Des and Chris Publish a Book of Poems on Amazon

If you believe the media, Bachelorette sweethearts Des and Chris have broken up and Des has returned to Los Angeles.

But I'm here to tell you that it isn't true. Desiree Hartsock and Chris Seigfried recently moved to the Seattle area and are doing just fine as they plan where they want to live and how elaborate they want their wedding to be next summer. I live in the Seattle area and the two lovebirds have been spotted at the gas station, a Seahawks game, Discovery Park, the grocery store, and around the northern part of Seattle known as Ballard.
Our local TV station and NBC affiliate, KOMO interviewed them a few days ago and during the ten minute question and answer period they seemed happily in love and making plans for the future. Des has moved here permanently and is looking to continue designing her bridal collection and Chris is back at work in the Mortgage Broker business. A book of poetry was released last night (Saturday August 24th), written by the couple, titled Diamonds and Hearts.  Does this sound like a breakup is in their future? I'd say all the naysayers and the people who claim to have seen them arguing can just go eat a big cake to sweeten up a bit because there is nothing wrong with Des and Chris's relationship.
In the KOMO interview, they laughed together, finished each other's sentences and expressed an interest in eventually settling in the Green Lake area. According to Des, she's not afraid of the imminent rain and is looking forward to spending her winters here.
The couple did caution the public to not believe everything written about them and indicated that they don't even read the tabloids or pay attention to what is being said about them in the news.
From what this Bachelor Nation member could see, the new Bachelorette couple may just make it. These two seem to understand the difference between TV love and real love. Watch the interview and tell me if they don't look more grounded. Hopefully they'll double date with Jason and Molly and laugh about the crazy show they once went on to find love. Remember that the Seattle contestants usually do exceptionally well in this reality franchise and when Chris and Des made the wise choice to avoid L.A., they left behind the frills of being on the show to come north to where paparrazi don't venture.
Good luck Des and Chris from this mom in the suburbs!

Kim Hornsby is the author of The Husband Hunt, a novella series on Amazon that suspiciously resembles The Bachelor. The second book in the series was modeled after The Bachelorette.

Des Is Engaged to Chris!

The Bachelorette Finale began last night with the possibility that, for the first time in the history of The Bachelor, there might not be a couple in love at the end of the show. As the audience, we prepared for Des to send both men home and quit the show. We also prepared for the possibility of Brooks coming back to say he'd been wrong. And we toyed with the fantasy that Des could pull it all together and fall in love with one of the remaining men. Drew and Chris had no idea what was going on with Des in the final days of Antigua and arrived at the rose ceremony, each thinking the other would be eliminated. But Brooks was a no-show and Chris Harrison addressed the men to say something was amiss but Des should be the one to tell them. As Des broke down about Brooks leaving, the two men had to stand on the other side of a native floor rug and not run to console the woman they loved. They each got a rose, poured some champagne, hugged Des and moved on to the next stage. Meeting the parents.

