The Bachelor Season 16 - Ben Flanijk

BACHELOR 16:

Bachelor 16 Finale and ATR

 

Well, where do I even begin for tonight’s blog.  I know that in my past blogs, I have been critical of Courtney and how she has acted on the show.  Although I still have reservations, I do have to say that by the end of the finale/ATR my feelings towards Courtney have definitely softened quite a bit......so let’s get started.

Ben is taking his journey to find love into the middle of the Alps and his next stop on the journey is in Zermatt.  After Ben arrives in the village by train(and can I say that my bucket list has just been expanded tonight) he talks about the two remaining women starting with Lindzi.  Ben states how Lindzi lights up the room, every moment he spends with her, things get better and better.  The one thing that he needs with Lindzi is more time, and he’s hoping there will be enough time.  With Courtney, he has had incredible feelings towards her since their first date in Sonoma, but the concerns that he still has are that he keeps getting warned about her, so has had doubts about her along the way.

Ben’s mom and sister arrive to help Ben with his final decision about the two remaining women.  Ben proceeds to tell mom and sis how he’s feeling and that he needs their support and perspective to figure out where he stands with both Lindzi and Courtney.  The first woman to meet the family is Lindzi and as Ben tells the two women, he needs to know if he should give it more time for Lindzi to open up and be vulnerable.  Ben’s sister proceeds to ask Ben if there was someone that was dramatic or that the other women didn’t like, and of course that was Courtney.  So when sis hears that Courtney is still there and is the one that  others had a hard time with, she immediately waves the red flag which of course makes Ben unhappy.  Ben admits that in the past, a lot of the women that he’s dated, his sister hasn’t liked.

Lindzi is the first one to meet Ben’s mom and sister....after the hugs and introductions, Ben says that Lindzi is the one that arrived by horse, and that she is definitely a little country but cleans up well for the city life too.  After the introductions, they sit down to lunch and this is where Lindzi’s nervousness shows.  I felt so bad for her watching this as she was dropping her fork all the time, and you could see how nervous she was, even though this isn’t a trait that I would normally associate with Lindzi as we have seen her through the season.  After lunch, Lindzi and Barbara head off for a private conversation, during which, Lindzi opened up and told Barbara of how much she is in love with Ben, of how the walls were up coming into this process but he’s made it easy to break the walls down and let him in.  Finally Lindzi stated how honoured she would be if Ben chose her in the end.  Then Julia and Lindzi headed out for their conversation.  During Julia and Lindzi’s conversation, Julia actually gave her the head’s up of where Ben is hoping to get to with Lindzi and the fact that Lindzi needs to open up more or risk the chance of losing Ben.  Then at the end, Julia asked Lindzi about Courtney.  Lindzi never really said lots of bad things about Courtney, yet she did get her point across of how different the two of them are and of how Lindzi is more outgoing and Courtney is more cut off from the process.  In the end, Julia stated how she would be really happy with things if Ben did choose Lindzi in the end.  Julia definitely gave her stamp of approval on Lindzi, and Lindzi herself seemed over the moon by the events of that day.

After Lindzi left, Ben sat down with Barbara and Julia to get their thoughts on Lindzi.   When all was said and done, Barbara and Julia thought Lindzi was great and would really fit in, and before leaving, Barbara even went so far as saying that she thought that Lindzi was the whole package for sure.

The next day, Courtney shows up to impress Barbara and Julia, but while Ben is waiting for Courtney to arrive, we see Barbara and Julia talking about her and trying to keep an open mind, although they admitted that Lindzi definitely won them over the day before.  After Courtney came into the house and began to tell her story of how she really did try to get along with the other women, but felt pre-judged by them and eventually gave up trying to talk or socialize with them.  You can literally see Ben’s mom and sister backing away from Courtney.  Afterwards, Julia took Courtney outside for a little one on one time and to ask some more questions.  Courtney actually admitted to Julia of how the nastiness in the house towards her brought out the bad side in Courtney and she did say some things, then she got even more defensive as she felt she was falling in love with Ben.  Right here, I do have a problem with this as you watch for how many weeks of how Courtney ripped into the other women, so now she is kinda blaming them for her actions.  I can’t help but have my doubts about Courtney and how hard she truely tried to make things work with the other women.  Anyways, for Courtney’s sake, she is seemingly “winning” over Julia with their conversation and Courtney admits to Julia about actually being in love with Ben.    Then Courtney sits down with Barbara to tell her about their relationship and Courtney’s feelings for Ben. 

While Courtney and Barbara are having their conversation inside, Ben and Julia sit down for a heart to heart outside...Julia admits that she is shocked, as the first thoughts she had were of reservations because of Courtney not getting along with the other women, and of her modelling career, but after spending time with her, she realizes that her first thoughts weren’t fair.

After Courtney leaves, Ben heads back inside to talk to his mom and sis about the women and what they think of both of them.  As Barbara and Julie let it all on the line about both Lindzi and Courtney, you could see that they both felt wonderful about both women, and Julia even said at the end of how she felt that Courtney would actually fit the whole package of what Ben is looking for more than Lindzi would.

Next up, Ben and Lindzi have their last chance date together and Ben takes Lindzi for a carriage ride to begin with, then stop off at the Gondola lift where they board a gondola ride with ski gear in tow.  As they sit down to their picnic and wine, the gondola stops mid length, as they sit talking and enjoying the view of the Matterhorn behind them, Lindzi opens up as to how she’s feeling towards Ben.  Lindzi says that she see’s a life for them in the future, of how she wants to give him everything, she really doesn’t want to hold back, wants to give him the confidence that when they are together, that is the way it will be.  As they are skiing down the hill together, Lindzi is really happy in her VO’s and totally full of confidence of where she stands with Ben.

After they finish with the day portion of their date, they head back to the village to meet up for dinner and to carry on with their date.  Through their night portion of the date, Lindzi is continually opening up, letting Ben in as to how she’s feeling, and by the end of the night, she actually tells him that without a doubt...she loves him and wants him forever.

The next day is Courtney and Ben’s last date in the process and Ben picks her up and they walk up to the heli pad to wait for the heli to pick them up and take them for a tour of the Matterhorn area and some of the Swiss Alps as well.  I can honestly say that the Alps and Switzerland in general is a lot more beautiful than I ever knew it was.  When they land at a private lake near the Matterhorn, they pack a toboggan and their picnic lunch to a place, sit down and Ben begins to cook their lunch.  After lunch, they flop down, make snow angels, and then toboggan down the hill.  All through this, we are getting PI’s from Ben stating how much in love he is with Courtney and how he feels so much like himself and a kid around her.  The whole while, we are also getting PI’s from Courtney(and I will say this is surprising to me, and probably the first time I noticed of how she seems more concerned with Ben than how she herself is feeling...maybe this writer is getting a soft spot for Courtney?)of her feelings for Ben and how much in love she is with him, how she really hopes that this will be her chance for happiness and how she doesn’t want to lose Ben as she really feels this is the best thing for her.  After their day portion of their date, the head back to the village to continue their date through dinner.  Courtney takes Ben into the bedroom to give him her gift...a book of pics that she accumulated plus a card that is a love letter from her heart to Ben’s.  When Courtney finishes reading out that love letter to Ben and him not saying anything back to her, you can tell it bothered her.  During their time together in the livingroom by the fire, you hear the bells of Zermatt going off in the background( or were they?), and you can tell the tension is there between them as once again the bad things are brought up once again with how the women didn’t get along with Courtney.

The next day, we find Ben going through the community of Zermatt as he tries to reach his decision of who he is going to choose(meanwhile, we are getting the back stories of both women).  Then we are seeing Lindzi, followed by Courtney, letting us know of their feelings for Ben and their hopes for the future they both want.  We then see Ben and Neal Lane with the rings for Ben to choose from.  As Ben is looking through the rings, he says that there is no comparison from the first time he looked at rings with Neal.  

As Ben and the women get ready for the FRC, we are hearing their hopes, worries, dreams and thoughts on where their journeys have gone, what they have been through, and what they hope will happen.  

Lindzi is the first one to arrive at the FRC location with the Matterhorn as the backdrop.  As you see her walk up to Ben, you can see how excited and nervous she is, and as a viewer that is use to the process of the show, you know that she is about to get her heart broke; it is kinda breaking mine to see it.  Poor Lindzi, she was so hurt, that she IMO was speechless.  As Ben walks her out, Lindzi feels that she doesn’t give Ben what he needed....Poor Lindzi.  Hope she now realizes that she isn’t at fault and he just fell more in love with Courtney than her.  Simple as that(then again, these are only my thoughts on it...I will say that she was a beautiful person, a pleasure to see every week, and I wish all the best for her and she handled the rejection really well). 

As Courtney arrives and is greeted by Chris, and is directed towards where Ben is waiting for her, you can see she is nervous and apprehensive.  After they meet, Ben begins his speech, and praises Courtney lots, before the but comes into it....LOL, a but that meant nothing in the scheme of things.  He tells Courtney that she is his forever, and how the steps in the journey have been worth it, then he kneels down and presents the ring to Courtney before asking her to marry him.  Of course she says yes, and the many corus’s of I love you’s rang out.

ATR:

Well, since a lot of what happened on the ATR is a repeat of what we have been told through watching the show, watching what has played out in the tabloids, and on twitter at the same time the shows were airing.  I will give a basic run-down of the ATR without getting into a ton of detail in it.

The majority of the ATR dealt with how Courtney didn’t get along with the other women, of how it affected Ben when he was watching back the show as he had a hard time believing the Courtney that came across his tv was actually the same Courtney he got to know on the show(I can say that it is a shame through editing that sometimes things can be made worse than they have to be?) and that at one time Chris even asked Ben if he was embarrassed by the Courtney he watched on the show.  I will also say that to be honest, it was a real “tough” audience when the ATR began, and through the show, the audience seemed to “mellow”, IMO.  Then of course the tabloid pics of Ben “kissing” other women were brought up and Ben categorily stated on his father’s grave of how he wasn’t kissing them and how those women were friends of his.  So to take the stress off of Ben, Courtney decided to go out and try on wedding dresses that day...this of course brought laughs out of the audience and Harrison himself, as he claimed that Ben and Courtney might actually be a true match due to them both having the same kind of weird sense of humour.  Hmm, guess things make sense.  Courtney is then brought out onto the stage, and the audience is really cool towards Courtney.  Courtney states that she has a little “sass” in her and this situation brought out the worse in her.  Although she states that he abandoned her for close to 2 weeks through the showing of the season around Valentines day, she is also taking the blame for it in a way cause it was her that acted a certain way that totally threw him off.  When asked, she really doesn’t know where they stand, but still loves him and not ready to turn her back on him.  When Ben and Courtney were on the stage together, they stated how now that the season is over, they hope to start anew and get their relationship on track.  The trust issue was brought up, yet it is only asked of Courtney and not of Ben, even though it was Courtney that did create the drama on the show.  When all was said and done with Ben and Courtney and how they feel about their relationship, they feel it will work, Ben put the ring back on Courtney’s finger, he loves her and they both want to make their relationship work.  I have to say, I do get what they are saying about how they felt that their relationship/special day of their engagement was spoiled with all the negativity and how everything went down, so as a writer of this blog, I am wanting to take a step back.

Then it was Ashley and JP’s time on stage.  They were hashing out how difficult this would be on Ben and Courtney considering the negativity around their relationship.  Then the discussion turned to Ashley and JP’s news and where they stand right now with their wedding plans, etc.  One of the cutest things that was said, was how JP spilled the beans regarding Ashley’s pregnancy...........no, just kidding, they aren’t pregnant, but are moving from NY to Jersey, they are getting serious about their plans for the wedding, and texts about rings were passed back and forth between them.  They stated that they will be having the wedding within a year, then Harrison stated that he’d be happy to be ordained to perform their wedding ceremony.  Then of course the conversation turned to children again, and then convo changed to Emily’s season and the advice that Ashley has for Emily.

WTA: Or Did They??

Put it this way, it was a very interesting and “entertaining” WTA at times.  First up we were treated to some video from the last Bachelor Nation reunion in Las Vegas.  Now, I had to run this back quite a few times to get all the faces and interactions straight......LOL.  Then got onto twitter and found out from some of them that this truely was a Bachelor Pad 3 audition for their upcoming season in July/August.

The interviews happened with:  Erica Rose(Lorenzo’s season), Nick(Ashley’s season), Reid(Jillian’s season), Krisily(Charlie’s season), Stacey(Brad’s 2.0 season), Ed(Jillian’s season), Sarah(Brad’s 1.0 season), Ryan P(Ashley’s season), Michelle(Brad’s 2.0 season), Ali(Jakes and hers), Frank(Ali’s), Ty(Ali’s), Valisha(Jakes), Michael(Jillian’s), Jenna(Ben’s).  Wonder how many of the above will end up on Bach pad 3??

The women that were there ready to pounce were:  Amber T, Monica, Jamie, Samantha, Jaclyn, Erika, Brittney, Elyse, Jenna, Jennifer, Rachel, Casey S, Blakeley, Emily, Nicki, and Kacie B.

