by Amy K. Bredemeyer
Sunday:
Bridalplasty (S01E04, S01E05, S01E06): Why is Alexandra always wearing shirts that show her midriff?? Alexandra is trying to form an alliance with everyone who isn't in Jenessa's group. Kristen's boobs are much bigger, but they don't look symmetrical, LoL. Her breasts are gurgling. Internal splints in the nose looked gross. She said it was really painful to have the splints and cast removed. She didn't get to see her nose before it got taped again and discharged. Everyone is looking at Kristen's boobs, and Janessa is showing hers to people, too. Allyson is a diabetic. Hansen's Cakes is the next location. Everyone tries two different cakes, one is low-quality and one is Hansen's. Jenessa wants buttercream. The girls each received a tiny cake to put in their closets. The girls were all seated at a table with dividers so they couldn't see anyone else. Kristen was on medical leave and didn't need to participate. 5 rounds - each course has 2 items - one high-quality and one low-quality. Pick the high quality item. Cheyenne looks worried. Allyson tucked her napkin into her shirt like a bib, LoL. First course is champagne... $3 bottle versus $400 bottle. Jenessa thinks she's classier than some of the other girls. The white is the right choice, Jenessa, Dominique, Cheyenne, Alexandra got it right. Pate fois gras versus liverwurst is round 2. Cheyenne is upset because she can't really smell and she's at a disadvantage. Cheyenne didn't seem clear on how many senses a person has, LoL. For this round, Jenessa, Lisa Marie, Dominique, Cheyenne, and Alexandra all got this one right. Round 3 is wine - Port from France, $350/bottle or jug wine $4/bottle with some dirt in it. Lisa Marie, Melissa, Allyson, Cheyenne, Alexandra, and Cheyenne all get it right - which means Jenessa got it wrong, and Netty got it wrong (which keeps her at 0). Lisa Marie downed the good wine, LoL. Round 4 is Alaskan King Cra, the other is imitation krab. Allyson, Jenessa, Cheyenne, Alexandra, and Dominique get it correct (Netty still at 0). Course 5 is 100% Kobe beef versus discount chuck - which burger is the best? Netty gets this one right, along with Melissa, Allyson, Jenessa, Alexandra, and Dominique. Alexandra and Dominique are tied for first - 5 pieces of cake for the tie-breaker... Hansen's, Store-bought, homemade, child-made, and stale cake are the categories... match each cake with the correct label. All are chocolate. Jenessa wants Dominique to lose so she can vote, LoL. Both struggle, Alexandra finished first but is incorrect. Dominique gets it right on her first try. Jenessa is pissed that Dominique won it, thinking Dominique should have thrown it. Lisa Marie, Melissa, and Netty are the bottom brides, which sucks since two are in the same alliance, LoL. Alexandra and Kristen think Melissa should be out. Alexandra is voting for Netty, Kristen for Lisa Marie. Jenessa has taken to whispering, LoL. Dominique is getting her nose done. Narrowing tip, broken bone, lots of blood, splints, more blood. Lisa Marie goes to talk to Kristen, and she tells LM that they want her and Netty. Kristen thinks LM has been brainwashed by "the alliance" hahaha. Jenessa is lobbying HARD for Melissa to Kristen, but Kristen doesn't buy it. The Alliance comes to see Dominique, and Kristen states aloud that her vote has been confirmed. Jenessa tells Melissa she has to get to know the others, or they're not gonna get why she wants to be there. Melissa connected with Alex, and thinks that she's got that vote, but I think Alex wants Melissa out, regardless. Alex did tell her that now that she's opened up, she feels closer, but I don't think that's gonna do it, LoL. Jenessa tells Alex that if it came to Melissa and Alex, she'd vote for Alex... but I don't trust her for a second. To me, that proves she's a double-crosser on top of everything else, LoL. Alex is thinking of joining forces with Jenessa!!! ahhhhh!!! She TRUSTS that slimeball!! Here we go... Jenessa goes first and really patronizes Melissa, voting for her. Kristen goes with Lisa Marie. Cheyenne goes with Netty (who is rocking the straight hair tonight). Allyson goes Lisa Marie, officially saving her. Alexandra plays honestly and sits with Netty, sending Melissa home. She keeps a smile on her face and talks about going home to see her man. Previews show Jenessa trying to mess with Cheyenne and Kristen, and is totally trying to get Alexandra taken out.