But first Des needed another date with each man to see if there was anything salvageable. She wasn't sure at this point.Poor Des. She couldn't hear us screaming at the TV that she must go on, find love, forget Brooks and his hair.
A horseback riding date started poorly when Des didn't even get off the horse to greet Drew, simply saying his horse's name was Judy. They rode to the beach where a bonfire and picnic was set up in a colorful picturesque setting and as the roaring fire dulled to a small flame, so did Drew's hopes of marrying Des. She broke his heart and off he went, such a wonderful young man, so deserving of something more. Really.
Next Des met Chris at the beach but when he started off the day with a joke and made her smile, the date seemed to go in a different direction than Drew's date. They boarded a catamaran and took off on a nice, normal, lovey-dovey Chris and Des date. The kissing, the hugging, the laughing, the bare skin, it all looked pretty good as we sat on our couches with our breath held. At dinner they continued to talk about his feelings for her and then they moved to the bed with some champs and Chris pulled out a journal he'd prepared for her with his own poems and a dedication. Oh yea, and he also gave her a framed poem with all his dried roses pressed into the glass. This guy is one big romantic and was giving so much to Des, she finally opened her eyes and realized that this was the real thing with Chris. Not chasing some guy who never gave back what she offered. Chris still had no idea that Drew went bye bye and even though he was the last contestant, there was still a chance she'd be too broken up over Brooks to accept his imminent proposal. Gasp!
He met the parents but it was the brother who took over the grilling of the new boyfriend. No surprise there. My hubby was joking that the Bro should be the next Bachelor and I was telling him to be quiet so I could hear what Bro said. He liked Chris well enough to let him off easy and not risk another year of not talking to his sister. The parents were silent; was there a mother?, and after a quick blessing from Des's Dad, Chris went off to prepare his marriage proposal. Notice how Des did not speak with her parents? Didn't ask them anything? She spoke briefly to Bro but the ice was so thick in the room you could barely see them.
Next day it looked like Des would suit up for the final rose ceremony and Chris went off to 'buy' a ring. When Chris exited the limo with the ring box in his pocket, we still didn't know if Des would put him through all this only to tell him she wasn't in love with him.
And, before Chris got down on one knee, she stopped him. His face went blank as he stood to hear what she had to say. Note: Chris looks most handsome when he's serious and struggling. Anyone else notice this? Wow. Des told him that Drew was gone, had left days before, Chris was the only one left and she'd been torn up about Brooks, struggling with that this week.  until she realized what she most wants is right in front of her. She loves him. They hugged, kissed, whispered to each other and he took a knee to propose. She said "A thousand times yes!" and all across America women (and some men) were cheering. I had tears in my eyes knowing that Chris is a much better fit for Des than any of the others, according to what we saw on the show.

In the after show, Brooks stated he still didn't love Des the way she had wanted, she told him she's engaged to Chris, Drew came out in a blue suit looking sweet and hurt and we all felt terrible for the kid, I mean man. Chris joined Des on stage and they look super happy. Very cuddly and sweet. She's moving to Seattle this weekend to be with him so I'm hoping for good weather to welcome the latest Bachelorette to the Pacific Northwest. Hopefully we'll see them around town and they can double date with the Mesnicks. Something about Seattle makes great fiancees. Catherine and Sean visit too.
It was a happy ending on The Bachelorette last night and now we keep our fingers crossed that they'll make it through the engagement to the wedding. Hint: Please don't have the wedding on TV no matter how much they pay you. Read my novella The Husband Hunt -Kat's Season to see how to have a happy ending and give up the limelight after the show.
Oh, and Juan Pablo is the next Bachelor but that didn't surprise me at all. America's love affair with the Venezuelan soccer player and Daddy, proved they'd be shooting themselves in the foot over at The Bachelor if they'd chosen another contestant from Des's season. January is a long way off to wait for Juan Pablo but in the meantime, check out The Husband Hunt series on Amazon. And stare a this pic of J.P.

Kim Hornsby is the author of two novels and two novellas on Amazon. Her contemporary romance series is based on The Bachelor and titled The Husband Hunt

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The Bachelorette - Still in Love with Brooks

This week was hometowns on the Bachelorette and we all know what that means--wacky families come out of the woodwork to ruin it for their hopeful child.
The first hometown was Zack's in Texas where the two lovebirds drove around in a Kona Snowcone truck and ended up at an elementary school to dish out snow cones to the little kids. Zack dressed up like a penguin, thereby securing the top spot as a wacky fun guy and then took her to meet the most welcoming family ever in the history of The Bachelorette. Everyone was funny, fun, handsome, welcoming, and when the bro and sis stood up at the end to sing a song that Zack wrote, it was the icing on an already 17 layer cake. The cherry on top was Zack professing he loved her and giving her a ring he'd bought when he realized that he was in love with her. I was officially in love with Zack by the next commercial. If he lives near his family, then I'd take him in a heartbeat. Can you spell PERFECT?