The beginning of the WTA was quite civil, but as Chris states, the ant hill is going to get tipped over pretty quick as the women are starting to squirm in their seats.  Tonight, several videos were shown, and of course the crap and arguments/blaming ensued afterwards.  So the first video was about the women and how they are taking stabs at each other.  Then to finish the first video off, we get some lap dancing and kissing lessons from Jamie....LOL.  Then comes the Courtney crap.  WOW, you could just see the women get their backs up while watching the escapades of Courtney.  

After that video, we get Harrison opening up the firing range onto Blakeley....and what was it that got the women going against her.  After Blakeley, we hear from Brittney(the one that left in SF) and she stated that since she wasn’t feeling any attraction towards Ben, knew others were, she decided that it was best for her to leave then, which eventually allowed Lindzi to have her one on one date in SF.  Then came Samantha – who let her out of her cage.  WOW, was she ever loud and vocal from the start.  I don’t ever remember her being that vocal during the season, but then came the perfect one liner from Brittney about how Samantha was the Chihuahua of the group and never shut up.  This of course sent Harrison and others into an uncontrollable laughter.  So I guess she was the loudmouth of the group all along. 

 

The next up was Shawntel, and the crap that came out because of her crashing the party in San Fran during epi 3.  First was shown the clip of the party crasher, but moreso was the aftermath of it and how mean some of the women were to Shawntel for it.  A lot of it was extremely overboard, if you want to ask me.  They started with the usual visual clip, then Harrison talking to Shawntel.  Finally at the end, Shawntel was able to confront the women to find out how they feel about things now, and for the majority, a lot of them apologized of which I was glad.  Let’s face it, jealousy is an ugly beast.  Finally Emily came out and said how drop dead gorgeous Shawntel was so sorry for all the crap.  At least one was really enthusiastic about apologizing.

Next in the hotseat was Emily, followed by Nicki and Kacie B.  All of which were having flashbacks to their relationships with Ben and where they now stand in their lives.  I definitely got the impression that neither Nicki nor Kacie B were actually completely over Ben, but hopefully they will soon be able to carry on with their lives.

Then comes the part about Courtney, and exactly what the women feel about her.  Once the video clip was shown, then it was open house to dish on Courtney, and the girls took that literally.  Now the comments made ranged from vapid, untrustworthy, two-faced, mean, manipulative, liar, hurtful, and to round it out; as someone that is worldly, she really has no concept how to treat people in a group setting with respect.  All I will say is WOW, and I completely agree.  Again, Emily may of summed it up right......does Courtney really have a heart – didn’t come on the show for love, so the other alternative is to be a bitch??  Then of course the women are told that Courtney is there and will be coming out.

Some may of thought the fireworks happened prematurely, but then when Courtney was out there, no real show of feelings at all, well the shit hit the fan then.  Blakely did it first by asking about the hooker and the cheating on boyfriend comment, then Elyse dug in with sight for sore eyes after being with Elyse all night.  Let me tell you, things really got bad after that when Courtney was then confronted by the rest of the women too.  The apology that Emily made to Courtney came up and love how Courtney by-passed that one efficiently enough........mind you Nicki laying into Courtney at the same time kinda took the heat off too.  But Nicki did bring up a good point of how it took till Switzerland before Courtney apologized to Ben(not the women, but Ben) with how bad she treated the women.......is it cause she realized how her meanness is going to come back to haunt her in the last few days??  Then of course came the excuse of how hard the process was on her, how difficult of a time she was having with everything........oh lordy give me a break.  Then Harrison asked Jennifer if she thought the apology was in good faith or just a ploy to repair Courtney’s image.  The repair image was the answer, and rightly so.  IMO, Courtney never got the total calling out that she should of by these women.  She got off quite light considering the crap that she gave them through the season.  Once again, I think Emily summed it up right by saying that they all went through this process together and in doing so, the other women made friendships to help each other get through it.  The way Courtney got through it was to make life so much harder on everyone else by the constant jabs and rude comments, and that is some of the reasons why it is hard to believe what she is saying now.  

Mixed in with Courtney’s apology at the end, she said that she cared(as in past tense) for Ben and still does, and she’s sorry for hurting everyone.  Now the question for everyone else........do you believe her??

Next up in the hot seat was Ben as he had to sit there and take the questions from everyone.  First up was Jennifer, followed by Emily, Nicki, Casey, and Jamie.  When  most of the women were able to answer their questions, the bloopers package came on next. 

To end the show, they did the highlight reel for both Courtney and Lindzi, respectively. 

Fantasy Dates in Switzerland, and one Lady Returns

 

Tonight Ben and his three remaining ladies fly to Switzerland for the overnight dates.  We start off in LA  as Ben is leaving for the airport, and is discussing the women that will be joining him there.

With Nicki, there has always been something enticing about her, she’s warm, loving, and really the dark horse.  She’s open, gentle and caring, super sweet, kind hearted. 

Lindzi....a little bit country and a little bit city and she wears them so well.  No denying the fact that he’s been attracted to her since day one.  Lindzi is so open, funny,  honest, sweet and herself.  Premonitions of life with kids at Lindzi’s house and how he wants to bring kids to a place like this.

Courtney.....cares a lot about her, a weird magical force that brings them together, it works, unique, nerdy, holds her in such high regard, exciting, spontaneous, rebellious side, but still has concerns.  Worried how she has treated the other women. 

As Ben arrives in Switzerland and takes the train to his ultimate destination, we see him walking and touring the locations, Ben is still discussing what he wants to find about the women in Switzerland.  All I got to say is that Interlaken has just been put onto my bucket list..........definitely want to go there for sure!!

First up...........Nicki

After Nicki and Ben meet up, they fly off in the heli to their date location on top of a mountain, as they land and make their picnic spot on top, the majestic views of the lake and surrounding mountains greet them.  Even though they are sitting close in the heli, they seem to have a distance between them as they seem more interested in their surroundings than each other..pitty.  After they sit down on their picnic blanket and start the conversation, it turns to Nicki’s family, her feelings towards Ben and where they stand now in their relationship.  When their picnic is done, they board the heli once more and have another tour of the mountains.  They find this pillar formation and the heli lands there and drops them off.

When Ben and Nicki meet up once again, they are heading off for their dinner in a log cabin in the area.  They begin to discuss how Nicki would be able to integrate herself into the lifestyle in San Fran and Sonoma.  Conversation changes to how many kids they will have, what their life will entail, etc.  Then when it comes to the fantasy suite card, Ben is nervous as he wants Nicki to accept it, but is worried she won’t.  As they end up in the suite and tour around, they settle down by the fireplace and share some more wine.  While they are cozying up in the hottub, Ben states that tonight is unreal and wonderful, he can see a life with Nicki.

Next up....................Lindzi

Ben and Lindzi meet up and share some great kisses(Imo, Ben is grinning ear to ear with Lindzi).  As they head out along a path through the woods, they  come along an area where they rappel down the rock face.  As they both begin to get their harnesses on, they are both showing how scared they are.  No kidding, I wouldn’t want to be 300 ft up with a rope and that’s it............  As Ben states, this should be a bonding experience, Lindzi says that you got to be there for each other in the relationship, just like rapelling off of a cliff.  Ben states in a PI how they are right back into the feelings for this woman, he loves this woman.  They both have a major fear of heights.  After they finish their descent, they climb into a hottub for some private time and to warm up.  Lindzi remarks how he has begun to melt the ice queen(sorry to burst your bubble Lindzi, but you aren’t the ice queen of this show), and her walls are coming down.  Ben remarks how he has noticed a tremendous change in her, of how open, affectionate she is becoming, and how he hopes that tonight they will find out if they have the makings of a lasting love.

When Ben and Lindzi meet up for the night portion of their date, they again discuss how Lindzi is opening up and is getting very vulnerable and wants to see this end with a proposal at the end.  Then Ben hands her the Fantasy Suite card, and as he states, he isn’t worried anymore of Lindzi being closed off and the possibility of no future between them as he says he really feels he is falling in love with this woman.  The two of them leave their dinner location and head to their suite.  They take a tour around their suite and out onto the balcony for a look around.  When they come back inside, they head to the bedroom, settle on the bed and cuddle and kiss.  Ben states in a PI of how he loves Lindzi and can see himself with her for the rest of his life.

Next up..........................Courtney

As Ben is standing there waiting for Courtney, we get a PI of how he has serious feelings for Courtney, how her not getting along with the other women really bothers him and he really needs to get to the bottom of it all.  Courtney’s poor me attitude tonight, really won’t go far with me, wonder how far she’ll push it.  As they head to the train station for their train trip through the mountains.  They stop in Wengen, and head over to the markets finding food for their picnic.  It really seems weird to see this side of Courtney......who has taken the Courtney away that she has showed us.  Courtney expresses in a PI of how she hopes that the way she treated the other “girls” doesn’t get in the way of what she wants.........yea, right Courtney.  You caused the drama, now you want to claim foul.  Sorry, not buying it.  As they sit down for their picnic, they discuss how her HTD went.  I am going to start laughing now.......”with the other girls, I feel bad, that it wasn’t easier for me...........yup, even a half assed apology sounds like whining and the poor me thing.  So over it...........  Courtney states that she tried really hard to be nice to the other women.....cough, choke, sputter......ok, yea right Courtney.....the other women were so mean.  NOT!  Then Courtney said that maybe she says some things that hurt sometimes..........Sorry, Courtney, there is no maybe about that situation.  You did say things that hurt the other women.  Ben says that twisting the knife with the other women wasn’t the best thing and he also admits that the whole situation is pretty messed up.  Sorry, this sob story now, just not buying it.  We have seen enough of the true Courtney that was on our screens to seriously doubt this Courtney now.  In a PI, Courtney admits that maybe too much has happened with the other women, and on the show that they can’t recover from it now.

When they meet up for the night portion of their date, they head down to a cellar for their dinner.  Again, Courtney brings up the difficulties she has had with this show.  I find it amazing how everything gets turned around to what she is feeling, or anything about her versus others.  Courtney admits that she has trust issues, with both men and women, and then Ben admits that he has a lot of girl friends like his mom, sister and others and he wonders how Courtney is going to handle it.  Ben admits in a PI of how he was having huge doubts and concerns as to whether Courtney was right for him cause of the drama and problems with the women in the house, so for her to apologize for it, makes him feel so much better.  After that conversation, Ben handed the FS card to Courtney, and after she reads it, she asks Ben for confirmation of how he’s feeling.  They head back to the FS, take a tour around, and settle down by the fire.  After opening some wine, they head out to the hottub.  As they settle into the tub, share some kisses and some quality time, we hear PI’s from both of them talking about the relationship.  What I found so weird tonight.....we never heard before of how Courtney feels about Ben, yet tonight so much of it............kinda seemed made up to me, especially after watching her these last weeks.

Up Next.............Kacie B. returns

We see Ben out on the balcony and a PI of him stating that he felt that all of his concerns with regards to Courtney were laid to rest during their date........then the knock at the door.  As Kacie comes in and sits down, she needs to ask some questions to put things to rest so she begins with the questions of what happened?  It boiled down to how they come from two great families, but two different backgrounds and it wasn’t where he wanted things to go to............man, this is painful to watch.  Once Kacie gets her answers, she broaches the subject of Courtney.  Kacie flat out tells Ben that if he chooses Courtney, his heart will be broken again.  Kacie tells Ben that Courtney is in it to win it, there are other fishes in the sea, and other comments that make her sick to think that if Ben does pick Courtney, he could be hurt again.  After Kacie leaves the room, she collapses to the floor and takes a few minutes to gather herself together.  In a closing PI, she states that if Ben chooses Courtney, he will be hurt again.

Up next.............rose ceremony

Ben enters his deliberation area and waits for Chris to come and they have a conversation of how the week has gone.  Ben tells Chris that Kacie comes and tells him about things that Courtney has said/done and how now Ben is totally confussed again.  As they talk about the dates, what Ben has learned of the women, and where he stands now, Harrison states that Ben looks torn tonight.  Chris leaves Ben to be alone and think while he goes to greet the women.

As the women are arriving at the ceremony, Ben states how confussed he is, how he is second guessing things again, of how he is really torn about Courtney again, and of how he really doesn’t know where he stands right now.  After Harrison’s customary speech, Ben arrives for his own before handing out the roses to Lindzi and Courtney, which leaves Nicki to take the lonely walk out to the limo and her ride home.

Another note of interest tonight, we got a glimpse into Emily and why she is doing the Bachelorette.  We get a bit of the back story for Emily, but more over, we get Emily, Ali and Ashley out shopping together and Ashley and Ali telling her secrets of how to handle the idea of dating 25 guys.  The concept of this day was to give Emily some confidence to do this journey one more time and to start it off, she is given the first date card......the three of them head off for a 3D screening of Titanic. 

Hometown Dates: Heaven or Hell

Hometown dates are notoriously known as the life changer, or the heaven / hell week as in the past the hometown dates have changed the lead’s mind on where he/she is going with certain relationships, or in some cases has proven to be an adventure of the not so fun kind. With how this season has gone, you got to wonder how things will end up.

