Some mornings I wonder what I will blog about.  This morning I wish I had time to blog about TOO many things!  My gardenia bush is filled with blooms and this morning the first one opened.  The smell of gardenias makes me high and I can believe how many of them I am going to have this month--just another reason I love the warmer months.  I have also gotten back in my swimming pool as of this past weekend.  Once I get in for the season, I like to try and get in at least every other day and do some laps as well as just float and let my muscles relax after a long day, a long week...a long winter!  Mitch came home with 2 new floats yesterday, so I will definitely be doing some relaxing of the body and mind on those.

But alas, today is the day after BL, and more specifically, the much anticipated make-over episode.  Can I say holy fn sh*t on my own blog?  I think I can.  The contestants looked fantastic and this was THE best make-over episode that I can remember.  I loved the texts and emails I got during the show last night!  Sam, Koli, Daris, Sunshine, Michael and Ashley ALL looked amazing.  Sunshine looked so incredibly stunning and exotic.  Daris totally blew me away with his new look.  Koli looked a little like Clark Kent with the glasses on.  Michael looked great without all the hair, but I was sad that he had to be alone shopping, still in the Big and Tall man's shop.  Having lost just short of 200 pounds, he cannot lose sight of how far he has come!  Ashely is a beautiful woman and I was relieved to see that I was wrong about them changing her hair color!  She was beaming...and Sam.  What can I say about Sam?  He is gorgeous, sexy, totally built and reminds me of The Rock (of wrestling and movie fame).

The challenge was a good one, but all that work for a one pound advantage??? Like Mitch said, couldn't it be a one pound advantage AND 10,000 bucks or something?  2 and half hours on jacob's ladder to hell and all Koli got was a one pound advantage?  Well, I shouldn't say that because he and Daris (who just gave up at that point) must have burned an enormous amount of calories during that challenge as they both had great numbers at the weigh in.  Clearly Koli did NOT need the advantage pound.

I was really excited for Ashely who lost double digits last night.  The weigh in did not go nearly as well for Michael and Sam who were both below the yellow line.  I watched the elimination with very mixed emotions.  Dreading the week Sam would finally have to go home (because he is so THERE in his weight loss journey but I didn't want to see him leave) I hated to think of Michael, who still has a good 100 pounds left to lose, home doing this on his own, yet.  I think it would have hurt his self-esteem and sabotaged his efforts.  In the end the contestants really did have to place themselves first and they sent the very strong competitor, Sam home.

Seeing him walking into the apartment he now shares with his new love and fellow contestant, Stephanie, was very touching.  Talk about lives being changed at the ranch!  I would imagine there is a very special bond between two people who meet in such extreme circumstances as they did.  They both looked incredible running and working out on the beaches of California and I can't wait to see them again at the finale.

I no longer have a favorite left on the show.  Koli showed a side I don't love in the past few weeks.  Sunshine is beautiful but I find she cries way too much.  Daris is great and I would love to see him go all the way, but after giving up last night after he was soooooooooo close, I don't know.  Ashely would make a good winner and still has a good amount of weight to lose in the final time at home.  Same goes for Michael, who makes us all a little crazy, but I did love him week 1 and picked him as my " first instinct," winner.  Time will tell.

Happy Cinco de Mayo.  Every day really is a holiday!