A Fairy Tale Ending?

Before I hop into one of the best finales ever, I have to give a shout out to my grandma! I got a letter from her this week and she told me that she and her friend have been watching and laughing along with me for the last few weeks. It totally made my day! Love you Grandma! Hope you enjoyed the finale as much as I did.

I'll admit I started off with an oh-well,-he's-just-going-to-pick-Chantal attitude. I'd heard the spoilers. I'd totally bought into the well edited previews. He was going to pick Chantal and I was going to have to watch sweet little Emily have her heart broken (and was totally hoping she was going to be the next Bachelorette). But of course I still had to watch. Like a train wreck. We start things off in Cape Town, South Africa. Brad is anxiously awaiting the arrival of his family. When they arrive we see a sentimental side of Brad as he breaks down in tears, giving us the one and only Jason Mesnick balcony cry of the season. I'm so glad abc didn't edited that out too, since they seem bent on making him appear as a total boring robot. It takes him a few minutes to compose himself and then he sits down with mom (dressed in her ready for a safari leopard print blouse), his two brothers and their wives. As they discuss how this 2nd round of Bachelor dating is going he announces that he's 100% sure that he's going to propose this time. And then it's time to meet the lucky candidates.

Chantal is first, in her jeggings, drapey cream shirt and fun dangley green earrings. She bonded with the bros when she said she'd marry him on the spot. Mom thought she was just "precious!" and Brad seemed glad everyone liked her. Next day: Emily arrives in a darling blue halter dress. Brad seemed a bit worried that her shyness wouldn't allow his family to really get to know her... a legitimate fear considering we've been watching her for like 9 weeks and I'm still not sure she has a personality behind that gorgeous face. But she won 'em all over with her Barbie beauty and heart wrenching story. The siblings all loved how "down to earth" she was and the fact that she was a mother bonded the sister in laws to her. Emily got Mama Womack crying when she said Brad was her angel. Personally I loved it when Brad told his brothers that she was such a lady and it made him want to be a better man. So, as Brad says about 50 times an episode, there's "no doubt about it," Emily won the family round. Dare I get my hopes up?

Now on to their last dates. Chantal scampers across the lawn into Brad's arms and I notice that Chantal is a bit curvier than when she first started this show. Lots of drinking, lots of fine dining and hanging out at the pool can do that to you. They're off to the ocean on a yacht, wind in their hair, watching seals frolic when suddenly they spot a shark. That's when he announces they're gonna be swimming with sharks. She steps out in her wetsuit, that she forgot to zip up, ready to hop into a little cage and watch sharks snap at bait about 2 feet in front of them. Wow! What a thrill. That night they're cozy in her suite, and she presents him with the token homemade gift. A map, listing all their firsts and where they all happened. This was paired with a love letter, one that spelled it ALL out. There was no mistaking how in love she was with him, and she wanted to make sure he knew it. Oddly it was really awkward after that. There was no words of comfort or love given back to her. Remember when Emily had told him she was falling in love with him and he bravely tossed aside the Bachelor rules and told her he was falling in love with her too? A little spark of hope began to grow inside of me. Was he actually going to pick Emily?

Well, Emily showed up for her date in a long blue shirt that she just belted at the waist and called it a dress. I think she was regretting that wardrobe choice when the first gust of wind almost caused her to flash the world. The wind continued as they boarded the helicopter of love and dropped them on top of the windiest mountain on the planet. Emily got gypped. Chantal got to swim with sharks and Emily got to sit on top of a windy mountain. Was there more to this date that we missed? As they sat there, on their boring windy mountain, Emily tried to start a conversation about the reality of being a parent. I was proud of Emily for spelling it out for Brad... that being a father isn't always easy and fun. Unfortunately I don't think they could really hear each other over the wind, so the conversation had to be continued back at her suite that night. Brad came ready to pour his heart out to her, not by saying how much he loved her, but by telling her he was ready to take care of her and her family. It was so sweet, and straight from his vulnerable heart (his therapist would be so proud). What he wasn't prepared for was her response. She questioned whether he knew what he would be getting into. Not the heart melting, grab his face and kiss him while shouting she loved him response he was hoping for. Suddenly things got awkward. And he left, neither of them knowing if the other was ready. Did she just blow it??