Dominique is really swollen. Kristen gets released from the recovery room. She thinks people will be against her because she's gotten a surgery. Dr. Sadie Allison is there, who is a "pleasure coach." Everyone has to say what they're the worst at in bed. Dominique says longevity. Jenessa says redundancy. Then they say what they're rock stars at. Kristen says blow jobs. Allyson says flexibility. Cheyenne wants to stay quiet about her intimacy, and to Netty that means she's a closet freak, LoL. Allyson is excited since she didn't think there would be a honeymoon in her future at all, except maybe a local motel. There are 7 girls. Dominique is on medical leave. They need to be in two groups of 3 and one person by themselves. They decide to draw a name for the odd-person, and it's Lisa Marie. Jenessa says Kristen and Cheyenne should be on opposite teams because they're both good competitors. Jenessa gets with Cheyenne. Netty gets with Kristen. Alex joins Kristen and Netty. Allyson joins Cheyenne and Jenessa. Lisa Marie can't be a top bride, but she also gets to decide who gets to be top bride from the winning team. The challenge is to have one communicator and two handlers. Verbally describe the image to the handlers to get it accurate. 8 different positions, first to get 7 of them. Kristen and Cheyenne are the communicators to avoid injury. #1 Sporting of a Sparrow. #2 Like a Lotus. #3 The Mare. #4 Pair of Tongs. #5 Fixing of the Nail. #6 The Crab. #7 Splitting of a Bamboo. Team Kristen gets an early lead. But by #6, it's about even. Cheyenne's team wins in the end. Each of those three girls gets to plead a case for Lisa Marie to pick them. Allyson claims money woes. Cheyenne wants veneers re-done, but she says she'd rather LM pick another of the girls. Jenessa talks about her nose, but then suggests Allyson. Jenessa thinks this "good deed" will make her have a better reputation in the house. LM picks Allyson, and she's happy. Jenessa immediately starts playing defense. Alex thinks it's good that Jenessa and Kristen's fight will work in her own advantage, LoL. Allyson gets her arms lipsuctioned, and also gets her cheeks and chin done, too, for some reason. OMG they went inside her mouth to get out cheek fat! Kristen "goes out on a limb" to apologize to Jenessa. Jenessa plays anti-Alex at this point. Jenessa makes Kristen believe that Alex is the true evil one. LM keeps her mouth shut, but she could've said anything else. Cheyenne packed up her stuff and moved to another room. Alex tries to guilt Kristen into telling her the scoop, but it doesn't work. Jenessa tells Alex that she and Dominique are voting for her. Kristen is forced to trust Jenessa, too. Netty really sat around and was quiet and and figured that she'd be fine. I liked Kristen's dress - white with black ruffles - (and matching headband!!) during the RSVP ceremony. Cheyenne says that Alex stepped on her, says she and Kristen will always be friends, and sits with Netty. Kristen is dumbfounded. Lisa Marie says Kristen is emotional and ends up sitting with Netty, too. Kristen feels out of the loop. Dominique, whose vote was promised to Alex, sits with Netty. This means it comes down to Jenessa, who calls Kristen a strong competitor and says she's Alex's MENTOR! She says she manipulated Alex, and sits with Kristen! Allyson thought that the elimination was ruthless. Alex has nothing to say to anyone, and she leaves without getting any surgeries. Jenessa says that Kristen is next on her list, haha.
Allyson sees her arms (tho still very swollen). Dominique finally sees her new nose. She has to wear tape for another week. A gigantic flower arrangement arrives. The girls take off for LA Premier Flowers on Rodeo Drive. Kevin is a celebrity floral designer, and wore REALLY snug pants. He talks about different flowers and arrangements. The girls all get mini-bouquets. "Brutus needs to become Olive Oyl" was an odd phrase by Lisa Marie. Giuliana Rancic is at the house, and although I didn't know who she was, the girls at the house seemed excited. They get 30 minutes to design and construct a perfect bridal bouquet. They get tons of options. Appearance, personal style, and durability are the categories for judging. Allyson has a bye. There will be one top bride and two bottom brides. Kristen wants big, feathers, and sparkly. Dominique goes for bling, sprakle, and purple hydrangea. At ten minutes left, Netty and Lisa Marie look furthest behind. Netty is frustrated that Lisa Marie won't leave her alone. Judging time... Netty is first, and she says she loves hers. "Too many flowers, bling, feathers... a hot mess... too much of everything" and she gets a 5. Cheyenne is next, she gets complimented on the shape, but it's childish. She gets a 7. Dominique's is too big and too "Dolly Parton-country" and cheap" and she gets a 6. Lisa Marie's is a "disaster, dead flowers, hideous" and she gets a 2. Kristen is next. "The feathers are too much and in the wrong place" and she gets an 8, surprisingly! Jenessa's... Giuliana likes it the best out of all of them. Kevin says it's perfect, and gives her a 9. I was kinda bored that yet another person got a nose job. This puts Lisa Marie and Netty in the bottom... and they've both been in the bottom before. Neither are threats, so I didn't anticipate a lot of drama. Allyson has LM's back. Dominique asks Lisa Marie straight-up what she feels, and LM is kinda bland. Once LM realizes she doesn't have Dominique's vote for sure, she decides to start going after votes on her own. Jenessa didn't even use the wheelchair, LoL. Jenessa almost immediately asks Allyson who she's voting for. Allyson doesn't want to tell her, but ends up saying Lisa Marie. Jenessa tries to play the fact that she can't vote, but in reality she gets the deciding vote in a tie, so you can't trust her regardless, LoL. LM plays the acne card from 5th and 6th grade... I don't think it got her anywhere, except maybe with Dominique, who wants counsel from Jenessa. I wonder how many outfits they needed to bring to do this show! LoL!! Netty believes that she's "more worthy" of the wedding than Lisa Marie. Allyson goes Lisa Marie, as expected. Cheyenne goes with Netty, claiming that she wanted to vote for the hardest worker. Kristen goes with Netty, and says to the camera that she knew all along who she'd vote for. Dominique says that LM doesn't want it bad enough, yet sits with her (saying that she sticks with those who stick with her). Jenessa is shocked about Dominique's words right up until she sits with LM. Jenessa sat with Lisa Marie. Netty is upset because Lisa Marie is the only person she could lose to without pride. Personally, I'm really getting intrigued with who is going to pull it out in the end!
