January Book Review

How amazing would that be?  I'm all for adding an eighth day solely for reading.  Is anyone else with me?  Until that actually happens, here's a look at what I read this month.

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

This was a book I really really wanted to like, but didn't.  I'd heard so much about the book but once I actually read it, I found it to be a little boring and slow moving.  Maybe it's just one of those cases where you hear so much about something that it can't live up to expectations.  I felt like it took forever to interweave the three main characters.  For a bit of the book, I felt like I was reading 3 separate stories.  Even once we saw how the characters played a part in the lives of one another, I wish we would have seen more of that interaction.  Overall, this book just didn't do it for me.

Kill the Boy Band by Goldy Moldavsky

We got sent this book at work and as soon as I read the cover for it, I knew it was something I had to read. It's about these 4 girls obsessed with a boy band (does that sound like anyone to you ;)? )  I was surprised at the language used in this book, not something I would expect from a YA novel. The book follows the four friends as they kidnap a member from a popular boyband and decide how to handle everything.  The book was actually kind of sad because I'm sure there are fangirls out there crazy enough to do what these four did.  The ending was a little sudden and there were some holes in the story.  Overall, it was an easy read, but not my favorite.

It's All Your Fault by Paul Rudnick

This was another book I picked up from book and it seems the theme for this month's books must have been teenage girls rebelling because that's what this book was about, too.  A straight-laced girl is sent to keep an eye on her wild movie star cousin for the weekend and of course trouble follows them.  This wasn't a favorite of mine, I found the book to drag out.

What books have you read this month?  I'm always up for suggestions!  Be sure to follow me on Goodreads to keep up with all my reads!

Rose Recap: The Bachelor Episode 4

The episode starts out with Chris Harrison telling the girls they're headed to Vegas.  Insert lots of squealing, frantic packing, a plane ride and this face:

After getting to Vegas, the girls walk the strip and see this sign:

Insert even more squealing and Jojo saying how romantic it is.  I'm sorry, but you're sharing that sign with 13 other girls, how romanic can that be?

Anyway, Jojo gets the first date card and it says: "You set my heart on fire." 

Cut to this awko-taco shot of the twins walking on the treadmill together.  We learn a lot about the twins this week.  They live together, they work together, they share a car, they do everything together.  More on them later, though.

Don't get me wrong, I love Jojo and think she and Ben are so cute together, but her date was pretty boring: a helicopter and dinner.  Wow, that sounds jaded, but I guess that's what watching 20+ season of the show does to you.  You aren't impressed by just a helicopter ride anymore.

The most entertaining part of the date was when the helicopter landed and knocked the champagne and table over.  Ben and Jojo actually had to hide behind the the table for cover.

During dinner, Jojo opens up about her past relationships and all but says she was cheated on.  Jojo kept it classy, I would have named the cheater on national TV for all to see, but she didn't.  She got the rose and the night ended with fireworks.

Meanwhile, Olivia still thinks she has the strongest relationship with Ben and refers to him as her husband several times throughout the episode.  At one point she goes as far to say that Ben is cheating on her.  Hello!  Have you not seen the show before?  That's the whole point, he dates 25 women at one time, but it's not considered cheating.

It's time for the group date and Lauren B., Amber, Jubilee, Lauren H., Amanda, The Twins, Rachel, Caila, Jennifer, Leah and Olivia head out.  They get to The Terry Fator and find out not only are they participating in a talent show, they're opening for Terry Fator and will be performing for 1,200 people.  Some of the talents were legit.

The twins did Irish dancing.

Jubilee played the cello while others just had a good time.  Leah jumped on a pogo stick and Amanda hula hooped, to name a few.  

Poor Lauren H. couldn't come up with anything so homegirl donned a chicken suit and told some corny jokes, because why not?  My heart feels for these girls.  I would have asked if eating was considered a talent and then loaded up food at the buffets and dug in!

Then, as if things weren't awkward enough with the girls "talents," it's time for Olivia.  This happened.

It was so awkward.  I cringed the whole time I watched.  It was like a bad car wreck, you really don't want to see but you can't look away.

This was Ben during the performance.