The next visit was to Drew's family in Scottsdale AZ. They went to pick up Drew's mentally challenged sister where she lives in a special home and then everyone converged at Drew's mom and Step Dad's house. All was fun and merry, and Des charmed the pants right off the group. That visit couldn't have gone better, including Drew telling her he loved her in a "bold" way, she said. Personally, I just saw him throw it into the conversation but I'm not The Bachelorette.

Then off to Oregon where we hooked up with Chris in a park and ventured on to hit baseballs to see if Des is the girl for him. Turned out she can catch and hit and passed the baseballing test with flying colors. At Chris's house, the parents were warm and fun and wonderful, even though the Dad, who is a chiropractor took Des to the basement to give her an adjustment on her back, then proceeded to adjust Chris's nostrils, treating America to Chris's snot closeup. Eww.
The final visit was Brooks in Utah. They canoed in a park, kind of dancing around each other conversationally and then drove over to someone's house overlooking the mountains in Utah. The large family had nametags on, teased Des and Brooks and were a lovely, welcoming group. No patriarch but lots of siblings. When Brooks kissed her goodbye, he was just starting to warm up to the idea that he really likes Des. Little does he know that everyone else is falling all over themselves in love while he isn't quite sure.

Des's brother Nate arrived in Los Angeles where the show ended up at the Beverly Hills Hotel and proceeded to creep us out with his strange threats. Des pretty much begged him to leave the guys alone if he intends to be on the family meeting date and he backed off slightly, saying he'd be mindful of her feelings and that the only reason he ruined it with Sean last time was that he knew better than her, that it wasn't a good match. He's a loose cannon for sure. Can't wait.
Again, Chris Harrison questioned Des about declaring Brooks the favorite and again, The Bachelorette voiced that she's hoping his feelings grow in the next few weeks. Chris is a close second after hometowns, in spite of the back adjustment, and that left Zack and Drew in the bottom two.
At the rose ceremony, Des cut Zack with the abs, and the fun, and the only manly one of the bunch. The others, I'm pretty sure all have pedicures. But then Zack got pretty choked up and had a lot to say in the limo, proving that he's not only manly but sensitive. Apparently he can't find a girl to love him. I'm gonna bet he watched tonight's show with a woman curled beside him or if he didn't I'll bet he'll be watching next week with a girlfriend. He's a nice man, with a great family and studly to boot. And has had national coverage.
Next week is Bachelor Tells All (kind of out of sync for the usual way it's done) and two weeks from now, I believe Drew announces something and leaves. Or Brooks. Des looks pretty broken up about something and threatens to leave the show. She's wearing the outfit from her date with Brooks if that gives anyone a hint.
Checking my calendar now to make sure I've cleared the next three Mondays. How about you? For a show that started out slow, it's gaining speed for a nice run to the finish. Who's your money on?


Kim Hornsby is the author of The Husband Hunt an Amazon short story book series modeled after The Bachelor.
http://amzn.com/B00BN1YNS0