The Simpsons (S22Exx): Ep #10 next week!
Family Guy (S09Exx): Ep #08 next week!
Kate Plus Eight (S02Exx): not sure when episode #2 is.
Monday:
Cake Boss: Next Great Baker (S01E03, S01E04, S01E05): The Christmas episode was cool. They're at Hudson County Community College. Relay-race style baker's challenge - Buddy does it all in 5 minutes!! Trim, fill, stack cakes. Ice in buttercream, place on board. Pipe decorative details. Make roses and write "Merry Christmas." Teams are boys vs. girls. Jay vs. Pam: Pam was cocky about being faster than Buddy. Corina vs. Brian: Brian was a MESS! He doesn't know the bag method. Corina messed up the cake when moving it. Brian's cake falls apart so that team starts over. So then Brian cuts. Then Jay, then Dana. Greggy never gets to go since the other team already finished. The girls don't get anything for winning. The elimination challenge - Christmas-themed cakes for the dean of the community college. Two rules: it has to be 3 feet high, and it has got to be CHRISTMAS. They get 11 hours over two days. Megan and Corina design. Jay designs a crazy tree idea. Brian wants something more traditional. Megan makes bricks. Corina does the presents, candy canes. Pam builds the base. Dana does some cool snowflakes. Brian does the structure. wood vs. foam argument.... Brian vs. Jay. Joanna stacks. It's looking rough, and the boys think that the other cake will fall. Pam and Corina are butting heads. Dana does pulled sugar with Brian's lights. 5:59:50 - stop the clock. Cooking challenge! Each team must cook a Sunday Italian dinner, and it has to be done with the cake in time for the party... for 50 people! George from Hunt's comes with ingredients and is a guest judge. Corina gets on dinner and makes a bolognese sauce. Dana goes for the dinner as well, since he's a professional chef. He does chicken primavera, torn lasagna, and shrimp fra diavolo. Megan is worried about Pam's work taking so long. The boy's cake is looking great! Dana tries to blow sugar balls. Jay loves it. Girls have some chimney trim that starts falling. The girls' cake starts sliding badly. Dana helps the girls move the cake and they make it just in time. Megan makes a good point that the boys' cake looks more "Winter Wonderland" than Christmas. People love Dana's recipes - he cooked on the fly! "3 nice, distinct flavors" for Dana; "good" for Corina. The girls get great marks for the color scheme but low marks for the structure. The boys get great on technique and lights, but low marks because the gree isn't green. The girls' dinner was a little dry, needed more tomatoes. The girls' cake was a great concept, but poor finish. The boys' food tasted like it was done by a chef! The boys' cake had great ornaments and lights, not a great color scheme. Greggy chose it, and mentions "winter wonderland" and Buddy says nothing "popped." The sugar work shows great range. Overall, the boys won. Dana was the strongest of the team. Guys all won some Hunts tomatoes and $10,000 to split, which Buddy offers just to Dana, but Dana wants to share it with the team. Pam says Corina tried to make the others look bad. Corina says she focused on the project. She said Pam talks trash behind others' backs. Pam says she was too affected by drama. Joanna thought cardboard was enough and it wasn't. She cries, says she doesn't want to quit. Megan says Joanna was weakest, Corina says Pam. Pam says Joana. Joana goes home. She just kept saying "I've never built a cake of this size, this was good for a first time."
The Special Effects episode was okay, too. Carlo's goes through thousands of eggs a day! The baker's challenge is speed & accuracy. First, crack 2 dozen eggs. Takes even the fastest person 2 and a half minutes. Second, roll out a piecrust. Pam and Corina finished first around the 6:50 mark. Megan and Brian were last (Brian had never rolled out a pie crust before, so it tore 3 times, LoL). Third, make a modeling chocolate flower. Megan surprisingly finishes first, then Corina, then Pam. Brian was last. Winner picks teams. Megan picks Dana, Brian, and Jay. Jay is really excited about the group. Pam doesn't enjoy working with Corina. Corina is pissed she has to work with Pam again. Megan has to go to the other team! But she gets immunity. Frankie is the guest judge. The cake needs to be 3 feet tall and have special effects. The client is 45 minutes away, and they have to travel with the cake to the people who own the special effects house. Megan says she and Pam don't communicate well. Electrical engineering isn't mechanical, Pam! Grain alcohol in a tube of compressed air... push it. But the cap is leaking and Brian burns his hand badly. It blisters immediately. Brian puts gauze on it and a glove and continues. Jay, Brian, and Dana agree on their vision. Day 2: Pam says no testing, it's a 1-shot deal and they can't test their effects. Pam didn't really work with the team. She didn't communicate her work plan. The motor from the airbrush falls on Megan's foot, and her ankle is killing her. They call an ambulance. 5.5 foot high cake has a solid steel pipe. It's a TNT cake. Brian hits the wall hard when the truck braked. How did the circus cake get there first when the TNT cake left first?? Judges think the TNT cake is too firework-y, but the circus cake doesn't fit at all. Brian wears safety goggle to do the special effects. The effects don't go off. Nothing. They get called the 3 stooges. They have no idea what happened. On the circus cake, everyone wears goggles. The smoke goes off on one side. Nothing else goes off. BOTH teams FAILED. The circus cake loses worse and gets blown up. Dana called it "the girls' cake" even tho Greggy is on that team, LoL. Buddy gets the other cake blown up, too. He says there's no winner so anyone can go home. Megan has a deep bone bruise, but she can work the next day. The TNT cake was nicely done, and had a good design. The circus cake was shoddy, not themed appropriately. Pam was in charge of mounting the effects, and has no idea what went wrong. Brian takes responsibility for the pyrotechnics for the other cake. Dana and Jay are safe. Everyone says Pam isn't a team player. Palm says they have their opinions and that she put forth an effort. Megan is safe, then Corina, then Greggy. It's down to Pam and Brian. Pam is sent home because Buddy doesn't know if she's a team player. Brian gets ONE more chance, and he's told that he can't keep promising and not deliver. He needs to focus on cakes now, not effects. Pam says it's amazing that she made it this far and that she's going to prove herself to the world.
