Ilovepie

I don't think she was joking either. She is absolutely delusional if she thinks kids are a piece of cake after turning five - news flash Amber: kids are work at ALL ages. School age kids are a major pain because of school and extra-curricular activities - your time is really not your own at that point. Talk about being extra! This woman should NOT have children, she has no idea what she is asking for. The freak out over the garlic was very telling to me. It was the way a young child would act. She needed everyone to turn around and reassure her. I mean, Mia set a freaking towel on fire and didn't even freak out this bad. I think Dave is just over it at this point. Can you imagine having to coddle someone like that every day for the rest of your life? Especially when you are used to having your own shit together and are not especially nurturing to begin with. What a nightmare. Extreme mismatch here, and Amber needs major therapeutic help, and I'm not talking any of the "experts" either. I really wish Danielle and Bobby had told Dr. Pepper where she could stick her "check in" and tantric session. I really hope Danielle actually reciprocated on the I love you when the camera was not rolling, because if not, ouch! It reminded me of Star Wars when Princess Leia tells Han Solo "I love you" and he says "I know"....... I don't care about Tristan and Mia. That is all.

I bet Joe M is kicking himself for wiping out on Stage One this year when he has been last man standing multiple times.....I am glad it was Drew though, he deserves it. "Papal Ninja" seems like a nice guy, but the nickname drives me nuts considering he is an IT guy and not a priest. I did like how supportive he was being of Drew considering he was so close to earning $100,00. It was heartbreaking to see Najee time out so close to the end. I couldn't tell if it was his asthma or just being gassed out. It almost looked like a panic attack - maybe the underwater stuff stressed him out? I can't believe so many wiped out on the wingnuts - I thought all the ninja gym people would have spent the last year practicing on them. ANW should just hire the kid who designed them - he seems to have a gift for designing diabolical obstacles..... I'm sad the season is over, it kind of signals the end of summer for me. Oh well, there's always next year.......

I agree - I actually think Dave would rather that Amber did the laundry like she said she would rather than cooking him dinner which seemed pretty painful for him watching her floundering around. I think all couples have to figure out what works specifically for them regardless of preconceived men's vs. women's chores.

Or if they had any natural desire to learn. I spent most of my childhood with grandmothers who cooked all the time and who would have taught me if I cared, but I didn’t. I only really put an effort into learning when I had kids. I am a competent, smart woman who is a Controller, and I manage the accounting department where I work. I am not stupid, but mt idiocy with food stretches back to childhood. When I was 10 I ruined a toaster putting a peanut butter sandwich in it bc I wanted a toasted peanut butter sandwich. I put the peanut butter on first. In college I burned water. I put a non-whistling kettle on to make tea and left it for over an hour. When I came back the water was gone and the kettle was melted on to the burner (we did not get our deposit back that year). Post college, when I was close to Danielle’s age, I made a cobbler, put it in a large Tupperware bowl, and put it in the oven. My reasoning was that if you could microwave Tupperware it could go in the oven, right? It’s amazing we didn’t die from the plastic fumes when it started to melt. I did this at my current husband’s (then boyfriend’s) apartment. He still married me! All of this is to say, not everyone likes to cook, and it’s pretty easy to get by without doing it when you’re single. I don’t judge these women bc they don’t like to cook and are not good at it. The two that have made an issue of it I don’t know why bc they are both married to men who enjoy it and are good at it. Let the husbands do it and pick up the slack elsewhere - play to your strengths - it’s 2018 not 1918!

I agree, and now you can add Cole to that list as well.....

I think it’s funny that you think he second guesses himself- I think the reason he resonated so much with me was his self confidence and almost cockiness despite having the least training. I also think he connects with his partners the most - every routine he seemed so laser focused on his partner (particularly Gennessy) that made it more believable for me because he wasn’t just playing to the audience. I have zero dance training though so I don’t tend to notice technical issues if I like the overall routine. As far as the jidges, I wish they would go back to rotating choreographers in the third chair and just get rid of Vanessa, or even maybe rotating All Stars.