The Bachelorette Could End Right Now

This week the group that remains on this year's Bachelorette flew to Madeira (off Spain) and professed it the most romantic place in the world. If you don't fall in love here, there's something wrong with you, apparently.
But at the end of the show we heard that The Bachelorette is in love with one lucky guy and Chris Harrison asked if it's over this early. Should they stop now?
Desiree answered that she wanted to keep an open mind and to continue.
Here's what happened:
With only five men left, the group of six cruised around Madeira's coast aboard a schooner, laughing, talking, oo'ing and ah'ing then checked in to their hotel rooms overlooking a spectacular view of the ocean, pool, and red tiled buildings. Every view is a postcard in itself.
Brookes got the first date and aside from being the worst dresser in the group, he looks like a sweet man. A tan suites him. Desiree REALLY likes him. They had a wonderful drive up to the clouds, did some talkin' and drinkin' and admitted they are on cloud 9 with each other. Turns out Des more than Brookes. She's one beat shy of being in love and Brookes likes her a whole lot.
The next date was with Chris who now reminds me of Adam Levine and looks like the best one of the bunch. He's funny, charming, cute and Des seems to really like him a whole lot. They took a yacht to a rocky island and enjoyed a picnic among the wildflowers, but if they don't stop writing cheesey poetry, I'm going to have to change the channel. Oh wait. They aren't writing it for me and as long as they keep their stanza's amongst themselves, I'm okay. They co-wrote a poem, put it in a a bottle and threw it in the ocean. Cute.
The next day was with Michael, the prosecutor who doesn't stop talking long enough for us to see if he has any personality.  This was his first one on one with Des and is so far behind, I"m not sure anyone could catch up at this point. The town looked fabulous, quaint, fun, and the date was spent wandering the town. To his credit, Michael is a good dresser and is actually kind of cute but his social skills need some work. They might have edited it this way, but Des looked very bored on the date, while he talked a lot.
The last date of the night was a two on one with Zak and Drew (who has arm muscles I am now officially in love with). His face is pretty cute too. Well, let's face it, Drew is absolutely boy next door handsome/gorgeous and I'm not thinking he's not gay-ish anymore. He's a cutie pie but maybe too young for Des. Watching his arm muscles as he was kissing her was the highlight of my night. Drew is cute. Apparently Des thinks so too and gave him the rose, even though no one was going home on this two on one date. Zak was sad and confused even though he won the race track competition.
The trouble at this point is that all the men think they have a special connection with Des and aren't even considering that she has this going with all of them. They aren't considering that at least 4 of them have Des's attention. They are assuming they have the best connection with Des, over the rest. All except Brookes, who Des probably likes the most. Funny huh?
At the rose ceremony, Des wore a stunning aqua backless dress and stilletos and looked like a million bucks. She is such a photogenic gal with a sweet smile. While talking to Chris Harrison who apparently flies all over the world at the end of the week for 5 minutes on the air, Des admitted that she's in love with Brookes. This is something I've never seen before on this show-- calling the winner so early. But she also said that Brookes did not feel the same way and Chris from Seattle was basically a close second.
So, next week is hometowns which is always fun and bizarre and it looks like in two weeks Des is heartbroken and I am now thinking it's Brookes who leaves because he's just not in love. If wrinkled clothes and ugly cardigans are any indication of lack of interest, I might be wrong in calling the winner early. The Orlando Bloom/Russell Brand lookalike may not stick it out, after all.
What do you think? Next week has loads of kooky in law potential AND an added bonus in Des's brother, who marches to his own drummer and lurks in the shadows of the hotel's lobby. Can't wait.

Tears Flow on The Bachelorette

Last night the tears flowed on The Bachelorette, not only from Des who can't take all the ulterior motives and playing for the camera amongst the men, but from James the wide as he is tall contestant who had the Red Cross date in Jersey.