We're halfway through the competition! Today's Baker's Challenge is speed, accuracy, and creativity. Fondant layers from scratch. A layer cake covered in buttercream, covered in fondant, make a bow and some other decorations. Buddy's example is in pink, for Greggy, LoL. The group gets 30 minutes to do it. The cakes are already filled and stacked, they start at the buttercream/dirty-ice layer. Dana goes the basket-weave all over. 7 minutes to go, Jay is goes for draping, but he ends up modifying his plan. Brian finishes first. Dana almost runs out of time to finish his basket weave. Megan's bow was bad, and could have used more color, but she had a nice rope detail. The worst was Dana's, since the basket weave in the same color as the rest of the cake was odd. The bow wasn't ideal. Corina had a great splash of different color, and the little balls around the bottom were good. The best cake was Jay, it had great balance and color. Corina and Jay pick teams for the next challenge, and Jay chooses first. He picks Megan (she's smart) and Greggy. Corina chooses Dana and gets Brian. I thought it was interesting that the two worst cake people today got picked first, haha. Buddy's sister Grace and his wife Lisa are the guest judges today. Today's client is Buddy's son, who turns six years old the next day. The theme is outer space - stars, planets, aliens, big imagination. The kid likes blue, chocolate and vanilla, sweet frosting, and that's it for info. They get 11 hours over two days. Brian's hand is still bandaged, but Megan seems okay. Brian thinks "rocket ship." Moon is the base, and will be texturized. Rocket comes out, and the planets will be around it. We get some background on Brian's past. The other team wants minimal planets. Moon base, big sun, Mars, the Earth, and a UFO. Corina is nervous about Brian's effects ideas. Greggy had never done a sphere out of cereal treats before. Dana forgot to add in high-ratio-shortening, but he realized it just after the batter went into the oven, so he adds it in. Brian cuts himself when he's trimming the rocket. Greggy uses the words "fabu" and "totes." Greggy has been designing cakes for ten years. He wants an urban cake boutique. Brian uses royal icing with his hands, and it looks really textured. Jay LOVES Brian's moon. Greggy's Earth is cracking. Mars cracked a little. I don't understand why Mars is closer to the Earth than the Sun. The string isn't holding the other team's planets very well. Dana made a funny reference to treating the string as delicately as you'd treat a woman. They go to Plan B: skewers instead of hanging. The other team takes off Earth, Greggy panics, Jay keeps it together, and they add on a different piece. Corina is worried that Brian's effects won't work. The astronaut is spinning correctly. Greggy's team has 4 minutes left to roll another piece of fondant since one of the layers cracked again, because of shortening. At one minute, Greggy has to airbrush still! Dana makes a cute comment about championships being won in seconds. Buddy Jr. runs in to look at the cakes. Taste for Megan's team: vanilla should be lighter. Decoration: plus for the sun and the spinning, likes the spaceship. Taste for Corina's team: horrible chocolate (shortening problem possible problem). Decoration: likes the planets, the astronaut spinning on top. Overall, awesome design for Megan's cake, but the upper pieces were non-descript. Overall, Corina's cake sucked in the chocolate department, but the design was lovable, very animated. Moon texture was great. The "6" in lights was cool. Buddy gives Dana the benefit of the doubt on the chocolate cake. Corina, Dana, and Brian win and it's apparently a blow-out, though I thought it was a little closer. Buddy asks who is responsible for the cake failing... Jay blames Greggy for the Earth. Megan says Greggy for structural design. Greggy starts to get upset, and he gets sent home. Buddy says that Jay wasn't a great leader, and he'll have to be better. He tells Megan that she's going downhill. Greggy blames the cereal treats, since he knows cake better. He uses "fabu" one more time.
House, M.D. (S07Exx): no episode this week. #9 on the 17th.
