.   They went to the London Eye and had dessert which was kind of cool.   Jef said everything right to Emily.  And he goes for it and kisses her.  I just think them kissing is gross.  He looks so much younger than her.  They look weird together.  But I like him as a person….so Jef if you’re reading this, it’s not you it’s me.    And Jef gets the Rose.

Cocktail Party

Emily is not done with shaming the guys for the whole Kalon incident.  They should have had her back.  She said this week there was a , “huge lack of respect and loss of  confidence.”  Oh come on Emily, get over it!

Travis’s time with Emily was awkward.  This guy is cute and funny.  But she decided to use the time t to interrogated him about whether he has her back. 

Wolf cracks me up.  He is just the type of guy who you can tell puts his foot in his mouth a lot.  He admits he might have cheated her by not bringing up Kalon situation.

Arie’s time with Emily was bad.  Emily was upset that Arie didn’t come to her defense and that she was by herself in that moment with Kalon.  Arie said he tries not to get caught up with the others and focus on them.  See I agree with this!  That is playing by the regular season rules.  So I was upset with Emily for being so mean to Arie.  Arie left the conversation feeling bad. I am going to go get some Team Arie t-shirts made for Rich and I. 

Ryan decided to surprise her with something to make her laugh.  So he spoke to her from a balcony doing a Shakespeare lines.  It wasn’t funny…but she liked it and then they made out because she is starting to fall for his lines.   I think she just was happy he didn't add to the Kalon chaos and tell her he would leave her if she got fat again. 

Sean made her feel good too.  And Emily really felt if Sean had been on the group date he would have stood up for her.  Um no.  No one would have.  Because they didn’t know what to do and wouldn’t have wanted to make it worse. No one would have handled this whole crazy Kalon situation any differently than what happened!  Men have no clue what to do in any situation...especially one involving a woman they like.  Goodness I need to become a relationship therapist, providing reality therapy.

Rose Ceremony:  All get roses but…Alejandro…the only guy who knew anything about Shakespeare and the only man who didn’t really get any air time. And he was starting to grow on me.  Oh well. 

Next week:  Croatia!  They did a hodge-podge of clips so no clue what's going on next week.  I bet someone goes home though!  ha ha!

The Bachelorette Emily: BERMUDA!

 

Sing along!  “Bermuda, Bahamas come on pretty mama”

We are in Bermuda this week. Well “we” are not there…but…let’s pretend we are! 

Emily and Ricki are there on the beach having fun.  I am glad she brought her daughter for her travels.  It just makes sense to bring her and showcase the love between mother and daughter.   

The guys make it to Bermuda and there is tension in the air!  It’s all fun though.  Kind of.  The guys are turning into a bunch of women, sitting around without TV/Sports/Books etc.  The first date card comes and it’s for a 1:1 for Doug.   Before the date, Doug is acting nervous.  But the guys were interrogating him and he wasn’t handling it well. Doug would be hard to live with.  He’s super intense and obsessed with his kid.   But Doug didn’t like anyone making fun of him.  He was on the verge of beating the crap out of,  well no one but he said Arie,  when Emily walks in to this weird room full of testosterone on the verge of an estrogen burst…

1:1 with Doug

 

Emily feels that Doug is good looking and super fun to hang out with. But she says this about almost all the guys.  Even the ugly ones.  Does Doug remind anyone else of Ryan Reynolds the actor?  Anyways…Doug really enjoyed shopping with Emily.  Maybe he’s a little bit of a metrosexual?  He’s super sensitive.  Emily really wanted to get to know Doug…but Doug still can’t stop talk about being a dad.  Emily is digging for things on Doug that are wrong and all Doug can say is, “well I started a charity for….”   Can’t remember what the charity was for but Emily was kind of like…a charity?   Um…yeah…me too…me too…it’s called the Stinker Pinker Wanna Go on Vacay to some place other than a campground….PLEASE DONATE!