First of all, we find Lindzi sitting on the fence and we get a PI from Lindzi as she is looking back to what happened with her other relationship a year ago, and how bad that breakup hurt her. We then see Lindzi riding up on a horse as Ben is getting out of the car. They are both sounding excited for the date and looking forward to seeing the parents. In a PI, Ben is saying how he can really see himself falling in love with this girl. After they meet up, they walk up to where a carriage is waiting, then Ben takes the driver’s seat, and Lindzi gives Ben a quick driving lesson and what to do with the reins. After riding around the track, they pull up in the shade for a picnic. In a PI, Lindzi is talking about how she is going to have to open up to Ben to show him her serious side and to tell him about her previous relationship. Lindzi states to Ben about how she puts up her guards and jokes about being tough and the cowgirl, but she also admits that right now she’s feeling vulnerable. Ben also admits how he’s noticed that her walls are coming down and is really liking the vulnerable side of her and glad that those walls are coming down. Ben admits in a PI of how he’s noticed how much she’s opening up, how the walls are coming down. Then during their picnic, he tells Lindzi that he is liking the vulnerable side, and she’s ok with that and even admits that the vulnerable word is big for her, but she too is liking it as well. After sharing some more kisses, Ben admits in a PI of how he saw a serious side of Lindzi, a soft side, a sweet side and he loves it. In a PI, Lindzi states that up until now, she’s been saying how she didn’t know if she was ready for marriage, but today, she’s certain she is and knows that it is what she wants.

As Ben and Lindzi ride up to meet her parents, mom Margie, and dad Harry, she excitedly introduces them to Ben her boyfriend. After meeting them, they sit down to talk about their adventures so far, and of how they have been to Sonoma, then to San Francisco, of how her parents got married in SF and then Ben and Lindzi told mom and dad about the date in SF. Then Margie and Harry admitted that they got married at the same city hall that Ben and Lindzi had their first date at. Once they talked for a bit, dad told Ben about the Cox household tradition and the carriage races that they have. They all got up, got their hats on and Lindzi and her mom were the drivers while the guys hung on for dear life on the carriage behind them. After they did the obstacle course and completed the race, Margie and Harry were the victors. Since Ben and Lindzi lost, they had to pull the carriage back to the house with her mom and dad in it. After they get back to the house, Lindzi sits down with her mom to talk about how she feels about Ben and their relationship so far. After admitting to her mom that she can see a forever with Ben, and the fact that she’s falling in love with him, she also tells her mom that it is scary and has never said that before to anyone. Margie and Ben sit down to talk together and to open up regarding the relationship that Ben is having with Lindzi. Through their talk, Ben asks Margie if she felt that Lindzi was ready for a long term-committed relationship and is also open for marriage. Margie admits that Lindzi has grown up a lot from that past relationship, but also feels that she’s ready for marriage. Then Ben sits down with Harry to have a deeper discussion....during their discussion, Ben also asks Harry for permission to become engaged to Lindzi. Through the conversation, Harry wanted Ben to realize that Lindzi is their family and that he thought Ben was a good young man so wanted them to continue to work on their relationship. Ben states in a PI of how when you get married, you inherit a family and you’d like to think that you’d get along with them, and hope in his case that they can fill a void with his father being dead. Ben states in the PI of how his father was salt of the earth, and he feels Lindzi’s parents are the same and that Harry would be a guy that Ben would go to for advice. Later on, everyone heads out to the campfire to enjoy some smores. They are all sitting by the fire when Harry makes a toast and gives his blessing for Ben and Lindzi and of how both he and Margie would love to have Ben as their son-in-law. After that, Lindzi walks Ben out and they get to have some quiet time together before leaving. In a PI, Ben admits that Lindzi would fit into his life so easily, and he talks of how humble and grounded she is, and of how much he likes that. They are able to share some great sweet kisses, some kidding time as it seems that is what their relationship is, and at the end of it all, Ben states in a PI of how his feelings have changed so much in one day, and of how he also feels like he might be falling in love with Lindzi. They share some final kisses before Ben gets in the car and drives off.

Up Next...........Kacie’s date and Ben is met by a marching band

We get a PI from Kacie and how excited she is to show Ben around her hometown, for him to meet her family and how she is totally falling in love with him. When Ben shows up, he finds a marching band strutting their stuff and Kacie behind them all twirling her baton down the field. After they meet up, Kacie tells them that they are a field named after her grandfather. Kacie tells Ben about her grandparents, how committed to the community her grandfather was, the love story that her grandparents had and how her grandmother died from a broken heart shortly after her grandfather died. Kacie tells Ben of how her father is a sherrif, doesn’t drink, how they are in the bible belt. Already you are getting a feeling that the fact that Ben is a winemaker might be a conflict of interest with this hometown date and how Kacie’s parents may look at the situation. As time went along, we get a PI from Ben stating how nervous he is getting as he’s worried that he and Kacie’s dad won’t have much in common.

When Ben, with a gift in hand, and Kacie are entering and greeting the family, we are getting a PI from Kacie talking about how she knows her father isn’t one to take risks, and although he has been supportive, she hopes that they will see that she’s in love with this guy and wants things to go well. Through dinner, the family is talking about the experience that Ben and Kacie have been going through, but we also get a PI from Kacie saying how she knows her dad is going to be more skeptical of this so Kacie needs to sit down with her sister to discuss it all as she knows Kacie the best. Through their discussion, it does seem like Kacie’s sister does understand where Kacie is coming from and is okay with things, but as Kacie states in a PI, she’s worried that whatever Ben and her parents discuss tonight might make Ben question their relationship and what they have going.
Ben and Kacie’s dad sit down to chat, and you can see how uneasy Ben is feeling with discussing his feelings with her dad, and how Kacie’s dad is questioning how strong Ben is feeling towards his daughter. The last think that Kacie’s dad said is that if Ben is questioning anything about their relationship, he should let Kacie go sooner than later to prevent her from being hurt more. At the end of their conversation, Ben admits in a PI of how he feels that Kacie’s dad may not like him and may not like Ben as a son-in-law either. Then Ben sits down with Kacie’s mom to learn that she is pretty skeptical too and is really questioning whether this is best for Kacie. The other concerns voiced is that Kacie’s mom is very worried about the possibility of Kacie and Ben living together before marriage. At the end of their conversation, we also get another PI from Ben of how protective Kacie’s parents are of their daughter and this has Ben questioning where he stands with everything right now. Kacie and her dad then have a chance to sit down together for a while and discuss where Kacie stands with all of this. Again, her father seems pretty strict and protective over Kacie and re-enforces the concept that living together before marriage wouldn’t be looked on very kindly at all. Towards the end of their conversation, the marriage idea comes up and Kacie tells her father that she is in love with Ben, and that if Ben asks he, she would say yes to marriage. Then her father pipes in with how if Ben asked him for permission, he would say no. Kacie is visibly taken aback by her fathers comments. In a PI, Kacie admits that she feels that tonight’s hometown date and her family’s visit may of ruined what she has going with Ben, feels frustrated cause her parents don’t seem to believe what she is telling them with regards to her feelings and she is totally frustrated with it all and really doesn’t know what to say to Ben about it all. When they leave, Ben and Kacie share a couple of quick kisses goodbye, Kacie continues to state in a PI of how she is worried that things may be ruined with Ben.

Up Next...........Nicki struts out with Ben in Texas

As Ben arrives in Fort Worth, Texas, he states in a PI of how his relationship with Nicki has progressed slowly, but everytime they are together, he likes how she makes him feel. We are getting a PI from Nicki telling us how excited she is to bring Ben home and is also looking forward to seeing Ben as a country boy today. They both enter a shop and try on cowboy boots. After trying on several pairs, they pick theirs, then onto the hats. It was hilarious watching them trying to share a kiss with both of their hats on, talk about awkward......LOL. Once they are both happy with their cowboy gear, they leave the shop and tour around the stockyards of Fort Worth, before entering a bar and settling down for a great conversation. After they leave the bar, they head to the park where they sit and chat about things in general for a while. They were discussing Nicki’s previous marriage, how/why it failed, and where she wants to go from here.

Ben, with flowers in hand, and Nicki arrive at her parents place, we get a PI from Nicki talking about how she is nervous, but excited and hopes this night goes well for them all, as Nicki states that she wouldn’t be able to marry someone that her family doesn’t approve of. After all the greeting is done, they sit down for some jubilant talks and then Nicki and her mom head off for their own chat. Laura states in a PI of how she likes Ben, but is also worried about Nicki getting her heart broke again. Nicki admits to her mom that she’s falling in love with Ben and is really excited about it all. Then Nicki and her dad have a chance to sit down for a conversation. Nicki’s dad is concerned about her having her heart broke again, but also wants Nicki to understand that he has complete faith in her judgement and hopes that this will work for her this time. When their conversation is done, they sit down for dinner when her father makes a speech about how the two of them have the family’s support. At that time, Ben and Nicki take off for some quiet time. Nicki takes this time to tell Ben that she’s in love with him, of how she wants San Fran, of how she wants a life with him. She told him these things as she wants to make sure he understands her whole feelings before he has to make a decision. When they finished, it was time for goodbyes, and a PI from Ben of how sometimes through the day, he’d look at Nicki and feel that he loves this girl, a real warm feeling and that he has great gutt feelings about Nicki, her ability to make him happy for the rest of his life. As they say goodbye and share some sweet kisses, Nicki states in a PI of how she feels so great about it all.

Up next...........Courtney and her mock wedding. Has she gone too far??

In a PI, Courtney states how she feels badly for treating the girls the way she has, claiming that the whole situation is hard for her. Sorry, still not buying this as we all saw how she really was with everyone in the house and didn’t seem sorry for it then. Anyways, she is standing there waiting for Ben to arrive, she continues in her PI of how she is falling in love with Ben and feels it is worth fighting for. Ben, with flowers in hand, and Courtney arrive at her family’s home(or not, don’t know if the rumour is true, but this may of actually been someone else’s home that they used) and Ben states that this is important to him as he needs to know who Courtney is, her family and if this is someone that he could spend his life with. Courtney’s dad makes a toast to Ben and Courtney, of how they are glad that Ben is there in their home....hmmm. As they sit down for the meal, they are discussing how close Ben and Courtney are becoming. We then get a PI from Courtney’s mom being very skeptical that Courtney could be in love or even on her way there. She states how she feels Ben is a nice person, yet doesn’t know if it he is good for Courtney. Then Courtney and her sister leave for their discussion together. Courtney admits to her sister of how she’s really feeling it for Ben(now my turn to be skeptical here. Sorry, still not buying it). Next we see Ben and Courtney’s dad talking and how Courtney’s dad tells young people in Ben’s position that marriage is life’s greatest gamble and that there is only a 50% chance of winning(see, there’s that winning statement again). He then asks, are you ready to make that bet Ben?? Ben states that he knows he is ready to be in a serious committed relationship and knows that there is still a lot to learn about the other person.... Courtney’s dad talks that he finally gets to have a son-in-law after all these years and he really wants some grandkids. Courtney tells her sister about the skinny dipping in Puerto Ricco and how that is when Courtney has felt that she could fall for the guy. Sorry folks, I am really being skeptical about all of this storyline as I feel that Courtney we are seeing tonight isn’t the Courtney that we have seen so far so can’t really believe this one when all is said and done. Courtney and her mom then sit down and Courtney admits that she is falling for Ben. Then Courtney pipes in with how if Ben keeps it up, she will be good with it all.......now there’s the glimpse of the Courtney we all know. Kinda how it is up to everyone else to make her feel that she’s the only one that counts. Anyways, towards the end of the mother daughter talk, we get a PI from Ben’s mom stating how she likes Ben, feels that he is good for Courtney, and that Courtney is in love(wonder what has happened between then and the recent media events where Courtney’s mom has been quoted as saying that she didn’t think Ben was good enough for her daughter?).

After the goodbyes to the family(I found it weird that we never see Ben actually saying goodbye or hugging Courtney’s family, unlike all the other HTD’s and families), Ben and Courtney head off for some private time together. As they head to the park, we get a PI from Courtney stating how she wants to tell Ben that she is in love with him, but is worried cause she’s never been with a guy that hasn’t betrayed her trust or hasn’t hurt her(red flags flying high here). As they sit down on the picnic benches, Courtney admits to Ben that she’s worried, then Ben states how he knows that he wants marriage at some time. Courtney states to Ben of how she had her first photoshoot there in the park when she was 17, and how they have weddings in that park, then they look behind them and see a wedding being set up(I smell a setup here.......something doesn’t seem right). As Courtney states in a PI, she wants to tell Ben that she loves him so she set this up and wants to surprise him. As they walk over to where the wedding setup is, they sit down on the chairs, and Courtney pulls out some writing pads so they can write up some vows. Then she pulls a bowtie out of her bag, and suggests that they write up their vows. Ben is getting nervous as he really doesn’t know how far she is going to take this. As they walk up the isle to where someone is standing there waiting for them. Then Ben is told to recite his vows to Courtney.....yea, this is sounding completely made up and a scam?? Then it was time for Courtney to say her vows( come to think of it, did Courtney really write these or copy them from something else as I saw the other piece of paper that she was using when writing the vows). Courtney then tells Ben that she loves him. If you ask me, the whole thing was set up......producer influenced, I think so.