But I am getting ahead of myself here. When the show opened they were in Barcelona Spain and the first date was a one on one with Drew, the boyish blonde who is quietly falling in love with Des. They explored Barcelona, ordered hot cocoa and got whipped cream mustaches (which Drew kissed off!--a bold move) and couldn't seem to keep their hands off each other. When the two love birds sat down to dinner, Drew grabbed her hand and they ran away from the cameras to neck out in the alleyway only to have the film crew catch up with their 1,000 watt light bulbs and film the whole thing. I was shocked that Drew had it in him. Shocked. Once he got her all hot and steamed up, he threw a pail of water on the scene by telling her about James' ulterior motive to be the next Bachelor if she doesn't pick him as her husband. Wow Drew! Couldn't you have waited until you ate dinner?
Needless to say that was the end of the date. Des was heartbroken but rallied for the soccer group date the next day.
I was drooling to see Juan Pablo play soccer and we got a bit of the Spanish hunk but not nearly enough. He's one of the truly manly men and I think the Bachelorette producers did a great injustice to not feature him more on camera. According to tweets, women love Juan Pablo. It was the girls against the guys at the Barcelona stadium and after the girls whupped some bachelor butt they had a party. Des took Chris to her bedroom to read poetry, thereby securing the fact that Chris is a front runner, while the rest of the men confront James about his motives on the show. What??? Michael played attorney while James played guilty and Kasey was the star witness. By the time Chris and Des got back all hell had broken loose and the party was over except for Des talking to James. Again. Just let the smooth talking charmer go! She either really likes him or won't admit that someone is not there for her. James talked his way out of elimination and returned with the men for another sleep in Barcelona. Awkward!
The next date was meant to be a break from all the drama of James and that it was with Zak the ab guy who drills for oil. If this isn't a metaphor... They have a drawing lesson and the result is drawing portraits of each other which ends up with hilarity at Zach's horrific depiction of Des. I laughed out loud. How about you? It was genuinely funny and even Des dropped to the art school floor laughing. I like Zach, even though he loves to show off his six pack. Their dinner was just the right amount of fun and romance and of course he got his rose.
Back at the hotel, James confronted Drew and there was lots of swearing and shouting and I'm beginning to wonder if the guys don't like James. Shut up already and go home!
James squeezed in between two guys on the couch and was instantly taken to the naughty room to talk, yet again. Des and James cry, hug, worry and he's sent off to endure the rose ceremony where he is eliminated along with Juan Pablo!! What was Des thinking, not even getting a kiss out of the handsome single dad/soccer player?

Michael the whiny attorney got the surprise rose and now we're down to a small amount of men with no one to fight about. What will they do?
Previews for next week show that Drew has a secret and I'm betting it has something to do with being a metrosexual. They venture to Madeira and it looks like the drama follows, Des threatens to quit and the men who are there for the right reasons (to write poetry, to let hair grow longer, to show off abs and practice prosecution skills) get all 'deer caught in headlights' and have to endure more tears.
Good stuff! See you next week...

Kim Hornsby is the author of The Husband Hunt series on Amazon books patterned after The Bachelor.http://amzn.com/B00BN1YNS0

Why Women Love "The Bachelor" on ABC

These next words are only my opinion and not the opinion of the dogs who lie snoring beside me.

The Bachelor. America's mindless phenomenon. I watch it faithfully and my sister, who is the smart one in our family can't get enough of the reality TV show that appears, blessedly, on Monday nights- which is a good night after a weekend, because it gives us something to look forward to after getting up for work on Monday, right? But, The Bachelor comes only twice a year and we have to wait and wait between shows, forced to watch Dancing with The Stars because now the last Bachelor Sean Lowe has joined the dancing reality show to get enough money to buy a house or something like that. We only get to see our beloved Bachelor show half of the nights out of the year. Damned. Can't they produce more shows? Come on ABC. And now Bachelor Pad (which was a terrible cross between The Bachelor and a hedonistic semi-porn game show) is not filming this year for our summer enjoyment. What's a viewer to do?
The Bachelor and The Bachelorette are wildly popular TV reality shows. Wildly. Just see how many followers Chris Harrison has on Twitter. Or join Bachelor Nation on FB or twitter. Why is there such appeal to intelligent women who have high stress jobs, who manage families, have been married for twenty years, or even young women who are looking for love? The Bachelor is not just for women either. Even men watch this show, with no worries about how others will gauge their masculinity. (My husband gets a beer and sits himself in front of the TV for The Bachelor, calling out opinions on what he thinks the guys should do or should not do-he loves it!).