They wrote Doug’s son Austin a postcard, which made Doug’s day!!!  Because he is a dad that LOVES his kid every second of the day!  With all his heart and he wears his heart on his sleeve and probably on a T-shirt under his clothes, "I heart my Son!"  They walked under a romantic arch.  At dinner Doug was sweet but Emily feels like Doug is hiding something from her.  She felt he was kind of like Brad.  Too perfect.    Emily wanted to know his flaws.  So Doug lists them, 1)  He spends too much time with his son and 2) he didn’t wash his former girlfriends car enough.   All his answers were too perfect for Emily.  So Doug says to Emily…"well what are your flaws?"  Emily says, “I don’t workout.”  I hate you Emily.  And she spends days in her Pjs and then goes out in public in her Pjs.  And we all agree…we suddenly hate Emily.  Oh but then she realizes…it’s hard to come up with flaws when she IS so perfect.   So she gave up when she realized they were just two perfect people with no flaws and gave him the rose!    Was it just me or did Doug look a little greasy on the date?  He always looks kind of sweaty.  Anyways…at the end of the date Doug sits and stares at Emily.  He says in a later interview that he wanted to kiss her but he doesn’t make the first move.  Doug?  Wake up!  She is the bachelorette…YOU HAVE TO SHOW YOUR INTEREST!  She’s not moving in for you…you aren’t THAT perfect. 

Group Date!  Let’s Set Sail on the Sea of Love:  Charlie, Ryan, Chris, Jef, Sean, Arie, Travis, Kalon

Sailing!  Yay!  It’s so pretty in Bermuda.  The guys learned how to sail.  And then had a race…and the losers go back to the hotel.  The winners spend time with Emily.  

So the teams were Red Team:  Travis, Sean, Charlie, Chris vs.  Yellow Team:  Jef, Arie, Ryan, Kalon.  Red Team was overly confident, despite the fact they had Charlie who never knows where he is or what he’s doing.  Yellow, team just tried to do their best.  They worked better together and ultimately…won.  I think it helped them to have Arie on the team who is a professional racer.  He seemed to know better what to do in competition.  The Red team was sad.  I liked the yellow team but Kalon was on the team.  But, I think we all wanted to see more of Kalon putting his foot in his mouth. 

The Red Team was defeated.  Charlie was crying…because he was embarrassed.  

Emily got to spend time with the 4 guys who won.  Ryan unfortunately was there…but it was ultimately good for her to see more of Ryan.  Ryan made a toast to Emily and called her a possible “trophy wife.”   She seemed disturbed by the comment. I think we are are becoming a little distrubed by Ryan.

Her time with Arie they sat on the beach, trying to keep a blanket over their shoulder that kept distracting me because it kept blowing off them.  They basically just wanted to make out.  Arie is sweet.  And really into Emily and I think for the right reasons.  I think Emily should be the better looking one in the relationship and Arie is good looking but not better looking than her and a good match for Emily.  

Jef and Emily tried to keep the blanket around them on the beach too.  Ultimately Emily took the blanket.  Jef’s hair is just plain odd.  He seems so much younger than Emily.  And for what ever reason, Emily likes Jef.  It’s strange.  They sat at their one on one time and at an awkward ending as Emily gave him an opportunity to kiss him and he didn’t.  Jef looks like he’s out of 1980 Brat Pack movie. 

Kalon’s 1:1 time.  Well sadly there wasn’t much to it.  I guess he didn’t say anything stupid enough to make it on TV. 

Ryan has no idea what the heck he is doing on this show.  He can’t figure out why Emily isn’t throwing herself at him.  Ryan states he is not there to impress Emily but to make an impression.   Emily brought up the whole fat thing from last week.  How she doesn’t like some of the things he says.  He basically called it flirting with her.  And he couldn’t stop talking about how good looking their kids would be.  Ryan is super condescending and feels Emily has been given an opportunity as the Bachleorette to impact tons of people and especially young women.  Which led into trying to make her feel bad for kissing Arie last week at the cocktail party and not being a good role model for girls.  Emily feels he is judging her.  Yes he is.  Ryan states he’s  “a good catch”.  He is, but only …for himself.  I think if he could marry himself he would.  Yes he would.

Jef got the rose.  I think that Emily gave him the rose because for some odd reason she doesn’t know if Jef likes her as much as she likes him. 

The Last Date: 2:1 Date – Nate and Wolf  - Let’s Explore this Bermuda Love Triangle

We haven’t really seen much of Nate and Wolf aka John.  Wolf I recall is pretty funny and I think she found Nate really attractive. 

They went on a boat and went cliff jumping.  They tried to make the best of their awkward time drinking champagne on a boat together…two dudes and Emily.  They head then to some caves for dinner.  It was pretty cool.  What a romantic place for a three person date.  It was a small little table.  Nate was excited about the quinoa on the plate and that it was a good source of fiber.  No one wanted to eat.

So Emily took Nate away from some 1:1 time.  Nate admits that he has done nothing to try and win Emily over.  But she basically gave him about 10 min. to tell her everything she needed to know about him.  He broke down crying over his family.  Yikes.  She’s a mom but she’s not your mom.  Bad time to start crying. 