Up next........Ben and Chris re-hash HTD’s

After Chris and Ben sit down, they start going over the HTD’s and what Ben felt about them.....first with Lindzi, and Ben felt he got off to a great start with Lindzi, really comfortable in Lindzi’s home, he has a little country in him, for the first time saw the vulnerable side of Lindzi which gave him a good feeling, he realized it was for real, loved Lindzi’s interaction with her family, he left there thinking that he could love this woman.

Kacie: Ben learned that Kacie’s grandfather is a big part of her life, community and family really important, realizes the concern about Kacie and Ben living together before marriage, one of the kindest and gentlest persons.

Nicki: they had fun, she continues to surprise him, puts a smile on his face, he feels comfortable with her, taken back about the divorce, loving family, Nicki told him she loves him, it felt right/timing was right.

Courtney; away from the drama that surrounds her was the Courtney he knows, surprised him with the mock wedding, he felt he could of written a whole lot more about her.
As Chris leaves to welcome the women, Ben has a lot to contemplate, but he has hope and confidence that one of the women will be right for him, although he is dreading this rose ceremony.

Up next...........roses time

As the women are lined up, Chris gives out his customary speech, Ben arrives and begins his speech before handing out the roses to Courtney, Lindzi and Nicki leaving Kacie as the only woman heading home. I found it so funny that Courtney made a very awkward half hearted movement to say goodbye to Kacie when the other girls were saying goodbye to her. Wonder how many of you caught that one?? One thing that I found totally funny was Courtney’s aghast look when she finds out that they are going to be playing in the snow in the mountains.......definitely not her thing to love as we all have been told before.......LOL.
Kacie was obviously taken aback as she really didn’t see that coming!


Thanks again everyone and hope you enjoyed my blog this week. I will be back next week for a soundoff with the Fantasy Dates. Have a great week everyone!!

Episode 7:  Do You Belize in Love?

Tonight, Ben and the women make their way to Belize from Panama.  The group are staying at the Coco Beach Resort, near Belize.  As the women touch down in Belize, we get a PI from Nicki telling us how important this week is for them and that at the end of the week, four women will be taking Ben home to meet their families.  The women finally arrive at the resort and are shown inside.  As they take a look around, we get a PI from Emily stating how Courtney likes to sleep a lot and kind of like a shark, she gets up and attacks, you never know when the next bite is coming.   Chris Harrison shows up to talk to them about what will happen this week as the women find out that there will be 3 individual dates and a group date, with only four roses handed out.  Harrison hands off the date card to Courtney, and leaves.  Courtney reads out the card and the date goes to Lindzi......Two halves make a whole.  Ben.  As we see Lindzi getting ready for her date, we get a PI from Nicki talking about how hard this process is getting for her and that it bothers her that she may not get an individual date this week.

The ladies are sitting around the pool talking when Ben arrives to pick up Lindzi for their date.  As Ben and Lindzi leave, they hop into the heli and fly past the resort where the women watch them take off.  In the heli, they are having a tour of the coastline and the whole while, we are getting PI’s from Lindzi and Ben.  Lindzi states how happy she is with Ben, of how she knows she wants kids, marriage and the forever.  Ben states how he feels about Lindzi and that she is an incredible woman and he’s so looking forward to showing Lindzi the unique and special place that they are going to.  They arrive at this place called the Great Blue Hole, it is a place surrounded by a coral reef and in the middle it goes down 500ft. and is popular to divers around the world.  Lindzi is told that they will be jumping from the heli into the water....Lindzi is terrified of heights.   Ben sees that Lindzi is totally freaking out and is literally shaking.  After they finally jump out, we get a PI from Lindzi and she is so excited stating “Holy Shitballs, I jumped out of the heli...crazy”.  Ben states in a PI of how when he is with Lindzi, there is nothing that they can’t accomplish.  They climb onto the boat waiting below, sharing kisses the whole time.  Ben and Lindzi arrive by boat to the dock where they will be having their dinner and evening portion of their date under a cabana.  As they settle down onto the pillows/couches waiting for them, they begin talking about the hometown dates and whether Lindzi would feel good about him going back to meet her family.  

Back at the resort, the ladies are sitting around and Courtney is going on about how she feels she is owed the individual date and if he likes her, she better get one.  Really, we have to listen to this bunch of hooey?? When the date card arrives, Rachel grabs it and reads it out.  Emily....Do you Belize in Love?  Ben.  We immediately get a shot of Courtney glaring at Emily and looking totally ticked off that she got the next individual date.  We immediately get a PI from Courtney stating how Emily got the 1 on 1 date with Ben and it is her worse nightmare, how she wants to kill herself.......By all means Courtney, don’t let me stop you.  Then of course the fake waterworks start and she really looks like she is playing the part now.

Back on the pier with Lindzi and Ben, they are talking about their date and how well it went.  Lindzi started opening up and admitted to Ben that she would absolutely like to take him home to meet her parents, and that she is falling for him.  After that, Ben pulls some paper out of his pocket and they begin to write a love letter to put into an empty bottle.  They decide to be funny on one side and be more serious on the other side of the note.  For the serious side they made up the fairy tale love story about their relationship so far and sealed it with an eternal promise to always be truthful, honest, open with each other and to always remain open together.  Ben states how he  could see Lindzi as someone that he could be with forever and how he feels that he may be falling in love with her.  They then put the note inside the empty bottle and throw it into the ocean.  Afterwards they spend some time cuddling and kissing

.

Next up.............Emily’s date

The ladies are sitting around waiting for Emily’s date when she finally leaves.  We get a PI from Courtney talking about how it stung to see Emily get the individual date with Ben when Emily treated her so badly and Ben knows it.  Courtney finishes her thoughts by saying that it would make her day for Ben to send Emily home on the date.  Can I say it would make my day too for you to have a little compassion for others.......ok, sorry, guessing that’s asking too much....oh well.

Emily ends up taking a flight to the date location and where she meets up with Ben.  When the plane lands, Emily finds out that they are going to ride on bikes around town.  They run into a vendor with coconuts, find kids playing basketball, run into an outdoor market where Emily finds a ring that she likes, then they head down to the dock to get some lobsters for dinner.  Ok, well, they actually have to go out fishing to get their dinner.  After they get into the boat and head out, the lobster fisherman takes them to the fishing grounds where Ben and Emily get into the water and begin hunting for their own lobster for dinner.  Unfortunately they find that hunting for lobsters is harder than they thought as they are so quick and hard to catch.  Ben catches the first one, quickly followed by Emily who catches hers.  

Back at the resort, the women are talking, and it is Courtney and Lindzi talking with Courtney pouring out her sob story.  Sorry Courtney, the emotion is too little too late for me to believe.  Courtney is still doing her sob story about Ben and Emily off on her date and how she hopes Ben sends Emily home as that would make her life so much better.  Come on now, give me a break!

Emily and Ben now are at a bar called the Lazy Lizard where they are dancing with the locals.  As they sit down to dinner, they begin talking about their day and how Emily feels about Ben going home with her to meet her family.   Emily sounds kinda hesitant about it, but clarifies that after their date today she definitely feels better about him going home to meet her family.  They share some kisses and Emily states that she feels like she’s on top of the world.

Back at the resort, the next date card arrives and it is for Courtney.  Let’s take the next step in our relationship......Ben.  Courtney begins her bragging session in front of all the other women.  This of course sets Kacie off in a PI about Courtney and how she is a black widow and Kacie wants to smack her one.  Can I help you with that Kacie??

Up next.........Courtney’s date

Courtney states how she feels more disconnected from Ben and wants to know where she stands and in true Courtney fashion, she makes a rude comment when leaving the resort.  After they meet up, they take a walk through the jungle to a Mayan Ruin.  They begin to climb the steps up the ruins, and stop for a picnic lunch along the way.  Courtney begins talking about how it annoyed her that Ben had a date with Emily the day before and couldn’t understand why he would do that when he knows how badly Emily has treated her.  Courtney carries on to say that she feels that the spark between them is being lost.  Good grief, does this woman ever think of someone other than herself??

Back at the resort, Nicki, Emily and Kacie are talking about Courtney.  Both Nicki and Kacie are telling Emily that she’s right about what she saw in Courtney and Kacie expresses again of how Courtney is like the black widow and sucks the life out of things.

Ben and Courtney are sitting at the ruins talking and Ben expresses that he is starting to fall for this woman and if she isn’t feeling it, he’d be crushed and devastated.  Through their conversation, Ben expresses that he wants a woman with a little bit of an edge.......well, he may be getting more than he bargained for with Courtney.  When they are finished with their lunch, they begin to climb the ruins towards the top.  When they arrive at the top, Ben exclaims, Oh my dad.  Ben states how he keeps thinking of his father and how he can see his life with Courtney.  Today, he had moments of clarity.  Ben and Courtney arrive at their dinner location, and Ben is expressing how he thought they had a great day together.  Courtney expresses to Ben how she feels her parents are like soul mates and that is what she wants.  Ben says that he believes in soul mates too.  Ben then states how sitting up on the ruins, he had a moment of clarity with the past, present and future all rolled into one and his past was represented by his father, his present with Courtney sitting beside him and his future as seeing her in it.  As they kiss, Courtney pulls away a bit.  In a PI, Courtney expresses that she is high on love right now and the other women can all pack their bags cause the show is over, as she is making a gun motion with her fingers, kill shot...........really Courtney, and who is acting childish??

Back at the resort, the next date card arrives and Emily reads it out.  Rachel, Nicki and Kacie, let’s sea whose family I will meet....Ben.  The women are thinking that their date has something to do with being out on the water, in the meantime, we get a PI from Kacie stating that she really wants to go into the next rose ceremony with a rose as it means that she knows she will be taking Ben home to meet her family.   Then discussion turns towards Courtney being out on her date now with Ben....and the women begin to discuss Courtney’s reaction to the date card.  Nicki fills Emily in by saying that Courtney was kinda cocky about it and claimed that Ben knew that she needed that time.  

Ben and Courtney are still sitting at the table talking and Courtney goes into her lies and whining about how the girls don’t care about her, of how she would never be friends with them in their normal lives.  WOW, talk about full of herself.  Ben carries on to ask Courtney if she has friends, to which Courtney replies that she has good friends and a lot of guy friends.  This seems to give Ben some pause and concern as it is obvious from his face, and he carries on to say how he is concerned that she’s not getting along with the women.  Well if looks could kill, she tries to backpedal out of it, but Ben presses her and claims to be concerned with her ability to get along with others.  Then Courtney goes into her modelling job, once again(as if we haven’t heard that one before), and also claims that she’s not impressed by these women, or girls as she claims that they aren’t even women.  Looking at Ben’s face, you can tell that this is kinda taking him aback.  Although he is listening to Emily about Courtney being two faced, he still doesn’t want to pressure Courtney.  But ultimately, one of his fears is that he will end up with someone that others don’t like.  Their dinner ended on a very tense note and it was obviously playing on Ben.

Up next.............group date

Ben arrives at the resort at 4am to wake up the women to get them ready for their group date.  Ben wakes up Kacie first, who is rooming with Lindzi, then wakes up Rachel next, who is rooming with Courtney, then finally wakes up Nicki who is rooming with Emily.  After waking them all up, he informs the women that he will wait for them on the dock, which prompts the women to do an impromptu shave/shower and get ready session for their date.  They all walk out onto the dock and head out onto the catamaran which will take them out to their date location.....diving with sharks.  Once the women are told of what they are doing on the date, Rachel is obviously out of her comfort zone and very scared of what they are about to do.  Rachel and Ben are out on deck talking when chum starts flying as the sharks are now being baited to stay in the area while they are diving.  First into the water is Nicki and Kacie, and there are lots of sharks and stingrays there.   As Rachel has asked for help, Ben sticks close by to help her face her fears.  We are getting PI’s from Kacie explaining that she is feeling jealous of the time that Ben is spending with Rachel, and a PI from Rachel expressing how badly she wants to have that date rose and take Ben home to her family.  When they all come back from the date, they find the rose, pina coladas and the couches out waiting for them to continue their date.  Ben takes Rachel for some private time first, followed by Nicki and Kacie.  With Nicki’s private time, she expresses to Ben of how she would really love to take her home to her family.  At this time, we get an excerpt from Courtney expressing to the other women at the resort that Ben and her had a late night last night.  She’s not worried about the women on the group date.  Then Ben takes Kacie off for some quiet time together.  They head to the hot tub to talk in private.  Kacie expresses how she is really looking forward to taking Ben home to meet them.  Kacie tells Ben that she is falling in love with him and before heading back to the group, they share some kisses.  After re-joining the group, Ben hands out the rose to Kacie.  After the rose was handed out, we see Courtney spying on the date and when she sees that Kacie got the rose, she comments that she’s not worried about Kacie as she is a little girl; a little girl in a little boys body.  Courtney further expresses that she’s over it and tired of dealing with all the catty girls.  WOW, with these comments among others, personally, I can’t wait till the Women Tell All to find out how she answers the coming questions.