It was bad enough watching it from home, I can't imagine what it was like watching it live.

After Olivia's performance, she is mortified and has a panic attack.  Why she has the panic attack after the performance and not before or during is beyond me.

In the middle of her freak out, Olivia says, "I don't want to be on TV.  Why can't I just have a moment?"  Again, have you never seen the show before?!?  She also says she's breaking out in "the hives."

When it's time for the cocktail party, Caila is worried she doesn't stand out enough and steals Ben away.  They sit down and she goes in for the kill kiss and it's pretty obvious that Ben hasn't forgotten about her.

Ben, "Little Ben" and Lauren H. have some one-on-one time and it's awkwardly cute.

Olivia finally gets her alone time with Ben and starts apologizing for her talent when one of the twins interrupts them.  I don't know about you, but I've never loved the twins more than in that moment.

Olivia doesn't share that feeling and interrupts Ben when he's with the other twin.  She apologizes again and says she doesn't want Ben to feel guilty.  Ummm, I don't think he felt guilty for your lack of talent.

Lauren B. gets the group rose and the date ends.

Next up is Becca's date and she gets sent a wedding dress to wear on the date and a pink car picks her up.

How amazing is that?!?

Meanwhile, back in the house, Jubilee makes snide remarks about Becca's virginity which only makes her look bad.

While Becca may have been having flashbacks of this.  I imagine the other girls in the hotel room were more like this.

Becca pulls up to a chapel and Ben is there in a tux (be still my beating heart!!) and gets down on one knee.  He then asks Becca to marry people with him.  He surprises her by saying he's ordained and they're going to perform weddings.  Now this is a one-on-one date!

Before they start the ceremonies, Ben takes a second to stretch.

Did anyone else notice that during the first wedding during the repeat after me part, Ben said the entire view without breaking it up?  I commented on that to my friend saying I'm going to need like 3 words at a time.  Ben must have heard me because he only said a few words at a time for the bride.  #liveandlearn

During the evening portion of the date, Ben and Becca talk about their faith and how this time around is different for Becca.  She says she cares so much more than she ever did with Chris.  Ben and Becca then make vows to one another and it's super cute.  She obviously gets the rose.

In a shocking turn of events, Ben asks for an extra date.  This time a twin-on-one.  

Since the girls are from Vegas, he treats the date as a hometown and goes to their house to meet their mom.  While there, the girls each show Ben their rooms.  Haley still has pictures of her ex-boyfriend in her room and it's awkward.  She tries to play it off saying she can't believe they didn't take them down.  I'm sorry, but why didn't you take them down when you broke up?

Emily then puts Haley down saying she's the twin for Ben and that her feelings are stronger.  In the end, Ben agrees and leaves Haley at home and takes Emily back to the hotel.

It's time for the cocktail party and Jennifer steals Ben first but it isn't too long before Olivia swoops in to steal Ben.  During her time, she keeps saying she's sorry she was awkward and she wasn't herself.  Anyway, Ben tells her she doesn't need to apologize and that being awkward is cute.  (HELLO!!!  Awkward person right here!!) Then in her ITM interview, Liv starts talking in 3rd person and it's even more annoying.

Olivia sits down with Jojo and tells her that she told Ben she's falling in love with him and he reciprocated it.  Excuse me, in what world did that happen?  Jojo seems to have her head screwed on correctly and says she finds it hard to say that this early on and without him being able to reciprocate it.

In the end, Amber and Rachel are sent packing.  Next week's episode looks like the most dramatic episode yet.  ;)

Let me know in the comments what you thought of this week's episode.

Be sure to get caught up on my other Rose Recaps:

Episode 3

Episode 2

Episode 1

Rose Recap: The Bachelor Episode 3

The episode starts out with some of the girls talking about Olivia and how much money she spent on clothes to come on the show.  Excuse me, but what 23-year-old news anchor can afford to drop $40,000 on clothes for the show?  I worked in the news industry and know the ballpark salaries.  Meteorologists everywhere wore this dress for a reason:

It's $23 and journalists don't get paid much!

