By Tara Alley

Alright guys, I’m not going to lie when I say that I was completely blindsided by the two-hour Bachelor finale last night. And that I was also completely blown away with the After Show. What a mess of my emotions. What do these shows do to us? Seriously? Thanks ABC for the emotional rollercoaster that was my night last night. I wish I had written the first half of this before I’d seen the After Show, because I’m going to have a hard time keeping up my undying love for Sweet Emily, but here goes. Let’s start from the beginning.

Here we are, in South Africa. Gorgeous. The family is coming in, and things are about to get gooood.

So, Chantal worked it with la familia. That girl is fun, there’s no doubt about that. She was giving big, warm hugs all around. Laughing, talking, conversing, professing her boundless and adamant love for Brad and working that charisma like no other. Clearly the family loved her, and Brad, Brad was into her. I’m tempted to talk about their “chemistry” but for fear you did watch the show last night, I understand the mention of that word a couple more times may make you gag.

Next comes Emily. Quiet, sweet, ever-poised, ever-graceful. Is she not the most elegant woman? But, that said, when I saw her nerves, I was already bummed. Like, c’mon, these guys just saw effervescent, bubbly, super-fun Chantal, Em doesn’t have a chance. But, to her credit, that southern charm went a long way. She had Brad’s mother in tears when she called Brad her angel. The brothers practically melted. And, by leaps and bounds Emily beat out Chantal in the eyes of the family. Totally shocked. So was Brad. He couldn’t tell her enough on their upcoming date just how much the family loved her. But, I’m getting ahead.

After the girls left and the family gave their strong, strong vote to Emily, Brad had to take these girls on one last date each. The all day dates. The awkward dates. The: Let’s have an awesome day together, k? And then tonight, you can tell me how much you love me. And then I’ll walk away and the next time you see me, it will be the very best day or your life, or the very worst. Sounds funnnnn.

Chantal was up first, and of course, adventure was the name of the game. Brad took her out to sea and they ended up “swimming” with sharks. Super death-defying, being in that nice cage… Anyway. She performed fantastically, Brad was digging it. On their date that night, all went as planned. She gave him her gift (I guess that’s tradition now?), told him she loved him, and they laughed and joked. Finally, a girl who didn’t break down on the last night. I like her more now. He left and said something like “see ya.” Smooth Brad, smooth.

And then, my favorite since day one, Emily. Emily and Brad got stuck on a rocky cliff in gale-like winds that made conversation attempts pathetic. There was some questioning: “Are you ready?” “Wait, are you ready?” That kind of thing. Emily doesn’t seem so sure that Brad is up for this whole kid thing. I think she’s worried he’ll have more fun in life with Chantal. Dang, I wish she would just relax and fall for him.

Now it’s night. Emily BLOWS it. This was brutal. I wanted to make her stop talking. She wouldn’t give the guy a break. Clearly not convinced he’s ready to be a dad. Clearly not convinced he’s man enough to do much of anything. What – Is – Going – On? Game over Emily. We didn’t even get to see her gift, although he walked out with a gift bag, so I assume some exchange went down. Odd we didn’t see what it was…

Fast forward to the big day. After many shots of Brad looking super pensive and deep in thought, they happen to capture the exact moment when a smile crosses his face and he just “knows.” Wow! Those camera-men are GOOD. He’s in love, has been in love, can’t wait, blah, blah, blah. He picks out the most magnificent Neil Lane ring, all the while affirming love and adoration for a woman that I would have sworn was NOT Emily.

The first girl out of the limo: Chantal. Now I’m truly confused. The first girl out of the limo always gets sent home first. That’s just how it works. First you dismiss one and then you get engaged to the next. Ah, but that’s just like the Bachelor to mess with me and do things differently? But no , he actually tells Chantal he’s got “stronger feelings for someone else.” Huh. I just wonder who “someone else” might be…

Poor Chantal. I believe with all my heart that that woman adored him and loved him, probably quite a bit more than Emily? Her tears in the limo ride out were heartbreaking. And even though I’ve honestly been for Emily since the start, I started regretting what was happening.

The proposal was next, Emily just smiled through it all, sweet, as always. But still not professing her love adamantly like I wanted her to. Brad really did look in love. He looked happier than he had for most of the season. And, at long last, two seasons later, months and months of dating countless women behind him, Brad Womack got down on that one knee and put a ring on Miss Emily Maynard.

Elation!

How about the after show for a little Brad and Emily love? See Part II.

About the Author:

Tara Alley is a freelance writer from Orange County, CA. When not soaking in the sun or watching Bachelor re-runs, you can find her at Coffee Home Direct where she also writes about coffee and weight loss. For the rest of her thoughts, you can follow her on Twitter @hopesiempre.

Photo Credit: WENN.com

By Tara Alley

Last night marked the final episode of The Bachelor before the finale next week when this season’s two-time bachelor, Brad Womack, will vow his undying love to one lucky lady.  It was, as the second-to-last episode always is, the catty reunion of all Bachelorette rejects in a duke-it-out catfight followed by a Q&A with the Bachelor himself in a few let’s get “closure” moments.  It was sadly rather disappointing and entirely too boring for what a reunion show should be, especially for the season we just witnessed.