How I Met Your Mother (S06E13): Lily and Marshall at the doctor's office just a week into trying was hilarious! Doing it "in the waiting room" was funny. I liked "I'm absolutely not playing laser tag" as proving Ted wants to do it less than Marshall. "Secretary beauty pageant" was funny, and I didn't catch it until the third time I watched the episode! Marshall yanking on the beard was funny. "scoot up" and "suit up" was funny. Robin's old co-host being her boss is funny. Marshall realizing that he could be the problem was done well. hahahahaha on the "I'd give my first born not to be able to have children" comment. Poor Robin, being teased continuously. Barney using laser tag to give bad news was funny, too. Marshall being haunted by others who have given sperm samples in that bathroom was funny. I love that the office calls her "Sparkles," LoL. Barney really impersonating the doctor was crazy. I think that having Marshall's dad die was ridiculous. I couldn't believe that was how they ended the episode! Overall, the countdown was strange. Some of them made a lot of sense.... some made no sense at all.
Tuesday:
Minute to Win It (S02E17 & S02E18): This is the third of the three holiday-themed episodes. It's also for $3 million with 12 challenges, for the 12 Days of Christmas. New contestants: Lindsey and Josh from Ohio. They've been dating for four years.
Game 1: Wreath Relay: sticking your heads into a wreath, alternating to get it from one end of the stage to the other. They get it in about half the allotted time.
Game 2: Holiday Hustle: Each has a yard stick attached to their waists and they need to move so that a spool of ribbon gets undone from one stick and onto the other. Lindsey moves a lot more than Josh, and they are doing great until they get near the end, when the ribbon is really tight. With three seconds to go, they finish.
Game 3: (Holiday Bonus) Holiday Kiss: Team game AGAIN! This time, using the pressure of their lips, they have to transfer an ornament from one string to another 3 times (out of 5 ornaments). The strings are about eight or ten feet apart. They have a real strategy and finish with no errors and 17 seconds to go. Their Holiday Bonus is Extra 10 Seconds.
Game 4: Face the Gingerbread Man: Put a gingerbread man on your forehead and get it into your mouth twice in sixty seconds. Josh goes for it. He gets the first one with 43 seconds to go. He drops the second at the 23-second-remaining mark, and drops the third, the fourth, the fifth, and the sixth before running out of time. He goes again. This time he gets the first one with 53 seconds to go and the second with 41 seconds to go!
Game 5: Christmas Jingle: Eleven water-filled glasses are on a table and you have to put them in order so that the first line or so of "Jingle Bells" is played when hit with spoons. Lindsey goes for it, with a method I didn't quite get. She struggles with the second half of the song. She's not even close at 10 seconds to go, and time runs out. Her mom reveals that Lindsey knows hoe to play music. Josh's brother suggests they use the extra 10 seconds at this point. They decide to use it. On her second attempt, her method made a little more sense to me. She gets it with 18 seconds to go.
*~*~*~*~*~* TIME OUT FOR A PROPOSAL *~*~*~*~*~* She says YES *~*~*~*~*
Game 6: (Holiday Bonus) Deck the Balls: Using wrapping paper rolls as straws, suck an ornament, transfer it to your partner, then hand it on a string. Do it three times. Josh pulls them from the bowl, Lindsey puts them on the string. The get it pretty freaking fast!! Holiday Bonus = Extra Life! Just what they wanted, LoL.
Game 7: Caddy Stack: Stack 3 golf balls for 3 seconds. Josh goes for it, and is shaking a little. He gets the first one on in ten seconds, and the second is done in another 5!
Game 8 (Holiday Bonus) Lollipop: This is that one where you stand a straw on its end, pick up a stack of three nuts and a ball, then get the ball to stay on the top while you slide down the nuts to the bottom of the straw. You have five chances to get three. Josh goes for it, is still kinda shaky, and messes them all up. Josh went again. He got the first one. He messed up the second one. By that point he had 10 seconds left, so he didn't make it.
Chelsea and Alia are friends who are bartenders. Chelsea is in blue, Alia is in pink. Chelsea wants to help her parents' business, Alia wants to move her mom across the country to live near her. We're back to 10 challenges for $1,000,000. Phone call with Alia's mom. And then she shows up later. At one point they actually discuss whether they want to keep going, and ultimately decide that they'd rather regret something they did than something that they didn't do. They discuss it later, too, and their families convince them to keep going.
Game 1: Baby Rattle: Two 2-liter bottles are taped together at the mouth. gumballs fill one half and you have to shake them into the other half. You have to do this twice, one in each hand, simultaneously. Alia finished with 33 seconds to go.
Game 2: Chocolate Unicorn: Stack 6 chocolate snackcakes on your forehead (while standing) so that they stay for three seconds. They both have to do it. Alia is fine, Chelsea messes up and runs out of time. Attempt #2... this time they finish with 8 seconds to go.
Game 3: A Bit Dicey: Stack 6 dice on a popsicle stick that you hold in your mouth. They must stay for 3 seconds. Chelsea goes for it. She gets it with 32 seconds to spare. She really looked like an expert when she was doing it, too!
Game 4: On the Rebound: Team game. One bounces a ping-pong ball at a clipboard that's attached to the other person's waist, and it has to bounce into a wastebasket. Do it three times. Alia is the bouncer, Chelsea is the clipboard. The first one goes quickly, the second does, too. The third is done with 39 seconds to spare.