Back on the group date, Nicki and Kacie begin to express to Ben exactly who Courtney is and that she’s not there for him but there for her own purposes.  All three women state that Courtney is there for herself and not Ben.  Ben states that he respects and trusts the women that are telling him the things about Courtney and it is really giving him concern as to whether Courtney is telling others things behind his back, and whether he is actually being deceived.

Up next...........Rose Ceremony

The women walk towards their rose ceremony location and are sitting around on the couches discussing how nervous they are all tonight, of how that since they’ve been there, they have gained friendships and are worried about it.  Meanwhile the looks on Courtney’s face says it all with regards to how she is completely against what the other women are saying with regards to friendships, etc.  Then the Courtney show commences once again, as she starts acting completely bizarre and makes a comment about lightening things up and how Ben really isn’t the only guy in the world.  This of course sets Emily off as she just couldn’t believe her ears.  Next we see Harrison coming in and he tells the women that there won’t be a cocktail party, so the women get themselves ready for the rose ceremony.

When the women are all lined up, we get the customary speech from Chris, then when Ben arrives, he asks to take Courtney out for a minute to ask her some questions.  When the two of them are seated, Ben runs it by her about how he knows this process is hard on her, he wants to make sure she’s there for him, and that she feels that they can make each other happy.  Yup, Courtney talked herself out of that one........

The roses were handed out to Nicki, Lindzi and Courtney along with Kacie as the four that Ben will go home with for their hometown dates.  This of course means that Rachel and Emily were sent home tonight.  When Rachel leaves, we get a parting interview from her and she is really hurt by the rejection, then when Emily leaves, there is a comment from Courtney; see ya, and a gleeful look as well as a rose wave goodbye.  WOW, that girl is a piece of work.

 

Episode 6:  Panama Streets, Private Island, and Salsa Time

 Tonight, we see the ladies arriving in Panama, and as they make their way to their hotel, we are getting PI’s from Lindzi and Courtney.  Of course Courtney is bragging about the skinnydipping last week and the closeness between her and Ben.  Then we see Ben driving down the streets of Panama on his way to the hotel and talking about the women and the fact that this week there are dates with all the women.   When he arrives at the hotel, he finds the women there waiting for him and he tells them that everyone will get a date this week.  Before he leaves them, he leaves a date card behind and Nicki is the first one to grab the card to read it out.  The date is for Kacie B....Will our love survive.  Pack 3 things.......Ben.  Courtney looks quite upset that she got the date and really wants to see Kacie go home as she is kinda annoying.

As Ben and Kacie walk towards the heli, as they board the heli and fly off over the Panama Canal, they are flying over beautiful blue waters to their private island.  They are both saying in PI’s how they are worried that they may run out of things to talk about and wondering how things will go being stranded on the island for the day.  As they settle in, they open Kacie’s bag first to see what three things she brought.  They find a monkey,  a corkscrew/survival knife, and a bag of candy.   Ben brought a machete, a fishing net, and matches.  They walk to the trees and start chopping down the coconuts and getting bark off the trees.  You see them out in the water walking with their fishing net trying to catch a fish and they succeed.  Next we see them cooking fish in a banana leaf, over the fire.  As they crack some more coconuts and drink the juice, they are both commenting in their PI’s of how they could see this work.  Later they meet up for their night portion of their date, and as they sit down to dinner, they begin discussing what their day to day life would be. 

Back at the hotel, the next date card arrives and Lindzi runs out to grab it.  The card reads........Let’s get lost.....Ben.  The ladies going on the date are:  Emily, Nicki, Lindzi, Casey, Courtney and Jamie.  This leaves Blakeley and Rachel for the 2 on 1 date.

Back with Kacie and Ben, the discussion turns more serious as Kacie tells Ben about her past and her problems with her eating disorder.  Through the discussion, you can tell that Ben was open to Kacie sharing that with him and listening intently.  At the end of the night, he offers the rose to Kacie by saying that he has so much fun with her, liked her from the start, her opening up to him is what he appreciates.  At the end, they shared some nice kisses, then they walked the streets of Panama, sharing kisses as they go.

Group date up next..............

The next day, Ben gets into the boat and heads up the Chagras River to meet up with the women.  As everyone climbs into the boat, Ben starts the motor back up and they head on up the river.  They find kids playing soccer and then pull up on the bank to find the kids disappear into the woods.  As they walk along, they find the village where the kids disappeared to.  Then the women are separated from Ben as the women are taken to huts and are put into native wear.  Most of the women just put the native wear on over top of their bikini’s then comes Courtney who.......yup, you guessed it, she took off her bikini and went topless with just the beads covering, you know what’s.  Then the women were also put into skirts, and of course Courtney once again tries to show everyone up by not wearing her bikini bottom under the skirt......yea, classy......NOT!  Anyways, after the women get dressed, Ben shows up dressed in a loin cloth.  We get PI’s from Lindzi and Nicki describing how hot Ben looks, and in the meantime, the group are body painting on each other.  Yea, Courtney is working on that other group date rose now........LOL.  Courtney put a B+C=heart on Ben’s back, Emily chimes in and says that is something from seventh grade lunchroom.........LOL.  This of course doesn’t impress the rest of the women after Emily tells them.  Courtney states in a PI of how the rest of the women aren’t making moves on Ben so it is like she is on an individual date with him and making the most of it while she ignores the other women.  Afterwards, they end up back at the hotel poolside for their night portion of the date.  Lindzi is the first one that Ben takes aside for a bit and they start to seriously talk about the process and that it has been difficult for Lindzi.  Lindzi even admitted that she has cried through this process due to the difficult nature that it is for her.  After their talk, they ended it with some kisses.  Their time together seemed great, easy conversation, lots of handholding and some sweet kisses to end it.

Back at the hotel, the date card arrives for Blakeley and Rachel.  Save the last dance for me........Ben.  Then the other card is opened and it says, two girls, one rose, one stays, one goes.  Blakeley seems happy to find out that the date involves dancing.

Meanwhile at the group date, Ben takes Courtney off for some private time.  Courtney starts whining about how hard this is for her, how she doesn’t feel special when she is always on the group dates, how it is hard to feel the romance.  Yea, she’s working on that group date rose again, just like last time........LOL.  Then in her baby voice, she tells Ben her room number and encourages him to come and visit her after the group date ends.  The next one to get some private time is Jamie.  Just after they leave the group and sit down, Courtney finds them and starts to take off her dress by the pool as she has her bikini on underneath.  Courtney is purposely trying to distract Ben from having any conversation with Jamie.  Because of Courtney, Jamie and Ben’s conversation goes absolutely no where.  Ben then takes Emily aside for some private time, in which she jokes with him saying that she has another man in her life and it is the chief from today’s tribal date..........LOL.  At the end of their time, they share some nice kisses.  Emily then re-joins the group and proceeds to try to apologize to Courtney for what was said in previous episodes, but of course in Courtney fashion, there is no apology accepted and of course a major song and dance ensues because of it.  As Jamie tries to come in and referee it, Courtney makes it even worse......what else is new, eh??  Like the comment about bending over and taking it up the tailpipe......wow, that’s the Courtney that is being shown for sure.  Ben comes back just at the end of the discussion and asks to speak to Lindzi again, and in doing so, picks up the rose before leaving the group.  After they leave, we get a shot of Courtney acting pretty upset/angry that Ben didn’t give her the rose.  Ben gives Lindzi the rose and tells her that he sees something in them, wants her to know it and the rose is a symbol of that affirmation.  They share some nice kisses again, including one that he is holding her head and pulling her towards him.  When they get back to the group, Ben makes his parting speech of the night, and you can audibly hear Courtney sighing during his speech.  As Ben gives Lindzi a hug and takes off, we see Courtney getting ready for their “secret” rendezvous that night.  As Courtney is sitting there waiting, and waiting, we hear her whining about how Ben isn’t coming, and how men that she’s been with in the past that appreciate her in the beginning and by the end, they take her for granted.

Two on one date up next..............

As Blakeley and Rachel meet up with Ben, they head to a cafe there where they will learn Latin Dancing and the Salsa is the dance of choice.  Rachel is the first one to get the dance, and then with Blakeley and Rachel alternating through the lessons.  Throughout the date, we get PI’s from each Rachel and Blakeley talking about how they want to get the other one away from Ben and how they do that.  When they head out to dinner, AWKWARD, as the three of them are sitting down and eating, then Rachel is the first one to get some private time.  She basically tells Ben how she really wants to be there, wants to explore what they have, and at the end, they share some kisses.  Then Blakeley takes Ben off for some private time in which she shows Ben the scrapbook that she made up.  After they head back to the table, Ben hands out the rose to Rachel, which prompts Blakeley to stand up and leave without saying goodbye.  Blakeley leaves the restaurant with Ben trailing behind trying to get her to stop and listen........Back at the hotel, the guy comes to get Blakeley’s suitcase.  Ben is walking Blakeley out to the limo......

The next day, Harrison arrives at the hotel and asks to speak to Casey S.  He takes her outside and tells her that they know about Micheal back at home and how he is her boyfriend and that there may be more feelings there that aren’t resolved.  Chris then takes Casey up to Ben’s suite and they tell Ben about Micheal and how Casey should figure out what is going on.  Ben agrees, and sends Casey home.

Cocktail party next......................

All the women are waiting for Ben to arrive, and after his speech, he takes Nicki aside for some private time together.  Nicki shares that she’s really glad that she is there and that she gets giddy and excited when she thinks she’s going to see Ben.  They share a dance and some kisses before Ben takes Kacie aside for their private time.  We see Ben and Kacie talking but not much conversation is exchanged, then we see Ben with Lindzi, and again, not much conversation, but some good kisses are exchanged.  Then Ben and Jamie head off for their private time in which Jamie admits that she hasn’t really shown him that she likes him.  This is where it gets weird and awkward once again.....Jamie goes in for the kill and does a lapdance with him and then proceeds to give him narrative kissing lessons.  Maybe just a little overkill...........Chris then comes to get Ben as it is time for the rose ceremony.

When Ben comes back, he makes his customary speech about what this week meant to him, etc.  Since Kacie, Lindzi and Rachel have their roses, he hands out the remaining roses to Nicki(which of course gets him a scowl from Courtney who felt she deserved the first rose), Courtney, and Emily(again, Ben gets the glare from Courtney as Courtney wanted Emily gone).  This means that Jamie is sent home on her own tonight.

Episode 5: Puerto Rico, Here we Come

I thought last week’s episode was bad, where do I even start with tonight’s.  We first see Ben arriving on Vieques Island, Puerto Rico and he is talking about how everyone gets a date this week and it will be good to see everyone.

As the ladies arrive at the resort, we get PI from Emily talking about how tense things are with her and the drama happening with Courtney.  Then as the ladies check out their villa, we get the first of what will be many PI’s from Courtney, again talking about the drama with Emily over the last week.  Chris Harrison then  takes the ladies outside where he explains to them what will happen this week regarding the dates and before leaving, drops the first date card on the table.

Jamie grabs the card to read it out, Nicki, let’s find a new love in Old San Juan........Ben.  With that, Nicki is so excited and runs away to get changed for their date.  Then of course we get a PI from Courtney of how she thought she would get the date and then proceeds to tell us how “Emily is on her “shit” list, how Emily better check herself and watch out b!tch”

We then get some PI’s from Nicki as she is getting ready for her date.  She begins to describe how she’s looking forward to spending a whole day with Ben without waiting for someone else to have their turn, etc., and then talks about how she would really be bummed if she didn’t receive a rose on the date.  To come all this way and be sent home in Puerto Rico would really be sad as she puts it.  Ben arrives and they head off on their date....Remember in the first epi of how Ben said that hummingbirds played a role with him and his dad, how he takes them as a sign.  Well, I noticed tonight as Ben and Nicki were leaving the resort, there were hummingbirds shown......and as they head out the back area to the heli, they were able to take off and have a tour of Old San Juan.  When the heli lands, they get out and start walking the streets of the town, getting pirarahs from the vendor, then of course it starts pouring rain.  As they run through the streets, now with their sandals in hands, they find a clothing store and walk inside;  they are both trying to find the most authentic Puertorican clothes.  As they come out of their dressing rooms, they find each other wearing their new sets of clothes; Ben in white shirt, pants, shoes, and hat and Nicki in a flowing dress with hummingbirds on it.  They then leave the clothing store and continue their tour of the town where they come across a church that has a wedding in progress.  Sitting down on the bench, they begin talking about Nicki’s previous marriage, what she wants now, and what she thinks could happen.  As they settle in for the night portion of their date, the conversation gets serious and the questions revolve around her previous marriage and how that was/ended. 

As the ladies are sitting around talking about the possibilities of who will be on the individual dates and who will be on the group date, the date card finally arrives.  As Jennifer grabs the card and reads out the names:  Lindzi, Courtney, Jennifer, Kacie B, Emily, Rachel, Casey S, Jamie, and Blakeley...Diamonds are a girls best friend....Ben. 

Back with Nicki and Ben, they have just about finished talking about Nicki’s past, and where this could lead for them when Ben offers her the rose.  She gladly accepts and they share some great kisses and snuggling time.