In case you missed it, here’s a brief recap.  Most girls looked much better on this show, post months of the season itself actually being taped.  Perhaps a sign that living in a house with 20 other girls all vying for the same man is not the healthiest environment?  Or perhaps they really just want to rub it in his face, i.e., “You coulda had this, but noooo.”

Ashley H. was an entirely “new woman,” a phrase she claimed readily and was sporting long brunette locks and a lipstick a few shades too red.  Ashley S. looked fantastic, as sweet as ever and melted the audience again with her southern drawl and big, sad eyes.  How IS that girl single?  Michelle, of course, looked stunning, but got brutally attacked for her vicious sarcasm in her closed-door revelations while on the show.  Imagine that.  She played the victim card and managed to even sport tears for the occasion.  Forgive me if I don’t buy it.  Also, in case you didn’t know it, she would like to state that she came on the show for the right reasons. Oh, and she left her daughter for the show.  This was basically all she had to say, but she said it enough times to drill the point home.  (Brad still thinks she’s awesome, by the way.)  He used big words like “too volatile together” for the reason why he let her go.

The two big fights that went down consisted primarily of a continuation of the Raichel and Melissa feud, and the majority of the girls against Michelle.  I never could get into the Raichel vs. Melissa, did anyone else?   Melissa didn’t look at all appropriate for national TV.  A cardigan?  C’mon ladies.  She did, however, apologize and Raichel did not.  Same ol’ story.

Both Ashleys got their chance to sit in the hot seat. I must say, Ashley H. seemed entirely too happy for having just been dumped and at the final three ceremony. Was she really heartbroken?  Doubtful.  Definitely a good choice in not picking her, Brad.  Poor Ashley S. decided to ask Brad why he said “she wouldn’t make a good wife” for him (ouch), and he completely evaded the question.  So much for closure eh?

Brad’s debut near the end was, of course, ridiculously, embarrassingly all “I’m-the-happiest-guy-ever” and not much else of substance.  He did call Chris Harrison “buddy” half a dozen times in a thirty second time frame though.   He’s also currently referring to his choice as his “significant other.”  Does that mean she’s not his fiancé?  Isn’t that the point of this show after all?  Is he going to pull something like “this is a promise ring”?  Please don’t.  Maybe ABC just won’t him use the word yet…?

Anyway, I already don’t want to watch next week because I’m certain he’s going to break Emily’s heart.  That woman is just too good for him.  She’s probably too good for anyone.  I adore her.  Trust me, one week from now, it’s going to be Brad and Chantal singing happily ever after.

About the Author:

Author Tara Alley is a freelance writer from Orange County, CA.  When not soaking in the sun or watching Bachelor re-runs, you can find her at Coffee Home Direct where she also writes about coffee and espresso.

By Anya

The rumors have been swirling all week, but with a new item in the Washington Post, it is looking increasingly likely that Kate Gosselin just might be a participant in upcoming season of “Dancing with the Stars.”

I am certainly not going to lay down any bets until the actual cast is revealed – apparently in dribbles – on Monday’s night’s finale of “The Bachelor.” (It times like these that I am so thankful to be on the west coast. I’ll get the word “early” without having to suffer through “The Bachelor”!)

During the week of rumors, I have been paying close attention to other interesting facts:

-Jon is back in PA. Jon was seen at the house on Sunday and Friday and he picked up the kids on Monday. Looks like he was close by the whole week. Not his typical pattern of the last couple of months. Maybe settling the lawsuit has lifted some of the stress on the family (hopefully). Maybe he is ready to take on a more active role as a parent should Kate be gone for the next XX number of weeks?

-No sign of Kate. Usually, we can count on at least one shot of her picking up her mail from the UPS store, heading to the nail shop or stocking up at Target. Not this week. Hmm. Could she be in Los Angeles? Or maybe holed up in a dance studio? Obviously, I have no idea, but it’s fun to speculate!

-TLC revived its “Jon & Kate Plus 8″ fan page on Facebook with the first new post in months…Kate is scheduled to be on “The View” a week before “Dancing with the Stars” premieres…Kate has been wearing high heels (!) all winter – what mom does that? (Ok, obviously, you can take this speculation thing a little too far).

I have a lot of thoughts on this, but it is probably best to wait to see if it comes to pass. I do want to say one thing regardless of whether this rumor comes true or not — Kate is certainly a big enough “star” (whatever that word means) to be on this show. How many of you had heard of Joanna Krupa, Ashley Hamilton, Ty Murray, Albert Reed or Sabrina Bryan and considered them stars before they appeared on the show? Kate has two things that make a reality-TV executive salivate 1) name recognition with the general viewing public and 2) a built-in audience of woman who love OR hate her.

So, are you a regular watcher of “DWTS”? What do you think about Kate potentially being on the show? Do you think she will make an early exit or do you think she is a hard worker (like a Kelly Osbourne) and may stick around longer than one might think? Who would you like to see her paired with?