Yes to this. I said last week this whole season was Jensen’s DWTS audition tape. I will be shocked if she isn’t on next season. i think Hannalei should win because I think she has done the best overall in all styles, but when I stopped to think about my favorite routines this season I could only remember one of her dancers- the Broadway number with Cole. My other favorites this season were Gennessy and Slavik’s first hip hop and their Housework Jazz, Jensen and Jay Jay’s African Jazz, Jensen and Robert’s contemporary and the aforementioned Broadway number with Hannalei and Cole. Based on what I liked most, I should say Slavik should win, but technically he’s the weakest. This is the Achilles heal of this show. Do you reward the best dancer or the one you like or someone who lucked out and got more memorable routines? It’s why I say Hannalei deserves to win, but I can’t get up any excitement about it because I won’t remember or rewatch any of her routines six months from now. For all its faults I still love this show. These kids are asked to do crazy hard stuff and they are all amazing. Now if we could just get rid of Vanessa......

Perhaps the way my husband does by over seasoning the meat until it tastes like a salt lick? I used to let him season the meat because he was doing the grilling until I ate a burger so salty it felt like sand in my burger. Now I season it before he cooks it. She could also under/over cook it..... I would also say I never really learned to cook until I had kids that I had to feed. I am Gen X age with grandmothers who were great cooks and a baby boomer mom who was not. As a young adult I ate a lot of prepared food, cereal, sandwiches and salad or I ate out. If you don’t like cooking it’s pretty easy to get by without doing it. I’m decent for not really starting to learn until I was 33, but it still feels like a chore to me and I only make a couple real meals a week.

Unpopular opinion but I like Slavik. He is my favorite this season, mostly because I enjoy him when he does his own style. His and Gennessy’s first hip hop routine was my favorite of the season and probably the only routine I will remember when it’s over. I’m just tired of the over dramatic contemporary routines. They all look the same to me. I am not a teeny bopper either- I’m a 46 yo woman with zero dance experience . Of course he isn’t the best dancer, but he is the most memorable this season for me. i would have rather seen Jay Jay instead of Gennessy in the finale, but I wonder if Darius and Jay Jay split the vote bc they are similar style dancers. I am glad the top four are diverse styles instead of a bunch of contemporary dancers which I think defeats the spirit of the show. I think the entire season has been Jensen’s DWTS audition tape. I fully expect to see her joining her sister there shortly.Ugh. Hannalei for the win I guess. She has been consistently good in everything and I like her better than Jensen. The other two should be proud they got as far as they did.

Oh shoot- you are right - oops!

When you say deserving, I assume you mean they didn't deserve to be picked because they are not ready for marriage. That can be applied to every single season though, all the way back to season 1 (Threesome Vaughn anyone?). I would also include all the guys from season 2, season 3 Ashley, Sam, Trey, Season 4 Derrick, Heather, Nick, Season 5 Nate, Colby, Season 6 Molly and Ryan. There are crazies and jerks every season but I don't know that it makes the season any more boring; on the contrary, if every couple was like Bobby and Danielle I think it would be even more boring (and I like Bobby and Danielle!).

This is probably closer to how Tristan rationalizes this. That being said, if he feels like most Christians that divorce is something to be avoided if at all possible then he was taking a huge risk with this show because these people have a terrible track record.

I agree with everyone saying this stage 1 seemed disappointing. So many of my favorites flamed out - I am still bummed about Joe M a week later! It really felt like a step backwards for all the women, especially without Jessie Graff- even other strong women like Barclay and Meagan and Alyssa did worse this year than last year. When they showed the finishers list at the end, I didn't recognize half the names. It kind of feels like a changing of the guard. Even so, I am rooting for Drew, Najee, Daniel Gill, Jamie Rahn and Jake Murray next week. I know people think Jake is annoying, but I find him funny. Well, maybe not the stupid shoe caddy thing at the beginning, but usually I find him funny. I do miss the headband though. This week's snarky laugh came courtesy of speedo ninja. Very happy I don't have to see that next week. Finally, my ANW snack of choice last night was Birthday Cake flavored mini cookies from the Walmart bakery. Happy to know I am not the only one armchair quarterbacking these amazing athletes while eating unhealthy treats! ;-p

The Trinity of MAFS!

If Tristan trusted God, he would have waited for God to bring him a perfect mate in God’s time. Instead he took things into his own hands and trusted three “experts” on a basic cable tv show to find him a wife.