Wolf’s 1:1 time was smooth.  He was eloquent and knew who he was.  He’s cute and funny. 

Emily ultimately sent Nate home.  Wow.  Boo-hoo….poor Nate.  Now he’s really going to cry.  Emily felt like Nate was sweet and ultimately not mature enough for her life. Agree. 

Before the Cocktail Party Drama: 

We see Emily sitting down with Ricki and helping her with  her homework before the Cocktail party in her dress up fancy clothes.  I wish my mom would have dressed up more for homework time!  Maybe I would have done better in school.  Kidding Mom!

There was a debate in the house about how the age of a man effects their maturity and what would be good for Emily.  Doug who is 33 and Ryan 31 were acting like know it alls because they are older.  Chris who is 25 disagreed with them.  I do have to say Chris is more mature than Ryan and Doug.   But this whole thing really bothered Chris.

Cocktail Time!  Bottoms up!

Alejandro feels that he hasn’t had time with Emily.  And Emily agrees.   But I really don’t remember much from there 1:1 time. Because let's face it if Alejandro makes even to the hometown dates....we'll all be shocked.  Because I can't really see Emily ending up with a Mushroom Farmer. 

Ryan has some more fantastic time with Emily.  Ryan is intimidating.  He’s cocky…still into himself.   Ryan wants to know why Emily is “worthy”….he’s trying to be sure Emily is the one for him because he’s a good catch.  But he feels that maybe he’s called to something bigger.  He actually says behind Emily’s back, that if this doesn’t work out for him he has media contacts and will root for a Bachelor Series of his own,  “Bachelor Ryan: Augusta, Georgia”.  Ugh.  What an idiot. 

Arie interrupted Ryan’s time which was hilarious…the guys encouraged him to because they thought Ryan was getting an ego...uh "getting?"   Arie and Emily have a good connection.  Although he can’t get too arrogant.  In my opinion he may be coming on too strong…but Emily may like that.

Sean had some time with Emily.    They dig each other and like to kiss each other. Sean is cute but not very memorable...but he has a good chance with her. 

Doug and Ryan have an odd conversation.  They reassure each other that you don't have to kiss Emily to have a connection.  He and Ryan feel like physical stuff isn’t as important as you get older.  What?  I think what they are really saying is, "I haven't kissed her yet...but I am so hot...so she doesn't need to kiss me...she can just look at me and know there is a connection."   They both want Emily to hit on them.  Whatever.  She doesn't have to do that.  

Chris and Emily go outside and chat.  Chris is feeling down about Doug’s comments about age.  So he tells Emily this is bothering him, which he strongly disagrees with and feels he is ready to be a husband and father.  Chris is mature.  But he needs to let it go.  But he doesn’t.  He confronts Doug on this.  Doug laughs at him.  It was a weird conversation between two really awkward guys.  I think Chris tried to talk to him and he lost his train of thought…and Doug laughing at him didn’t help.  What Doug should have done is said, “I’m sorry you’re upset.  I like you,  can we put this behind us.”  That would have been mature.  Instead he was condescending. 

Chris Harrison and Emily Time

Emily seems to know what’s going on.  Is Doug perfect or is there something else going on with him?  Every disagreement or problem in the house seems to stem from Doug or Ryan.  She likes Jef, but he won’t kiss her and she doesn’t know why.  She realizes she talks to guys and find them sweet and then can’t see herself sending them home.   But she also realizes there are some guy who may be tricking her a bit, specifically Ryan.  She is seeing him trying to manipulate her.  Smart girl. 

Boring Rose Ceremony:

Roses go to all except:  Charlie L  and Micheal.  I don’t ever recall seeing ANY interviews with Michael.  And after the sting of being eliminated, Charlie probably won’t recall that he was eliminated.

I do want to say something about Michael and Charlie leaving and how they were both crying.  I read awhile back that the producers of the show, when they film the women leaving in the limos, have been known to drive around for hours and hours with the women bringing up every subject possibly including pets dying, friends of theirs that are sick, boyfriends dumping them etc. etc. to get them to cry.  My thought is that these two guys probably had the same thing happen to them.  The grill them until they break down!  Just an interesting piece of Bachelor/Bachelorette Trivia. 

Next week:  LONDON ENGLAND!  And believe me…it’s gonna be goooooooood!  You do not want to miss what happens.  So cool.  Best exit ever!