Up next.............Group Date

As the ladies arrive to find Ben waiting for them at the ballpark, we get PI’s from Emily stating how the girls thought that the date may have something to do with jewlery, and another PI from Lindzi stating that these kinds of diamonds are way better than the sparkly kinds.  After Ben introduces the women to the coaches there, they all start doing drills, stretches, warm-ups, fielding, hitting, etc.  After a while, Chris Harrison shows up for the announcement that the date isn’t over and now they will be splitting up into two teams for a baseball game, the winning team will go on a beach date with Ben for the evening.  Since there are nine players there, Harrison says that one woman will play on both teams and will enjoy the reward of going on the evening portion of the date no matter what.  Ben then has to make the choice of the woman he wants there, and he chooses Lindzi.  After they split up into teams, with Courtney(red team) as one captain and Blakeley(blue team) as the other; Courtney gets first pick and she chooses Kacie B, Kacie S, and Jamie.  Blakeley’s team consists of Emily, Rachel, and Jennifer.  After both teams head to the dressing rooms to get changed, then they head out onto the field for their 2 inning game.  The first up to bat was the red team and they were able to get 5 runs in.  Then the blue team came up to bat, and with Ben making the throwing error, the blue team got 3 runs in the first.  While the game is on, we get PI’s from the women, then get a doozy of a one from Courtney:  “Blakeley is like a champion out there, who knew that strippers could play baseball?” .....Yea, there’s the Courtney that we’ve all seen.  The blue team ties the score in the bottom of the 2^nd inning and they are into extra innings now.  Eventually the red team won and thus it is them and Lindzi going on the evening portion of the beach date.  As Ben and the winning team head off to the heli, the losing team end up taking a slow bus ride out of the stadium.

As the group come out on the beach, you see the tiki lanterns, and couches waiting for them to sit down and chat.  Ben takes Lindzi first for some quality time, then Jamie and Casey S follow.  Then Kacie B and Ben head off for some quiet time, this is when Ben admits that the women that he has fallen for haven’t loved him back and he doesn’t want to come up empty again. 

Meanwhile the rest of the women arrive back at their villa and tell Nicki and Elyse what happened on the date.

Back at the beach, the group is sitting around and Ben takes Kacie B out again and gives her the rose.  This of course gets under Courtney’s skin as she says in a PI of how she really doesn’t see what Ben sees in Kacie and of course thinks he’s doing the wrong thing....no surprise there.  Then of course, Courtney realizes that Ben’s mind may be on one of the other women, so she gets up and steals him away, once again for some more quality time......Sheesh, is this chick for real??  Enough of the dang Courtney show already!! 

Up next............Elyse’s individual date

The next day the women are sitting around and the date card arrives for Elyse, Let’s find love somewhere private....Ben.  We see Elyse getting ready for her date, packing up her bag and are privy to some PI’s of how she has really been looking forward to this time with him considering the others have had more time with him than she has.  As Ben arrives to pick up Elyse and they head off, towards the beach and the awaiting yacht.  Throughout the tour of the shoreline, they talk about where each of them are at in their lives, and what they want.  After a while, the yacht stops and they proceed to jump off the boat several times and swim around for a while.  For their night portion, they land on a beach where dinner, wine, and candles are waiting.  After they talk for a while, Ben reaches the decision that he can’t hand out the rose to her.  He says that he was hoping to find stuff between them that wasn’t there, then proceeded to say that he has gotten further in other relationships with the other women than he has gotten to or can see getting to, and thus has to say goodbye to her.  Ben walks Elyse down to the boat that is awaiting to take her off.  After seeing Elyse off, Ben takes a stroll along the beach and tosses the rose into the water.

Meanwhile back at the resort, the ladies see that Elyse’s suitcase is taken out, which of course prompts Courtney into one of her so loved expressions......Another one bites the dust.  This of course gets lots of weird looks from the other women in the room.

When Ben comes back to his room after the date, he finds Courtney waiting for him on the stairwell(Conveniently with a film crew too).  As they head into his suite for a nightcap, she tries to play miss nice with him, offering to run a bath, a massage, all the while in her PI stating how she hopes that she is a site for sore eyes for him as being with Elyse all day, his eyes must be sore..........Are you serious, this woman is so full of herself.  Yikes.  Then it is almost sickening as they are sitting down on the couch with their wine, she loosens her robe, exposing her bra to him, like, give me a break already!  Okay, this is where I stop my description........needless to say, yes they go skinnydipping and that is all there is left to say on this subject.

Cocktail party

As the women are waiting for Ben to arrive, Courtney is up to her old shenanigans, taunting the other women.  After Ben arrives and makes his speech, he takes Jennifer out first for some private time.  Blakeley is next for her quiet time.  They head to a quiet area of the resort where she tells him that she has written down things daily that she likes about him, has opened up about other things, and then they shared some kisses.  After coming back from Blakeley, Ben takes Rachel for some time, then Lindzi.  During the time that Ben is with Lindzi, Courtney brings up the concept of skinny dipping and whether anyone has done it.  Next up for some private time with Ben is Emily.  First of all Emily tries to apologize for bringing up Courtney last week, all’s good, then she turns around and brings her up again.  This of course is obviously frustrating Ben.

As the women line up ready for the rose ceremony Chris Harrison comes in for his customary speech, then Ben approaches and gives his speech too before the roses are handed out.  Since Nicki and Kacie B have their roses from their dates, Lindzi, Jamie, Rachel, Courtney, Casey, Blakeley and Emily receive the remaining roses; which means that Jennifer is sent home tonight.

EPISODE 4: Utah Bound 

I don’t even know where to begin with this epi.  Tonight’s epi has taken things to a whole new level with the Courtney drama.  It is absolutely ridiculous how that girl is still there going by how she is acting.  Well, I guess the beginning is just as good as anywhere with this episode.

As the ladies hop onto the plane and fly out to Park City Utah, we hear Ben describing why he wants to bring the women there.  Claiming that the outdoors are a big part of his life, he wants to make sure the woman he chooses will be good with it.

As the ladies arrive at the Canyonlands Tallisker Mountain Resort, and take a look around, we are getting PI’s from Nicki and Kacie talking about how nice it is there and how it would really be great to fall in love, etc.  Chris Harrison is there waiting for them and gives them his traditional speech of what dates will happen this week, then leaves the date card behind as he walks out. Lindzi is the one to grab the card to read out.  Rachel...........Let’s let nature take it’s course............Ben.  Right after the announcement, we see Rachel getting ready for the date and we get a PI from Kacie describing how hard it is to see him go out on other dates when all she wants to do is to spend time alone with him.

So Rachel is the first one to get date this week, and as all the girls are sitting around waiting for Ben to pick up Rachel, we get yet another PI from Kacie B stating how hard of a time she is having watching Ben have dates with the other women.  Finally Ben arrives and they take off for their date.  As Ben and Rachel take off, the ladies can see them heading off in a chopper.  As they take off having a mini tour of the area, they eventually land at a little lake and head out in the canoe for a paddle around the lake.  As they paddle around the lake, share some kisses in the canoe.

Meanwhile back at the resort, Kacie and Monica are chatting about how hard the process is.  Kacie is saying that since she had the first date, the whole process just seems longer and she’s just having a harder time with it, then Monica pipes in  with the fact that she feels that Rachel may go home on this date.

Back at the lake, the two of them are now on shore having a picnic and trying to get to know each other.  This really seems awkward and they are really struggling to talk to one another.  Not a good sign.  As night falls, we see them walking through the woods to where they will be having their dinner.  They enter a “cabin” and find dinner waiting for them on the table, with of course the rose sitting there as well.  One thing that is so noticeable, is how strained the conversation is between them.

Next we see the women sitting around waiting for the next date card to arrive.  As Emily grabs the card and reads the names out, it is Jamie, Casey S, Blakeley, Lindzi, Nicki, Samantha, Kacie B, and Courtney........Let’s see if you are a great catch.......Ben.  Of course it is Courtney who is the first one to open her yap.  My first group date......seriously!  We also get a PI from Emily stating that she’s looking forward to Courtney being on the group date as it will be an eye opening experience for Mr. Flajnick.  Hmmmmmm, guess we’ll see on that one.

Back at the cabin, the conversation is just as difficult as it was before.  Then finally something changes and the conversation gets a little better.  Rachel did open up more and Ben offered the rose.  After that, they both went out by the fire for some s’mores.

Up Next...............Group Date

We see Ben talking of how he is taking the eight women on an outdoorsy type of date to see if they can handle the country style.  As the ladies walk towards where they are meeting up with Ben, one of them spots him riding up on his horse.  As they all climb onto their horses, it was really cute to see Lindzi kinda looking after the other ladies and making sure they are all set and ready to go.  Ben leading the way and Lindzi bringing up the rear.........maybe she will be the final one standing at the end waiting for all the other women to go away...........just kidding.  LOL.   After a while, they arrive at the creek and find flyfishing gear waiting for them, complete with slickers and all.  As they get changed into their gear and pick up their rods they all head out into the creek in different directions with Ben mingling around them all.  Ben first helps Blakeley, then stops by Lindzi to see how she’s doing, all the while, we get a PI from Courtney saying that catching fish can’t be much different than catching a man and she brags about doing that.  Ben then stops to see how Kacie B is making out, the whole while under the watchful eye of Courtney..........Man that girl doesn’t miss a trick.  Oh lordy, now we hear how Courtney is going to reel Ben in and turn the group date into a one on one date..........is this chick for real?? 

Meanwhile back at the resort, the remaining women are talking how it just may be Courtney that shoots herself in the foot today on the group date.  As one of the women say, let’s face it, group dates aren’t going to be one of her strong suits.  

Back in the river, Ben and Courtney are together, Ben is talking of how Courtney just gets it.  WOW, has this guy got the wool pulled over his eyes tight tonight.......Yikes!   Lindzi sees Ben and Courtney off on their own so heads up to see what they are doing, just in time to see Courtney catch a fish....of course that didn’t go over very well.  So Ben says that she needs to kiss it, which of course starts the song and dance and the ewwwwwwwwww out of Courtney over it.  In the PI, Courtney states that she thinks Lindzi could of stayed back and it would of been less awkward for her and because Courtney caught a fish, she says that Lindzi’s head almost popped off and spun around...........yea, just a precious girl you are Courtney. 

After the fishing portion of their date, they went to the Waldorf Astoria hotel for the night portion of their date.  First up for some quality time with Ben is Casey S, they just seemed to get started on their conversation when Nicki shows up and asks for some time.  Nicki tells Ben how her boss passed away from a heartattack a week before she came, then Ben proceeds to tell her how one of his friends dies a few days before filming when he is already in LA.  After sharing their stories, they were right in the middle of a kiss when Samantha interrupts them for her one on one time, and you can visibly see that Ben is upset by the interruption.  As Ben and Samantha are talking, she is asking him why only the group dates and no time for just them on an individual date....you can see Ben changing, then he states that he can’t see this going any further, so Samantha heads back to the group and says her goodbyes, heads upstairs, grabs her suitcase and says the goodbyes there too, then Ben walks her out.  The whole time, we are getting a PI from Courtney and how she’s so glad that she and Ben are  on the same page as to who belongs and who doesn’t......Courtney’s parting words in her PI, “Another one bites the dust”......so nice to see you so caring Courtney.........NOT!

Meanwhile the last date card arrives and it is for Jennifer........Let’s pick our Love Song......Ben.  She’s stating in PI’s as to how she’s really looking forward for the chance to get to know Ben better.

Back with the group, Ben asks to take Kacie aside for their time and he takes her back to his room.  They spend some time there re-connecting.  Ben admits that he was wanting to kiss Kacie on the group date when they were in the creek there but with everyone else around, he wasn’t going to do it.  After they have some quality time, they head back up to the group and we see Courtney on the couch on her own, and of course another PI from her stating how she’s pissed that Kacie B stole her Ben away from her.......come on, give me a break..........it is a group date with eight other women, of course you don’t have him all to yourself, get over it already.......LOL.  When Ben and Kacie come back, Courtney and Ben head off for their private time.......oh lordy, here comes her sob story about how Lindzi was there with them, two’s fun, three’s a crowd........oh come on, you were on a group date Courtney, not an individual date.  Bottom line, at the end of her sob story, Ben obviously felt guilty and felt he had to give Courtney the group date rose to keep the peace with her.

The next day, we see Jennifer getting ready for her date, then Ben arrives to pick her up.  They take a walk up a path and find a cavern with a hotsprings in it.  Jennifer finds out what they are going to do and begins to freak out.  They are going to get into some harnesses, dangle over the crater edge and get lowered into the crater to a certain level, then they will drop the rest of the way.

Meanwhile back at the lodge, the rest of the women are talking about how the group date went the night before and why it was Courtney that got the rose.  The group was basically all agreeing that there is no way that they could see them together, knowing who each of them are, yet she has the rose.  Then in walks Courtney and of course everyone goes silent.