Final rose day. We get the usual review, Emily "wakes up" looking like sleeping beauty, the bling-master shows up with his briefcase of jewels, Brad declares that he knows which girl is right for him, the girls gaze into the sky and write in their journal and cry. And then it's time. The limos are driving up, Brad's poised in his dapper navy suit, and I am just sick. Did you all just get a huge pit in your stomach while waiting? The door of the limo opens up and that golden slipper belongs to Chantal! They've tricked us before so I continue to hold my breath as Chantal, in her black (or was it a dark green?) peacock feathered dress (which totally showed off her hourglass figure) and not so pretty updo, walks towards a smiling Brad. We're hanging on his every word, and I start to feel it. The upcoming..."but"...and it comes. After a string of compliments Brad says, "I just have stronger feelings for someone else." I cheered! The rest of my Bachelor watching pals cheered. Did you all cheer? And then I felt so sad, as I saw sweet Chantal's heart get smashed. She was silenced. I was wondering if she could breathe. With her peacock feathers blowing in the wind, she tells him "You're an amazing person. And Emily is lucky." He walks her to the car. I just want to give her a hug and tuck in the hanger ribbon that is sticking out of her dress.

Wow! What a surprise! I love when it's a shocker! He says he feels a calm confidence in his choice. Emily's limo arrives. She steps out in an appropriately white dress. He declares that this "isn't the first time you've taken my breath away." As he stammers thru his seriously so sweet speech, he fidgets, stutters, pulls on his collar, I may have teared up, and he tells her he loves her and wants to live forever with her. She leaps for joy and shouts yes! Oh wait, this is Emily we're talking about. No, she smiles, quietly tells him she loves him too, cradles his face in her hands and says yes, she'll marry him. Oh it's the happy ending we wanted!... and it lasted all of about 2 commercials.

After the Rose: first its Chantal, who looks really good in her eat-your-heart-out-Brad, red dress. She's still teary. Poor girl has probably been crying for the last 2 months. It must totally suck to have to keep quiet about your pain for months. To rub salt in the wound they bring Brad out, to discuss just where things had gone wrong for her. I loved to hear that Emily was who he loved from the very beginning but I don't think Chantal liked hearing that. But wait, what did Brad imply? Chantal has found love too? Then what are you crying for girl?! You've got something real (or at least a really good rebound)! Great! Everyone is happy.

Wait. Is everyone happy? I don't like the vibe I'm getting from Chris and Brad. Get that sweet southern girl out here. Hold on, that's not our sweet southern girl. Who is that? She has darker hair, not the platinum blonde Barbie do. She has an opinion. Has she been the victim of personality depleting editing too? At first this new Emily bothered me a bit. But then she started to grow on me. She's a bit more real. She didn't like watching Brad making out with 25 other girls (who wants to watch your boyfriend make out with all their past girlfriends? How awful). She's discovered Brad has a temper. She didn't like that other girls got to go swimming with sharks and fly down ziplines while she got stuck on boring islands and windy mountain tops. She can be fun too. She's tired of the tabloids and Monday nights. This is when the "reality show" ends and their reality begins. Guess it hasn't been all peaches and cream for this gorgeous couple. There've been fights, there's even been a break up. (GASP from the audience!) But they're back together. And abc is cheering them on (they need better stats than 3 weddings out of 200 proposals). So to help them succeed, abc has come up with some couples therapy. No, thank goodness, it's not ol' Jamie the therapist to the rescue. He did his job. I think Brad is sincerely head over heels in love with this girl. But for this problem, abc calls on Trista and Ryan, Molly and Jason, and Alli and Roberto. And in all actuality I think they may be the only people that could really understand what they're going through. They've been there. I hope they all went out to dinner afterward.

So it wasn't exactly the bow on top kind of happy ending I was hoping for. But he did choose Emily. Yay! She does still have a ring on her finger. Yay! And I saw her whisper, "just you and me" to him as they ended the show. I still have hope for them. Do you?

Oh and did you hear? Dr Ashley is our newest Bachelorette. Now we know why she had the makeover. Can't say I'm terribly excited... but you know I'll be watching!! May 23rd. Put it on your calendar!