Game 5: On the Hook: hold a chopstick in your mouth, use a paper clip that's tied on to pick up four keys that are at the edge of a table. Don't drop any of them, and there are no extras. Alia goes for it. She can start with the chopstick in her mouth. She gets the first one quickly, the second one goes quickly, too, and she has the third with 36 seconds to spare. The fourth one is up with 20 seconds to spare!
Game 6: Iron Board Man: Team Game. Maneuver an ironing board to get a marble into one of three specific holes, and hold it there for three seconds. Unlimited tries. There are holes all over the board that try to catch the marble, too. They get it with 21 seconds to spare, only knocking two or three off the board before that.
Game 7: Cyclone: Spin marbles within upside-down 2-liter bottles on top of glasses. Get all three spinning simultaneously for three seconds. Chelsea goes for it. She makes it look easy and finished with 38 seconds to spare.
Game 8: Horseplay: blow a ping-pong ball out of one horseshoe and across the tilted board into another. Do it three times, one each into three different horseshoes. They both look pretty nervous, and Alia goes for it. Her eyes are watering, she's a little out of breath and she says her blood pressure is up, LoL. The first blows off the table nearly immediately, the second blows off the table close to the end, the third goes into the middle horseshoe. The fourth falls, the fifth runs out of time. She's upset. She's trying to psych herself up to try again. She's shaking hard, gets a hug from her mom, and goes for it. First ball off the board near the horseshoe. Second ball in the middle one. Third ball in the bottom one. Fourth ball off the board. Fifth ball falls into the middle one. They lose and go home with $50,000.
16 and Pregnant (S02E20, S02E21, S02E22, S02E23): Ashley, Mickenny, Texas (outside Dallas), lives with her mom and her little sister. She wants to be a photojournalist and go to school in New York. Her mom had her at 19. She's about to start her senior year. August at 19 weeks: it's a girl due on Christmas. She's been pregnant longer than she was with the guy, LoL. Her mom was fine with an abortion or adoption, but was shocked at keeping it. haha, her babydaddy slept in class and that attracted her to him. They apparently had sex once, two months into dating. Her friends help her "laugh" about the whole situation?? She's taking summer classes at the community college. His mom kicked him out for getting her pregnant. He sleeps in a friend's car and is thinking about joining the military. She blogs about her pregnancy on "The Life of Ashley," LoL. Her social worker gave it to her straight. September at 22 weeks: starting school. She only needs 3 credits and she's taking them with the "problem kids," but she should be done before the baby is due. She wants her baby to have a stay-at-home mom, so adoption it is. She goes to a concert and talks about how it's different from before. She cried shopping for maternity clothes because she sees baby clothes. Her mom is afraid she'll back out. September at 24 weeks: she graduated. Family came from 10 hours away to celebrate. Her grandfather gave a nice toast. I feel like they're getting nothing done when the social worker comes over, LoL. A third Ashley in this episode?? Really?? Her aunt and uncle want to adopt the baby?? No wonder they're giving this one extra time. Still September: Ashley is happy about her aunt, and the babydaddy had his phone disconnected so they can't find out his thoughts. Ashley the social worker is helping Ashley figure out what she wants from the adoption. The aunt is concerned about Ashley backing out, haha. October at 29 weeks: they're working on the adoption plan, and want to use a private attorney, not through an agency. Callie Danielle will be the name... Danielle is the middle name of the aunt and of Ashley. The aunt brings up the backing-out thing again. I'm starting to think maybe Ashley's mom tried to give her up but couldn't or something, so the family thinks it'll happen again? November at 33 weeks: Ashley says there are too many questions to deal with, LoL. December at 37 weeks: she's going to be induced before Christmas - on the 16th. A counselor tells Ashley to go visit colleges to see what fits well, LoL. Ashley wants to drive the baby to the aunt, but her mom thinks 10 hours in a car is too much time with the baby. So, everyone will be at the birth now. haha, "inducement" vs. "induction." Ashley tries again to tell the babydaddy the plan. She got an epidural as soon as she felt labor pains?? And "nubaine" ? We haven't seen the little sister in a LONG time... They get Judy, another social worker (apparently the first girl was an adoption agent). Ashley wants maximum time with the baby... She couldn't tell how close she was at all... totally numb, LoL. She took the baby right away. The baby will have two birth certificates until she's 18... I didn't know that. "I didn't think she was going to be so cute." Apparently Ashley is "thinking" again. Baby is 36 hours old and Ashley doubts her decision... it's 3pm. The mom says it's okay with the aunt and uncle if she changes her mind?!?!?! She also says that she'd keep her too!! BAD MOM! Ashley doesn't go in to hand-off the baby. She comes in later. The notary comes. They sign. Ashley talks about it being so detailed, LoL. Ashley gives the baby to the aunt. The next morning she thinks she made the wrong decision. A few more days go by, and she's depressed. She bought a plane ticket and flew down to get the baby!! The aunt and uncle are upset but trying to tell Ashley she's okay. The sister went to stay with family while the baby is there. Ashley asks her mom to help her, since she has no idea what to do. tsk tsk microwaving bottles! They showed the excrement and Ashley called her mom to ask how to wipe her, hahaha. Ashley's mom asks her how she's gonna know if she can really do this. She feels she needs "a long time to decide." A few of her friends come over. Her college apps are due, and she's trying to do them at the last minute (I did that with my grad school app, LoL). 2 weeks later: she's scared to leave the baby with anybody. They look at baby furniture, but her mom tells her she needs to make a decision before they buy stuff. At a month old, Ashley knows she's not a parent, but "can't give her up." They bring Ashley the adoption agent back. Ashley is ready for adoption, but the aunt says this has gotta be for good, she can't handle the baby being taken back again. It's been a month now and the baby is going back to the aunt. The mom is driving down the baby and Ashley is staying at home with a friend. She went to tour the school in NYC.