Back at the crater, Ben and Jennifer are lowered into the crater and at the certain level that they are lowered to, they immediately drop into the water at the count of 3.  Once they get out of the cavern and get dressed, they head up to the mountain top on the ski lift to where their dinner is waiting for them.  They continue their conversations as they eat.  Just as they finish eating, the rain starts pouring down, and they run for cover.  After they are inside, Ben realizes that they left the rose outside so he runs to grab it an offers it to Jennifer.  Their date isn’t over and they head back down the hill on the lift and end up at the Clay Walker Concert.  As they dance away to Clay Walker, we are getting PI’s from each other saying how they feel about the other one.

Oh gawd, here we go............Cocktail Party up next

After the customary speech and toast when Ben arrives, he takes Monica out first for a chat.  As the night carries on, you can see Emily unravelling and by the time she is obviously loosing it, she gets her private time with Ben and tells him about Courtney and how she is completely different in front of him compared to the rest of the girls.  When Emily comes back to the girls, she is sitting with Casey and Jamie, and Emily states that she talked about Courtney with Ben.  Casey makes her escape saying that she needs a drink and immediately runs to Courtney with the news that Emily was talking about her to Ben.  So while Courtney and Casey are talking, Casey told Courtney everything, then the sweet little Courtney says that she almost wants to rip her head off and verbally assault her........yea, there’s that sweet girl that we’ve been watching......NOT.  Then she mentions about maybe shaving her eyebrows off in the middle of the night.  Seriously........who does this chick think she is.......WOW.

Nicki is the next one to snag some alone time with Ben.  They head upstairs and out on a balcony to enjoy the first snowfall of the season.  And of course, some smooching........LOL.  Meanwhile back in the room with the women, you can tell that the tension is building and Courtney is going to blow.  Kacie B tables a round the room question and asks if the women feel they have changed more in the last two weeks compared to the last two years.  Of course it shows Courtney as the only one that doesn’t raise her hand.  The queen shitdisturber this season let it fly again tonight, and one of her acts was to try to purposely cause drama at the cocktail party with Emily.  All in all, I would really feel sorry for Ben if he ends up with her.  At the end of their spat, Courtney stands up and says “good luck Emily, winning, I got a rose and you don’t”. 

Rose Ceremony up next...........

As the women are lined up for the rose ceremony, Chris Harrison makes his traditional speech and Ben arrives to hand out the roses.  Since Rachel, Courtney, and Jennifer already have their roses, he hands out the remaining ones to:  Lindzi, Jamie, Nicki, Kacie B, Elyse, Blakeley, Casey S, and Emily, which leaves Monica as the only roseless person tonight.  After the women say goodbye to her, Ben walks her out.

After Ben comes back, the champagne is poured, Ben proceeds to tell the women where they are going next and that is to Puerto Rico......immediately Courtney pipes in with saying that she was there two months ago and really doesn’t look happy, but even though Ben is a little taken back by that, he gets the enthusiasm up and says that they are going back there again.  WOW, this really is turning into the all about Courtney season........sheesh.

Well, guess that is all for tonight.  Hope you all are enjoying the blog?

The Bachelor on the Streets of San Francisco

So as Ben and his ladies make their way to San Francisco tonight from Sonoma, we hear Ben talking about the women.   One of the first descriptions is of Courtney.  He is saying that he likes how she's laid back and drama free......WHAT?  She is nothing BUT drama when it comes to how she is with the other women.......wonder how she will be tonight?

As the ladies get settled into their suite, the date card arrives.  Emily gets the first individual date of the week.  As she arrives where Ben is waiting for her on the Golden Gate Bridge, she finds out that they will be scaling the bridge.  At this time she freaks out as the main fear she has in life is heights.  After some prodding by Ben, she gets on her gear and begins the climb.

I am embarrassed to say, but here is the problem........my power went out at my home and I unfortunately missed a lot here.  The next time that my power comes back on is when Brittney gets her date card, so that is where I will continue on with the blog.

Brittney is opening up her date card and finding that she is chosen for the last individual date of the week.  When she opens the card, you can almost see the surprise and shock on her face that she got the individual date.  Then as she continues to read and think about it, you see the wheels spinning.  In a PI, she states how she doesn’t know if she will go on the date cause when she read the card, she wasn’t really feeling it or looking forward to it and felt that there was something wrong with that.

Next up, we see Ben and the ladies at the Tonga room where they will be having their night portion of the date.  First up for some private time is Rachel.  They head off to a private place and they both have a lei on.  They both look like they are having a connection and getting a few kisses in as well.  Next up to get some private time is Elyse......as they are having their private time, in comes Kacie B to try to steal Ben away for their time together.  As they head outside for their chat, Kacie is admitting that she is having a hard time with the whole process.  As they share a few kisses, we get a PI from Ben of how Kacie sparkles, and is going to be trouble for him........a good kind of trouble.  He carries on to say how he thinks they get each other.

Meanwhile, back at the hotel, Brittney takes Emily aside for a chat and states how she doesn’t think this is right for her and she doesn’t think that this is the way for her.  She also states that she isn’t really feeling it with Ben and at the beginning of this journey she promised herself that if she’s not feeling it, she won’t stay.

Back at the group date, Ben is having his private time with Blakeley.  Then Brittney shows up.  As she sits down with Ben, and tells him that she’s not staying and why, it makes Ben take a step backwards.  Meanwhile, Ben heads back to the rest of the women and hands out the group date rose to Rachel.

The next day, we see Ben getting ready and talking about how he is disappointed that Brittney left but did admit that he was on the fence with her and she is the one that asked for time to spend with Ben, so he feels he made the effort.  So at the end of the PI, he says he now has the chance to get to know someone else that he really wants to. 

Back at the hotel, the date card arrives and it is Rachel that grabs the card and says that the card is for Lindzi.  “Your first impression was a lasting one.  Let me show you San Francisco at night”.  Immediately the camera pans to Courtney and she is biting her lip, yet once again. 

Meanwhile, Ben and Lindzi meet up and head out on their date.  As they leave the hotel, they hop aboard the street car.  As they head off through the streets of San, they stop and grab an icecream cone.  As Ben states, since he wants to live in San for the rest of his life, he really wants to find someone that will enjoy it as much as he does, especially if that person is someone that he could see a future with.  At their next stop, they pull up in front of the San City Hall.  When they go inside, the lights turn on and someone starts playing the guitar.  As Matt Nathason(forgive me if the spelling isn’t right) sings, Ben and Lindzi make an impromptu dance floor out on the floor of the city hall.   As they are dancing, we hear from Ben that he feels Lindzi is sexy and beautiful, of how he was only concentrating on having fun dancing with a beautiful woman in city hall as they share some great kisses.  As they continue to dance, Ben also states how he feels that Lindzi has potential, she is open, honest and just herself.

After they leave city hall, they walk down the street to their next location.  As they enter a store, they find themselves in a place called the Bourbon and Branch, a speakeasy in San Fran.  They follow the hallway down to bookcase at the end which Ben moves a book in the proper direction and the door opens to a whole another room on it’s own.  As they sit down for dinner, they begin chatting about relationships, etc.  As Ben states, Lindzi is making a lasting impression on him and not just a first impression, he asks her to accept the rose.  Then says that he has one last surprise of the night, after they leave the Bourbon, they enter a piano store where Ben states that music to him is a marker of memories.  As the two of them sit down to play the piano, they are both remarking in their PI’s of how well their date went, the possibilities that may come out of it, and where it could all lead to.

As the ladies head to the space where they will be having the cocktail party, Courtney is the one to make the first toast of the evening........To a good positive night, drama free, no drama.  Yea, ok Courtney, I am not going to hold my breath on that one.  After Ben arrives and makes a toast to San, he and Jennifer head off for their quality time together.  They sit there talking and Jennifer says that she dreams of Ben........hmmm, then of course he has to top that by saying that he feels Jennifer is the best kisser in the house.  Yikes!  They share a kiss, which of course Jaclyn and Lindzi see.  Next we see Shawntel arriving at the hotel and Chris Harrison there waiting for her.  Really.........Shawntel is going to crash this cocktail party???  As Harrison tells her to go get freshened up and ready for the night, we then see Ben having some quality time with Nicki.  We then hear Courtney spouting off her love for the other women..........well maybe not love but more like venom.  First she talks about how Nicki looks like an idiot, then she tears into Blakeley saying that she’s the kind of a girl that her boyfriend would cheat on you with, then she spouts off about getting rid of some girls and trimming the fat.  All I got to say is:  BEN, Courtney is more into the drama than you think, wakeup there buddy!!  I got a feeling that during the WTA, Courtney is really going to get ripped into about the comments she makes regarding the other women. 

Then during the cocktail party, we see Lindzi, Elyse, Emily and Courtney sitting there and Courtney begins to hassle Lindzi because of the faces she gives out to the other women......Really Courtney........This of course has Emily and the other girls giving their heads a shake as they can’t believe what they just heard.......LOL.  Courtney just stands up and takes off saying that she can’t sit there anymore.  After she leaves, we hear one of the women say “what just happened”........My sentiments exactly. 

Meanwhile, Courtney and Ben head out for some quality time together.  Courtney seems to have Ben wrapped around her little finger.....but is it a lust or more, guess time will tell.  Then of course, Courtney makes a remark that they’d have cute babies......sheesh!

As Ben and Elyse are having their private time, we see Shawntel entering the space where the cocktail party is being held.  As she continues to walk through the room, we see the other women asking who the heck is that, and so on.  As Shawntel carries on through the rooms to find Ben, some of the ladies are following her.  She finally finds Ben sitting outside with Elyse and when Ben finally notices her, he is completely surprised to see her.  As they sit down to have their chat, the other women are figuring it out and who she is.  The jealousy reigns really quickly, and of course, there is Courtney standing there watching and listening to them talk.  Ben takes Shawntel inside, introduces her to the other women, and then backs out of the room to spend time alone to gather his thoughts.  Meanwhile, the other women are beginning to grill Shawntel.  We are getting PI’s from Erika, Shawntel, Rachel, Monica, Courtney, Elyse, Jaclyn, and Nicki all describing their pro’s and cons of Shawntel there.  In the meantime, there is Courtney and Rachel talking and Courtney is saying how she feels that she may not take the rose from Ben if it is offered.  Chris Harrison then walks into the room and states that the cocktail party is over and the rose ceremony is up next.

After the ladies line up and ready for the ceremony, and since Emily, Rachel, and Lindzi already have their roses from the dates that week, Ben hands out the remaining roses to: Courtney, Kacie B, Elyse, Jamie, Jennifer, Casey, Blakeley, Monica, Nicki, Samantha.  Then after Chris makes his customary one rose remaining speech, we see Jaclyn loosing it, Erika starting to feel crappy and she drops to the floor.  As Ben and the crew try to revive Erika, we get PI’s from some of the women, and of course there is Courtney plugging in her 2 cents as well, blaming Shawntel for all of the problems tonight.........not that Courtney didn’t help fray a few of the women’s nerves........

When we come back from the commercial break, we see all the women lined up once again and getting ready for the remainder of the ceremony.  As Ben resumes the ceremony and his speech, he remarks how its been really nice to get to know Erika, how he’s appreciated Jaclyn opening up more to him and with Shawntel, he is flattered that she’s come there to find love, but he..........can’t.........hand out the last rose to anyone.  As Erika slumps down, Jaclyn takes off crying, Shawntel heads up to Ben and they walk outside.......as they are leaving, Courtney gets her parting shot in.  When all is said and done, Ben makes his final speech of the night informing the women that they are heading off to Park City Utah for the next stage of their adventure.

The Dates and the Cattiness Begin........With a Vengeance

Tonight’s epi begins with Ben in his hometown of Sonoma waiting on the girls to arrive.  As the ladies arrive in Sonoma and Ben shows them around their “pad” for the week, we see the girls giving pi’s of how they can’t wait for the dates to begin. 

Ben is opening wine for the ladies and comes out with the first date card and it is for Kacie B.  Of course the first person to get a PI regarding Kacie’s date is Courtney.  She states that she’s bummed that Kacie got the first date cause she’s kinda annoying. 

The two of them head off in the truck and drive into Sonoma and head out for a stroll on the town.  They were in the candy shop buying some stuff when Kacie noticed a baton in the window and went back to grab it to teach Ben how to twirl a baton.  The two of them carry on down the street till they get to a cafe and stop for dinner.

Back at the house, the date card arrives:  Brittney, Rachel, Jennifer, Blakeley, Emily, Jenna, Shawn, Monica, Samantha,  Jamie, Nicki, and Jaclyn......Come play with me.

Meanwhile, Kacie and Ben are still enjoying their date together.  Ben picks up the rose and asks Kacie to accept the rose, after some nice kisses of course.  From there, they head to the movie theatre where they watch video of them as children.  Kacie’s childhood video came on first and there were a lot of laughs, then Ben’s came on and the mood changed to a more reflective Ben looking at video of him and his dad.  After looking at the video’s, they sat talking for a bit and Ben opened up a bit more to Kacie.  They shared some more kisses and a nice gentle stroll through the streets of Sonoma.

Up next, the group date...........