I agree! My first thought when they showed them was why are they making Ho Hos? ;-p So now we have your stern Gran, grumpy Dad, sweet aunt, and weird cousin? I liked Prue but still miss Mary. I liked Noel too even though he seems like a strange choice for this show. I've never seen him in anything else. I don't know who Sandi is either and I thought she was forgettable. I didn't think she and Noel worked together as well as Sue and Mel. The rest seemed the same so I can live with the cast changes. I think my favorite part was at the end when Stephen called his mom to tell her he won Star Baker and then he cried telling her Paul shook his hand!

I am totally disgusted by Dr. Jessica's behavior and bullshit justification. This woman spends two minutes at the beginning of every episode listing her "expert" credentials. She is absolutely there in a professional capacity, otherwise, why is she there? Also, if she is not "counseling" the participants, then why are the experts even involved past the matching process? Her behavior on this show is even more reprehensible in light of her relationship with Jon. Every single other couple experiencing conflict she has counseled to work through their issues and stick it out. Even Tristan and lying thieving Mia! The one time she got on her high horse and took a participant to task and recommended parting ways was the one with the guy she is now dating. Coincidence? Maybe, maybe not, but it looks mighty shady and unethical to me. She needs to be off the show in my opinion. I never thought I would say this, but I long for the days of Dr. Logan the sexologist. Who knew she would be the most professional third chair expert?!?

I agree that there is no sure thing, and even when it looks good on paper there is really no way to account for chemistry. That being said, you certainly can tell when two people absolutely do not belong together. For instance, someone who says I must live in Manhattan matched with someone in New Jersey (Sean and Davina); someone who idealizes a manly man matched with a funny nerd (Sam and Neil); someone extremely afraid of dogs matched with someone who is in love with his giant dogs (Sonia and Nick), and don’t get me started on Jessica and Ryan. All of this to say, they have set most of the couples on this show up for failure by matching for ratings rather than anything else, including common sense, which is pretty reprehensible when you think about it.

Congratulations! My husband and I just celebrated our 20th anniversary in May. 40 years is impressive - maybe you should apply to be one of the experts? Pretty sure you have a better idea of what it takes to make marriage last than Dr. Pepper and crew! ;-p

I agree - Drew's actually coaching and not just offering encouragement. I remember earlier this season one of the girls was struggling to get up the wall and he was giving specific advice on how to push up to the top. He is definitely one of my favorites now which is surprising considering when I first started watching in Season 4 or 5 I loathed him! In the Stage 1 finals the other night Drew and Flip Rodriguez were both talking about how they used to compete to be the fastest finisher, and I think they have both matured since having an early exit because of rushing. They have both grown up a lot in the last few seasons. I enjoyed seeing them training together this last episode.

Or maybe the old adage "A broken clock is right twice a day". I think it's actually just dumb luck.

I don't remember that, but if it's true, it must be awkward now that he is dating Alyssa Beird!

Man that was sad. I can’t believe so many crazy falls! It broke my heart when Joe fell - I’ve loved him since I started started watching during the season of Kacy back when his obnoxious cousin also competed. What a bummer. And the women! Almost as sad about Alyssa and Flex! And what was up with the evening dresses?!!? I didn’t see video of all the guys posing in tuxedos - why are the female athletes doing that nonsense? Totally ludicrous and sexist! Jamie Rahn’s shoeless run is definitely top 10 all time memorable - helped make up for a night of so many shocking exits!

I don’t think he’s on the spectrum - he’s a finance guy. I am also an accountant and I get him. Generally type A, not touchy-feely. Cold hard facts. Basically the opposite of his wife. She needs a lot of validation and he is just not that guy. I wouldn’t be that person either. I think Amber is being ridiculous most of the time, but if I was committed to seeing this through I would have changed the way I deal with her and start vetting every word out of my mouth because every innocuous comment becomes a minefield that could blow up Amber’s insecurities. They both seem like decent people to me, but they are a disastrous couple.

I think she was trying to do this after the perfume comment when she snarked back, "Oh, I guess I should put some more on then" or something like that. It was actually the correct response and he laughed it off too. I think things would be better between them if she just responded that way to him. None of these "fantasies" measured up to last year's pole dancing episode with Shawniece and Jephte. Nothing can compare to Jephte raining bills down and Shawniece sliding down the pole and landing on her ass......