Lauren B. gets the first 1-on-1 date and the card says "The sky's the limit..."  I was a little underwhelmed with their date.  Lauren's a flight attendant, she's in planes a lot.  I realize this isn't her usual plane 

But still...  It would have been cool if they did some tricks or something, but they didn't.  Ben and Lauren flew over the mansion which must have been super awkward for everyone.  Then they were dropped off at a random hot tub in the middle of nowhere.

I guess I can't complain much because it did get us this shot.

The two of them are really sweet together.  You can tell Ben feels comfortable around her and he even opens up and tells Lauren about his dad and how he had to have heart surgery right before filming started.  Lauren gets the rose and Ben has one more surprise in store...

A private concert with Lucy Angel.  Don't worry, Lauren, I don't know who they are either and I like country music!  I know we're only 3 episodes in, but so far, every episode has had a date ending in a private concert.  I wish real-life dates were like that.

At one point during the date, Ben is being interviewed and he talks about how Lauren is a mystery to him.  I then yelled at the TV, "Of course she's a mystery.  Every girl is a mystery.  You've known them for 3 days!"

Let me just start by saying how jealous I am of this group date!  I grew up playing soccer and love to watch the sport.  Plus, Alex Morgan is totally my girl crush (it doesn't hurt that her jersey number is 13)!  Ben + Alex + soccer = Insanely Jealous Angela!

Let's be generous and say the girls were subpar at soccer -- and remember, that's being nice!  The girls were funny to watch, but watching Ben watch them was even better.

The game ends in a tie, of course, and the Stripes win in sudden death and get to continue on to the evening portion of the date while the Stars are sent back to the mansion.

As soon as everyone sits down, Olivia steals Ben away and takes him to the balcony where she flaunts the fact that she has alone time with him.  Ever the gentleman, Ben suggests they head back inside.  I'm not really sure what all is said during their time, I got bored.  Olivia talked a lot about herself and how people find her intimidating.  There was also some kissing.  (What happened to not taking Chris' advice?!?)

While Olivia is off with Ben, the girls sit around and talk about her.  The worst they can do is talk about how she has bad toes.  Really?  That's the best you can come up with?  At least in Emily's in the moment she says Olivia has bad breath and fake boobs.  That's a lot better than talking about someone's toes.  Jami then runs and tattles to Olivia about what they said.  We saw a lot of Jami this episode and she kind of got on my nerves.

Amber finally gets some 1-on-1 time with him and she says this time around is different because she knows what she wants and that she's hopeful.  All this pays off because she ends up getting the group rose.

Olivia was all about the subtle signs he gives her this week.  She's convinced that him touching her leg as he got up was his way of telling her that he feels the same way about her.  In her mind, he does this to her and no one else because he knows that she gets them.  Maybe he just needed help getting up.  Ever think of that, Liv?

Jubilee gets the last 1-on-1 date and this is her face when she finds out.  She thinks Ben has a type of "nice" girls.  She's worried that she isn't Ben's type.  Shouldn't that be a sign that maybe you should be a nice girl then?  According to Jubilee, Ben is late picking her up for the date and that doesn't fly with her -- she even calls him out for it in front of everyone.

During this exchange and Jubilee trying to be funny and play down her excitement, Jami coins my favorite word of the night: awko-taco.  Anyway, back to the date.  A helicopter comes to pick them up and Jubilee starts freaking out.  Turns out she's afraid of heights and even goes so far as to ask the girls if any of them want to go on her date -- as you can imagine, that didn't sit well with the other girls.

After arriving to their date location, Ben and Jubilee eat some caviar and this is her reaction:

That's right, she spits it out.  I'm not sure I could stomach it either, but c'mon, politely decline or discreetly spit it out -- don't make a scene.

Jubilee then starts talking about how she has trouble talking around Ben and it's just a bunch of word vomit and weird noises.  Honestly, I was more focused on how much distance was between them instead of what she was saying.

I mean look at all that space!  They more than make up for it in the hot tub though.  Seriously, Ben, again with all the kissing?  Jubilee rambles on and on about how she's so glad he laughed when she called him "white boy" and how he never laughs.  Excuse me?  Are we talking about the same person?  He always has a little boy grin and is laughing.  She obviously didn't see him on the soccer date!