Life After Labor episode: 1 out of 6 American girls will be a teen mom! That's higher than I thought. Kayla has an IUD now, since she couldn't remember to take the pills for the life of her before. JR is sneaking into her room at night. They've pushed back the wedding. They have trust issues. Christinna did eventually take a paternity test, but nobody wanted to pay money to send it off. Isiah didn't try to get the college to work with them on his scholarship. They have cheating issues. They weren't using birth control at all. They don't use anything now, either. 1 in 4 teen moms get pregnant again within two years. Brooke and Cody: She comes from a family with a history of teenage pregnancies. Megan and Nathan: 80% of teen dads take off. Nathan didn't show up. He lives with his grandmother now. They're engaged, but Nathan isn't sure. Felicia - babydaddy left, lost a lot of friends. is on-track with education. Markai & James: trust issues. Aubrey and Brandon are married. Still living with grandma. They were on the pull-out method (haha!), but now she has an IUD. hahahahaha, she says she would've gotten the IUD right off the bat if she knew it existed. Emily & Daniel - things have gotten better. They're engaged. Daniel lives 45 miles away, and comes by like twice a week, when he doesn't work. Just the dads onstage: apparently all these guys hung out for a couple days before this? Maybe they had a retreat or something going on? 57% of teen pregnancies end with a live birth, and only 1% of those are adoptions. Ashley is still upset about the adoption. She and her mom talked about contraception, but she never used any. The babydaddy went and dated her former best friend, LoL. The adoptive parents had a hideous bow on baby Callie.
No Easy Decision: Markai is pregnant again, two months after the finale special. Their baby was 8 months old. She finished high school, James got a job, they moved into their own place, and she's planning on college. She missed an appointment for her birth control shot and they didn't use backup. They talk about it while she does James' dreads. She didn't want to ask her mom for advice this time, so she asked her friend. She doesn't want adoption because once she feels the baby kick, she's in love. So she looks up different types of abortion and then calls for more information. She gets really emotional. She then goes to talk to her mom. Markai says that she'll always wonder "what if" in all situations. Her mom pretty much said that she'll support whatever decision, but she won't help make the decision. James and Markai have both grown up with no money, and they don't want that for their children. James wants the abortion but he says Markai has the final word. They spend a week on it and decide to go with abortion. Markai's sister watches the baby while they go for the abortion. I am kinda weirded out with what they're wearing, but whatever. 2 hours later, she's on her way home. James had to carry her up the stairs, and she goes to sleep right away. James went to work the next day. They went out to dinner the next day. She says that she was 6 weeks pregnant and she had a counselor in the room with her. She was glad that everyone was gentle. They talked about the "ball of cells." Markai wonders if there was a better decision. They talk about God not giving them anything they couldn't handle, but God gave them brains at the same time. haha, James gets condoms. 1 in 3 women in the US has an abortion during their lifetime. They bring in two more young girls who had abortions... one went and got a judicial bypass so she wouldn't have to get parental consent to get an abortion (hers was $750). The other was about to be a senior in college and had an 18-year-old sister who was pregnant. She was on the pill but it made her sick so she wasn't taking it correctly. Personally, I hadn't really thought about the situation where someone has one child but aborts the next. Maybe if you had four already you'd abort #5, but having one and then aborting #2 sounds horrible to me. Then again, I don't support teenagers having sex, either.