Ben was in the town square waiting for the women to arrive.  After the women get there and all the greetings are done, Ben informs them that they will be meeting the best playwrites of the town and putting on a play.  Ben takes the ladies to the stage where they meet up with the playrites....children of Sonoma that wrote a play for Ben’s ladies to partake in.  As the kids bring up the women to the stage, they ask them to act certain parts.  First up is Jennifer that is asked to act like a weasel....so she scrunches up her nose and squeaky voice to act the part, then up was Shawn who was asked to oink like a pig.  The next ladies up were Samantha, Jaclyn, Nicki, Monica, Rachel, and Brittney.  Then came Blakeley, the kids asked her to jog in slow motion and everyone were getting their laughs on, then one little girl was interviewed, and she said “the girl with the, the(hands motioning to the chest area), the tight shirt, I didn’t like her much”.  I cracked up laughing at the kid trying to get her point across without being mean about it.

Back at the house the ladies are talking about who will get the last individual date.  Lindzi is talking about how she got the first impression rose and had a great time with Ben, then we get a PI from Courtney saying how Ben gave the first impression rose to the one person Courtney had the worst first impression of.  Then we see Lindzi and Courtney talking, and Courtney states: did he give you the rose because of the time you had with him or just because you rode in on a horse.  You could see Lindzi deflate so quick because of that comment.  Then of course the conversation switched to being all about Courtney, and how she says that there is something between Ben and her and it’s undeniable.  Courtney kinda smirks and asks Lindzi if she felt the same way.  Then in a PI, we see Courtney again talking about Lindzi saying that she thinks Lindzi got a little wind beneath her wings by getting the rose, but Courtney thinks the horse got the impression rose.  Good grief, is this chick for real?  We get a PI from Erika too saying that there is something a little off about Courtney.

Meanwhile at the town square, the scripts are handed out and it is costume and rehearsal time.  The wizard is Jenna, Jaclyn gets the princess, Emily gets the hippy outfit, Jennifer the weasel outfit, Blakeley the gingerbread out fit, Monica got the dragon, and Samantha got either the pig or the bunny......LOL.  As they are all outside getting ready for the show, the whole town is showing up.  The crew put on a successful play and all played their parts great, lots of laughs and the watchers there seemed to really enjoy it.

After the town play was done, Ben and the girls went back to the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn for the night portion of their date.  After the champagne was poured, Ben, Emily and Rachel headed off for a chat.  When Ben and the girls come back, Blakeley is the next one to get some quality time. 

Back at the house, the last date card arrives......Kacie runs out to get it.  As Kacie is coming back with the date card, we get a PI from Courtney and how she could really use the shot in the arm getting the date, she’s had good interactions with Ben, and she’s really competitive and usually wins.  Kacie reads out the card:  Courtney, let’s spin the bottle.....Ben.  You’d think she’d be happy with knowing that she got the last date versus rubbing it into everyone in the room.........not so fast.  After Kacie read out the card, Courtney asks her how that tasted coming out of her mouth?  And when Kacie said what, Courtney gladly repeated it, which of course shocked everyone there.  Then the gloating began in earnest.......  In a PI, Erika states that Courtney is trying to deflate all the women that didn’t get a date that week, and when Erika thought she was a real person, well she’s not.  Wow, is Courtney for real??

Meanwhile, Ben and the ladies are having a good ole pool party back at the resort.  After they have some chicken fights in the pool, Jennifer takes Ben aside for some quality time.  Ben and Jennifer share some kisses before their quality time ends.  Then of course Blakeley steals Ben aside for some more quality time, the second time that date.  At the end of the night, Ben hands out the rose to Blakeley and of course this starts another firestorm of jealousy.  After Ben leaves and Blakeley comes out of the hot tub, a lot of the girls head upstairs and away from Blakeley.......LOL

The last one on one date went to Courtney.  Ben heads over to the house to pick up Courtney for the day.  We get a PI from Kacie at this time remarking that just because you go out on the date, don’t mean you are coming home.....then she goes on to say that Courtney is not a good person.  I guess you can’t blame Kacie for the “sour grapes” comment because of how Courtney treated her the night before when the date card was read out.  After picking up Courtney, Ben and her are driving out through the vineyards and towards the redwoods forrest.  Ben states in a PI of how he knows that Courtney is from LA and use to big towns, and he wants to know how Courtney would handle the quiet of the smaller town life.  What was really funny, is when Ben was trying to get Scotch to howl in the woods, the poor wee dog was just glaring at Courtney the whole time as to say who in the heck are you........priceless.  As they head down to the water and lay out a blanket and some wine, they have a chat about what they are wanting in life and where they are now.  In a PI, Ben states how Courtney is the full package, an immediate connection with, almost too good to be true......hmmmm, wonder what that means, could it be and things will change down the road when he finds out how she’s been treating the other women in the house??  Guess time will tell.  As they share a few kisses, Scotch the dog begins to whine as if to say, that’s enough.  Too cute!

As they head off for the night portion of their date, in a PI, Ben comes up with the comment once again about Courtney being too good to be true.........hmmm, sounds like he really needs to figure that one out.  As they sit down for dinner, they do some more talking about where they are, where they came from and then Ben hands out the rose to Courtney.  At the end of their date, we get a PI from Courtney bragging how she got the rose.......good grief!

On the cocktail party/rose ceremony night, we get a PI from Courtney at the beginning where she states that there is a lot of tension in the house, but she’s got the rose so she’ll sit back and wait till the others shoot themselves in the foot.  Meanwhile, Ben arrives and begins taking the women that didn’t get a date this week out for some one on one time before the rose ceremony.  Lindzi is the first one to be asked.  When they head outside for their convo, they find themselves with on a bench with pillows around and Ben began saying how Lindzi didn’t get a date this week cause he thought she made a really, really good first impression on him and then they started talking about Lindzi growing up on a farm.  How she drives a tractor, a truck, and a few other things, which prompts Ben to realize that there is some country in her.  They had a great PT time together.  Then Ben grabs Samantha for their time together.  They were just getting started on their conversation, when of course Blakeley shows up and steals Ben away.  It was so funny, every time Ben finished his quality time with one of the women, Blakeley had to rush in, hold his hand and “claim him” again for herself......really?  Ben then takes out Jenna for some quiet time and she immediately grabs the blanket and places it on the ground, and drops it on the candle......after rescuing the blanket, they sit down for a strained conversation.  There is obviously nothing between them when Jaclyn arrives for her quality time.  After Jenna heads inside, she begins to have her second or third meltdown of the show, sheesh, with all her meltdowns, it’s really hard to keep track of.  Then everyone starts talking about Blakeley in front of and behind her back that she too is heading for the back corner to sit down and cry.  Meanwhile, Jamie is outside having her private time with Ben, and complaining about the drama, then Ben finds the same answer with Brittney.  Ben decides to head off and find Blakeley to figure it all out.  Then as Ben heads back out to the living room, he goes by a bedroom to find Jenna crying in bed......Poor Ben.  Thank goodness, Harrison comes into the room and rescues Ben before all hell breaks loose.

Up Next.................Rose Ceremony

After all the girls line up, Ben comes into the room and makes his customary speech and starts to hand out the roses to: Jennifer, Emily, Elyse, Jaclyn, Erika, Rachel, Lindzi, Nicki, Casey, Samantha, Monica, Jamie, and Brittney

Well, that’s all for tonight.  Next week they are off to San Francisco for two more individual dates and a group date skiing through the streets of San Francisco.

Ben Flajnik Premiere Episode

Well, the drama fest began tonight in earnest.  At first, we see Ben where last season ended and him walking away from Ashley when she refused his proposal.  We see how he has “picked up his life” in San Francisco and is ready to get back to starting the game all over again.  We see Ben at the winery, and how a “glimpse” into his world might contain.

We are “treated” to some preview video’s of the women that are there to vie for a position in Ben’s heart.  First up in the preview videos is Lindzi, followed by: Amber T, Kacie, Courtney, Jamie, Lyndsie J, Jenna, Shawn, and Nicki. 

Next up, we see Ben getting ready for his night, and oh what a drama filled night he had.  When Ben pulls up to the house, Chris Harrison is there waiting for him and the two head inside for the customary chat before the night begins.  They of course chatted about last season, how it ended, what changed in Ben through the season and what he is looking for this season.  Then Ben enlightened “everyone” by saying that hummingbirds seem to be a sign for him as the family feels that hummingbirds are a sign from Ben’s dad, as he loved them so.  I will try to keep this in mind as the show goes on, maybe as it did for Chris Lambton(rainbows) come back into the season later on.  After their chat, Ben was sent outside for the first of the limo’s to arrive.

Rachel – nice first impressions, Ben watched her walk into the house

Erika – pretty basic

Amber B – the baconator, as her friends call her.  A spunky Canadian

Elyse – a very basic meeting, hugs exchanged

Jenna – no connection between them, misquoted Ben’s statement from last season

Courtney – called Ben a “cutie pie”.  Ben called her a pretty girl and watched her walk in

Emily – the epidemiologist, sanitized Ben and then exchanged the first kiss of the night

Samantha – Miss Palisades complete with sash, hugs but no real connection?

Casey S. – hugs but nothing special

Amber T. – friendly, hugs, he watched her walk away, then she made the loop and came back

Holly – wearing a big hat, from Kentucky, hugs

Jamie – came up hugging Ben, then a cute friendly exchange

========  at this point, Ben comments that he’s loving the brunettes==========

Shira – walks up, gives Ben a hug and claims she knows everything about wine...not so much

Blakely – friendly, hugs, uneventful.......at least during the greeting

Cheryl – Brittney’s granny, talking about Brittney

Brittney – gives Ben a hug and then Ben watches both walk inside claiming he loves grammas

Nicki – big friendly hugs, Ben watches her walk in

Dianna – nice hugs, silence between them

Jennifer – gave Ben the numbers.....Miles travelled, arrests, dresses tried on, times in love

Lyndsie – wrote a poem.....hmmm

Anna – never said a word, just walked on past, a bold move claims Ben

Monica – said that she misses her dog

Jaclyn – nothing major

Shawn – hugs and basic greeting, slug on the arm on the way by

Kacie B. – called him Benjamin, made a deal not to sugar cote things

Lindzi – rides up on a horse, Ben dismounts her from the horse, great meeting, Ben’s comment:  Saved the best for last.....

All the ladies are inside now chatting it up and we get some interviews when the ladies are talking about the girl that rode in on the horse.  Some of them are classy comments, but then there’s Courtney, when she says screw you and the horse you rode in on........yup, classy.  Harrison meets up with Ben on the outside and reminds him of the first impression rose that will be brought in through the night.  Ben enters the house, makes his customary speech and of course, the drama begins in earnest.

Ben gets a chance to have a really good one on one time with Rachel, followed by: Nicki, and Lindzi.  During Lindzi’s conversation, they had a great, open chat with great eye contact.  Ben admitted during Nicki’s chat how he loved her energy.

Meanwhile, gramma and the ladies are getting along.  Ben comes back inside and sits between gramma and Brittney for a little two on one time.  After a little chat with granny and Brittney, Ben walks granny out to the car.  Ben goes back to Britt and they are able to have a chat on their own.

Holly and Samantha are sitting there when Ben joins them, Ben and Holly are playing around with her hat when Ben tries it on, pretty goofy, but one of the few laughs of the night.  Then Shawn takes Ben outside for a little one on one time with a soccer ball.  Blakely talked about tattoos, Elyse made him do pushups, Kacie got him in on the dance party, Dianna blindfolded him and fed him candy, Emily took him out for a gangsta poem, Courtney took him out for some 1 on 1 time.  With Emily, he commented on the poem stating she had attitude.  After the 1 on 1 time with Courtney, she states how she is better than anyone else.......yup, okay, here we go.  Then starts the drama outside between Jenna and Monica.  Then we get Monica and Blakely.....What?  The two of them, quiet time on the couch, are you serious?  I thought they were there for Ben, but okay.........

Meanwhile, Ben and Jamie have their quiet time and as Jamie says that there is already conflict, we are brought back inside where Jenna is complaining to Rachel.  Poor girl, she got herself caught in the middle of this drama of Jenna and Monica, sheesh!  Rachel offers to be the negotiator here, but come on, this kind of drama already??  While Jenna and Monica are talking, Jenna comes out with the one liner “maybe we could share a tampon sometime”, really, she just went there?  Then Jenna runs to poor Kacie B and gets her in the middle of it all........yikes!  Then of course Ben arrives and the tears go away.  LOL.  Then Jenna runs to the bathroom and has a freakout session.

Ben comes back to the room, grabs the first impression rose and takes Lindzi outside to hand the rose out to her.  They head outside somewhere private and Ben tells her that the rose isn’t because of how she came to the party, but because of the conversations that they had, she seems real, made him laugh and wants her to stick around.  After the rose has been handed out, Harrison comes in to retrieve Ben and to inform the ladies that the rose ceremony is going to start soon.

After everyone lines up for the ceremony, Jenna makes a last minute entrance(drama again) and Ben arrives to make the customary speech and to hand out the roses to:  Jamie, Rachel, Blakely, Emily, Kacie B, Casey S, Brittney, Erika, Shawn, Nicki, Jennifer, Elyse, Samantha, Courtney, Jaclyn, Monica, and Jenna.