During dinner, Jubilee opens up more about her past and being adopted but all I'm so distracted by her nails.  They need to go.

She ends up getting the rose and then very awkwardly hugs him/sits on his lap/kisses him.  I don't know, I'm just not seeing it.  All the girls are shocked that she comes home from the date, too.

It's time for the cocktail party and you can tell Ben is upset when he walks in.  He then goes onto say that two people he was close with have passed away.  Naturally, Olivia steals him away and instead of trying to comfort him, she starts crying that she has cankles.  I wish I was lying, but I'm serious.  She says she tries to be strong all the time, but it's the scariest thing ever and people have written blogs about her cankles.  Again, I wish I was joking, but I'm not.

Thank goodness Amanda comes to the rescue.  I knew we could count on this momma to listen to Ben and comfort him.  Jubilee decides to comfort him by giving him a massage.

I'm not going to lie, it was awko-taco watching this.  I can't even imagine the other girls watching it in person.  The girls are fed up and Jami steps in to take Ben away.  Meanwhile, Amber decides that she and the other girls want to call Jubilee out.  Mainly, Amber just wants to stir up the drama and get some camera time.  Jubilee wants nothing to do with this confrontation and ends up crying in the bathroom.  Ben follows her in there and so does Amber.

Can we say awko-taco?  Amber tries to get Jubilee to stop crying before she lays into her.  Amber tells them that girls were mad at Jubilee's comment and things seemed off between them.  Not the best conversation to have in front of the guy you're trying to impress.  Ben speaks up for Jubilee and says what he likes about her   That obviously didn't go the way Amber planned.

Before the rose ceremony starts, Lace pulls Ben aside.  (Guys, I promise she's not crazy! ;) )  Anyway, she tells him that she's mad at herself for the way she's acted and that she needs to work on and love herself before she can love someone else and that it's time for her to leave.  I don't know about you, but I did not see this one coming, especially after the whole last show was centered around her.

Next up, it's rose ceremony time.  Lauren B., Amber and Jubilee are already safe.  The other women who get roses are: Lauren H., Amanda, Becca, Haley, Emily, Rachel, Caila, Jojo, Jennifer, Lean and last but not least Olivia.  The two sent packing are Sushanna and Jami.  Also, Olivia says that Ben "just squeezed my waist a little" which means that he can't give her everything all the time but he knows she can handle that.

Be sure to get caught up on my other Rose Recaps:

Episode 2

Episode 1

What were your thoughts on the episode?  Who are your frontrunners?  I can't wait for next week and more awko-taco (sorry, I couldn't help myself, I had to do it one more time!) moments.

Friday Favorites: FabFitFun Edition

I'm linking up with Narci, Andrea and Erika to share this week's Friday Favorites!  This week it's all about my new FabFitFun box! You can sign up to get yours here!  By using this link, you'll save $10 and get $312 worth of product for just $39.99!  Are you ready for a peek inside?

I love this diffuser by EJH Brand and love it.  It came just in time, too, right before I had company!  I have it in my bathroom and it smells so good!

This Candlenut Body Creme by JUARA is so thick and perfect for this cold, dry winter weather.

Frends makes some cute headphones and included their Donna Earbud in this season's box.

This Zoya polish in Dakota is the perfect berry color for winter.  Also, every polish of theirs is formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, toluene, dubiety pthalate and camphor free -- basically it's toxin free and all natural.

How cute are these fingerless gloves from Whitney eve?  Remember Whitney Port from The Hills?  Whitney eve is her company!

A gift card to Sweet & Spark, a vintage jewelry store online!

A gift card to Shoptiques -- it's like a marketplace for boutiques all over the world -- more than 2,000 stores to be exact!

Also inside the box you'll get these wine charms and stopper.

Last, but certainly not least, this 3-piece travel Dermalogica kit is also inside.  Not only do you get the cleanser, toner and skin cream, you also get a coupon to buy more.  I'd never used Dermalogica before getting it in my box and now I'm a fan!

Have I convinced you to sign up for your own box yet?  If so, go here to save $10 and get $312 worth of product for just $39.99!