16 and Pregnant: Where are they Now?: Nikkole... Lyle is a year old. She and babydaddy Josh aren't together. He's in jail because he was out driving and Nikkole called the cops on him since there was a warrant out for his arrest. He writes poems and junk from jail. She's on two cheerleading teams, she's planning to go to college for nursing, she's in her senior year of high school, and she's playing around on the weekends. Her mom watches Lyle when she's not home. When Josh got out of jail, Nikkole and Lyle moved in with him. Lizzie: her baby Summer is 10 months. She wanted the perfect everything. Her babydaddy, Skyler, cheated on her, but they ultimately got married. They live with her parents. Skyler works 2 jobs and has an apprenticeship. Lizzie likes being a stay-at-home mom, but wants to work someday. She feels more like 30 than 19. She's studying to be a dental assistant, even though she did want to be a music teacher. Samantha: her daughter Jordan is 11 months now. She likes to get out and work on the weekends. She wants to teach elementary kids. Babydaddy Eric and she moved in together when the baby was 3 months old, but living with his parents didn't work and she moved back home with the baby. She and Eric are still together. She has Implanon, the stick that goes in your arm for three years. She donated $20 and got it. Lori and Corey had an open adoption for Aidan. She hasn't seen her whole episode since she isn't strong enough to relive it yet. She sees Aidan once a month. She got to pick out a puppy when she turned 18. She's going to school to be an ultrasound technician. She's starting to look for her birthmother. She's not dating anyone but she has Mirena. Valerie: Nevaeh is 14 months. Babydaddy Matt moved to town. They still have trust issues. He wanted a DNA test, it proved that the baby was his. She had been on the pill but she used it wrong. Now she's back on it and says she knows how to use it. Her parents still help with a lot of finances. She's still homeschooled for another year or so. She wants to go to college and finish in four years. Whitney: Weston is 18 months. They moved in with the Babydaddy's (also Weston) mom, but they broke up soon afterward. The baby wasn't gaining weight appropriately. Turns out he has a genetic disorder that stops the body from producing a certain protein, so he's kinda fragile. He can develop lung and liver issues fairly easily. They started giving him rice cereal milk at three months, they check his liver all the time for swelling, but the baby also has extra fluid on the brain. They see a neurologist every three months. They get speech therapy. Whitney wants to be a nurse, and she's in a program and will be an RN in another two years. They have no health insurance and have to pay for Weston's medical bills out-of-pocket. They only want one child because the disorder is genetic and the next baby could have the same problems. She's on the Nuva-ring, and they got another puppy. Nicole: Brooklyn is 10 months old. Tyler (Babydaddy) was still around. They have a pregnancy scare just a few months after Brooklyn was born, and now she's religiously on the pill, LoL. Neither Nicole nor Tyler have graduated yet, but they're still going to school. They want to get married. Ebony: Jocelyn is 18 months. Jocelyn loves pizza. They got married at the DMV for $10 when Jocelyn was 2 months old. They got a DNA test done, it showed that Josh was the father. They live in family housing on-base in Little Rock. She wants to do an apprenticeship at a tattoo parlor. He gets deployed. They say "we're married, there's no birth control." She takes a test (since he says she's moody so she must be pregnant), and it turns out that she's not pregnant, LoL.
My DVR also caught two shorts (as in not full episodes of anything in particular):
Teen Mom Baby Talk: Bentley and the pacifier is so random.
The Girls of
Teen Mom 2:
Leah from West Virginia - BabyDaddy is Corey, and they conceived twins a month after they started dating. She goes into labor 6 weeks early, but the first baby was breech so she has an emergency c-section. Aleeah and Alianna stayed in intensive care for a while. She has feelings for an ex, and she and Corey both know that they have issues. Corey doesn't want to lose the kids under any circumstance, though.
Chelsea lived with her dad in South Dakota, BabyDaddy is Adam. Aubree is the baby, born 5 weeks early but healthy.
Kailyn was the one who lived with her boyfriend, Jo, and his family in Nazareth, PA. She's the one whose mother cares more about the boyfriend. His parents try to help, but it doesn't help a ton. Her baby is Isaac.
Jenelle from North Carolina, BabyDaddy Andrew lives 4 hours away. She's got a serious attitude. Baby Jace. Jenelle was upset that she had no time for herself, and she starts partying with her friends instead of taking care of her son. She realizes she can't do it alone and asks her mom for help.
Wednesday:
Better With You (S01E11): Casey was amused that Mia made a sound when she got up, LoL. Ben didn't believe that he did. Maddie made a sound, too, haha. The mom and dad made noise even getting into bed and getting comfortable, LoL. Mia and Casey have to do their laundry at Maddie's because Casey put a brick in their dryer and it broke. The mom thinks Mia is disillusioned about wearing pre-baby clothes again. Hilarious Herman-Herman thing. Ben had Mia's jeans on, hahaha. hahaha, the old men draft is hilarious! Joel goes on the Fantasy Husband Website, and there's a dead guy ranked higher than him, hahahahaha! I love that Maddie gets excited about the mail. I wasn't thrilled that she has a framed hair from Jon Bon Jovi, LoL. The "challenge accepted" thing was too
HIMYM for me. I love that Maddie mailed herself a shoe. I liked Joel's workout jacket. interesting that Mia is in denial about needing maternity clothes. Not wanting to share her husband, even in the game, was funny. Mailing a live fish in a bowl of water?? Ben wearing maternity pants made me giggle. Maddie kicking and screaming at Ben made me laugh... until Joel picked up the mom and put her on the floor, which made me guffaw, hahaha!
Thursday:
Wipeout (S04E01): this one I missed, but it's rerunning tomorrow and I've set it to record then.
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Off season/Coming Up:
Teen Mom 2 (premieres January 11th)
Hot in Cleveland (back January 19th at 10pm for 20 episodes of season 2)
Kitchen Boss (Season 1 premieres January 24th)
Cake Boss (Season 4 back January 31st)
Mr. Sunshine (premieres Wednesday, February 9th at 9:30pm on ABC)
19 Kids and Counting (Season 6 starts February 8th)
The Secret Life of the American Teenager (still no word on this one)
Melissa & Joey (some point in the Spring)
Table for 12 (missing "summer," "busy day," "jumping in," "brace yourself," "back to school")
Futurama (Season 6 continues with episode 14 in the Spring)
South Park (season 15 starts April 27th)
Teen Mom (no idea)