ABC's The Bachelor is watched by all age groups, demographics and genders. The Bachelorette, its sister show  is equally popular. If you don't watch the show or have never heard of it (where have you been living? In a cave in Borneo?) the young woman chooses between twenty-five single men, as opposed to The Bachelor where  one man chooses between twenty-five single women. As a nation, we love to watch the drama of a villain among the seemingly nice contestants,(Tiara) the horror of a fan favorite not getting a rose, (Lindsey) or the unthinkable of the mean girl getting proposed to (Courtney).
Why do we tune in every Monday night ( in droves) to watch someone whittle the list down to one hopeful candidate for a lasting relationship? It is mindless FUN, that's why. If love makes the world go 'round, and what the world needs now is love, sweet love, then the quest for love and partnering up is very important in our lives. Maybe the most important thing we, as human beings, have. And watching someone on their quest of this is voyeurism at its finest. We get to see someone during the dating process and it's only rated PG. We are not peeking in on anything that would be considered naughty or twisted. We are simply watching a person doing the most normal human thing possible-look for love.

As someone who's been married twenty-one years, I have two thoughts on why my husband and I sit down on Monday nights to ravage every second of this show like the characters were beloved relatives/friends who we care deeply about. One, is that we are past the initial romantic buzz of our relationship and have long been in the comfortable, I love- you- no- matter- what stage and watching someone who's jazzed on that initial attraction brings back memories and emotions we haven't felt in a long time. And two, is that after a long day with teenagers, chores, work, the dog chewing a hole in the dry wall, stress, we just want to watch something that's entertaining and makes us feel happy without investing too much emotion. After the Rose Ceremony and our favorite is eliminated, we don't go around all week mourning the event. We simply pick a new favorite. Isn't that lovely and so unlike real life when a boyfriend dumps you and you spend three months wondering where you went wrong? We walk away at the end of the show, commiserate on what the problem was and go to bed, our psyches only slightly affected by the bachelor's rejection of our favorite contestant.
If you're an avid fan of the reality show franchise, you know that groups congregate all around the country on Monday nights to watch the show, in neighborhoods, sororities, bars and girlfriend's houses. The Bachelor has become a cultural phenomenon. Tabloid magazines carry the latest news on the contestants, and opinions breed like bunnies on what's going to happen as the road to the Final Rose gets twisty .

After the proposal on national TV, the media heyday begins and the remaining lovey-dovey couple, barely has a chance of surviving as dirt is dug up, pictures of the individuals drinking shots off another girls' abdomen surface and the media struggles to tear the young love birds apart. Very few have survived the onslaught. Ryan and Trista come to mind, and so far Jason and Molly but remember, he originally chose someone else and broke up with his chosen one to go back to get his heartbroken Molly. As a nation we yearn for a happy couple but also can't resist what the media has found against them. Dang.
Emily and Jef didn't have a chance, especially if she was texting another man. The press dove on that one like a hungry tiger and then it was all over before it even got very far off the ground. I wanted that to work. What about you? They seemed perfect for each other. What the heck happened there? They were cute and full of benevolent aspirations, as well as love for each other. As much as I cheered them on and cringed at Ari's advancement as the weeks went on, I didn't shed any tears over the breakup and that's what I'm talking about. All the buzz without the investment. Or at least some of the buzz without actually kissing anyone who's not your husband.
I'm not entirely sure why everyone watches The Bachelor. Unless you are like me. Life is tough (as my mother used to say when I was a carefree teen), and there is so much stress and so many obstacles to overcome on a daily basis. To simply plant oneself in front of the boob tube for one hour a week and listen in on someone's quest for love is a blessed event. Especially if everyone is dressed to the nines, showing off a little skin here and there, kissing and flirting in romantic locations, and it's a game we can play at home. And it's free TV. Not cable. Ongoing TV, something you can count on twice a year for Monday night entertainment. It's love and we all know - Love is All You Need. The Beatles told us this. Tra La La

Over and Out

Kim Hornsby is the author of the short novella The Husband Hunt, available on Amazon books for Kindle or download. It's a two hour read similar to watching The Bachelor and The Husband Hunt 2- Kat's Season
She's also the author of the novel The Dream Jumper's Promise, nominated for BEST INDIE FIRST BOOK (click on the cover above) or http://amzn.com/B00AA4FAJC
and Necessary Detour, published with The Wild Rose Press. http://amzn.com/B00AU50M76
Both novels are Romantic Women's Fiction with strong elements of Suspense